This is a guest post by Rachel Holmgren of AverageGal.com.  She is a mother of 2 and is on her way to becoming a very successful blogger. Here are her thoughts on the business of blogging.

If You Build It They Will Come

No Money?  No Problem!

I know, I know, my reaction to that phrase would be the same.   You’re thinking, “What are you talking about lady?  Having no money is a BIG problem!”  And the answer is, yes, you’re right.  No money would be a big problem.  However, I’m referencing the fact that you can’t expect to build a blog and make money the very next day.  Building a blog takes passion, dedication, perseverance, patience, and time before the money really starts flowing.

When I started my blog, AverageGal, I wanted to take the approach from the theme of the movie “Field of Dreams”;  the mantra is “if you build it, they will come”.  Now don’t get me wrong – I want to make money from my blog just as much as the next guy (or gal).  But I do know that first and foremost, it’s important to build up a blog with quality content, readership, and credibility.

Proving that you (and your blog) are in the game for the long haul can be a challenge.  In a blogosphere that has the same number of bloggers quitting as starting each week, blogs are a dime a dozen.  Everyone wants to give their 2 cents.

So, how do you differentiate yourself from the competition?  How do you “make it” with your blog?

Build A Blog With Quality Content

Be bold (but not too bold); you want to be a memorable writer, but you don’t want to turn your readers off along the way.  Write about topics that you’re passionate about and you’ll soon be considered a credible source of information in your blogosphere .  No one wants to visit a blog that doesn’t have information that they deem useful.  You should be aiming for repeat visitors and building a solid community of readers.

Be Dedicated To The Cause (making your blog successful)

You’re the best advocate for your blog.  If you’re not visiting other sites to comment, scoping out the competition, joining social networks, and learning from other bloggers, you’ll never make it.  You have to be informed.

Steven Sanders recently had a great post titled 8 Daily Tasks To Increase Blog Traffic.  It’s about creating a daily list of tasks, to help self-promote your site each and every day.

Equally as important as the previous items I mentioned, you have to be blogging regularly.  That doesn’t mean that you have to blog daily.  It simply means that you have to pick a schedule that works for you and make it your baby; be dedicated to it.  With dedication and perseverance, you have the ability to grow it into something bigger and better than you ever imagined.

Be Patient

When starting out, don’t overwhelm your readers with flashing banner ads, affiliate offers, and pay-per-click advertising. The money will come, but you won’t be able to effectively monetize your blog the instant it goes live on the net.  If you do decide to monetize right away, (and you have every right to do so) don’t expect the money to come rolling in by the thousands or even hundreds in the first month.  Be patient; if you’re doing everything you can to self-promote, the money will come in time.

It takes passion, dedication, perseverance, patience, and time to build a blog.  When you’re building and/or just starting out blogging, don’t expect any money to come from it for at least 6 months.  If it happens sooner for you, GREAT!  If not, don’t dwell on it.

No money, no problem!  Just keep writing and remember… if you build it, they will come!

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