5 Things To Avoid When Blogging For Money

Kenneth Baker

Last updated on: February 7th, 2020

It seems like everyone is doing it, and you probably know some folks who are making a good living with their blogs. It is normal for people to look at the results of someone else’s work and think, “I can do that!”

While you probably can do that, do not let the fact that someone else makes it look easy, fool you. Monetizing a website takes effort, dedication, and time.  Below we will list some common mistakes and missteps beginner bloggers make. This will help you avoid errors and get to the fun part (money) a lot faster.

Know your technical limits

Technology is growing so fast that some of us have trouble keeping up. While we can sit down with a fill in the blank website program and create a cookie cutter version, any high-school student can do better and it shows. This is the one area you need to consider professional help. One client saw an immediate jump in revenue when she invested in a San Diego web design agency. She found people were excited to come back to her site when it was enjoyable to look at and easy to maneuver.

Don’t fake your passion

There is a difference between having knowledge of something and having a passion for something. If you really love a topic, you know it inside out. You know the benefits and the pitfalls. You relate to others who are interested in the topic. If you have the knowledge, but no passion your blogging will be more “text book” and will not stroke the emotion of your reader.

Never copy!

All the pages you see online were written by someone. That person probably makes a living by creating the pages that you find so good, that you want to “borrow” them. That is not only not good, in some cases, it is illegal. While you are free to read their work and write about it in your own words, you are not free to copy it. Nothing will ruin you faster in this business than plagiarism

Don’t break any laws

You do not have to be a lawyer to have a blog site that makes money. But there is some basic law that applies to everyone. Do a little research on copyright, trademarks, and defamation. Just because you find a cool picture online does not mean it is free to use it without permission.

There are places to get free pictures, but you have to look for them and ensure you are using the ones marked free for public use. Pixabay is a good site for free pictures. But if the picture has watermarked words, it is not one of the free ones. Take the time to understand what you are and are not allowed to do.

Don’t assume you are doing it right – look it up

So your website is up and running and you have some ideas. You sit back and pound out a blog and wait for the cash to roll in. If it were that easy, everyone would be doing it. Always be open to learning and growing. Look at your favorite blog sites and ask yourself why you enjoy them so much. Then look at yours again. Do you have that flavor? Will people want to come back tomorrow to see what you have going on? Are folks “following” you online? Honestly, when you are new, the answer is probably no. It takes a little while to find your style and your personality and to express it on a blog.

You can be successful with your blog. You have what it takes. Be careful to avoid these common mistakes and it will speed you along on your blogging journey. Good luck!