10 Things I’ve Learned In 2 Years of Blogging
You sure learn a thing or two (or ten) after blogging for two years. These are my best blog tips and observations:
1. Many bloggers have an ‘ulterior motive,’ so to speak. While there are definitely lots of bloggers who blog as a pure hobby or to simply journal their thoughts, many others are hoping to make money from their blog – enough money to quit their day job. Some are hoping to become famous, to land a book deal, or to become experts in their field and land speaking engagements or their dream job.
I loved Brabara Swafford’s honesty in her post Our Blogs, Our Babies – Criticism Hurts, “I know many bloggers (including myself) would like to make a passive income from their blogs.”
2. Making money blogging – real money that would enable you to quit your job – is nearly impossible. It can happen, and it does happen, but in terms of how likely it is to happen to YOU, the odds are overwhelmingly against it.
3. Making money blogging is slightly more likely if you can start a large number of highly optimized niche blogs. This requires a lot of hard work and results are not guaranteed. You need to find niches that have a lot of Google searches, yet are not too competitive. They should also be about things that people would want to buy – otherwise monetizing would be hard.
Next step: start niche blogs covering those topics, fill them with unique, high-quality content that would be useful to readers, highly optimize your blogs for search engines, obtain legitimate backlinks to those blogs (this is the hardest part – easier if you create high quality content that people actually WANT to link to), and – once they’re indexed and appear high enough on the SERPs (search engine results pages) to send you decent traffic – monetize them with ads.
It’s a painfully slow process but if you do it right, and are willing to work hard for many months without seeing immediate results, it can work. You probably won’t make millions, but you can make decent passive income from niche blogs.
4. Starting a non-niche, unoptimized blog, where you share your thoughts with the world and allow your personality to shine through, CAN eventually get you to blogging super-stardom, in which case you will get millions of monthly page views and make good money from ads, from affiliate links or from speaking engagements. But you need to have an extremely unique voice sprinkled with a dash of luck and perfect timing, in order for that to happen.
We are all very special, each of us in her own unique way, but the vast majority of us will never become celebrity bloggers. That’s OK: there are other ways to make money blogging. But to avoid wasting time, it’s important to be realistic right from the start.
5. Your non-niche blog can be very successful and have a large following and you still won’t make enough money from it to quit your day job. You need serious traffic for that – at least 250,000 monthly page views. For the vast majority of bloggers, this is an unattainable number.
6. Correct linking is important. When I started out blogging, I used to link to other bloggers using their first names. It took me a while to learn that these links have little value. When you read something you like by another blogger, and decide to link to them, try to see if you can figure out what keyword they are trying to rank for in search engines, and link using that keyword as your link’s anchor text.
For example, if I link to my friend Davina using her first name, search engines will know to rank her high in the SERPs for “Davina” which is not very helpful. But if I link to her as a life coach, this tells search engines to rank her higher for that phrase. Since Davina is an excellent, down-to-earth, affordable life coach, I am happy to help her rank better in search engines for this term, because people who search for a life coach SHOULD be able to find her.
If you’re not sure about a blogger’s keyword, you can often find it in their blog’s Title Tag. It’s usually OK to link to a post’s title, by the way. Seasoned bloggers always optimize their titles.
7. The companies that want you to review their product or want to place their ad on your sidebar? If you have less than a quarter million monthly page views, they’re buying page rank from you, not ad space. Try telling them that you want to include a “no-follow” tag when you link to them, and you’ll see how quickly they evaporate. Google seriously frowns upon selling page rank, so you should think long and hard if what they offer to pay you is worth the Google wrath.
8. If you’re fairly good at writing, and can optimize posts for search engines and shamelessly promote yourself, a relatively easy way to make money blogging is to blog for others. I’ve been doing it since November 2008, and in 2009 I was able to earn a decent income from my freelance work despite the recession – still not enough to fully support my family, but enough to make a difference in our family’s finances.
9. Unimportant numbers: the number of comments you get on your posts; your number of subscribers. Important numbers: How much money you make each year from your blogging activities; how many hours you put into your blog. And of course there’s your level of enjoyment and satisfaction – blogging does provide a wonderful creative outlet and many bloggers enjoy it regardless of income.
10. Possibly the most important lesson I’ve learned over the past two years: when you publish a blog, criticism WILL follow. Unless you write the most mundane, boring, politically correct blog (but then why write it and why would anyone want to read it?) a blog is about voicing your opinions and providing commentary. Not everyone is going to like what you have to say and that’s OK. You do need to prepare yourself for the fact that criticism on the Internet is often extremely harsh – people allow themselves to attack others in ways they would never do in person. That’s because they are hypocrites and cowards, so you can just ignore them – especially if they attack you anonymously. When faced with such criticism, keep your cool, stay polite, and remember that the more vicious the attack, the more miserable the person behind it likely is. Personally, I’ve learned to just feel sorry for them.
Also, when you receive hate email, DON’T OPEN IT. Delete it permanently right away, and mark it as spam, so that future correspondence from that person will not even reach your inbox. You can usually tell that an email is hateful from the title – definitely from the first line. It’s tempting to keep reading, for sure, but it’s a waste of time and it’s toxic. So just delete it. This is my only criticism of Heather Armstrong’s “monetizing the hate” web page which is otherwise brilliant – it means she’s reading those blog posts and comments and emails, and I think she shouldn’t.
Before I wrap this up, I wanted to say something about the apparent disdain that some bloggers have towards bloggers who “blog for money.”
I blog for money. I love blogging for money. I love the challenge of getting my clients’ websites to rank better in the SERPs. I love the challenge of getting my own posts to rank high for my chosen keywords. I love building and strengthening my clients’ brands with high quality blogs and with vibrant social media accounts. I love the fact that I made enough money from the ads on this blog and from freelance blogging last year to make a real difference in my family’s finances. But I also love writing, and I love my readers, and I enjoy interacting with them (with you!)
I may not be a “pure” blogger, but I am a damn good blogger and I am very proud of my career changes, which I’ve accomplished all by myself, from a miserable lawyer, to a happy-yet-somewhat-bored stay at home mom, to an extremely busy and fulfilled professional blogger.
Can you offer any more blog tips?
Photo by John Loo
Filed under Blogging & Social Media —
Email This Post,
Subscribe To Comments, Trackback,
Subscribe Via 
Marelisa responds:
Posted: February 23rd, 2010 at 10:46 pm →
Is it your two year anniversary, Vered? Excellent! Congratulations! There’s absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to make money from your blog when you offer your readers and clients lots of value, as you do. There are two things I really wish I’d done differently when I started blogging: my URL (far too long) and the name of my blog (also too long). Oh well, live and learn.
And I agree with you that it’s best not to open hate mail. Why allow other people’s negative energy to affect you, even if it’s only in a small way?
Carla responds:
Posted: February 23rd, 2010 at 10:46 pm →
I wish I had more tips, but after almost two years, I’ve come up short.
To be fair to myself, my blog is an extension of my web store, so a lot of time goes into that, which takes time away from my blog. Maybe situations like mine, recruiting writers/bloggers would be the best way to go.
MomGrind responds:
Posted: February 23rd, 2010 at 10:59 pm →
Yes, Marelisa… about two years. We all make mistakes along the way! I’m not too crazy about “MomGrind” either… should have been “blogger for hire” but back then I had no idea.
Carla, since your focus in the main site and not the blog, I wouldn’t worry about it too much!
Ev`Yan | apricot tea. responds:
Posted: February 23rd, 2010 at 11:07 pm →
These are excellent tips, Vered. Thank you so much for reminding me of what’s important.
Also, your blog anniversary — if it is today — is days away from mine. Mine is the 25th! :]
Blog Tips | Blogger For Hire responds:
Posted: February 23rd, 2010 at 11:23 pm →
[...] Read the rest of this great post here [...]
Dominique responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 1:29 am →
Congrads on reaching your 2nd Anniversary. Blogging has really come a long way since it’s infancy. Great to know that you are doing well as a freelance writer/blogger. I have yet to really venture into that area.
Heather Villa responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 4:35 am →
Two years! Congratulations!
As for a tip –
Blogging is more enjoyable when you write what you love. Don’t try to be someone you are not. And if you can make a few pennies doing it, all the better!
Denise responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 6:28 am →
Two years. That really doesn’t seem possible!
This particular post fascinates me because it’s so completely different from what (and how) you blogged two years ago. As I consider the different voice and style, and see #9 about numbers that do and don’t matter, I’m wondering if you are enjoying blogging more today than you were two years ago?
Dr. J responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 6:47 am →
Thanks for this informative, and very interesting read, Vered! I’ve been blogging now for over two years, and, yes, it’s been an interesting voyage
I didn’t enjoy an early attack from commenters when I was first learning the ropes, but have really appreciated the many supportive moments from readers which have vastly outnumbered those early attacks. I did learn from that though, I hope, to find a kinder way of saying the same message, after all, with what I write about, reaching my readers with a helpful message is my goal.
janice | Sharing the Journey responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 6:56 am →
What a brilliant post, Vered. It’ll save a lot of new bloggers a lot of heartache.
Congrats on the two years! I’m really pleased you make a satisfying income from your blog; you deserve it. I wish more bloggers were up front about their desire to make money from blogging, passively or otherwise. That surge of authenticity would boost all aspects of their blogging. There’s been an Amazon bookshop in my pages and an ebook in my sidebar since I launched my blog, as a way of showing that my blog has a lot of functions. I’d recommend that new bloggers subtly, and with integrity, do the same thing right from the start. I’ve seen a lot of bloggers get sudden unpleasant comments from readers showing resentment when they offer a service or product designed to bring in income after building a readership based on sharing everything for free.
What I can’t stand is blogging that transcends healthy self promotion and sound business sense and becomes bloated, arrogant bragging or ego-driven, relentless pushy marketing. Self styled gurus don’t do it for me either.
Thanks, Vered, for keeping it real, and for always being vocal with your loyalty and support for consistently sound bloggers like Barbara and Davina.
MomGrind responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 9:55 am →
Ev’Yan, it’s hard to say because at some point I went back and deleted some of my earliest posts (decided they weren’t good enough..), but I know for sure that I started blogging some time at the end of 2/2008. Congrats on your own blog anniversary!
Dominique, if writing comes easily to you, freelance blogging is great. Of course, you need to deal with clients and deadlines, so there’s some stress involved, but that’s true for every career.
Heather, I agree! Theoretically one can create a blog in a profitable niche even if they have zero interest in the subject matter, but certainly when it comes to writing, writing about what you know and like (better yet, what you’re passionate about) is better.
Denise, YES! I absolutely enjoy blogging more now. I remember you saying in one of your blog posts, or maybe it was in a comment, months ago, that you didn’t care about receiving comments and I was like, “she can’t possibly mean it,” but now I know. Blogging is about so much more than comments, yet almost every beginner is completely obsessed with getting comments.
Dr. J, it’s been my experience too that there are far more kind, helpful people on the Web than miserable freaks.
Janice, I agree that there’s a fine line between monetizing one’s blog and becoming an arrogant money-making machine.
Sierra Black responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 10:35 am →
This is a great post – and perfect timing for me as a reader. My little mommyblog, ChildWild is just coming up on its first anniversary, and I’ve been looking at ways to help it make more friends (and dollars).
I do hope to make Grown-up Money writing. Not as a celebrity blogger with my personal blog, but through writing for other websites and magazine. ChildWild was a great leaping off point for me in getting a freelance career started after years as a stay-at-home mom. I’ve used the momentum and fresh writing clips from my own blog to land writing gigs at Babble, Get Rich Slowly and a few other sites. This year I hope my freelance earnings will equal my former salary as a newspaper journalist.
For me, having my own blog has been incredibly valuable because it keeps me motivated, focused and honest with my career. Also, as I get more professional writing work elsewhere, ChildWild remains the place I can write any damn thing I please. I think having one simple, personal blog can be incredible valuable as a first step for an aspiring writer, even if no one beyond your closest friends ever reads it.
Kim Woodbridge responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 10:50 am →
Wow! 2 years – time goes by SO fast …
Over time I’ve found that I care less about comments than I used to … I used to think that was the real measure of my blog being read and visited. Lately, I’m getting a lot less comments – because I don’t have time to comment very often – but a lot more traffic from search. Sometimes I almost wish I hadn’t decided to not advertise because I think at this point it would do pretty well …
Where does the 250,000/month number come from? Is that a baseline amount for a blog to make good money through advertising?
Nicole responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 11:09 am →
Congrats! Many great things can happen in such a short amount of time. Thanks for sharing your knowledgE with us.
Davina responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 11:20 am →
Hi Vered. Happy Blogoversary! Excellent advice about the hate mail — knowing it’s there would be enough for me. Why engage any further? There’s so much else to focus on, especially when you’re busy.
I love the idea of the keywords when linking to other bloggers. Recently I linked to a friend who writes a sushi food blog and I used “sushi food blog” as the link. It gets over 11 Million searches on Google. I just checked now and was even more surprised to discover that her blog is number one on the list; I hadn’t noticed that then. Speaking of links Vered, thank you for the link in this post. Much appreciated. Congrats on a successful two years. You go girl!
Bamboo Forest - PunIntended responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 12:56 pm →
Your advice on not opening hate mail seems really wise to me. I mean, it’s one thing if it’s constructive criticism or a strong opinion, quite another if it’s hate filled.
I can not understand anyone having any problems with bloggers who constant churn out free content to want to make a buck or two from their hard work. Would these same people get annoyed when artists strive to make money from their paintings?
Tara@Sticky Fingers responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 2:44 pm →
I have no more to add except to say I’m really really glad I found you in my early days of blogging. I think you’re really really good at blogging too x
Barbara Swafford responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 2:59 pm →
Hi Vered,
Happy Anniversary. Can you believe it’s been two years. If I remember correctly, we found each other shortly after you started blogging and I must say, it’s been a joy to be part of your community, just as it is to have you a part of mine.
Many bloggers seem to feel ashamed to admit they want to make money with a blog. Why? I’m not sure, but making a few dollars off of ads or affiliate links is small compared to all the time we invest in sharing our knowledge. It’s really no different than if we were to get paid for writing a book. I like what you’ve done. You’ve used your blog as a stepping stone to a career as a freelance blogger. Not only does you blog act as your resume, it continues to be a place where you can interact with your cyberfriends.
I really like this post. Having two years of blogging behind you; you’re able to “tell it like it is”, from experience. No sugar coating. Just the way it should be.
P.S. Thank you for the link love. I truly appreciate it.
Patricia responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 4:10 pm →
You are really good at blogging and it just fits you to a T. Making money and making you happy, that is the worth of the experience. Happy 2 year anniversary.
Now I am going to attempt to put one of your suggestions into practice.
Sheri responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 4:34 pm →
I wish someone had told me all of this on my first day online. It would have saved me hours and hours of experimenting and learning. I think you did a fabulous job of being honest and telling it like it is. Great job.
Stephanie - Home with the Kids responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 5:50 pm →
Happy blogiversary!
I always love it when people admit that earning a living online is hard work. There’s so much hype out there that it’s good to see honesty. Even though it’s a lot of work, it’s also a lot of fun to blog. You just never know what posts will be popular or what people will say.
MomGrind responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 6:24 pm →
Sierra, “as I get more professional writing work elsewhere, ChildWild remains the place I can write any damn thing I please” – I completely relate. After all these months and despite having far less time to invest in this blog than I would like, I still love MomGrind.
Kim, I don’t think the 250K is set in stone or anything, but I remember reading somewhere that this is roughly what it takes to get into the better ad networks and make real money. Oh, and I totally think you should try advertising. At least give it a try – you can always change your mind.
Nicole, thank you.
Davina, I’m not surprised at all. A few quality anchored links (that use the correct anchor text) is all it takes to make a real difference in a site’s ranking.
Bamboo Forest, I don’t get it either. I guess if the blogger stops providing quality content and publishes a post after post of paid reviews that could get annoying, but as long as they keep providing quality – I can’t see what’s wrong with monetizing.
Tara, THANK YOU!
Barbara, there’s a handful of people I’ve been cyberfriends with almost from the start and you’re one of them. I deeply value the friendship and support.
Patricia, thank you and good luck!
Sheri, “I wish someone had told me all of this on my first day online” – me too!
Stephanie, it’s hard work and a lot of it is unpredictable – but yes, it’s a lot of fun too, especially if you enjoy writing.
Diana responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 7:12 pm →
Happy 2nd anniversary Vered. I would have thought it was longer. You are one of the first blogs I RSS’d.
I don’t think trying to make comments and/or subscribers unimportant to me is going to work. After one entire year of blogging I have 3 subscribers. One of those showed up this week, and the other two may be my 2 daughters!
I recently removed a post that was bringing me scores of accidental views because of a popular set of keywords. I was afraid it was skewing my stats. Well, I guess you know what happened. My stats fell on the floor. I admit I am depressed about it. When I write, I feel like I am talking to someone personally, but then, when few people read it, I feel like I am reading it aloud on a street corner amidst car horns.
I guess I have to admit that I had hoped to have more company than I have in real life. It was hard to accept that it wasn’t happening. But for a while there, I really thought I was popular! Ah, those false friends, keywords…
Kelly@SHE-POWER responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 8:25 pm →
Happy anniversary! Two years is a long time in blogging land. Most bloggers I started with 2.5 years ago have come and gone, so what you’ve done is a huge achievement. And as you say, you have used this site to launch a whole new career – that’s very exciting. I know I haven’t learned anywhere near as much as you have about blogging, Vered. You have some great tips here. Linking and SEO is definitely something I know very little about. I think if I ever decide to relaunch SHE-POWER and treat it as a commercial or promotional venture, I shall have to hire you. In the mean time, I’ll keep plodding away pleasing myself.
Lori Hoeck responds:
Posted: February 24th, 2010 at 8:26 pm →
Hi Vered,
Happy Blog Anniversary! Your site has always been a special place filled with intriguing thoughts and captivating topics.
Thank you for tips #6 & #7. Tips #9 
 sound hard-won. Blogging is an interesting journey, no doubt about it.
Best advice? Blogging is something you just have to do to really understand. There is great advice everywhere, but it all makes sense the longer you travel the journey.
Kelvin Kao responds:
Posted: February 25th, 2010 at 1:21 am →
Happy blog anniversary! You know, MomGrind is not a bad name. It has an angle and a personality. On the other hand, I probably wouldn’t have paid as much attention if your blog is called “Vered – blogger for hire” or anything along that line. But then again, that’s just me.
Barb Hartsook responds:
Posted: February 25th, 2010 at 7:34 am →
Hi Vered — and a big bouquet of garden roses to you!
Your post is just exactly what I needed to read today. I scrolled through every word — including all the comments — in the wee hours this morning while my coffee brewed. Tiny words on my phone’s screen, they pack a wallop of encouragement to me. (Yes, I really did click onto your site from my email before the computer had time to boot up.)
THANK YOU!
MomGrind responds:
Posted: February 25th, 2010 at 10:04 am →
Diana, my 2 cents: learn about SEO so that Google indexes your blog posts correctly, for the keywords you WANT to be found for, rather than randomly.
Start here:
Begginers’ Guide to SEO
It takes many months, but you will slowly, very slowly, see more and more page views from search engines.
You should also get backlinks to your site, and the best way to do that is to keep writing quality material and promote it on social media (Twitter for example). If it’s really good, other sites and blogs will want to link to it. There are other ways to get backlinks, such as creating Hub pages (hubpages.com), squidoo lenses (squidoo.com) and submitting articles to article directories such as goarticles.com and ezinearticles.com, but to me these seem like the hard way to get links – I always prefer natural link building via creating awesome content.
Good luck!
MomGrind responds:
Posted: February 25th, 2010 at 10:09 am →
Kelly, I love your blog and your writing style. I do think that anyone who writes online could benefit from learning and implementing basic SEO techniques. It’s simply about making sure search engines index your posts correctly – it’s a good thing, because it helps people to find your content.
Lori, “Blogging is something you just have to do to really understand.” Very true. I know that some colleges now teach blogging and social media classes, but this is one area where hands-on experience is crucial.
Kelvin, I know what you mean – MomGrind is short and interesting and catchy. It’s just that in terms of SEO, a URL that includes my main keywords would have been better.
Barb, glad you enjoyed your morning reading.
Diana responds:
Posted: February 25th, 2010 at 12:48 pm →
Thanks for the advice Vered. You should know, though, that when you start saying things like backlinks and hub pages, my eyes glaze over. I may be that I am too old to want to learn new tricks! (I spent 20 years in design and publishing, learning everything I know about computers and software on my own) Ah, I would love to hire someone to do the tech blogging stuff.
I will go read the article (eyes rolling like a teenager who doesn’t want to clean her room)
MomGrind responds:
Posted: February 25th, 2010 at 2:13 pm →
Hehe I know what you mean. But if you want people to find your blog, you will have to learn at least the basics.
Diana responds:
Posted: February 25th, 2010 at 2:15 pm →
Thanks, MOM
Sierra Black responds:
Posted: February 25th, 2010 at 2:19 pm →
Vered, What do you think about Scribe? I admit I tried to read the article you linked to and my eyes glazed over too – I’m just not a techie. Scribe offers to do everything for you, right in WordPress, and it shows you what its doing. At $27 a month, Scribe is a pretty spendy service for me, but I’m thinking about signing up for a few months and treating it like an SEO class.
MomGrind responds:
Posted: February 25th, 2010 at 2:31 pm →
I can’t give an opinion on Scribe because I haven’t tried it. I can tell you that personally, I refuse to pay for anything that I can learn to do by myself.
By the way, I don’t consider SEO to be hard or “techie” at all. I think it is easy and straightforward, and once you start writing with SEO in mind, it can be really fun to see search engines respond and index your blog posts the way you want them to.
Jannie Funster responds:
Posted: February 25th, 2010 at 4:53 pm →
Hi Vered! 2 years, cool. I hope you never stop blogging. I’m for sure in it for the long haul, and would miss you terribly if you ever decided to call it quits.
As to number 1 and ulterior motives, I have noticed some bloggers come to comment in Funsterland ONLY when they are up for some award, or something. Not interested in real give-and take blogging friendships. Gee, could they be any more transparent with those visits??
As to 6, I learned that important one from you, maybe a year ago. I wish all bloggers could know how to link properly.
Subscriber amount – I don’t know about you, but about 50% of mine have been spammers, so if other blogs are experiencing the same thing, I think subscriber amounts are just hooey these days!
One thing I’d add to your list is what Darren Rowse repeats over and over – “Add Value To Peoples’ Lives,” be incredible useful. Or as you say, have a unique shining personality!
Oh, and this was the first time I checked out your port folio! Impressive! You’ve worked very hard and deserve all you’ve earned.
xo
Rowe responds:
Posted: February 25th, 2010 at 10:09 pm →
Some good advice, Vered. I’m thinking perhaps Dooce reads the hate mail to learn more about people, strange as that may sound. I think it’s good to face one’s critics and use the criticism as a yardstick to ask oneself, is this true or false? If false, one can say pah; if true, one can use it as a weapon of change (if necessary). Personal attacks are another category, though, I would press delete, they are like you say, cowardly.
I say good luck to anyone who makes money from their blog, no need to be jealous. There is one commercial blogger I know of who is currently copping a lot of criticism from her regular readers who are threatening to leave her blog because she is scrutinising comments to the point of deleting comments if she does not like or agree with them. The trouble with this particular blogger, the way I see it, is she puts topics up for discussion but won’t fully commit to her position on a particular issue i.e. she won’t say exactly what she thinks. I find that annoying and I think it has to do with the sponsorship side of things, does not want to upset the advertisers.
gifer responds:
Posted: February 27th, 2010 at 5:43 am →
very good explaination…thanks
Michelle @ Find Your Balance responds:
Posted: February 27th, 2010 at 12:30 pm →
Good advice. I don’t plan to make money from my blog directly, but I do make money indirectly by establishing myself as a resource and expert in my field.
Lawyer Mom responds:
Posted: February 27th, 2010 at 5:49 pm →
Only two years you’ve been blogging? Boy, are you a fast study! Wow. I wouldn’t have the first idea how to “optimize” a title, but that’s okay. Most things I don’t have a clue about.
I’m glad you don’t read the hate mails. I remember your post a few weeks ago about “fat acceptance” . . . whew did some of those commenters turn vicious. Good for you for keeping a thick skin. And thanks for the tips.
MomGrind responds:
Posted: February 27th, 2010 at 6:32 pm →
Jannie, I can’t say I’ll never stop blogging – I’m sure it could happen – I could tire of it and find something else to do – and I’m pretty sure I’ll still be very happy and fulfilled. But right now blogging, personal and professional, is a big part of my life.
Rowe, Armstrong’s “hate” page contains personal attacks that stem from jealousy rather than constructive criticism. But maybe she truly doesn’t care.
Michelle, a blog is a great way to establish yourself as an expert. Several of my clients are using their blogs this way.
Lawyer Mom, this post has been sitting in draft form for several weeks now. I added the tip on cyber hate after the fat acceptance folks decided that personal insults are the best way to “educate” me about their “cause.” After I closed comments on that post they started sending emails, which I deleted right away. So I walk the walk.
danx0r responds:
Posted: February 27th, 2010 at 7:54 pm →
Congrats on your anniversary! I’ve just started yet another blog with a new friend. We’re not in it for money — it’s more about spreading the word on some interesting ideas. However I think the basic philosophy and the practical advice you mention are probably still very relevant. Admittedly, we do hope that some day what we’re talking about could be more central to our lives, so in a sense our goals are not that different than yours.
-dan (aka Artiphys)
danx0r responds:
Posted: February 27th, 2010 at 7:55 pm →
haha, see I’m terrible at this — didn’t even mention the blog URL: builtuniverse.wordpress.com. I doubt we have much potential overlap in readership, but hey, you never know!
MomGrind responds:
Posted: February 28th, 2010 at 12:33 pm →
Hey Dan, congrats on the new blog and good luck! I agree – probably little overlap in readership though.
Lance responds:
Posted: February 28th, 2010 at 8:57 pm →
Vered,
First off – I have to agree with you. You are an amazing blogger, and while I haven’t visited as much recently, know that I look to you as an expert in many of the skills behind successful blogging. Of course, what is “success” to one person isn’t to another. Still, the point here – I value very much the words you share. Today, I’m especially liking what you have to say about linking – something I am probably doing a poor job at. So – great information for me right there! And the rest…it is all so good….
J.D. Meier responds:
Posted: March 1st, 2010 at 11:55 am →
Beautiful tips and I think you hit a precious one … the number of hours you spend on your blog. Whether it’s purely for personal satisfaction or for monetization, I think it’s important to be mindful as you spend your time budget so it’s always a conscious trade-off.
Dot responds:
Posted: March 1st, 2010 at 3:06 pm →
Did you know Dooce is going to be on HGTV now? The ad I saw had her saying she was “delighted” to be on HGTV. And HGTV must have said, here’s a list of words you can’t ever, ever say.
It’s great that you’ve found something you love! Congratulations on two years — it seems like such a short time. I’ve always enjoyed MomGrind, so don’t knock the content, but if it’s not what you want, at least it helped you find what you really want to do right now. I imagine that, too, will evolve over time. The main thing is, you’re in control of your life.
John Hoff - WP Blog Host responds:
Posted: March 1st, 2010 at 5:22 pm →
Excellent list, I’ll be stumbling it when I’m done with the comment.
To add to the list, I’d say “time”. What’s blogging cost us? Time.
Time away from the family
Time away from the couch
Time away from hanging out with friends
etc.
If there’s one thing blogging has taught me, it is that time is a precious thing.
MomGrind responds:
Posted: March 1st, 2010 at 9:17 pm →
Lance, it’s true – we’re not keeping in touch as much as we used to, but the respect is mutual.
J.D., exactly – because it IS a tradeoff.
Dot, no, I didn’t know. Heather Armstrong deserves all the success she can get. She’s truly one of a kind. I do enjoy writing this blog. It’s the best part of being a blogger – self-expression.
John, so true. Also time away from being outside and physically active, which is a big priority for me. So yes, one has to prioritize and when it comes to professional blogging, to know when to say “no” to new clients.
Tess The Bold Life responds:
Posted: March 2nd, 2010 at 8:48 am →
Vared,
I’ve heard that about linking the question is how did I forget it…so thanks for the reminder! I love your blog and how you challenge us to be more aware of advertising. Congrats for your birthday, for your honesty on what is important and what is not, and for making money on your blog! Woo hoo!
Keith Davis responds:
Posted: March 3rd, 2010 at 12:26 pm →
Hi Vered
Gloomy news on the making money front, but good to hear that you are able to make money writing for others.
As the title says, you have been blogging for about two years, which is not really a long time but thanks for letting us know what you’ve learned. Forewarned is forearmed.
Notice John Hoff mentions the time we spend blogging… something for us all to think about!
MomGrind responds:
Posted: March 3rd, 2010 at 12:58 pm →
Thank you, Tess!
Keith, two years feels like an eternity.
It’s a lot of hard work, and yes, keeping the balance is crucial.
Walter responds:
Posted: March 3rd, 2010 at 6:02 pm →
I have been blogging for nearly 8 months and I want to thank you for sharing the important things I have to consider. Frankly, I also want to earn money from blogging but my primary motive is to allow the expression of my creativity.
Still, there is one virtue I kept telling myself at everything I do:
“Everything is created twice, first in the mind, then in reality. Limitations is only in the mind and impossibility is just its illusion.”
MommyNamedApril responds:
Posted: March 4th, 2010 at 7:20 pm →
fantastic article! i love making passive money from my blog. it’s not much but it’s totally a bonus because i’d be blogging regardless of whether it came with a paycheck.
Lana responds:
Posted: March 5th, 2010 at 11:08 pm →
That is very good information. I’m blogging for 3 months and I have only one follower, my hubby:o) Mainly I’m blogging to earn and share my experiences with kids. Being an expat abroad the earning part is reeeeealy hard.
I’m glad that I bumped to your post:o)
oceanlu responds:
Posted: March 7th, 2010 at 7:22 pm →
For most blogger, I think these ten tips help a lot especially when they try to monetize their blogs. The thing is it isn’t easy to do that. Traffics are hard to get because you have to find proper keywords whereas a good niche is just like looking for a needle in a haystack
Julie responds:
Posted: March 10th, 2010 at 3:39 pm →
Vered, congratulations on your two very successful years! I want to add a sincere thank-you for being such a strong voice and sharing your knowledge and wisdom with us. You are wonderful teacher. …caring, succinct, and helpful in providing resources. You are much appreciated!
MomGrind responds:
Posted: March 10th, 2010 at 6:08 pm →
Thank you Julie!
Bloggers Are A Lazy Apathetic Bunch responds:
Posted: March 16th, 2010 at 12:39 am →
[...] ever done. A lovely professional blogger by the name of Vered, who incidentally shares some great blog tips, shared my article on Stumble. I watched on as more and more people Stumbled the article. Over the [...]