If there is one profession that makes Internet users fantasize, it is that of bloggers. With few resources and investments, everyone can put their blog online and hope to make a living from it. Many bloggers show off their success with a big income. Very good, except that the reality is quite different for a huge majority of little bloggers who will never make a penny. In your turn, do you want to become a blogger? In this article, you'll find out all about this ever-fashionable job. Let's go!
Although it has existed for more than 25 years, the profession of blogger is still poorly understood and not fully recognized. For many people, writing articles that are read on the internet is not a profession . I too, when I started, I was told to choose a real profession and not something that no one will talk about in 6 months. After 10 years of blogging, I'm still laughing after everything I've heard. In short, if I had listened to all that, I would never have advanced… Like what everything is possible even if it is worthy of the obstacle course
What is being a blogger?
Easy is keeping a blog. But still? Put simply, a blogger writes articles that were once written in a newspaper that are read by other Internet users . A blogger offers content to be read and shared like I have been doing on Le Club Argent since 2017.
Who can blog?
Blogging is obviously open to everyone . Everyone can put their content online either for the pleasure of sharing information or to earn a little money or better, to make a living from it.
How much does it cost to have a blog?
Blogging requires little investment. No, you don't need thousands of dollars to have your blog online even if you want to make it your job. Obviously, it's not free. Count 100 € per year for hosting, domain name, theme, plugins and other services provided you get your hands dirty. Now, you still have the option to do this for free, especially with WordPress, but for a minimum of credibility, you must have a domain name and hosting that belongs to you. So for a small blog, it takes 100 € / year but if you are successful it will be much more and it is not a problem ...
A dream job that pays off but the reality is very often different!
Often I read testimonials from professional bloggers who praise the profession and explain that it is easy to fill our pockets with little or nothing to do. Don't be fooled! Of course bloggers make a very good living, but they are rare . Honestly, I would say that less than 1% of the people who embarked on the adventure were able to make a living from their blog. Do some research on the net, you will see that this is the reality. And sometimes, these 1% barely earn a minimum wage after long months of effort.
It's very time consuming
If you want to become a blogger to take it easy, it's missed. Don't think that a pro blogger only works a few hours a week . It's wrong! Even if on Le Club Argent, I only publish 2 articles per month, I have a lot of work that is not necessarily visible to Internet users . I work an average of 8 hours / day for the blog and try to do less on the weekends. Blogging and being independent is good, but having a family life and more leisure time is better.
Being a blogger is fun!
Ah, “are you a blogger like the ones we see on TV? It's fun as a job! ” I have heard this reflection many times before. I answer that this job is no more fun than any other and that you have to work hard to get there . I don't know what people imagine but it's surprising… It's the same for Youtubers. But hey, all that make me laugh. 😉
The competition is fierce:
If there is one area where competition is fierce, it is on the internet . As proof, when you do the research "How to make money?" on Google, you get over 80 million results. Yes, I did say 80 million results! You understand why you have to be motivated and be ready to fight for your place in the sun . If you are not in the top results in the search engines, you will have no visibility, no traffic and you will not earn anything. To be well positioned, you have to be better than the others, period .
Daily questioning:
Do not think that when you have a blog that is correctly positioned on Google and that you have some traffic that you are not risking anything and that you can rest on your laurels. It's not complicated, every day, you have to question yourself because everything goes so fast on the net that you can lose everything overnight. The Silver Club is in 1st position for many keywords and despite these very good results, I continue my work to improve what can be improved and to close the gap with my competitors. Not a day goes by that I don't try to do better.
In the same vein, you have to stay on the lookout for anything that relates directly or indirectly to the profession of blogger . Among other things, it is necessary to follow the news of the search engines and the update of algorithms, the updates of WordPress and its tools, the evolution in coding ...
A solid training and being versatile is essential:
To become a blogger, you have to be versatile, to say the least. As I just said above, it's not enough to just install the blog and write a few articles for it to work. Already you have to be brilliant in spelling. If you make a mistake with every word, take French lessons, or do something else. How can you be credible when articles are full of spelling mistakes? To go further, read my article where I explain how to be a good web editor.
Knowing how to write correctly is not enough. You will have to master CMS, they are tools that are used to put the blog online. On Le Club Argent, I use WordPress but other similar tools exist like DotClear, Drupal, Joomla… I digress a bit! In short, learn what WordPress is on reliable sites like Wp Marmite and this tool will have no secrets for you. In a few weeks/months, you will be up and running.
Knowing how to write and master WordPress is not bad, but there are still a lot of other things to learn such as programming languages. HTML, CSS, Javascript are a minimum you need to know to get started .
We continue with the referencing called SEO (Search Engine Optimization). To put it simply, SEO is used to make your blog known and recognized by Internet users and search engines. I will not detail what SEO is because other sites are experts in the field such as Abondance or WebRankInfo.
We can work from anywhere:
To blog, you just need a PC of course and an internet connection. Nothing more! With blogging, you can very well travel halfway around the world while working . I don't know of any other profession that offers such freedom.
You always have to please Google:
Let it be said, 80% of blog traffic comes from the Google search engine, so it might as well please! If your blog is downgraded or deindexed, you are losing really big and you probably won't get back up. On the internet as everywhere, there are rules that must be respected . Those who deceive and abuse do not last long. So work neatly, respecting Google's guidelines and everything should be fine a priori . I specify “a priori” because sometimes blogs lose positions without knowing why.
So if you think you're smarter than algorithms and cheating all the time, drop blogging, I sincerely tell you.
You have to diversify your sources of traffic and income:
Do you know the proverb that goes: “You don't put all your eggs in one basket”? . In blogging, follow this proverb to the letter.
Already in terms of traffic sources. The majority of your traffic will come from the Google search engine, so don't kid yourself. But imagine you are penalized for such and such a reason and your traffic is wiped out overnight, how are you going to do it? If your blog no longer allows you to pay yourself a salary, what do you do?
Thus, it is ESSENTIAL to diversify your traffic sources . You obviously have to rely on Google but also on direct traffic, on social networks, on referral links, on the newsletter, on guest articles… Without diversifying your traffic sources, you take very big risks!
It is the same for the sources of income. Place the advertising of the Google Adsense control is very simple but how will you do the day when your account is deactivated? Don't think that it only happens to others. Many bloggers have had their accounts closed without warning.
Again, if you diversify and work with 4-5 advertising agencies, you take much less risk . It's just a matter of logic! On Le Club Argent, I work on more than 10 different sites and agencies.
The theme will have a direct impact on your income
Then again, don't think that blogging about football, fishing, or music is all profitable. No, choosing the right theme is extremely important. For info, thematic the most profitable in general are finance, banking sector, insurance, healthcare, automotive .. . As I said in a previous article, for a blog to make money, you have to be able to offer a product to sell. What do you want to sell on a football site? Nothing or almost. On a banking site, you generate income by offering simulations for credits. On an automotive site, you will send your readers to sites offering insurance quotes, spare parts, etc. More than ever, the choice of theme is not made lightly . To go further, I suggest you discover the keywords that yield the most on Google Adsense.
How far are the 2000s!
The 2000s were certainly the heyday of blogging. At the time, there was not as much competition and making your blog known was easy, I would even say 1000 times easier than in 2020. It was enough to point thousands of links of good quality or not to be well-positioned on Google in almost all themes. In a few months/years, bloggers have collected colossal sums with 5 or 6 figure salaries. It was a good time but unfortunately for me, I only started blogging in 2009 and things had already changed a lot. I remember a blogger in 2005 who was making over $ 130,000 per month! It was purely delusional! I am posting the photo to you below.
Patience is the queen of virtues
Earlier I told you that everything was going very quickly on the internet, I confirm it. But for notoriety it's totally different. Your blog will not be known overnight and will not fill up with visitors in a snap. To attract traffic, you have to be known and especially recognized as a quality blog by Google and this takes a lot of time . Usually, it takes 18 months for a blog to reach cruising speed . So do not hope to earn a living just 15 days after having put your blog online. To become a blogger, you have to be patient , it goes without saying ...
Do not forget that we also pay charges and taxes:
This is valid for blogging as for any business: from the moment you earn money, you have to pay taxes . Depending on the status you choose, you will subtract 25 to 50% of your earnings. If you blog to earn € 1 per hour, drop it and look for a real job that will earn you at least € 10 per hour (gross amount of the minimum wage).
Thousands of blogs are created every day
No, blogging is not dead contrary to what we can read here and there. Become a blogger and succeed and still possible in 2020, moreover, know that thousands of new blogs are put online every day. New niches are being created, others are disappearing and the most opportunistic are managing to succeed.
Conclusion:
This article is coming to an end and I think I have covered what you need to know about this exciting and difficult profession. Don't forget to subscribe to the newsletter if you haven't already. You will receive the latest money solutions by email and free of charge as soon as they are published. Finally, if you liked this article, please share it
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