Today on The Consumerist I read this post about work-from-home scams and I thought it was a good opportunity to share my thoughts on this topic with you.
You see, I DO work from home. And yes, I actually make some money from it, too. But let me tell you, it’s not as easy as you’d like to think. It takes serious work and dedication!
Here are the things you should watch for when looking for legitimate opportunities to make money from home:
Google Scams. You’ve probably seen these sort of ads. Buy a special “kit” and you’ll start raking in thousands from Google, starting that day! Guess what. I make money from Google and so can anyone with a valid website. I can attest I do not make thousands “posting links.” You can apply for Google AdSense without having to spend a dime. Please note that many of the sites where you have to buy a kit actually set your credit card up for recurring payments of some odd amount, like $83.69. (Edited to add: these scams are NOT affiliated with Google AdSense in any way!!)
No Company Information. This should be red flag #1! If any advertisement for making money from home does not advertise a company? Steer clear. Some of these companies are very shady, if they are operating as companies at all.
Credit Card Required. Be VERY leary of any work-from-home opportunity that requires you to buy anything up front. My recommendation? Run away! I personally am leary about companies that require you to buy large amounts of inventory to sell and ship. Please get the details and weigh the risks.
Survey Scams. You might have noticed I don’t share how to make money by doing surveys on my blog. Some bloggers will advocate this is a good way to make a few bucks. I whole-heartedly disagree. Whatever you do, do NOT pay to “join” a survey company! This is a complete scam. While it is possible to earn a few bucks doing surveys, plan on wasting hours of time for a very small payout. In my opinion, you are losing big time. Not only are you wasting your time, you’re also giving away very personal information to marketers. I think there are many better ways of making a few extra bucks – selling items on eBay or Craigslist or good, old fashioned couponing seem to be a better use of your time. (And for the record, I have personally wasted hours on survey sites. Don’t make the same mistake I did!!)
So how exactly do I make money working from home? Primarily I work as a freelance writer. I write everything from webcontent, brochures, and ads to resumes. I make a few hundred a month from this, give or take. I spent about $200 out of pocket to get my licenses set up and running and all my clients have come word of mouth. I also make a bit of money by running this blog, but it took MONTHS before I saw even my first check of about $100 (more on that in my Disclosure Policy).
I have never replied to a work-from-home ad or paid money to become some sort of representative. I opened my businesses and hired myself. It is possible to take this route!
Do you work from home? If so, what do you do? Have you been taken by a work-from-home scam? I would love to hear any advice you’d have for readers considering making an income from home.Photo credit Louis Hall
A couple weeks ago now, I wrapped up my short series on starting a bargain blog. (To read those posts, head to the
Blogging Category of my blog.) I promised I would answer some of the questions I received – and there were some good ones!
Q: You mention a lot of bloggers using Wordpress. However when I go to their site, it's clear these blogs aren't for commercial use and discourage the use of ads. What am I missing?
A. Great question! There is an important difference to note. Wordpress.com is a free service, and the one you're referring to. Wordpress.org on the other hand, is the service most of the bloggers have moved to. Wordpress.org requires you to find a host for your blog (unlike Wordpress.com). Wordpress.org gives you the opportunity to fully customize and control your site – make it yours. For more information on the differences between the two, go HERE.
Q. Do I have to open an LLC for my blog? In my state, that could run me several hundred dollars.
A. I should probably say you don't HAVE to do this. I do recommend at least opening a business license, which should run you about $20, give or take. As mentioned before, I formed an LLC for the added legal protections. Posting information on the Internet – well, I just had no idea what sort of potential risk I was exposing myself to and wanted my personal assets to have some form of protection. To my understanding, it also provides some additional protection of my name. Of course, this is a step you could decide on taking later. There are additional business steps I'm planning on taking, but simply can't do to cost. I understand that! While I'm not a business consultant, know that I've heard that sometimes you can register an LLC in another state – it doesn't necessarily have to be your own. Many businesses register their LLC in Delaware, Nevada, and Wyoming. For more information on this, please speak with your local business licensing office.
Q. Why do you have two blogs?
A. Once you get blogging, you might find it's for you. And you might think of additional topics for blogs. As far as I see it, couponing and marathoning are two completely different topics and I wanted to keep the blogs separate. Folks wanting to read about training for a race are not necessarily going to want to read about a coupon for shampoo and vice versa. I try to keep the topics separate. (Incidentally I have a topic in mind for a third blog and have for some time…but don't have the time to tackle it in my life!!)
Q. How do you manage all this? It seems overwhelming.
A. It's a lot of juggling. It's nicest when I can work in chunks of time on my posts. Sometimes late at night, I'll write a number of posts to publish throughout the next day or so. This helps with my time in the morning. The key is to finding balance. I don't post 20 posts per day. I can't sustain that, plus it's not my style.
Q. What are some of the bigger blogs to watch?
A. Some of them include: Money Saving Mom, Deal Seeking Mom, Hip2Save, Common Sense with Money, Southern Savers, and Freebies4Mom. How do you know if a blog is highly trafficked? Check out their Facebook fan #, Twitter followers, their Sitemeter stats (if they have one). Also, note the sort of sponsors they're attracting. Some of these bloggers have simply been at it longer – they were at the front-end of the "bargain blog" craze and attracted a huge number of readers and followers. They got the timing completely right. Others have just done an excellent job of finding a niche and doing it well. To be a writer of a blog, you MUST be a reader of blogs! Subscribe to LOTS of bargain blogs – big and small. Some of my favorite bloggers are way under-read! See what they're up to. Offer to do a guest post, or ask one of them to do a post for your blog. Send them some of your best deals via email in hopes of having them link to you.
Running a bargain blog is hard work, but it can also be rewarding work! If you have additional questions or comments, please feel free to email me at thecouponproject at hotmail dot com.
Photo credit Alicja Stolarczyk
I'm going to finish up the starting a bargain blog series by sharing some personal reflections of what have been the pros and cons of running this blog. You can read the previous four posts by heading to the blogging category of my blog.
Let's start with the good news first…
The Pros
1. Creative Outlet. I've always loved writing. It's what I studied in school, it's what I did prior to my blog, it's what I'm passionate about. Instead of waiting to have a publisher find me or a client hire me, blogging lets me write what I want, when I want. It's real power to be able to hit that "publish" button!
2. My Business, My Way. Because this is my business, I can decide how I want to brand my site. I can decide what guidelines I want to follow. I can also choose what type of deals to share, how I want to share them, when I want to share them, and the like. It's really up to me to decide how I want to run my blog, and I like having that ability!
3. Connecting to Others. I truly love hearing from my readers. I've gotten some pretty sweet emails lately – folks saving some serious money, making ends meet, and then some. Knowing that I'm helping to make a difference in people's lives is very fulfilling! It's also been exciting to connect to other bloggers.
4. Learning Opportunities. I've been at this a year, and I'm JUST getting started. The more you know, the more you realize you don't know. There is a lot to navigate, and this can be rather exciting – so for me anyways, that's a "pro!". Blogging is a continually evolving phenomenon and there is never a dull moment!
5. Multiple Income Sources. Just as I never know what coupons will arrive in the mail, I never know what money will arrive in the mail, either. Again, while this is still limited for me, it's nice. A couple days ago, there was a check for $140 and the week before, I had another for $25. Like couponing, it's starting to add up.
The Cons
1. Learning Curve. There is a LOT to learn and a LOT to manage when it comes to running my blog. In addition to coming up with content, I've got to go through emails and comments every day, plus there are the technical aspects to the layout/design and other elements of my blog. Additionally, I've got to manage my affiliate and sponsor relationships, and manage my income/expenses for tax purposes. Plus, I'm on Facebook and Twitter, trying to network with other bloggers in a number of ways. This all takes an extraordinary amount of time to learn how to do, and do it well. I'm still learning.
2. Light/Sporadic Income. At least at first, plan on working hard for months before seeing money roll in (if at all). I've said it before, but I truly could be making more at any minimum wage job than blogging. If you're looking for a steady paycheck right away, blogging is probably not for you.
3. Competitive Arena. As I've mentioned before, there are hundreds – thousands maybe – of other bargain bloggers out there. So if you're going to choose to do this, give it some serious thought first. I really cannot stress this enough. You've got a lot of readers out there reading a lot of blogs. You're going to have to think about what you can do that's different, and that's you. Think long, think hard. Think about your name, your brand, your topics. I'm not telling you to NOT start a bargain blog, but I AM telling you that you'll need to think about how yours will offer something different.
4. Responsibility. I don't talk about this much (or possibly ever), but I constantly have this awareness of my blog – that readers are viewing it, that I need to have content up every day and keep things going. I'm still working on finding a great balance between life and blogging, but know that this is the reality for me. Every Saturday night, I'm digging through Walgreens and Rite Aid ads – forget about anything else! First thing in the morning, I'm scouring for deals. While there are ways I've taken time off (and you might not have even been the wiser)!, it takes some serious work to make sure that new and fresh content is up every day. You must be self-disciplined and passionate to keep things rolling.
I want to remind you that in spite of the challenges of running this blog, I'm more energized and passionate about it than I was when I started a year ago. The ideas keep coming, I'm learning and growing, and loving every minute of it. Quite simply, it is the most satisfying work I've done in my career to-date, and I see myself doing it for a long, long time to come.
I would love to open this up to fellow bloggers. What do you love about blogging? What have been the challenges you've faced?
And readers: what questions do you have for me? I'll be doing a final "Q & A" post in the next few days.
Photo courtesy stock.xchng
Today I'm going to continue my bargain blogging series. To see the previous three posts, just head to my "Blogging" category.
For some, making money isn't a consideration at all. If you're in that boat, you can skip this post. However, if you're like me – someone who quit her full-time job to be at home with the kids but is struggling as a result to make ends meet – you might care to learn how you can make a little extra money at this. In the interest of time and space, this post will be kept very general and high-level. However, I want you to know you can always email me with more specific questions at thecouponproject at hotmail dot com.
As I mentioned earlier, quality content is the lifeblood of your blog! I actually did NOT feature ANY ads or affiliates for the first four months of my blog. There is a lot to learn when starting your blog, and to make sure I was true to who I am as a writer, I focused my entire attention on content and building readership. Most bloggers do not take this approach, but know it's certainly one way you could go. Please also note that some advertisers will want to see your site and learn how much traffic you have. If you're just starting out, this is something to be mindful of.
Four months in, I began to set up my relationships with advertisers and affiliates. And only AFTER I set up a business license and formed an LLC for tax and legal purposes. I HIGHLY recommend you do this first, too! I'm not going to go through the entire list of advertisers, but here are my top six at the moment.
Google. I have to be careful in what I share about Google AdSense lest I get banned from having their ads delivered to my site (and that would be a sad day indeed)! Suffice it to say, they were extremely easy to set up and provide a pretty dependable little check for me. If you set your blog up with Google's Blogger, you can run Google ads immediately, which is nice.
Amazon. I love being an Amazon affiliate! I can pick and choose WHATEVER of their deals I want and share a link with my readers. It's truly a win-win situation. Because it's important to me that my readers are truly getting a good deal, I make sure that the products I share have a minimum of a 3.5 average star rating. (Note that when someone returns a product they bought through your link, you lose that commission – as you should! So only feature quality items at prices that are a true bargain.) If you recall, I spent HOURS scouring Black Friday ads, and you know what? Amazon consistently outperformed EVERYONE. It's a brand I fully believe in and buy from regularly, and I would feature their deals even if I didn't make a dime doing so. I feel being an Amazon affiliate doesn't compromise who I am as a blogger.
Logicial Media. Logical Media offers many campaigns and I get emails from them on a near-daily basis. They are very straight-forward and easy to add to your site. However, I only ever run a fraction of what they send through. Their payouts our nice. If you choose to sign up with Logical Media, I would appreciate it if you used my referral link to do so here.
My Savings. I love these guys! They are much like Logical Media, but I usually end up running more of their campaigns on my site because I tend to find they are more in alignment with posts I would normally share anyways. Examples of campaigns they run have included the 15% off Children's Place coupon and Vistaprint. Obviously these are deals I've done myself and I feel good about posting. If you choose to sign up with My Savings, I would appreciate it if you used my referral link to do so here.
Juicebox Jungle. This is the little video you see in my sidebar. I recently signed up with them, and I really like working with them! Their payouts are great, and they deposit the money into my PayPal account each month. You can inquire more here.
Printable Coupon sites. These are probably my favorite way to earn income from my blog. Why? Because you get the same great printable coupons you would from going to the sites directly, and I earn a little money every time you choose to print from my site. You can sign up for Coupons.com here. If you are interested in learning how to get set up with SmartSource or Red Plum, please email me and I can send you the contact information.
There are certainly other ways to make some money at blogging. As my traffic has grown, I've started to get contacted more and more by companies and advertisers wishing to have me write sponsored posts or advertise on my site. There are other, less conventional ways of making money. Just know that the better your traffic, the better the income, and the better the opportunities. Focus more of your time on building your traffic.
A reader asked me the other day if blogging is profitable? I ended 2009 making a small profit, yes. SMALL. I worked eight months before I received my first check of $100. But I will tell you this. I was more proud of that $100 than ANY paycheck I'd EVER received. That $100 represented hours of hard work, persistence, and creativity. It meant stepping out my comfort zone. I've never worked so hard for $100 in my life.
As far as expenses go, I approach my blogging business the same way as couponing: with frugality. I wasn't about to go into debt to hire a graphic designer or technical support! How hypocritical would that be? But as I've earned some income, I'm able to put it back into my business, bit by bit. Next month, I'm finally upgrading this site a bit and last night, I signed up to attend the Blogher conference in New York this August. These things are only possible because I've earned some money to do it first. Take it slow; be patient.
A final word. When I started out with my advertisers, I ran a LOT of campaigns, and I put some posts up I wouldn't think about doing now. Not only did I get zero response on some of these, some of the campaigns might have tainted what my readers thought about me. Not good! It's a fine balance – earning income from blogging, but not compromising who you are and why your readers like you. Be picky! Don't clutter your site with ads and banners – readers repeatedly say this irritates them, plus it positions you as someone who only cares about making money. I actually turned down a couple advertising opportunities within the last couple weeks because I didn't feel they were in alignment with who I am. Don't be afraid to tell an advertiser "no." Be more concerned about the long-term health of your blog than the short-term profit. Also, with new FTC guidelines you are required to disclose when there's a financial interest, so even more reason to make sure you can stand behind the offers you post.
I have one more post in mind for this series, but then I'd like to wrap things up by answering reader questions. This is such a HUGE topic, and I know I've not fully covered it…but if there's a burning question you have, leave a comment or email me and I'll be addressing some of those in a final post.
Photo courtesy stock.xchng
I'm so loving the wonderful comments I've been getting on my "starting a bargain blog" series. This morning, I wanted to give fellow bloggers a chance to speak up and let my readers know about what you have to offer!
I'm giving you full permission to leave a comment where all you do is plug your blog…so here's your chance! Self-promote, baby! Be sure to provide a link to your blog and let us know why we should be following you.
Want to read the posts in my series?
Preparing your blog
Planning your content
Driving in traffic
Tonight I want to continue the series I started a couple days ago on how to start a bargain blog. If you missed the earlier posts, you can read first about
how to prepare and then considering your content.
I want to share one of the trickier aspects of blogging now. And admittedly, it's something I'm still working at. Building traffic. Why does traffic matter? Simply put, the more traffic to your site, the more opportunities you will have. You'll develop a better community among your readers, be emailed more and better deals, and perhaps most bluntly, you will make more money (if this is something that matters to you).
When I started this blog, I averaged around 40 visits a day. I'm now up to about 1,100. Many bargain bloggers get much more traffic than that (and I sure hope some of them will be sure to leave a comment with their ideas!). I will share with you some of the basic things that I've done.
Word of mouth. The most loyal readers have come word-of-mouth. Do NOT underestimate the power of simply telling people about your blog, one at a time. I had some ultra-cheap business cards made at Vistaprint and then I hand them out to friends and family. Just today, I gave a stack of about 30 cards to my mom because she has this knack for striking up conversations at the gym, at the supermarket, at church…she has brought me so many readers! I also keep these business cards handy and have been known to leave them on store shelves with coupons and even hand them to cashiers who were impressed with my savings. This is probably the most basic way to start out.
Networking with other bloggers. When I started out, I emailed a few of my favorite bloggers and introduced myself, asked a few questions, and offered to write a few guest posts. (You can find out who took me up on this by poking around my Guest Posts category.) By writing a guest post on a bigger blog, I was able to get people reading my writing that might not have found me otherwise. To my surprise, many other bloggers were only too happy to have me write a guest post because it meant less content for one day they'd need to come up with. Incidentally, I am always looking for folks interested in writing guest posts here! If you are a new and wondering how to gain some new readers, consider emailing me and pitching me an idea you have for a guest post.
Sharing your deals with bloggers. Find some HOT online deal? A new rebate? A coupon? If you found such a deal, email it to higher trafficked bloggers in hopes that they might post it on their site with a link back to your blog. This is very common practice and it's how many bloggers have gotten on the radar. Here's the etiquette (as I see it). If you choose to email your deal, be sure to put the bloggers' email addresses in the "BCC" field and not "to" field for privacy reasons. In the subject, make it clear what the deal is. BRIEFLY explain the deal and include the link to your post about it. I then usually end my emails with "if you choose to post this deal on your blog, and if I'm the first to tell you about it, a link back would be appreciated!" A word here. Please caution exercise and good judgement in which deals you email and how often you email. If you send an email or more everyday to the same group of bloggers, it might be appropriate you ask them FIRST if it's OK to do so. Let them "opt in," so to speak. Some of the higher trafficked bloggers in particular get hundreds of emails per day, so be mindful that you're sending them only the very best of your posts. I recently had a blogger ask my permission if she could send me her deals. I genuinely appreciated this gesture. It was very thoughtful. She also asked if I could include her on deals I found. Very nice!
Mr. Linkys and Blog Carnivals. Ever see at the end of Money Saving Mom's Walgreens and Rite Aid posts how other bloggers can "link in" to their deals? These are simple and effective ways to bring some new traffic. Without fail, I always see a ton of weekend referrals from Money Saving Mom and Deal Seeking Mom after I've written and linked in my drugstore deals. Because so many people do these deals, I have to work hard to make sure I do my best on these and I often spend hours on Saturday assembling these. If you decide to host a giveaway or sweepstakes, there are places you can link to for those as well.
Comments. A simple tactic, be sure to leave comments on other bloggers posts. Don't just self-promote. That's called spam and you run a fair chance of getting your post deleted. What I mean by leaving comments is this – be a part of other blogs' communities. If you see that a blogger missed a grocery store matchup, kindly leave a comment with your find. This will show your ability to find a bargain as well as a willingness to support other bloggers (because their readers can now be in on the deal).
Facebook/Twitter. Be sure to let people know what you're doing, and say it in an interesting way. As a copywriter, I know a thing or two about writing a headline. The idea is you want to create interest, and compel the reader to want to know more. For instance, consider the following two Facebook status updates:
"I saved money using coupons today!"
OR
"Look what I got for less than $5 today!"
If there's a link, my guess is that a reader would be MORE likely to click it in the second scenario than the first. Think about it: there are so many status updates and tweets all day long. You have to be able to write something that stands out. As your blog gets bigger, you might consider setting up a separate "fan" page on Facebook as I've done here.
Those are a few of my most basic ideas….the sort of traffic-growing tactics most bloggers use when starting out. There are others once you get going. Just remember, you don't just want folks dropping into your site and then clicking away. You want them to stick around and keep coming back for more. So your content has got to shine and be compelling.
Fellow bloggers, what other tactics have worked for you to drive in traffic?
Photo courtesy stock.xchng
Note: this is a second post in a series about getting started with bargain blogging that I kicked off yesterday. Go back and read my first post here if you haven't already!
When I was planning my blog, everything I read said it was important to post "frequent, and often." And when it comes to running a bargain blog, frequent generally means multiple posts per day. Here are some of the questions I get about this topic, and what I've learned.
How often should I post?
Do what you can reasonably sustain. I believe readers like knowing what to expect. Meter your content out – don't post 18 things in one day and then nothing for 4 days. I think it would be better to start out posting 1-2 posts per day, but then doing that consistently than fluctuating wildly. You'll notice some of the bigger sites may have LOTS of posts each day. I average probably about a half dozen posts per day – and that is reasonably what I can sustain.
How do I find deals to post about?
I'm not going to lie. I'm not about to share everything I've done to make this blog work – I've worked too hard to give it all away (sorry!). But I will tell you this – consider other blogs, bigger deal sights, but whatever you do, try to find some deals yourself. Don't just be a blog that regurgitates everyone else's deals. Over time I've developed a few methods of finding deals and it doesn't take as much time to find good stuff as it used to. As you get going, you'll find what sources work for you, and which ones don't. And don't underestimate sharing local deals. When I started I thought I only wanted to share national deals, but more and more readers have told me they want to see deals for my local area, and I've worked to do that as I can.
What other content goes on my blog?
Think about what you can blog about besides just finding deals or your blog will soon feel like a catalog of information. You want to keep your personality front and center. In thinking of my own blog, I aim to have at least a few "meatier" posts per week where I share what I'm doing with my shopping, stockpiling, etc. It's important that my readers are connected to me as a blogger. That's what's going to build loyalty. I'm always challenging myself on how I might break the "blog-reader" barrier through my writing. You should, too.
Can I use stuff other bloggers have written?
This is a question I get a lot, and it was something I wondered about too. Here's what you CAN do and many, if not most bargain bloggers do. Say you see a deal on my site you wish to use on your blog. It is completely OK to do a separate post on your blog repeating the basic information about the deal. But there are two very important rules in doing so: 1) it is NOT OK to copy and paste the entire post on your site and 2) ALWAYS give credit to the blogger you found the deal from with a link back to their post or site. With those two caveats out of the way, let me say I personally (and I KNOW this goes for most bloggers) LOVE it when other bloggers feature their deals. Why? Traffic! By giving credit back to the original blogger and a link, you bring potential new readership to that blog. Make sense?
How much time does this take and when do you find time to do this?
Make no bones about it: this is HARD WORK. Like many people, I was eager to get started, hoping to earn some extra income for our family while staying home. Let me now be painfully honest with you. I did not receive my first check for about 8 months after I wrote my first post. And it was about $100. While other bloggers might achieve faster and better success, any way you slice it, you've got to be prepared to put in some SERIOUS time. Some bloggers work early in the AM, before their family rises. Others (such as myself) are up most nights well past 11 or 12 trying to find deals for the next day. I can't remember the last time I didn't have to work on a Saturday night. This is just the reality of it for me. I want my blog to be the very best I can make it. I want my readers to keep coming back for more. And that takes serious time and commitment. I estimate I spend anywhere from 2-4 hours per day on my blog, usually averaging closer to 2.
Now let me say this. I am also a stay-at-home mom of two and I also sometimes have work as a freelance writer. I think some people might suppose I'm a "mommy blogger" with nothing better to do. Au contraire! My life was already full before my blog. I chose to MAKE time for it because I was passionate about it. You MUST have passion about your blog to carry you through!!
Reflection time….
If you're just starting out, or if you're thinking about launching a blog, spend some time planning your posts. Find some great, consistent sources for finding deals – be they other bloggers, deal sites, stores in your area, etc. Consider what topics you naturally like to talk and share about and think about how they might be used in your blog. Be realistic with your time – if you only have an hour to spend a day on your blog, determine how you many posts you can reasonably write. And what about reader emails? Comments? These will take time to go through, too.
In the next couple days I'll be spending some time on how I've worked to build some traffic to my site.
Photo credit Jan Willien Geertsma
As you know, this month marks one year since I launched my blog. In the past few months, I've gotten a few emails from folks interested in starting blogs for their local areas. Responding to such emails takes quite a bit of time because there is a LOT to learn, so I've decided to give some practical, basic, and most important, honest advice about how to get started in a new series of five posts. I hope my fellow bloggers will feel encouraged and welcome to jump in and fill out the advice I share in the comment section.
To get started, today I'm going to simply talk about the steps I took. Then, over the next few days, I'll be spending some time discussing the steps I think you should take as you plan your blog.
One of my resolutions for 2009 was to start a blog. I knew I wanted it to be about couponing and I knew I wanted it to be a quality site with well-written content. So here are some of the things I did BEFORE launching my site.
1. Read up on other sites! Spend some time reviewing other bargain blogs – read lots of 'em too. Which ones are you drawn to, and why? Which ones do you feel are less effective? What kind of topics do you see covered? Can you identify any topics that aren't currently being fully explored?
2. Consider your blogging service. I use TypePad; it was the first service I looked at, and it seemed like a good fit at the time. I'd also read a positive review about it in a "learn to blog" book. However, I also pay a $14.95 fee and there are some features I'm less than keen on about it. Needless to say, next month I'll be making the switch to Wordpress and I've had to hire professional services to help with the migration. Many bloggers use Google-based Blogger, mainly because it's free and easy to use. I run my 26 Pounds 26 Miles blog from Blogger. However, if you want to fully customize your site and enjoy more freedom in how your site looks and feels, you might consider moving to Wordpress. I'm losing count of how many former Blogger bloggers have migrated to Wordpress. Something to think about. Email other bloggers and see what they have to say. It's easier to start with the service you want than have to switch later.
3. Think long and hard about your brand FIRST. Oh please whatever you do, do not just come up with a cute or witty name, slap up a site, and go for it. Remember, those early posts are PIVOTAL. You want to have your best foot forward. You wouldn't show up the first day on the job wearing sweats would you? Spend some time thinking about your name. Make it memorable, easy, and make it clear what you're about. Again, there are LOTS of bargain bloggers out there and this one is going to take some time. When I initially thought of this blog, I thought it would be fun to come up with a cute name like "Angela Clips Coupons" but in the end, I ditched cuteness for professionalism. I also pitched my friends a few blog name ideas and The Coupon Project was favored time and again. I also chose my name because it was important to me to have a gender-neutral title. In thinking about your name, think about your blog. What will you strive to do better or different? This is challenging given the sheer volume of other blogs out there. Do your homework.
4. Seek out other bloggers. Not knowing what I was fully doing, I decided to contact more successful bloggers. I found these bloggers to be so encouraging and helpful as I began to start out. I've also reached out to local bloggers for guidance. I had thought all these other bloggers were my competition, boy was I wrong! I'll say it once and I'll say it again, you NEED other bloggers to learn and to grow your own blog's traffic. This is a community you must learn to become a part of. (And it's a great one, too!).
5. Read up on blogging. I went to the library and read for a few weeks before typing my first post. However, most of the books at my library turned out to be way out-dated…and they were only a couple years old! A couple of my FAVORITE blogs on blogging are ProBlogger and BlogCoach. BlogCoach (written by Angie of Baby Cheapskate) has done an excellent job of addressing common and pressing questions bloggers have, and keeps you informed of newer techniques. Check these sites out BEFORE you get started and you'll have a leg up.
What's next in this series?
Part 2: planning your posts and managing your time
Part 3: traffic building strategies and networking
Part 4: setting up your business and earning some income
Part 5: the pros and cons of running a bargain blog
Please let me know what specific questions you have. I've still got a LOT to learn, but as with couponing, I'm happy to have you along for the journey!
On February 18, 2009, I wrote my first post on how coupons save you money on groceries and The Coupon Project was born. I wrote it when I'd been couponing only a little more than three months and barely even knew what a blog was (I had to make a couple library runs).
Here is my year in numbers:
Posts to date: 1,457
Comments to date: 1,863
Lifetime visits: 211,170
Lifetime pageviews: 335,936
Average daily visits then: about 40
Average daily visits now: 1,142
Average time I spend on this blog per day: between 2 and 3 hours
As I've evolved as a couponer and blogger, here are some core themes you'll find throughout my blog posts:
::Couponing should be fun. We take ourselves way too seriously!
::Couponing should be done ethically, following the rules to build positive shopping experiences. One should also use common sense – clearing shelves of multiple stores is not cool in my book.
::Being frugal means managing your money, time, and resources. Do the deals and freebies that matter to your family. Doing every deal "just because its free" is the opposite of being frugal. It's called being obsessive.
::Every couponer's cart looks different. Worry about staying within YOUR budget and meeting YOUR goals.
::There are ways to save beyond couponing – I talk a lot about freezer cooking and hope to soon be discussing gardening periodically.
A blog, however, is not a blog without readers. So THANK YOU to everyone who has read my blog, commented, emailed me, pitched me ideas, or encouraged me along the way. I do this for you.
To celebrate, my husband suggested a giveaway, and I think that's a pretty terrific idea to show my gratitude! I've decided on giving away a $25 Starbucks gift card to a lucky reader and here's how you can enter. The first method is mandatory to enter, the rest are optional.
1. First Entry (must do this one). Leave a comment and tell me what you like about The Coupon Project and/or what you'd like to see me do more of in the year to come.
2. Second Entry. Become a fan of The Coupon Project on Facebook. Then come back and leave a second comment for an additional entry. Already a fan? Let me know!
3. Third Entry. Subscribe to The Coupon Project (there's a handy Feedburner entry on the right upper-hand corner of this blog). You could also choose to subscribe via your blog reader of choice. Just come back and leave a separate comment to let me know. Already subscribed? Let me know!
4. Fourth Entry: Blog, tweet, or make a Facebook status update about this giveaway and announce it's in honor of The Coupon Project's first anniversary! Leave a comment to let me know you did this.
This contest will run through midnight PST Sunday, February 21st. At that time, I'll randomly select a winner from all entries. Good luck!
Photo credit Coffy Motiondesign
This is a topic I don't touch on often, but I want to today because I know so many out there are looking for ways to bring in extra income for their families.
If you are a blogger or run a website, I highly recommend you sign up for Logicial Media.
What is Logical Media? you ask.
They are an affiliate marketing company. Once you're approved as a publisher (an easy, straight-forward process), you'll have access to all sorts of campaigns you can put up on your blog. The campaigns can be everything from special offers, freebies, samples, trial offers, and more. You have full control of which campaigns to put up on your site. It's nice being able to pick and choose the offers that I think will bring value to my readers.
Of all the affiliates I'm signed up with, I have to say Logical Media has been my most profitable. They are easy to use, and their payouts are awesome!
If you're interested, here's another GREAT reason to sign up now. For a limited time, you'll get $25 in your account – just for signing up! Ready to learn more or get started? Go here.
And if you have any questions about Logical Media or how affiliate marketing benefits you, please don't hesitate to contact me at thecouponproject at hotmail dot com.
Please also leave a comment if you are interested in having me post more ideas about getting started with blogging, and I'll consider doing just that!
