About five years ago my cousin started a blog. I didn’t get it at all… why would anyone want to keep an online journal for everyone with an internet connection to read? It seemed stupid and pretentious to me at the time, and so it doesn’t surprise me that other people think I’m crazy when I tell them they should be blogging.

But I promise you – there is a good reason you should be blogging that goes far beyond sharing what you had for lunch.

Blogging can be one of the most powerful (not to mention inexpensive) tools available to the average person for creating your own personal brand. And why would you want to do that? Because you are awesome and people should know it.

Even if you have absolutely nothing to “sell,” you should still be selling yourself.

Humor me for a minute and imagine there is a big round of layoffs at work tomorrow. You go home with your box of belongings and start preparing your CV in anticipation of your big job search. Great, except that you’re just one of 100 people who the company just let go, and one of thousands of unemployed vying for the same job.

That scenario sucks doesn’t it?

But how about this one. There’s a big round of layoffs at work tomorrow. You go home with your box of belongings and blog about getting laid off. Now 2000 people who already think you’re awesome know you’re looking for a job. And they already know a little about you… heck, you might even have a link to your resume on your blog! You get hundreds of emails of support, and a few with leads on positions… one that leads to an interview next week!

Wow, that sounds way better doesn’t it?

What’s that? You’re a crappy writer? It doesn’t matter anymore – with modern technology comes the video blog! Not photogenic? You can podcast! There is truly a medium for everyone to be successful with blogging. All it takes is a little know-how, and a little consistency.

You are the most precious resource you’ll ever have access to. Why not share your goodness with the world? At worst you’ll be boring and no one will listen… at best, you’ll become a viral internet hit, syndicated in 15 countries. More likely you’ll fall somewhere in between. And that’s fine, because no matter who you are you have something unique to contribute. And with billions of people online, believe me, you’ll find someone who’ll listen…

Want to start a blog? Download my ebook for instructions on how to make it profitable!

So you may or may not have noticed that the price of my eBook Blog-It Rich: Secrets To Creating A Great Income With Your Blog was scheduled to go up to $34.95 on August 31. After much thoughtful consideration, and a number of requests I’ve decided to postpone that for a little while.

Here’s why…

I’ve spent the last two years pouring over information products that I’ve purchased from various places. Some of them were great and some of them were not so great. I don’t know the exact dollar amount I’ve spent over the years because I didn’t track it in the early days, but I can tell you for sure the number is in the thousands. Yes, I downloaded a ton of free material – but by the end I always realized it was just one big sales pitch, to get you to buy “the real” or “complete” product.

My eBook is the only free complete guide on the internet that I could find, that will guide you step-by-step in creating an income with your blog. I don’t send an email a week later telling you that now you need to pay another $1000 for the complete system or $500 for access to my video library. Everything you will ever need to make money with your blog is contained in that book.

What you get is a complete guide to making money online. That’s it. And when I started to think about the people who are just starting out, with barely enough money to start a proper blog to begin with, I pulled the plug on the price increase.

I hope you’ll take advantage of this free education – follow the book and it won’t be long before you see your first commission (definitely a day you’ll remember). It’s no get-rich-quick scheme, but it just might be a get-rich-slow scheme… something many people can’t even say about their current job.

So take a minute to download the book and check it out, or pass my website on to someone you know who is in need of additional income. It’s my personal guarantee that if you’re willing to take the time to learn and put into practice what I’ve poured into that book, you can easily add an extra stream of income.

Just in case you’re still not sure you want a free book that teaches you step-by-step how to make extra money (now that’s just crazy talk), here are what some other people had to say after reading Blog-It Rich:

Kimberly, Tacoma WA:

“I finished your e-book and I loved it! I appreciate your willingness to share what you have learned with so much confidence and still maintain a relaxed (rather feminine) attitude about it all. I am so new to this game and its some overwhelming at the moment. Your experience and suggestions were just the encouragement I needed to right now.”

Chris Voss, Las Vegas, NV (social networking guru and host of the ChrisVossShow.com) had this to say after I emailed him a copy:

“I’ve known Dawn through our introduction in Social Media, she is an intelligent and energetic driving person.  Her online Blog is very insightful and she is professional about all things Social  Media.  She’s written a great piece on blogging for success and how to get started.  I’ve always been impressed with her and I think you will be also.”

Anyway, nuff said – the book is still free and I’d like for you to benefit from it. Download it now, while it’s still free. You have nothing to lose.

CLICK HERE TO BE TAKEN TO THE DOWNLOAD PAGE

A Twitter friend named Jen @dreamachieve68 sent me an interesting project she’s been working on, that seems to be getting some attention from her peers.

Project Achieve is Jen’s senior project. Her objective:  to show the world that everyone has goals and ambitions for themselves. Some may not be to become the President or be the valedictorian of their class, but even as simple as get straight A’s or pass a math test. Everyone has a voice and they have the right to be heard.

I love the positivity behind the concept, and for that Jen, I give you kudos.

I haven’t read it anywhere, but I have a feeling one of Jen’s goals is to get a A+ on her Senior project, so let’s help her out by spreading the word and submitting our goals.

Jen, you’ll have to send us an update and let us know how you do!

P.S. Make sure and click the share links below to pass this website along to your friends on Twitter and Facebook. After all, what’s social media for if not to pass along goodness to others!

I’ve had a few people ask me lately how to make money with a blog. It’s not a super easy question to answer because making money with a blog consists of a few elements. I’ve done my best to lay them out here in a way you can use to make money with a blog right away.

1. Targeted Traffic - to make money with a blog you need traffic; lots of it, and it needs to be “targeted.” All this means is you need the people reading your blog to be predisposed to what you’re offering. That means actively promoting your blog on social media sites, commenting on other blogs (other blogs in your same market, but not in direct competition with) with links back to your content.

2. Good Content Posted Consistently – Good content doesn’t just mean interesting, it also means keyword-rich writing to let the search engines know what your site is about. You should aim to have at least four per cent of the words on your page be your identified keyword – without having it look like you were just randomly stuffing keywords into the article. You’ll notice on this page I mention how to make money with a blog several times in this post, but not so much that it seems completely unnatural.

The more regularly you post to your blog, the more often the search engines will crawl, or index your site – which means your fresh blog content will be available to more readers more quickly for the keywords you choose.

3. A Great Offer – To make money with a blog you need to have a great offer; something your readers want or need to have. Give it to them for free if possible. If you blog about fishing for example, you could give away a free ebook or free video series of how to catch a particularly elusive fish. If you have expertise, you should consider creating your own information product. If not, you can find hundreds of great offers on sites like ClickBank. Just be aware that doing it this way builds someone else’s list – not your own.

3. Carefully Chosen Advertising – choose to advertise products that will be beneficial and appealing to your readers, and also provide a good pay out with every purchase. Commission Junction is a great place to find offers to place on a blog.

4. Great Follow-Up Offers – if you are building your own list (which you should always be doing), make sure and keep your readers informed of other great products or services you have to offer to them. Remember to keep the offers relevant. The best list building service I’ve used (and I’ve tried many) is AWeber.

Once you get used to it, you can make money with a blog with just a little effort. If you love writing anyway it’s well worth your time to hunt down some great offers and get them on your site asap. They can pay for your hosting fees if nothing else.

If you’re serious about making money with your blog, download my new ebook Blog It Rich: Secrets to Creating a Great Income with Your Blog. Enter your info to the right and click FREE INSTANT ACCESS.

Happy blogging!

P.S. Don’t forget to stop by my Facebook page for a chance to win the grand prize (worth $200)!

Stop by the website of Kimberly Gauthier, you’ll probably first be impressed by the simple, yet graphically beautiful design. I know I was. Kimberly is a professional photographer whose home base is about 30 miles north of Seattle, Washington, and I found myself wishing she was just a little closer.

While her photography is awesome, it’s her blog that really caught my attention.

Behind most photographer’s blogs you’ll find the staple blog about today’s photo shoot, how it went and here are the pictures. But Kimberly’s blog is much more than that… it’s truly the woman (aspiring prof, pet mommy and loved girlfriend) behind the camera. Yes she talks about photography, but because she loves it, not because it’s her job.

I had a chance to chat with Kimberly this morning, and the personality that shines through on the blog is truly the person she is – warm and friendly, and full of entrepreneurial spirit. Her website is a labor of love and photography is her passion.

If you’re looking for a good photographer in Washington, I highly recommend you check her out. And if not, make sure you stop by her blog – filled with photos and stories of dogs, cats, fish, demolition and business plans – and say hi.

As a blogger, there is nothing I like more than to read the great blogs of other people. Here is a list of blogs sent to me by friends from all over the world (well this list is mostly from USA and Canada)… either way, if it’s listed here it’s definitely worth a look.

Be sure to spread the love – share this page with others, and leave the authors (including me!) a comment. There is nothing a writer likes more than to know their work is being read and appreciated!

Want to see your blog listed here? Email me!

Blog List – A Work In Progress

Life with the Campbells - Writer Molly Campbell isn’t just your ordinary blogger. Winner of the Erma Bombeck Writer’s Competition, her writing is eloquent and thoughtful, although comical and interesting at the same time. I stumbled onto her site by accident all on my own, but it has enough charm to warrant a bookmark and a promise to return. And for the record, I definitely do not look like my dog

Kissing Frogs – Written by a blogger whose pen name is simply “J.”, this blog is random, but entertaining. Stop here for all kinds of musings; trips to “the lady doctor”, the trials and tribulations of being a bridesmaid and uncomfortable family pet photos. You can follow Kissing Frogs on Twitter.

The Chris Voss Show – Ok so Chris Voss barely qualifies as amateur, but I love him and his site just the same. This guy tells it like it is… his candid video breakdowns of life and business online are just what I need to break up the monotony of my day. Usually worth a laugh, but always worth the content… check him out. You can follow Chris on Twitter. Everyone else does.

Bikini After 40 – Author Suzanne Franco isn’t just your average blogger; she’s the winner of 2009′s Blogging Idol. Bikini After 40 is just one of Suzanne’s numerous sites, and chronicles the struggles of losing weight in the 40s. Suzanne is one of the warmest people I know and her blog is a must read for women (and men) of all ages. You can follow BikiniAfter40 on Twitter.

Sugar Coat Blog – Written by Erin Jenean, a 28-year-old aspiring journalist. After speaking with Erin personally I can tell you first-hand that she is down to earth and very motivated. Her blog covers a wide range of topics, spanning from the crisis in the Gulf, to “Unsweetened” politics.

Mister Good Guy - This site was shared with me by @homeschool911 who is a friend of Mister Good Guy himself, Dave Fowler. Dave is selling the Mona Lisa piece by piece through his blog to raise money for charity. He blogs that he’s frustrated by the process and may end up having to go back to work full-time, a fate I wouldn’t wish on anyone. Check out Dave’s site and grab a piece of the Mona Lisa today, or at very least, leave Dave a comment. I know he’d appreciate it!

Veggin’ Out With Christa – Author Christa Shelton is a 34-year-old vegan on a mission to educate people on the vegan lifestyle. Even if you are not a vegan (like myself), her recipes sound incredibly delicious, and could make a healthy side dish even for the avid meat-eater. You can follow Veggin’ Out on Twitter.

I decided a couple of weeks ago to put out a tweet, asking for people to share their interesting blog links with me… the response was overwhelming. There are so many awesome amateur blogs out there, written by passionate, thoughtful people – I just couldn’t hoard all the goodness to myself!

Starting today, you’ll be able to check out a list of my favorite blogs; I’m also going to review one a week. Make sure you stop by and show the authors some love – which means, go to their site and leave a comment. They’ll appreciate it, believe me!

Want me to review your blog or get listed in my favorites? Send me an email and let me know! It’s a great way for amateur blogs to get extra traffic, and get your great content out to more readers!

Hope to hear from you soon! Don’t forget and leave me a comment below

P.S. When I say “amateur blog” I just mean a blog that isn’t mainstream (think Mashable.com). My blog is as amateur as they come, and I mean amateur blog with the utmost love and respect.