How To Create a Profitable Blog

There are so many tools out there online anymore that just about anyone can create a good looking blog. In fact, blogging is becoming the national past time – and a very popular way to make a little extra money. While many are still  doing it just for fun, there are those that aspire to that “6 figure blogging” reputation. Why not? Its start up cost is almost nothing and all it takes is your time. Or is it?

It looks to me that blogging for income will soon mirror the 2 out of 3 failure rate of new businesses. Actually, I don’t think the majority of new blogs will succeed for the same reason: Poor planning and lack of focus on how it will make money.

This is just one reason that teaching the basics of business to your teens is so important. The common mindset is “Just Do It”. It looks so fun, doing what you want, when you want, how you want. Why wouldn’t anyone want to have their own business or blog?

What happens when they have spent hours and hours buried online, pouring their heart and soul into what inevitable becomes a source of deep discouragement and frustration with no monetary return. Was it really so free? How much could they have had in the bank if those hours had even just paid him minimum wage? The “Build It and They Will Come” attitude doesn’t work any better with blogs than it does with a new business.

There are many that are very public with their opinion that you can’t make money blogging because they tried it and didn’t work, like Daniel Lyons, a talented blogger known for two years as “Fake Steve Jobs” (until Newsweek revealed his identity). In an excellent post by CopyBlogger, Daniel Lyons tell how he only made a little over $1,000 after a traffic spike of 250,000. If you can’t make money with that kind of traffic, he rationalizes, no one can succeed with a blog.

On the other side of the coin, there are many very successful bloggers that share their so called “secrets” and became successful doing just that. But that’s not the only way to succeed. Top bloggers like Darren Rowse with his photography blog will tell you he makes far more with helping those with their camera than he ever did helping beginner bloggers. I’m not sure it’s a secret or not, but there are some essential factors to actually making money with your blog.

CopyBlogger, in that same post referred to above, gives the cornerstone of any successful, profitable blog:

If you want to make money in the real world, solve real problems.

It’s sounds simple, and it really is-but most new bloggers don’t realize this. They jump into creating a blog on whatever suits their fancy. This is a sure recipe for failure.  That is, unless what suits your fancy includes helping others suit their fancy. You must have a plan and direct the purpose of your blog to something that will solve real world problem for your intended readers.

If you would like to transform your blog into a profitable blog, study other great bloggers. CopyBlogger is a must read. Of course you must apply the principles, and work at it like a job, but to make money online you have to make yourself useful. Make sure your vision includes a purpose that has income potential.

I agree and personally need to take CopyBlogger’s hard hitting command to heart:

It’s time for online business to grow up

I love that. When blogging first started, most blogs were personal diaries and people loved (and still do!) seeing inside other people’s lives. Now that Facebook takes care of that in a big way, personal blogs have gone back stage. Everyone wants information that will help them in some part of their life that bothers them, and there are a multitude of ways to serve that up. What can YOU do to help someone else?

CopyBlogger is one of my absolute favorite blogs because it is intensely useful. Take a look at his headlines and you will find yourself wanting to read every single one. (at least I do..) He knows what bloggers need (goes beyond want) and gives practical advice that works. Learn from one of the best, go to http://www.copyblogger.com/no-money-blogging/ . Another excellent place to gain a full blogging education is http://www.problogger.net/.

Do you have a favorite blog or one that has useful information on how to blog? Please share with us in the comments. I’d like to compile a list of great bloggers that share it all and we can all learn from – who do you think makes it to that list?

Secrets To Making Money Online by ProBlogger

You all know that I highly recommend all of Darren Rowse’s materials if you want to succeed as a blogger, and his website is a goldmine of information. I recently came across this video that I wanted to share with you:

Please share with us any ideas or (secrets) you might have to making money online with your blog. Thanks!

More From HomeschoolEntrepreneur

• 3 Ways To Test Your Business Idea
• How To Make Money Blogging-Intro
• A Free Way To Set Up Shop & Sell Your Products

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Turning Childhood Drawings Into a Business

Juliette Brindak loved to draw and at only 10 years old she conceived the characters that make up the Miss O series of books. She launched a website, http://missoandfriends.com/ that has been a huge hit with tweens. Watch the video, and start thinking homeschoolers. There is a vacant niche in the tween crowd, a very influential age. You may want to take a second look at some of the pictures your children are drawing…Juliette is only 19 and worth over 15 million dollars. Ask your tweens what they like to read about, or assign your teens a writing project that might have spoken to their heart a few years ago. You might be surprised what surfaces.

Unusual New Ideas For Start Ups

Springwise has been one of our favorite stops for business ideas (along with our all time favorite, Dane Carlsen’s Business Opportunities, a blog you must sign up for updates from!) and we have cited ideas from Springwise here several times before as a great place to fuel your entrepreneurial dreams. Actually, it’s probably more like food for thought, because many of the ideas are often so ‘out there’ that the homeschooler in us would shudder to think of trying to launch them.

For instance, the business idea for marketing ‘Living Grass’ or live bacteria as (!) a marketing medium (see: http://www.curbmedia.com/). Interesting, maybe-natural, of course. Do-able? Questionable, at least for an average entrepreneur that wants to work at home as a family.

This week Springwise has presented a few ideas that I thought were ‘do-able’  that you might like…some with a little added twist:

Re-Jigged – Taking the old and making it new again

Re-jigged is a UK company that “reclaims unwanted clothing and upgrades them with some signature stitchery for sale to new owners, so UK-based Re-jigged turns unwearable castoffs into bespoke, one-of-a-kind children’s clothing.” I saw this business as one that is perfect for the homeschool family – that is, if you have at least one member that is  talented in sewing, mending and creating.

Re-jigged is run from a farm in rural Herefordshire (UK), and in  partnership with EnviroAbility,  helps the firm source, wash, sort and arrange the clothing and process it as needed to accomplish their goals. EnviroAbility is a non-profit in the UK that appears to be somewhat similar to our Salvation Army or Goodwill here in the US.

In the US there are Goodwill Stores in almost every state and usually the central store in any area will sell you bags of clothing for pennies on the pound the clothes that aren’t sellable in their other stores within one month. Of course, there are many other sources of clothing discards that would be easy to find for practically nothing here in America, also. If you could efficiently re-purpose these discards into something worthwhile, you could do quite well selling what will be primarily your investment of time. Time is what it would take, along with a little ingenuity, but it was an idea I thought worth considering and IMHO, a business fitting for a homeschool family. Another Springwise discovered business that is similar is http://www.dothegreenthing.com/saved.

We Go Look – at things needing looked at!

WeGoLook is a concept that could catch on, while I’m still wondering how they find enough people to accomplish their goals. In case you’re wondering what they look at, it’s items on Ebay and Craigslist that are too far away for you to make a trip for-yet know it would be wise to SEE the item.

You could apply to be a ‘looker’, or consider a service of your own! See it in action at :   http://www.wegolook.com/

Vision Walks -  Giving tours for a living

Do you live somewhere interesting that you could offer a tour of? Maybe not one tour, but maybe group a series of interesting tours in your area? Be creative! Vision Walks utilize night vision goggles. What new technology could you use? An i-Phone maybe? Visit or take a look at Vision Walks for some possible ideas.

Ebay goes green – and maybe another GREEN opportunity?

Ebay’s Instant Sale, a new offering for used electronics, could be a way to recycle your old electronics…and maybe other electronics that you are able to round up. I haven’t read all the details, but thought it was worth looking into. Many people that I know have no idea what to do with their old electronic devices..maybe you can help others, the environment, and make some cash from home in the process.

go to: http://green.ebay.com/instantsale/

Are you a Foodie looking for an entrepreneurial outlet?

UpBox, “Gourmet Food in a Box”, is another UK company that is offering prepared food to go. A niche that may be a big UK hit. In the US, there are always opportunities to satisfy America’s take-out urges. UpBox is smart in targeting the upscale market, knowing that they have a little more pocket change to spare in this economy.

However, one niche in America that almost any non-poverty budget will spend a little extra on is healthy or organic food. I’ve often thought how valuable a delivery service would be for those that are too sick to go out to buy food, or to prepare their own. That’s when they need healthy food the most, but often resort to unhealthy alternatives out of the inability to manage anything else. We can’t forget that there is a big world out there that may not have family, friends or a church to help when sickness strikes. Many would pay a premium price for healthy food, prepared AND delivered. (a service that could also be a ministry!) This is also a needed service in our growing elderly community.

That’s not all!

You can read more about these new start-ups and more ideas that will boggle your entrepreneurial mind at Springwise.com. What are some unique business ideas that you have ‘spotted’ recently?

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Marketing To Homeschool Families? Try This Convention Hot Spot

So, exactly how many homeschool in America? In 2007, the National Center for Education Statistics (nces) estimated there were 1.5 million homeschool students in America. The Old Schoolhouse Magazine estimates there are currently over 2 million homeschool students. They both also estimate that the expenditure for each student is between $500-$600 each year. That translates to over one billion dollars spent on homeschooling each year. That’s a pretty healthy number that has peaked the attention of marketers everywhere.

The internet has truly leveled the playing field for everyone that wants to start a business. In addition, the homeschool in America is maturing, coming of age you might say. Choices in curriculum have multiplied exponentially and improved greatly along with information online. That doesn’t mean there isn’t room for more. Now that their children are grown, many moms are retiring from homeschooling and entering the market with what they know. These moms also have the advantage of knowing how to reach other homeschoolers – in an big way.

Of all the many places to reach homeschool families, one of the best ways to reach the largest number in a very short time is at a homeschool convention. If you have homeschooled very long, I would be surprised if you had not attended one by now. Giant halls filled with curriculum vendors and every homeschool product you can think of including healthy bread baking products!  Coupled with workshops and speakers to encourage and inspire you in your educational journey, it’s no wonder it’s the highlight of the year for most homeschool families.

Some areas of the country are much more active than others, but the hot spot seems to be in Cincinnati, Ohio. I’m sure California does pretty good, too, but for some reason it seems that the numbers for the convention in Ohio tops the charts. So, why Cincinnati, Ohio? It might be the central location in the heart of the Midwest where homeschooling thrives-hence more homeschool families.

I think the sheer size of the convention contributes to the draw, after all, bigger is better, right? Granted, the size of the convention won’t guarantee quality, but it will guarantee information overload! However, the super size of this convention does provide better funding for better keynote speakers and facilities. It makes a difference.

Regardless of the reason, the organizers of this mammoth event have recently added 3 more locations to their selection and now call themselves “Great Homeschool Conventions”. Next year there will be events in Memphis, TN, Philadelphia, PA and Greenville, NC in addition to the one in Cincinnati. Extremely affordable for any  homeschool family, it’s a great place to rent a table (booth) and share your homeschool-related product.

If you have never been to or done anything like this before, be sure to visit one before you actually take the exhibitor leap. Look at other exhibitors like yourself and see what catches your eye. You will come away with a zillion ideas, I promise! You may also want to start at a much smaller convention to get your feet wet.

There are several places to find conventions in your area. Your state or regional homeschool site always has the latest local information. If you aren’t sure of your local homeschool organization, HSLDA has a list you can find at http://www.hslda.org/orgs/default.asp

Ann Zeise’s Homeschool’s Cool has a page with event listings for many states.

My favorite place to find conventions is Great Stuff Convention Bags. It’s also a place to find a very cost effective method to “display” at the convention without actually going! You supply the flyer and they will include it in the goody bags made available (free) at your designated convention. I’m sure there are many conventions not included on Great Stuff’s list, so don’t assume it’s a catch-all convention listing.

If anyone knows of a comprehensive list of all conventions, please let me know. I thought there would be at least one website that had them all in one place, but did not find one. There is an idea for a blog!

Happy marketing!  (no links in this post are affiliate links, BTW)

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