The business of blogging is a way for writers to make money online and has become a profitable business model. Writers can easily start a thriving blog business online without the hassles of traditional brick and mortar startups.
The benefits of starting a blogging business include: low overhead costs, little to no employees needed, location freedom, software and equipment leasing is little none. With a few simple preparations (domain name and hosting for a website) to market samples of your work, pricing, and contact information, your only other necessities would be access to a computer with internet; fairly quickly, you can be up and running and ready for business.
Getting Started
The first thing you want to do is have a plan. Although very little resources are needed to get your blogging business started, you do however, need to have a plan to ensure you get the most out of your business and efforts. I have provided a small list of things to consider before getting started:
Do you have any subject matters in which you are knowledgeable or skilled? If so, which would be your best writing asset?
- Do you want to be a general writer or specialize in specific topics and subject matter?
- Will your writing serve as your sole source of income or will you supplement your income by writing copy to promote and sell products for advertisers or affiliate products?
- Do you want to work with customers one-on-one or would you prefer the security of working within a network like oDesk.com or Elance.com who provide a structured platform for contractors to market themselves and work to customers within those networks?
- Do you want to focus your customer base towards consumers or business owners?
- Do you want to focus on a single niche or is your goal to franchise into multiple niches?
Time is Money
In the blogging business, you have to be conscious of time. Time is money, whether you are paid by the article or per work, you want to avoid spending too much time in one place or within the learning curves of foreign topics, especially in your intial stages. You want to choose subject matter that you are somewhat familiar with and will allow you to research and write as quickly as possible. Once you’ve learned and mastered the basics of that subject matter and craft, you can always stretch out later into new genres of interest and take on longer and larger assignment that may require in-depth hours of your time in research and writing.
Yes, as you can see there are several areas to consider before you begin. You certainly do not want to start your business without direction or at least the right path that will enable you to excel in your business and sustain throughout the long haul without crashing or burnout.
Creating Value
Whether you choose to freelance for others or create a blog of your own, you always want to make sure you are creating substance and produce value. Be it for the reader, advertisers, your blog or customers, both your and your customer’s purposes is to generate profit and produce success. Your writing will serve as the vehicle that sells the idea, or bedazzle the product or service; the end user experience should be – satisfied customers. This is the experience that wins and adds value that no one can deny.
What are the secrets to success? There is no one formula or one size fits all business plan, therefore, be aware in advance, strategy involves versatility and the willingness to try different ideas while manicuring the perfect plan that works for your business; there are many blog businesses owners that have proven writers can be successful and can make a profitable living in the online arena.