If you have ever attempted to monetize a blog or website, you probably started off with Google AdSense. After all, this is one of the easiest and most profitable ways to turn visitors into cash. But with that being said, if you rely 100 percent on AdSense you could be playing with fire. This may not be that big of a deal if you are only making a few bucks per month, but for bigger earnings, relying solely on AdSense is the biggest mistake that you could ever make.
Take a close look at this blog post over at Rich Twin Poor Twin; http://www.richtwinpoortwin.com/banned-from-google-adsense-lost-200000.html. These guys were making six figures a month from AdSense alone. This is probably something that you have dreamt about time and time again, right? Unfortunately, the gravy train has pulled away from the station, and these guys are left without any answers as to what happened. When Google banned them from AdSense, it cost them $200,000 from the previous month, as well as the money that they would have made from there on out.
The problem with relying solely on AdSense is that Google can pull the plug on you whenever they see fit. And to make things even worse, there is no way to find out what happened. It is hard to say if these guys were click bombed by a competitor, or if something else led to their dismissal. Even though they received a “ban email†stating invalid clicks, what exactly does that mean?
Although it is a shame that this had to happen, it is a lesson that we can all learn from. There is nothing wrong with using AdSense on your sites, but you better make sure that you diversify in case something like this happens. For instance, these guys have since moved onto other revenue streams such as AdBrite, Yahoo Publisher Network, ValueClick, BidVertiser, Kontera, and Text Link Ads. If they would have done this earlier on, the process of picking up the pieces would have been much easier to deal with.
Diversify your income streams so that you are not the next one to get taken down by Google. If you let AdSense run your life, it can potentially ruin it in the long run.
At Chrisblogging.com I have more or less decided that one blog post per day is the way to go. In the past I have owned blogs that I updated three or four times per day as well as some that I only touched once per week. When it comes down to it, I feel that one post per day on this blog is the way to go.
Generally speaking, there are a few reasons that I am going to stick to my one post per day trend for the time being. First off, people who are interested in reading this blog are also going to be interested in reading many others. Although I may be able to capture their attention long enough to read several posts, I would much rather offer one good one that makes readers think.
Also, I feel much more comfortable writing only one post per day. I know a lot of bloggers like to write several posts at once, and then timestamp them for the future. Although I have done this from time to time, I tend to make a post live the same day that I write it. For instance, once I am done with this post, I will proof it a few times and then get it out there for you all to read.
Finally, when I have blogs that require more than one post per day, I sometimes feel as if I am not giving my all to each piece. Knowing that I have to move onto another post can sometimes make me rush my thoughts, and in turn, jumble things together. When I write a blog post I want to make sure that it is clear, concise, and that I put my best work forward.
For now, I think one post per day is going to work for this blog. After all, I only have around 40 posts, and am still trying to build traffic and decide on revenue streams. Maybe when I double this post count, as well as my traffic, I may consider doing more than one post per day. But until then, this seems to be the magic formula!
There is no doubt that being self-employed has quite a few benefits. And of course, I would not have it any other way. When it comes down to it, I would never go back to working for somebody else; even if it meant more money. But with that being said, there are some drawbacks of being self-employed. One of the biggest ones that you will have to deal with is purchasing your own health insurance coverage.
Buying an individual health insurance policy can be a difficult process for even the most knowledgeable self-employed professionals. If you are making a decent income, you may not think twice about having to pay for your own health insurance. But on the other side of things, if you are new to being self-employed, and are yet to breakthrough, any money that you have to pay out can be damaging to your bottom line.
No matter what, you need to make sure that you purchase some type of coverage. Even if you buy a high deductible policy, you will at least be covered if something catastrophic were to happen.
Luckily, most people can find a reasonably priced policy that will give them coverage ranging from basic office visits to prescription drugs to hospitalization.
You may be wondering what type of health insurance policy I have, right? At this time, I purchase both by health and dental through Aetna; it is a PPO plan and offers a good level of benefits without too high of a price tag. I pay $155 per month for both; which I am pretty happy about. Some of the more important details of the policy include a $1,500 deductible, $3,000 out of pocket limit, and low co-pays. Although the deductible and out of pocket limit may sound high, I always make sure that I have at least $3,000 tucked away in case I need to max out for a particular year. This has yet to happen yet, but it is better to be safe than sorry.
Remember, if you are self-employed you will be able to deduct 100 percent of your health insurance premiums. This is something that you do not want to forget when it comes time to do your taxes. Make sure that you ask your tax professional about this so that you keep everything legal.
Freelance writers and other self-employed professionals do not have the luxury of getting health insurance from their employer. If you are in this boat, make sure that you buy your own policy. Despite the cost, it is well worth it.
