Blog Myths and Facts

By Harry Constantine

The are still numerous myths floating around the blogosphere and you really have to marvel at all the different information sources, many of them conflicting. So here are my debunkings:

The simplest of all people can start a blog. I don't think so! Though you don't have to be super technical when it comes to blogging, you still should know how to use the computer, need an Internet connection and blog hosts (free or paid), some experience using the Internet and most importantly a passion for writing and communicating your thoughts.

Anyone can set up a blog. This comes down to the blog hosts you are using. Some hosts get far more technical than the average user may be ready for. Some just require you to fill a one-step form and your blog will be set up in seconds!

Blogging is grade-school. When in comes to blogging, it's the actual writing that's the toughest nut to crack. The more engaged and knowledgeable you are with your subject, the easier and more interesting your writing will be.

Most blogs are political. Nope, only some. Many blogs focus on political topics but most blogs are just bloggers discussing their lives, loves and travels. A list of the 50 most visited blogs at BlogHub (http://www.bloghub.com/top50blogs.htm) shows very few political blogs.

Blogs are in competition with the main-stream media. This is true in a few cases (not as many cases as bloggers would have you think). Just recently, there have been some very popular and influential social and politically-oriented blogs that have caused main-stream media outlets to back-track and change their coverage of important events.

Bloggers just criticize and have no new information to add. This may be true in some cases but blogging today is much more than the personal activity it used to be. Corporations, media outlets, public personalities, politicians and experts in almost every field have now joined the ranks of blog producers. Considering all this expertise, one would have to say that bloggers have a lot of new information to add to any debate.

Not everything written on a blog is true. That's a bit of an overstatement. You'll run across bad information and even intentional untruths in blogs but, for the most part, bloggers who state facts are stating what they honestly believe to be fact. It is always up to the reader to verify that any information they receive is accurate information.

About the Author:

Get your free blog sites with revenue sharing at Com-x2.com and learn effective internet marketing and blogging tips at http://www.squidoo.com/internet-marketing-super-starter-tips

How to Make Money Blogging in 2009

By Harry Constantine

If you're serious about using blogging as a method of making money online, here are guidelines which point out the different options you have.

Step 1 - Find a Topic of Interest

Think of a niche or topic you are passionate about. This helps because you will be more committed to trying instead of giving up in a day or two. Make sure it is something other people are interested in too. To come up with your targeted keywords, you can use MetaSpy to find out what people are searching for by using MetaSpy, Ask IQ to find what's popular and VRE Toolbar to find out how many people search for the topic.

Step 2 - Setup Your Blog

There are many blogging platforms to choose from. Though it is always best to blog with a domain and a paid host, if you are new to blogging, I would advice you to start with a free blog at first like Blogger because there is so many things you have to learn.

You need to include the keywords in Step 1 in the content of your blog but try not to overuse them as it sends out bad impressions to the search engines

Step 3 - Go Google

Sign up for Google Adsense account and paste the generated javascript code into your blog html. Every time the page is accessed, the code will pull advertisements from the Adsense program. When someone click on the ad which resides on your blog, you get paid. However, Google doesn't disclose the exact revenue share or percentage that webmasters will earn.

Enabled Google Analytics on your blog by inserting a tracking code in the template of your blog. This way, Google's indexing bots can see every page of your site and tell you all kinds of information about the traffic you're receiving on those pages.

You may also want to submit your URL to Google's index.

Step 4 - Find Something to Sell

If you don't want to sell anything and are happy with the income Google Adsense is bringing in then you can skip this step. If you want to maximize your income and truly learn How to Make Money with Blogs you will want to find an affiliate program to join. A couple of affiliate programs I would suggest are ClickBank and Commission Junction. You can sell anything from office furniture, pet supplies, movies and clothing to PC games, Dieting tips and Audio software.

Whatever program you join will give you help inserting the code you will need to insert into your blog, but be sure you do this correctly or you WILL NOT earn money from your visitors. If you do not know how to edit HTML, W3Schools HTML tutorial is a great place to start.

Step 5 - Social Bookmarking

Social bookmarking sites like OnlyWire and SocialMarker are used for people to share their bookmarks or websites that they have liked with other people in their online community.

I would not suggest you add your own links to these services, but provide visitors to your website the ability to do so.

Step 6 - Write an Article

Whether your blog is about a specific product, for example a certain MP3 Player you are promoting, or just about giving people information, I would suggest you to write an article or a review of it. Most article directories require articles of 500 words and over so I would use this as a rule when writing to ensure your article is published.

Submit your article to any of the 100's which are out there. I personally use a few of the Top Article directories such as EzineArticles, Article Dashboard, Amazines.com, isnare and SearchWarp. I also use a nifty piece of software called Article Submitter which will submit your articles to over 600 article directories, which saves you lots of time and leaves you to focus on writing your blogs.

Whatever your blog is used for, it can help you out in a positive way. Blogging has definitely become professional in its use. So go out and start your blog!

About the Author:

Setup your own free blogs with revenue and unpack the basics and strategies of blogging at http://hubpages.com/hub/Blogging-Basics-for-Internet-Marketers

Starting A Garden Blog

By Charlie Reese

There are tens of millions of blogs online today and a goodly portion are devoted to the garden. Gardening is one of the most popular hobbies in the world and Americans are no different. Even gardeners with decades of experience can learn much from a good garden blog, so you might imagine the treasures for the novice gardener! One of the latest trends in blogging, on any topic, is to focus on a niche and the garden blogs are no exception.

While you'll also find blogs devoted to general gardening topics, there are also many which focus on a particular aspect of gardening. For example, one blogger might dedicate his attention to growing bonsais, covering every facet of the bonsai connoisseur's interests, from pruning and grafting techniques to containers and soil composition. On the other hand, the general type of garden blog might be your choice if you don't know much about gardening at all. The general type has information on heirloom seeds, greenhouse gardening, rose cultivation and soil preparation. This type of garden blog is typically divided into categories, so it's easy to find whatever information you seek. These can also help you find your own gardening niche " you'll know when you find yourself reading every post on greenhouse gardening and jumping into the forum fray to chat with other greenhouse enthusiasts.

So how do you go about finding a blog that suits your taste and interests? Google 'directories garden blogs' and go explore! Spend some time at each that looks interesting. Compare the quality of content and find ones with regular postings. If the blog is interactive, with plenty of reader's comments and has an active forum or message board, you might have hit the jackpot. As you find good ones, bookmark them and start making regular visits. Good garden blogs will have an e-newsletter. Go ahead and subscribe " they're free and provide lots of valuable information you might otherwise miss.

All bloggers know that they must provide outstanding and frequent content in order to stand out from the crowd and get regular readers. A good blogger may start out as an expert, but is always doing more research to give their readers the best and most up to date information as possible. So you can afford to be choosy " you're out to learn as much as you can about your particular gardening interest. If you find your favorite garden blog seems to be lagging, with less frequent posts or poor quality of information, just move on.

Reading garden blogs are a great way to spend a rainy winter afternoon, chasing away those garden blues. With your regular attendance at your favorite garden blogs, you can also become an expert in your own right!

About the Author:

Charlie Reese enjoys gardening and giving horoscope advice on his chinese horoscope love compatibility website weekly.