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As I’m not a professional blogger, I need to maintain my blog while having a full-time job ( and a life for that matter -)). I’ve been looking into several ways to become more effective in maintaining and writing a blog. All the time I spend with blogging can actually be divided in 4 large chunks :

1. Setup and maintenance of my blog : setting up the blog, installing plugins, blog design, …
2. Traffic generation and analysis: search engine & directory submission, search engine optimization ,..
3. Sourcing : finding good sources or material to write about
4. Writing posts : writing new posts from the collected information

After your blogs construction phase, there is obviously ongoing work on maintenance & traffic generation but relatively less then time spent with sourcing and article writing. Especially so when unique content is intended as a traffic generator ! Sourcing is the most obvious part to save time and involves :

1. Collecting enough relevant fixed sources ( writing about related content) which are typically RSS feeds, mails or links to sites.
2. Collecting link or RSS directories as a starting point to new related sources
3. Search engines

Of course, finding the right sources can be time consuming but even more is reading through all your existing sources. Although I used some very good tools to read E-mail, browse RSS feeds and organize bookmarks, I have been looking for the one tool that bundles all of these ( for free ). I found this combination in My Yahoo and more …

If you sign up for a Yahoo account, you start immediately by customizing your own My Yahoo page ! You define your own layout and theme, create one or more pages and select the content of your interest for each page. Reordering can be done by simple drag & drop. To understand how powerful this tool can be in optimizing your sourcing productivity, I’ll explain how I optimized my own page to optimize productivity :

To start, I divide My Yahoo in several pages : a home page where all my key content appears and some side pages where I put focussed content on.

The home page is divided in 3 columns : 2 sidebars and a larger middle section.

The left sidebar contains 2 modules :

1. A Search box which allows you to immediately start searching topics using the Yahoo search engine. Searches can be personalized in order to find the most relevant content according your preferences.
2. A Calendar that lists your tasks to do, Eg. Plan to research on a certain topic or to write a new article at a certain day. Besides using it as a blog time management tool, it can also be synchronized with your existing appointments on your palm or outlook.

The middle column contains :

1. A mail preview box to preview your incoming mail
2. A notepad to list new ideas or draft concepts for your next posts
3. A list of modules previewing the latest posts from your key RSS sources

The right sidebar contains :

1. A module to Add content from Yahoo’s listings or any other RSS feed. An even more valuable sourcing technique is the possibility to create your own custom RSS feeds based on keywords !
2. A message center to list incoming messages
3. A bookmarks section where you can links to your favorite blogs or sites
4. A module that allows to browse Yahoo’s directory

Besides my home page, I’ve created a number of pages which contain news for specific topics. For these pages, I choose to have a two-column layout with only a right sidebar which is pretty much the same sidebar as on the home page, except that I also inserted the search box. The left part contains only news items on a specific topic, from an existing RSS feed or one or more custom feeds containing keywords, relevant to that topic, Eg. Adsense.

Last I’d like to sum-up what I believe to be the key benefits of using My Yahoo as a blogging productivity tool :

1. It bundles several tools in one : mail reader, RSS news reader & aggregator, agenda, sticky notes, search engine, online bookmarking and browsing Yahoo directories.
2. RSS feeds can be easily added and categorized using pages, preview preferences can be easily customized ( Eg. Preview posts from last 3 days ). A single topic can be completely previewed by scrolling down which I find more responsive then browsing different folders and clicking an RSS feed to preview it’s topics as most RSS readers do.
3. It is web-based and thus can be easily accessed from any pc you are working on. On top of that, the tool is very performing and responsive, in contrary to most web-based applications !
4. Yahoo is continuously developing new amazing programs which provide more and more usefull tools like alerts when new content is found on a topic of interest, Yahoo 360 which includes the ability to blog, Yahoo groups to build your community and much more …
5. Last but not least : it is completely free !!!

James Collins posts tips, tricks and tutorials at Lucrative tips on making some money on the web. No promises for big fortune, no automated-lay-back-and-become-a-millionaire-scams here, but serious ways to make an additional income or living on the web.

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Blogging is easy, blogging is fun. And what’s moreit can help your business in a lot of ways. A blog is a frequent, chronological publication of personal thoughts and web links in the cyberspace. You could call it an e-diary where you can register your thoughts, opinion and comments on anything and everything under the sun that interests you. Though people had been ‘at it’ long before the term blog was coined; it has gained currency as an effective medium of communicating over the Internet only recently. The introduction of automated published software like “Blogger” at www.blogger.com has been instrumental in blogging success. A blog or a weblog‘ is conceptually similar to a website and is accessible to anyone on the Internet.

There are millions of bloggers in the world today blogging away to glory. But blogging can be more than just chatter in the cyberspace. It can be a great tool for boosting your online business’s profitability once you’ve understood how it works and what are its limitations. Take a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weblog#Corporate for some more information.

How to become a Blogger?

The key to learning how to become a blogger is to start blogging! Easier said than done? Not really. There are several websites that can give you information on how to be a blogger. Blogger.com is one of them. You have three options here to choose from:

- Have a hosted service like Blogger allows you to set up an account and fire away in a matter of minutes.

- A remotely installed blog like movabletype allows you to install on a server for a small fee.

- Desktop blog programs like Radio Userland are installed on your desktop and then uploaded to a host. These are usually desktop programmes that include hosting and upgradation for a certain period of time and charge you a small fee.

You can get more information on blogging resources from http://www.blogroots.com/resources.blog.

Also see: http://www.blogger.com/start

Once you have decided what option you want for setting up your weblog/ blog you are ready to start blogging. It is that easy. It could take a while before anyone will notice your little blog in the corner and take you seriously. But you can cut down this time with some great ideas at: http://help.blogger.com/

offers some great ideas on increasing your blog’s readership.
There is a Chinese saying, ” It’s a wise man who learns from others’ mistakes”. Read others blogs to see what works and what doesn’t, what are their writing styles etc. It’s a great way to teach yourself and fun too. you are learning on some one else’s expense.

Guidelines for the greenhorn blogger

Here are some simple guidelines for a newbie blogger. Take a chance with these to increase your chances of success.

1. Get Blogging: Like I said earlier, the best way to learn blogging is to start blogging.

2. Recognize your motivation: Why are you blogging? What do you hope to achieve?
   
3. Link to other blogs: the best way to popularise your blog is to link to other blogs. So link you must!

4. Develop a unique style of writing: Developing a writing style is an evolutionary process. Try different approaches and formats until you find one that fits your message, audience, and personal motivations.
5. Express your personality… let your humour, your perspective on life, and your values shine in your writing.
6. Be regular with your posting: readers will quickly wander away from blogs that are not updated regularly. So this is very important.

More blogging resources are available at: (www.lights.com/weblogs)

How to profit from Blogging?

Now that you have understood what a blog is and how to get blogging, its time to make it pay. Blogging is a great way to enhance your online company’s bottomline. It is a popular and an easy medium and has potential of reaching millions.

Here are some tips for you to turn blogging into a serious profitable strategy.

1. Customer Interaction: A blog is a good means to keep in touch with your customers regularly. You can keep them updated on new events, happening in your company, new products and services and other developments. the best part is that you can do it more cost effectively and in much less time than other methods like newsletters, customer updates and customer meetings. The elements of interactivity, community and collaboration are key here. Your blog can also serve as a platform for advertising, promotion and even internal communications. One well-known business example is software company Macromedia’s use of blogging to keep customers updated on what’s happening with its products.

2. Query management: With a blog you can receive and answer to customer queries more quickly than an email. For potential customers it is very important to have a sharp turnaround and you can do that easily with a blog.

3. Link to other sites: Linking your blog to other similar, but not competing, sites is a great way to get some free publicity and traffic for your online business. It is also one big reason why Search Engines will grab your site in their result pages. Ask any online entrepreneur what getting quality traffic to a website means and you’ll know what I am talking about.

4. Get Feedback: Getting feedback from your customers on your products and services, on your company practices and other things is one of the most valuable resources you can build. With a blog, it is not just easier but also time saving for customers to leave feedback for you without filling complicated and mile long forms.

5. Get Google to work for you: Selling ad space is one of the most popular revenue streams for online businesses. With Google’s free AdSense service it just got easier www.google.com/adsense. AdSense allows bloggers to display up to three content-specific “ad units” (boxes that can hold up to four ads each) per page. Each time a visitor clicks these ads, you get paid. Need more convincing?

6. Become an affiliate: Your blog can become a cash cow by using the simple idea of becoming an affiliate for other websites. An affiliate basically carries a link to the other site and each time some one clicks on that link, you get a small commission for it.

7. Donations: If you are running a blog that people love to read and keep coming back in hordes, why not ask them for some monetary appreciation?

Put on your thinking cap and let your imagination run unbridled. You will surprise yourself with the number of ideas that will make your blog less of a personal e-diary and more of a digital cash cow. Blogging is a relatively new marketing arena for webpreneurs, but has immense possibility and potential. Be sure to get on to the bandwagon early in the game and reap your benefits later.

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Were you aware that Blog is now an official word in the dictionary? Do you even know what a Blog is? If you have a work at home business, you ought to learn. Blogging is an effective and inexpensive way to promote your work at home business. It is simple and can yield good results.

If you haven’t seen the multitudes of blogs on the Internet and you have no idea what this strange word is about, a blog is a web page made up of posts arranged in chronological order. It is similar to having a journal or weblog on the internet. They range from personal blogs in which people post journal-like entries or opinions to business blogs which are what you would consider for your work at home business. Blogging for your work at home business can actually be quite a useful tool.

Blogging software has become simplified for even the beginner user. It allows you to avoid the pitfalls of having to learn HTML, and instead does it for you. Sites that offer blogs usually have low cost or free blogs, which offer your home based business the ability to be present on the internet for little to no cost. You will not have to hire some website designer to come in and create an entire website or wait for them to update your site when you have new information. Blogging becomes your web advertising tool for your work at home business.

The best thing about blogging for your work at home business is that you are also able to offer others the benefit of your expertise. If you are a consultant or information-based work at home business, you can bring consumers to you as they look for know-how on the internet. Each post can be a tip or lesson to help clients and entice customers to use your services. Not a writer? Hire a blog writer for a small fee to post for you.

Still not sure? Try looking at some different blogs on the internet to see if blogging for your work at home business is something you want to consider. Great free blogging sites like LiveJournal or Blogspot offer free blogs. You can even use your blog to earn extra revenue through advertising programs like Google AdSense and partnering with other companies.

Read the rest of the article here: Blogging for Your Work at Home Business.

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Copyright © Charles Fuchs is an established Six Figure Income earner and one of the top online marketer’s. He specializes in
showing people the Best Work at Home and Home Based Business on the internet.

I grant permission to publish this article, electronically or in print, as long as the bylines are included, with a live link, and the article is not changed in any way.

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