Same Technology, Different Applications
“How do I make money with blogging?”
The above is the most literal, weirdly can’t-see-the-forest-for-the-trees question that most young entrepreneurs will ask themselves.
When it comes to making money, be it online, offline or otherwise, you must think first in terms of skill. Blogging isn’t a skill. It’s an application. You’re looking beyond the obvious place where there are a billion opportunities and down a very narrow niche.
You’re like the equivalent of an electrical engineer asking, “How can I make money fixing people’s fridges?”
If you can blog, then you can do a ton of other things that are more lucrative. I say that as a guy who blogs far too much without monetizing any of it. Blogging is a hobby unless you’re selling something else along with it.
But the good news is that most of you guys who want to make money blogging already have the skills to make money with other applications of those skills you already have. Here’s a quick set of examples (because it’s Saturday night when I’m writing this and I’ve got other stuff to do.)
Blogging Versus Paid Writing
If you can write a blog consistently, then you can make money in a number of ways.
The easiest entry into the world of professional writing is to take up freelance writing.
If you can blog, then you already have the following skills:
- Legible English (assuming you have readers)
- Basic SEO skills
- The ability to create an article
- (Possibly) the ability to sell a product
- And the ability to write useful information in a consumable format
- Also, general internet stuff
This will put you above most writers that try their luck at freelance writing. It really is that simple.
Now, depending on what you enjoy or have a particular skill for, there are various routes you could take:
- Building basic sales funnels and affiliate marketing
- Moving into direct response copywriting
- Carving out a content marketing niche where you’re a specialist in your niche
- Writing books of varying lengths (this includes those “special reports” that some industries have)
All of which are more profitable than blogs – and some of which are highly profitable for the time you spend on them.
Podcasts Versus Webinars
I was writing a webinar for a client a week or two ago. Now, webinars are interesting because they appear technically complicated. In reality, they are just an article or a sales page in video format. The good ones have a live component at the end, and it makes it look as though the whole thing is live.
In reality, the client I work for – and most internet marketers – have the whole thing pre-recorded and it’s literally just a set of slides with a voiceover. It then switches to Q and A at the end where a guy is hooked up to a webcam and answers questions in the last ten minutes.
A lot of internet marketers don’t even bother with that, and you don’t have to either. You can simply write an email saying, “Please send in your questions” and then record the whole Q and A session in fifteen minutes or so.
I wrote more about this on Friday, so check out that article.
Regardless, the fact is that Webinars, phone consultations and the like are basically the same as recording a podcast. You’re talking into a microphone for a few minutes having written a script.
You can do it all with free technology as well, so it’s not like it’s a massive investment.
Social Media
I swear some of you guys live on social media.
Every time I log in to a social media account, I feel like I’ve missed a million years’ worth of updates and it makes me feel like a technologically incapable Luddite caveman or something. And this is coming from someone who has basically lived on a computer since they were ten years old.
Most people who spend all of their time on social media have little to show for it. They get into political arguments, become experts at trading memes and otherwise get very good at getting outraged at stuff.
If this is you, it’s time for a career change. Luckily, social media skills, hopping on current news bandwagons and writing content that you can tell has an impact immediately is actually a pretty useful skill outside of Twitter.
If you play around on social media, then chances are you already have all the skills you need to create PPC ads as a first example. Twitter has many traits in common with ads:
- Visual content
- Restrictive character limits
- Short and snappy headlines outperform boring stuff
- You have to grab people’s attention immediately and completely
Final Thoughts
Alright, I have to wrap it up. Most stuff you want to do is an application rather than a skill. Now, there’s nothing wrong with wanting a blog or having a hobby, but in terms of making money and analysing your skill set, think about taking a step back and finding the root skill that is valuable.
If you can do that, then you’ll often find that there are a ton of ways to make money, and many, many unexplored niches.