If you are interested in breaking into other ways of making money online (outside of freelance writing) you should consider learning about the keywords that pay the most. In turn, this will allow you to create niche blogs or sites around these topics. Although this information can be hard to come by if you are searching on your own, there are tools that you can use to your advantage.
Most recently, I checked out the list of “999 High Paying Keywords†at peomedia.com. Although you have to subscribe to the blog’s feed in order to receive this list, most agree that it is well worth the time. To go along with this, you will also receive other freebies such as a case study on how to earn big time money with Google AdSense.
Out of the 999 keywords on the list, chances are that you can find a few that pertain to a blog or site that you already manage. While you may not be able to incorporate all of the highest paying keywords into your blog’s content, finding a few is more than possible.
All in all, anytime that you can get information like this for free, you might as well move forward. I have yet to use most of the keyword lists that I have compiled over the past few months, but you never know when they will come in handy.Â
From what I have read, as well as my own findings, there are two ways to look at the number of blogs or websites that you own. First off, you can attempt to start one or two “major players†and put all of your time and effort into them. Your other option is to start several websites, and build out from there.
Obviously, there are pros and cons to each way of doing things. Let’s take a look at owning one or two main sites. The nice thing about this is that you will not have to spend time updating an abundant amount of sites. To go along with this, you can concentrate all of your free time on one site. In turn, this focus should help success to come sooner rather than later. The downside of this, if you are interested in making money, is that you will have to turn one big site into your revenue generator. Many feel that starting one main revenue generating stream is more difficult than several smaller ones.
On the other side of things, managing a group of blogs or websites has its own set of benefits and drawbacks. The main benefit is that you can earn less with each one, and when added together it can make for a solid income. On the other side of things, do you really have enough time to update a network of sites? For instance, could you effectively manage 10 blogs? Some people say yes, and if this is their full-time job they may be right. But jumping from one site to the next, and keeping track of all the details, can make for a difficult time.
Personally, I am divided on this subject. At this time, I have less than 10 sites, but am quickly closing in on double digits as more and more of my projects get finished. This is not a huge problem because I feel that I have enough time to manage them. But at the same time, I suppose that drawing the line is in the near future.
With all of that in mind, how many blogs or websites do you manage?
Although I do not spend much time considering the PageRank of this blog, it has come to my attention that Google is in the middle of an update. Since this blog is new, it is still at PageRank 0 at this time. Is this going to change sometime in the near future?
By scouring the blogosphere for a few hours this morning, I came across several posts by bloggers who are using the iWebTool Google PageRank Prediction tool. From what I read, this tool is pretty accurate; being correct 9 out of 10 times for the most part.
Since it only takes a few seconds to use this tool, I gave it a whirl. It is showing ChrisBlogging as having a Current PageRank of 0. The predicted PageRank, whenever this happens to occur, is 4; which is quite good for a new blog. The accuracy is shown at 87.9%, and the backlinks number is showing 3,342.
If this tool ends up being accurate, I will be ecstatic. When it comes down to it, a PageRank of 4 is sure to increase search engine traffic, while also giving me more clout when moving forward with future advertising options.
Of course, despite what some webmasters say, tools such as this one have no way of being 100 percent accurate. After all, Google is not going to make it easy for anybody and everybody to accurately predict this type of information.
There is no way of knowing when Google will update the PageRank of this blog. All I do know is that the updates are taking place at this time. Even though I am not too concerned with PageRank, it would be nice to see an increase in time.
Have you ever given any thought to purchasing a website that is already established? Personally, I think that this is a good alternative to starting on your own from scratch. Of course, there are some pros and cons to buying a website as opposed to developing on your own.
First off, let’s take a look at the benefits. Number one, when you buy an established website you will have an idea of the type of traffic and revenue that it is capable of. This type of information can be quite useful when determining how much money you are willing to spend.
Another benefit of buying a website that has been around is that you can ask questions of the past owner. He or she will be able to tell you what to expect, what they have done right, what they have done wrong, and much more. Obviously, when you develop on your own you are diving into the unknown.
The biggest downside of buying an established website is that you will have to pay a premium price. In most cases, websites will sell for 10 to 12 times their monthly income, on average. So if you want to purchase a website that earns $100/month, you can expect to pay anywhere from $1,000 and up. Of course, this can change based on a number of factors such as traffic, recurring income streams, and overall potential.
To go along with paying a premium, buying an established website means that you will not get to watch it grow from day one. Many webmasters love the thrill of growing a site from the ground up. If this sounds like you, buying sites that have been around may not suit your needs.
I have never purchased a website; all of mine have been developed by me from day one. But with that being said, I am considering the benefits of buying in the near future. Now that I have enough income to purchase some solid sites, it may be advantageous to spend a bit more money up front in return for built in traffic and revenue.
If anybody has suggestions on what to consider when buying an established website, please let me know via comment or email. And of course, if you have a website or blog for sale, let me know!Â
One of the biggest problems that I have when it comes to business is jumping ahead of myself. In other words, I want instant gratification. But as you well know, this is not the way that things work in the business world; at least not most of the time.
In the cases that I have been patient my businesses have flourished. The number one example of this is the resounding success of my freelance writing career. If I would have given up after the first month (when I made $52), who knows what type of job I would have at this time. The same thing holds true for this blog. Even though I am not getting loads of traffic, it is increasing steadily. And along with this my income is doing the same. I am hoping that in another few months things will be even better in both the areas of traffic and earnings.Â
It can be difficult to stick with a business opportunity when it is not working the way you had hoped. After all, who wants to waste time on something that may not end up a success? It is important to believe in your idea, and give it enough time to work out. Quitting takes all your problems and gets rid of them. But at the same time, quitting also gets rid of any chance you have of success. And if you are not set up for success you will have no chance of achieving it in the future.
How much time are you willing to devote to growing your business or blog? Make sure that you take enough time to give every opportunity your all. If you work on a business for a year and you do not see any results, it may be time to move on. But all in all, until you give each opportunity a fair shake, you will have no idea what could have come.
There used to be a time when calling a client was pretty much the only option that you had. But in today’s day and age, email has pretty much taken over. With that being said, you do not want to become overly obsessed with using email as opposed to good old phone conversations.
Believe it or not, I have worked with some clients for a couple of years without ever talking to them on the phone. I initially touched base with them via email, or vice versa. From there, everything has been emails back and forth. And to tell you the truth, this seems to work out fine in most cases; especially if your client is based in another country.
I have also discovered that making a call to a client is not a bad idea; even if you have never spoken to them in the past. When you call a client you are doing two things. First off, you are giving them a voice to put with all of the emails that you send. This is a great way to personalize your email correspondence. Additionally, when you call a client it really shows them that you care. This is not to say that you need to carry on a long conversation, but calling to check in or say hello is a good idea.
As a freelance writer, my primary mode of communication is email; there is no denying this. Personally, I love communicating via email because it is quick, and sending work back and forth is a cinch. But in order to make your working relationship even more valuable, you will want to consider calling your clients sooner or later. They will definitely appreciate you taking the time to do so. And in many cases, this will help you to garner more work from the client in the long run!
Even the most knowledgeable workers in every industry do not know everything about their particular niche. The fact of the matter is that everybody has limitations no matter if they are a freelance writer, engineer, website designer, etc. It would be nice to have no personal limitations, but this is not the way of the world. Of course, you can cut back your limitations through experience and skill building, but even then you will find yourself hitting walls time after time.
As a freelance writer I am well aware of my limitations. In other words, I know what I can and cannot do. And of course, the things that I cannot do are the ones that I work hard on when time allows.
For instance, I am very limited when it comes to writing about the fashion industry. I have done this a bit in the past, but with little success. With that being said, I am interested in breaking through this limitation because it seems like a fun niche to get involved with.
Another example would definitely be my technical limitations within the field of blogging. As I mentioned a few posts back, I am starting several new blogs in the near future. Due to technical limitations, this has led me to hire a contractor for uploading WordPress themes and plugins, and also in the area of search engine optimization. As you can imagine, if this were a limit that I did not have, I would be saving a lot of money with this expansion into new blogs.
Once you are aware of your limitations, you will find that you work much more comfortably. Remember, there is nothing wrong with admitting that you are a bit behind in some areas. If I continually told myself that I could tackle the technical aspects of blogging, mistakes would be coming up time after time. Instead, I have owned up to this shortcoming, and am working to fix it.
The best thing you can do is to become aware of your limitations, no matter what they are, and then work to turn them in your favor.Â
Have you ever been asked to do an interview with a website, print publication, or any other type of media? If not, you should be prepared if and when the day finally comes. After all, turning down a request for an interview is never in your best interest; unless you have tons and tons of offers, of course.
Over the past five years or so I have probably been interviewed 100 times or so. As of late, this number seems to be adding up quickly thanks to my success as a freelance writer and author.
So what can an interview do for your career, you may ask? While this will differ based on your situation and who interviews you, there are some things that seem to be consistent with me.
First off, it always seems that one interview leads to another; this is especially true if you do a good job the first time around. Once people in your industry begin to become aware of who you are, you will quickly become a hot commodity. Sometimes you will get a few interview requests per week, and other times you will go through a cold period.
Of course, interviews can help to increase your success and hopefully your profits. After you complete a good interview, you are sure to get inquiries about your career, etc. And in many cases, you will benefit without having to do a thing. For example, my most recent interview by Create Business Growth has sent a bit of traffic to this blog. Of course, this is only going to pick up in the days to come. My hopes are that this leads to more RSS subscribers, regular readers, and maybe even some new work.
Anytime that somebody requests an interview, you should not have to think twice. Unless you have a very good reason for it, take the time to answer a few questions. This will benefit you in more ways than you ever imagined. You never know who may be reading about you!Â
Related Link:Create Business Growth offers information on how to improve your online presence.
Have you ever seen the television programs that detail the art of “house flipping?†Generally speaking, people purchase homes for a low cost, fix them up, and then clean up big time when they sell a few months later. While this is not the way that the process always works out, it is the basic gist.
Over the last couple of years, this phenomenon has been brought to the internet. Internet entrepreneurs are buying websites with potential, and then selling them for a large profit after making some changes. Again, this is not a sure thing, but a great way to make some money if you have the proper skills.
While I could go into detail concerning this process, you would be much better off reading Yaro Starak’s post on this at Entrepreneur’s Journey. His post touches on everything from the fun of flipping to what to look for when buying.
If you are searching for a way to make money online, why not look into flipping websites? It takes some time, skills, and money, but just like real estate, the payoff can be huge in the end!
The majority of people who start their own business have a couple of things in mind. First off, they want to branch out on their own so they can quit working long hours for somebody else’s good. And of course, they are interested in making money. With that being said, there is one very important question to answer: are you comfortable with your online income?
As a freelance writer, my income fluctuates each month. But as you can imagine, this is something that every self-employed individual has to deal with. I do not mind a fluctuating income, and in most cases, it helps me to work harder in the future. But all in all, I am positive that I will never become comfortable with the money that I make online.
After my post earlier this month about making $5,000 in July through freelance writing, I received many emails asking me how I did this, if anybody can get started, and if I am happy with this income. While I knew the answers to the first two questions, I stumbled on whether or not this income makes me happy. If you are asking if it pays the bills, the answer is yes. But I know that there is much more money to be had.
I think that internet entrepreneurs are a special breed. Even if you are making tens of thousands of dollars each month, it is safe to say that you will want to increase this income in the near future. There is something about making money online that pushes people to want more and more. Some see this as selfish, but I see it as a great way to motivate. After all, money is the biggest motivator in the world!
Overall, I don’t believe that anybody should ever get comfortable with the money that they are making online. If you do, you will stop working towards reaching future goals. And when this happens, not only do you lose the chance to make more money, but you may also find out that you are earning less. If you are always pushing forward, there is no reason that you should be looking back!
