The Easiest Way to Make Money with a Blog

After "How do I get Traffic?" the next most popular question I get is "What's the easiest way to make money using blogs?"

The answer is simple ... Google Adsense.

Most of you know this already and I don't mean to insult you but a lot of people don't really know how to make the most of Adsense and complain about making pennies a day.

I received an email the other day from a fellow blogger and internet marketer who basically asked for proof that I made over $8.00 a day from Adsense on this blog. (Update - As of March 2008, this blog is averaging $100 per day with Adsense)

Read his letter;

Hi Grizzly,

I read your "Common Blogging Mistakes" article and find it difficult to believe that you make as much adsense profit as you claim. My blog has twice the traffic and I am lucky to pull in $2 a day. It doesn't seem that snippets would cause Google to send me poorer ads, my posts have the same keywords as yours. I know some others who also target make money online ads and they are the same as me. Ilike your posts and agree with most things but have to disagree with this.

Sincerely C.M. (Name withheld by request)

He was referring to my use of single posts on my home page. I had stated that I get better adsense ads by using a single post rather than snippets. A single post is more targeted to a particular keyword as well as related long tail keywords and results in a higher quality score. Snippets are great for readability and style perhaps but they are dis-jointed when it comes to the Google Bot - too many unrelated keywords on one page and hence a lower quality score as far as Adsense goes.

Keep in mind I only suggest that you try this if your main goal is to make Adsense income. I completely agree that using snippets is a better system if you are building a large and loyal readership and it allows you to cover many topics giving more choices to your viewer.

I don't like showing screenshots as it is overdone and can certainly be faked but in this instance I will if for no other reason than I hate being accused of lying. He didn't use that term but same difference.

Click to Enlarge.

Keep in mind that I don't consider this an Adsense site as people actually read stuff on here - well occasionally. My niche sites are far more optimized for Adsense in the sense that I more or less encourage the reader to click on the ads or affiliate links by giving such general info that they don't find what they are looking for. Here I make a feeble attempt at actually giving people what they want... or at least think I do. If I am inept at least it's not on purpose.

I have over 200 niche sites now and the vast majority don't make this kind of income from Adsense but 25 of them are in this ballpark. This adds up each month and is how I earn a decent buck online. Don't be discouraged when starting out as it will take you some time to build up your blogs - usually 6 months before you start to see some real results but in time you will find you have a nice little business going. Patience is the keyword here.

I have recently changed my look up top as the previous layout was more in tune to attaining Adsense clicks. Old habits die hard - make the reader search for real content while making ads and affiliate links easy to find. My content is now up top on this blog and two things have happened; my Adsense revenue has dropped and my page views have increased. Not surprising as more people are sticking around and reading more posts.

I won't go into more detail on Adsense as I have covered the topic several times elsewhere on here. I just wanted to clarify a few things to any doubters out there.

Simple Lead Generation Marketing

There are other easy ways to make income using your blog - notably getting paid for leads. This is different than affiliate sales in that your referral doesn't have to buy anything - just sign up to a mailing list or a free report. Finding programs that are reputable and that will actually pay you can be tough but I have found one that is quite profitable considering I don't do a thing other than post a link on this blog. I have talked about Project Payday before - it's a legitimate program that shows you how to make money with freebie sites (IFW's). (note; Americans and Canadians Only) I personaly don't care for it as it is time consuming and a little too much like work but it does make money. I like their affiliate program though and recommend it to others as an easy way to make a few bucks by simply referring leads to the site.

Here is a screen shot of my recent commissions from Project Payday.

Click To Enlarge.

As you can see it has a 26% conversion rate which is pretty high - 1 out of every 4 people will sign up. In case you are wondering I have been paid twice already directly to my Paypal account. Sign up, get your link and post a blurb on your site.
That's about as simple as it gets. ( March 2008 - Update, $2400 so far)

On a final note I received an email from Russell Brunson recently. He is looking to hire a webdesigner. See below. Just thought I would post it as some of you may be interested.

Hey Grizzly

Are you or someone you know a webdesigner? We are looking to hire
a webdesigner at DotComSecrets.com.

You need to have html and css skills. Either know SEO, or have the
desire to learn it from us.

You MUST be willing to relocate to Boise Idaho.

This job is an awesome opportunity to learn internet marketing from
some of the best in the world. Work with me and my staff, and make
a lot of money doing it.

If you qualify, and could relocate to Boise, please send me an
email with your resume, and samples of your work to:

jobs@dotcomsecrets.com

Thanks
Russell Brunson

2404 Bank Dr. Suite 101 Boise, Idaho 83705

Till next time,

Grizzly