Why Blogspot is Good & Bad

When you decide to start a blog to generate income, going for cheap (aka FREE) is usually what most will quickly go for. Many upon many newbie bloggers will immediately choose Blogspot, because it's free, easy to use and customizable. And making money with no real investment besides time and effort is always nice. However most of the pro's will tell you that Blogspot is the last place to be if you want to get SERIOUS about making money with a blog. They almost all have the commonality of using Wordpress self-hosted blogs which basically develop into nice looking websites.

The Monetizer has seen decent income from a Blogspot hosted blog, just based on building a good social network to bring traffic in, as well as some other strategies. However, once you build something decent and you see the RSS subscriber count going up, and the Alexa and Page ranks increase, you start to think maybe it wasn't such a good idea to start there. Many advertising programs won't accept you if you're on the free blogspot sites. You can't add a forum or other add-ons for your blogsite. Also you find you spent a lot of work to promote a blog and get indexed, as well as an audience, just to move out on your own. And the biggest problem, Blogspot owns your blog, not you. Since they are hosting it, they could really decide to charge people for their blog service and storage space, or even delete all your hard work, at their discretion. However, you never can really gauge where you'll be in terms of success with a blog. It's always a guessing game and alot of risk taking. If you're a risk taker and a gambler, go for Wordpress.

Wordpress on its free hosting platform, doesn't allow Adsense and even says they will delete you for promoting products, affiliate links, etc (Monetizer managed to stick a few Amazon affiliate links in here or there). However, if you can afford it, then self-hosting Wordpress is what Monetizer recommends. It allows you an enormous amount of flexibility as you continue to grow your blog into a site and start branding it. Also once you own the blog/site you can put whatever you want on it (as long as you're not violating the TOS of various ad programs). Be prepared it will involve research and planning to use Wordpress self hosted. You want to make sure you get the installation done properly, your theme looking how you'd like and your overall organizational structure set up.

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The pro's for Blogspot:

- For free it's the easier of the two blogging platforms to learn, setup and customize. It offers classic layouts or Widget based layouts which are quite easy for the not so tech-savvy blogger.

- In keeping with the above point, editing HTML and CSS tends to be just a tad bit easier using a Classic Blogger/Blogspot blog.

- Blogger blog entries may be indexed better and faster by Google search engine since Blogspot is now owned by Google. This isn't proven but makes good sense.

- Blogger allows for integration of Adsense and other affiliate links/programs, whereas Wordpress frowns upon that for its free blogging.

The cons for Free Blogspot:

- Blogspot can start charging you or eliminate your blog at their discretion. This isn't to say they just erase blogs, but they do have that power if they choose. Wordpress has these options too, but self-hosted blogs don't need to worry about it.

- The template designs you can use for Wordpress tend to be much more enticing and usually look more like websites than Blogspot templates.

- The plug-ins you can use for Wordpress are very, very nice.

- Some people argue that in terms of overall flexibility, Wordpress will always trump Blogspot blogs (free or not free).

Here's a couple (2006) articles comparing to the two blogging platforms as well:

Blogger vs. Wordpress 10 Features for Beginners

Battle of the Blogs: Blogger vs Wordpress

Monetizer Cliff Notes on the above articles: Wordpress wins over Blogger!

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It's not impossible to move Blogspot blogs to Wordpress, in fact it's all layed out right here at "Ten Steps to Wordpress Nirvana". It appears from the ten steps given, that Blogspot will redirect traffic to your blog, which is quite helpful. You can also make sure RSS subscribers stay on point and that your feed stays connected to your new blog, so your blog doesn't lose current readers. However, keep in mind that when you move, Wordpress offers you the ability to have Posts and Pages, and you may need to really put in work to re-design your current theme and organizational structure. Once you're there on your own though, you can let your self-hosted blog soar to new heights! You may even consider doing the above steps and transferring your Blogspot blog to a free Wordpress blog first, so you can tweak your design and site organization behind the scenes before really going live on self-hosted.

If you're still using the free Blogspot service like the Monetizer you may want to change up your design a bit. There's some cool free templates available at these sites below. The Monetizer personally liked the selections at Mashable, including a snazzy iPhone blog template. Check it out:

50 More Beautiful Blogger Templates

Blogger Templates

Freetemplates.blogspot.com

Also, if you come up with any other pros or cons for either Wordpress or Blogspot blogs based on personal experience, feel free to share...

Monetizer Needs a Moneymaking Makeover!

Today is Halloween, and the theme of the day is dressing up as ghouls, goblins and ghosts (as well as celebrities, politicians, Tom from Myspace and countless other cool costumes). For this blog, the theme is the cool character you all know and love, The Monetizer (Halloween costume coming in the near future!). Monetizer discovered a cool contest being run over on JohnCow.com, the Monetizer realized why not go for a new look. A moneymaking makeover is just what this blog might need to carry it to that "next level". So it's about time the Monetizer got all dressed up!

This blog is still in its infancy and slowly building up to hopefully, one day something great. The plan for now is to help anyone who might stop by with tips, tricks and tidbits devoted to better blogging, and making money online. Design hasn't been emphasized all that much yet, because the blog is still on the free source known as Blogspot. But hey if someone wants to upgrade the design for free, why not? The blog right now has a rather simplistic look and theme (taken from the free Blogspot offerings) which definitely could benefit from pimping. The layout could be improved upon greatly and the header might even need a little more pizazz to go with the Monetizer character. But the character stays, there's no arguing on that one ;) Monetizer would love a new look that would make other bloggers “green with envy”. So that's a hint that maybe a nice green theme could be used here.

Some technical design expertise from guys who make that their day job is always welcome. As mentioned before you really need to either be a “jack of all trades” in this business or have someone else do the stuff you can't or don't have the time to do. Design takes a lot of time and effort, whether you're a beginner or even higher up, and that's a fact. Monetizer has only so much time between writing for this blog, other blogs and promoting, plus the rest of life... So please, John Cow & Weborithm, Pimp My Blog!

JohnChow's "Let Us Pimp Your Blog" contest seems to be the way to go. The prize will be provided by weborithm and they will give your blog a nice little makeover worth $49, should you win (hopefully The Monetizer wins first). Today, Halloween, is the final day you can enter so get to writing about why your blog needs to be pimped! Head over to JohnChow.com and check it out.

As for treats today, the Monetizer can only give you The Monetizer's Recommended MoneyMakers and all the other posts here so far. Also, feel free to drop a comment (with blog URL), and as a treat Monetizer will stop by your blog and subscribe to the RSS feed to help boost your subscriber number...

Happy Halloween! Stay safe while trick or treating and remember to take money over Paydays!

Google Loves Monetizer, PR3 in Effect!

Sometimes we need to toot our own horns...

A few posts ago the Monetizer discussed how Google's latest Page Rank drama didn't hurt this blog. Monetizer's Page Rank was a big fat "Not Applicable". Well now it seems the page is ranked, as Google has given the Monetizer a 3 of 10 PR which they can drop at their discretion! Thank You Google Gods!

It's a tough dilemma here, because it's cool to see a decent page rank after this blog's only been up about 3 months. It took very little work to achieve it seems, other than posting, and some traffic strategies here or there. Heck, Monetizer hasn't even started to submit to search engine directories and all that jazz!

On the flipside, this blog continues to remain on free Blogspot hosting, which everyone knows isn't the ideal way to go. Many say free blogger blogs will get indexed well in Google's search engine, but that won't be the emphasis here. Having your own site is especially true if you're going to branch out, start branding and building a HUGE audience of fans. So the Monetizer is being very very careful with strategy from here out as to not rush what could be a good thing. Again this is fully experimental, some money has been made, but more can be done, albeit carefully.

Upon checking several other blogs that the Monetizer maintains, they also now have Page Ranks. Several of the blogs have just a PR1. A blog which has had a TON more traffic over the course of about a year is also a 3 of 10. It has a better Alexa rank than this blog for sure. Now the Monetizer must strategize about which programs to carefully target. It's been discussed all around the Blogosphere that Text-Link-Ads may not be looked upon favorably by Google. The Monetizer has belonged to this for months, and may tread carefully when re-investigating options there!

So as we know, Google has a lot of power (that we may give them) to really affect how we see our blog products. However, as many have mentioned, using the proper strategies with Page Rank can really benefit your money making online and say Page Rank doesn't matter so much!

Page Rank is basically GOogle's view of how important your site is (to them). While I won't launch into the full discussion of how Page Rank works, it's best to try to get your site or blog link on other sites with good PR's. Here's some other Monetizer entries you may be able to use for submitting your site and increasing your Page Rank.

5 Must Have Free Blog Tools

A Review of Directory Submitter

Blog Promotion Items You Need

4 Moneymaking Lessons Rappers Teach Us

The Monetizer is a fan of rap and hip-hop, and thinks it's funny how the music often gets a "bad rap" (no pun intended). Sometimes it seems as if society, Bill O'Reilly and other individuals label the music as the root of all evil. Despite all the controversy and drama we see in the headlines though, rap stars can teach us money making bloggers and online monetizers a lot. Stars like Outkast, 50 Cent, Jay-Z and The Game all have taken successful rap careers and turned them into so much more, and seem to emphasize some common concepts which can be used when you think about blogging or creating online moneymaking ventures.

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1) Rappers have money on their minds - Monetizer isn't generalizing here, but there's more than a few rap songs that mention the importance of money. Some people put it before all else. While this isn't the best way to live your life, if you're trying to make money online it should be your attitude online towards your blog, site or product. There are some who suggest when blogging just do it out of your passion for the topic and the rest will follow. However money won't be made without some strategies, analysis and implementation of ways to improve on what you're doing. Many rappers have this "I Get Money" mentality which keeps them adding income.

2) Rappers brand themselves or their group/record label - A rapper basically turns him or herself into a product, so when you hear the name 50 Cent or Jay-Z you start to not only associate it to music but their other items. Once the rapper has that "brandability" they become more valuable to advertisers. From there they can negotiate deals to pitch products or even launch their own. They don't just sell rap music and records, they create lines of clothing, their own energy drinks, go into acting, even have their own comic books, action figures and cartoons! How can you use this? With your blog you can build it into a brand. Once you have a "popular brand" it will become attractive to advertisers. You can begin to sell ad spaces on your blog to those wanting to advertise. You can also branch your brand out into a full website with more than just the blog. Think about adding a forum, sales pages of your personally branded items (T-shirts, buttons and other memorabilia), podcasting, etc. You can start with just the blog or site, but as you start to improve in terms of RSS subscribers, Alexa rank and Page rank you will want to find ways to expand your business/product.

3) Rappers diversify their income streams - Similar to #2, but this involves the idea that once a rapper has that brand recognition, they can turn it into a clothing line, record label or night club. This is one of the big lessons in online moneymaking and money blogs, to have multiple income sources. Rappers often go into producing as well and begin to build their own record label, and a stable of new artists, meaning more moneymkaers. Running just Adsense won't get you rich, unless you're doing it on many many sites and really working your butt off. To give you more of a chance at building online wealth, you'll need to implement several moneymakers. Another valuable part of the lesson here is that the more income streams you use on a blog or site, the more chance for higher profits returned.

4) Rappers often are helped by controversy - This is not to say you should go out and do a drive-by shooting to get your blog in the news, but you can take a page here from rap stars. Often there are rappers whose album sales are assisted due to their controversy. Kanye West is one example of a guy who hasn't commit a crime, yet has been able to engage in controversy. He spoke his mind about George Bush's involvement or lack thereof during a Hurricane Katrina fundraiser. He continues to be amongst the more popular selling musicians. Speaking your mind about controversial issues or blogging about something in a controversial fashion will often get you more attention. More attention often brings more comments, more readers, more traffic and more subscribers. Another example, pictured here was the big record battle between Kanye West and 50 Cent. Both of them released albums on September 11, 2007 in a sort of "contest" to see who could sell more. Sounds a lot like the John Chow vs. Shoemoney RSS subscriber battle that has gone on through October which surely has helped both guys out.

Some people believe that rap music is evil and rots the brain, however the Monetizer says we can learn a lot from it. Now this mindset and set of concepts doesn't just apply to rap stars, but it shows the mentality several rappers have used to create a great deal of wealth. There are professional athletes, business people and regular people all over the world who employ these sorts of creative ideas and make money. Start thinking this way with your online moneymaking ventures and you will adopt an entrepreneur's mindset towards your online moneymaking ventures.

...In the end it's like 50 Cent says though, we all "Get Rich or Die Tryin'".