Steering Toward Success
The business of blogging has been refined over the years. “How to†Websites such as ProBlogger, which Rhett used to learn the intricacies of starting a blog, and Technorati, a well respected Website that has been studying the blogosphere since 2004. Check out these quick tips to get you on your way:
Determine the appropriate platform. There are a number of free programs that allow users to start blogs. Rhett is in the process of moving her content from Blogger — a Google-hosted platform — to WordPress. “WordPress offers better SEO [search engine optimization] tools,†Rhett says. “I know a lot of people who, when they moved to WordPress, their SEO went up because of the tagging. WordPress is more specific. It has categories and tags. Blogger kind of lumps it all together.â€
If you already have a Website, you can incorporate a blog into the site through WordPress, Blogger, or another free program –Â or you can hyperlink a WordPress blog to your existing site.
Pay attention to traffic. Rhett and Benton focused on “search engine optimization (SEO),†a process of improving traffic to Websites via search engines such as Google. To help improve search ability, Rhett and Benton focused on key words, and tags — categories for which blog posts fit in — to allow readers to find their sites easier when searching for a subject via search engines. While traffic isn’t the single determining factor in generating advertising revenue, the ability to demonstrate growing traffic or a dedicated niche audience is attractive to advertisers, Reynolds says.
Consider an ad network. Finding an ad network can be as simple as doing a Google search containing your blog’s content and the words “ad networks.†And other ad networks may approach you and ask you to join their network. Research the terms of the deal before making a commitment. Will it allow you to be part of more than one ad network? Does the ad network require premium advertising space on your site?