Welcome to Part Four of the “Creating A Blog” series here on theNetFool.com. By this point, you should have everything ready to go. We know what we want to accomplish, and have the domain name and web hosting to make it happen. Now let’s talk about the system you need to install to get things up and running.

Modern day bloggers use a website script that acts as a writer/publisher/editor on the internet so you can run your blog entirely from your website. These scripts are very easy to install, and once you have things running you’ll have everything you need to blog like the professionals. This means that you can write, edit, publish, update and everything in between. Let’s get you set up with your very own blog!

The Choices: WordPress v. Blogger
There are plenty of independent blogging systems out there, but you should really only consider two: WordPress and Blogger. You’ll hear arguments both ways, and while most bloggers nowadays have made the switch over to WordPress, Blogger still makes for a viable blogging platform option.

Blogger: Blogs made with Blogger are hosted directly through the blogger.com website, so no real need for hosting. The advantage here is of course that you do not need web hosting. Other than that, since Blogger is a subsidiary of Google, all of the pages are very well indexed by the search engine and typically get decent rankings right off the bat. The system is easy to use for beginners, and great for a personal “my thoughts” type of writer. If you are looking for a cheap way to create a simple online journal, Blogger is the blogging platform for you.

WordPress: Serious bloggers scoff at the Blogger system because of its simplicity. There really aren’t many features at all in Blogger, as there exist in WordPress. WordPress.com allows you to host a blog there for free, just like Blogger, but most people using WordPress have the actual script running on their servers. This is what I recommend, because it makes things a lot easier and more professional in the long run. I’ve always used WordPress, and it just keeps getting better or better. If you are looking to run advertising or make your own blog with a custom template, you need to use WordPress. This system allows you to do things your way, rather than have a third party limit your room to work.

I personally recommend WordPress to everyone. However, if you are looking for a really basic and easy to use system for a low-key blog… why not give Blogger a run? I must warn you that there will be little room to expand without reverting to WordPress, but it’s not a bad start-up idea for someone looking for a basic setup.

Downloading Your Blogging Script
Again, I don’t want you using a third party… use WordPress or Blogger. If you would like to try the third-party hosting, you can simply navigate over to either Blogger.com or WordPress.com to set up your free account. Take notice: you cannot run your own ads and you might be required to display theirs, which makes things look a bit tacky.

Working from the assumption that you are installing WordPress, let’s check out the official download page on WordPress.org. You want to grab the most recent copy available, and save it to your computer wherever it will be easiest to find (called “wordpress-x.zip”). Then you simply need to unzip what you have and you’ll see all the files available for you. Most computers come with a default extracting program, but if its not working try WinRar.

Uploading WordPress to Your Server
Let’s learn a little about FTP (file transfer protocol). You know the “http://” before websites? This is just one protocol you can use, and the “ftp://” is essentially for file transfers. I’d recommend downloading a client so you can send and download files back and forth from your hosting account, the best are FileZilla and CuteFTP, and both are 100% free. This will allow you to easily access and edit your files.

Once you have your FTP client up and running, you just need to connect to your web hosting account (find the connection information in your host’s FAQ section) including address, username, password and port. Port is almost always going to be 21, so don’t worry about that. Address is where your website is (mine is “thenetfool.com”) and your username and password is simply your login information. Once you are connected, you’ll see all your files laid out.

All you need to do to have your WordPress script ready to use is move all the files you just downloaded to your hosting account’s root folder. This will either be the first thing you see, or it might be in a folder like “httpdocs.” You’ll know it when you see it, just upload everything you just unzipped.

Creating Your MySQL Database
Don’t let the terminology confuse you. A MySQL database is basically just a big file where all of your settings are dumped and accessed by the WordPress script. All the text from your posts, usernames, setting, etc. are stored here in a file that you need to create. Having a database dedicated to your blog is a smart idea.

Creating a new database is typically done through your web hosting control panel, and should be pretty easy to figure out. Just make a new database, a user for that database, and a password for that user. May sure you remember this information, as we’ll need it soon. If you can’t figure it out, try this guide.

Installing WordPress
Installing the Wordpress system is very easy, and this “five minute installation” guide from WordPress.org should guide you through things. Essentially, you need to find the file “wp-config-sample.php” in your unzipped files and just fill in the information for the database you just created. Save it as “wp-config”.php and upload it back on to your server. I use Windows Notepad to do this, easy!

Once your files are in place, point your browser to “yoursite.com/wp-admin/install.php” and follow the easy to understand prompt. If you get stuck, check back in with WordPress.org’s handy installation guide and see what could be wrong. You may have to change around the file permissions (CHMOD) on some of your files, but this can be easily accomplished with a right-click from your FTP client.

Congratulations, your blog is now installed (or hosted) and ready for you to start making posts. At this point, you have everything you “need” to start running a successful website. In the next tutorial, I am going to discuss how to find, install and customize a template and some very important plugins for your blog. This is going to be essential to get Google to find your website easier and to enhance the appeal/user experience at your new website. In the meantime, why not experiment by making a few posts to see how things work?

Stay tuned for part five, where I’ll get you customized and looking like a pro!
-The Net Fool

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This is a sponsored post of the LoveClients system. My view is an honest one, and has not been swayed one way or another by the for-pay nature of the article.

Affiliate programs are a great way to make money online by referring members to well-established goods and services across the internet. Even the most inexperienced marketer can do a fairly decent job convincing members to sign up to websites using their affiliate links; this is something anyone can do.

As you well know, The Net Fool is currently bullish on making money online through affiliate programs. I feel that you can get a great recurring commission off digital sales that can supply you with predictable revenue for quite some time. I’ve already discussed a strategy of making hundreds with the TLA network, and how to properly mask those pesky referral links… so let’s explore a new program!

LoveClients is a great new company that helps smaller business owners advertise effectively on big networks. These guys are marketing professionals, and have an expertise in Search Engine Marketing (SEM), Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Pay Pey Click (PPC) advertising. Their rates are affordable, their business model is professional & ethical and I can personally attest to the level of customer support they have available. There is no doubt in my mind that this is a company I’d be proud to promote in a campaign.

So this post is all about LoveClients’ new affiliate program, where you can get amazing commissions by getting them some new members signed up. While I originally intended to write this up as strictly a review, the system is so well maintained that I am going to recommending using the program yourself to make money online.

What the LoveClients Affiliate Program Has to Offer
Before you start to promote your referral link, let’s have a look at what kind of return you can expect on your leads. There are three levels of profit with LoveClients that depend on how many people you have signed up, all of which are pretty good. In each setup, you get anywhere from $50 (for 1-50 clients) to $75 (for 100+ clients) each month from each of your signups. That’s right, profit is recurring at LoveClients, and it is great.

Let’s say you get even just one client, that’s $50 a month or $600 each year, that keeps on coming until they decide to call it quits. If you’re a bit more on top of your game, let’s say you have 53 people under you, that would be $3,180 each month and $38,160 every year… from just this one program! They even give you the offer to make a whopping 20% commission on each affiliate if you prefer that route.

LoveClients Affiliate System & Tools
The affiliate backend is one of the nicest ones that I have ever seen. This alone probably influenced my view more than anything else. If I want to open up a marketing campaign, I want to be able to manage every thing easily in a professional control panel… that’s just what you get with the LoveClients Affiliate Program.

Sure, these guys are a small organization. This is why I was surprised to see such an ample system in place. I think that they went and overpaid for their software, because this is what you would expect to find from a bigger network. There are plenty of banners and different formats of links/ads to use in order to solicit some referrals from your marketing crowd, and I especially enjoyed the “Commission Alert” system feature for those more hard-core users. I don’t plan on using this, but you can actually download an application and get an alert every time someone signs up.

The affiliate program is overkill by all means. I just can’t understand why they put so much into it, but I’m going to reap the benefits.

What You Can Do to Make Money With LoveClients
So now that you have signed up for the system, it is really important that you understand how to market this. Essentially, any company with a website can stand to benefit from LoveClients… as they are providing great customer support with affordable rates and a system that is easy to use. Essentially, it is going to cost your clients $250 a month to use LoveClients’ service, and with that they’ll get a customized campaign that is all set up and funded for them to start seeing some serious traffic.

You want to play to this crowd, seeking affordable personalized advertising on the internet, and I think you can do this best by either setting up a SEO’d website targeting some relevant terms which should have low competition (experienced users only) or by advertising offline by simply informing local businesses about the service and dropping your link. You’d be surprised how many businesses are looking for exposure and are willing to pay “you” to do it for them. Don’t feel shy to handle payments, outsourcing the work to LoveCleints, and keeping a premium off the top as well as the commission fees. That’s a double commission that is easy enough to obtain.

The Net Fool’s Concerns About the System
I don’t want to get you to looking at the world through rosy-colored glasses, so let’s get real on LoveClients. While everything is professional and very easy to figure out, the $50 per sale sounds a lot worse when compared to the $250+ minimum plan purchase. LoveClients currently only offers 20% commission on the level one deal… so you have to get over 100 people before you start seeing some real gains. Granted, 20% on a $250 product is still a solid bank. I am a bit concerned at how new these guys are. But they are on the offensive in seeking out publicity… and I like the underdog.

LoveClients came to me, and that tells you something about the business. A personal touch, with a professional undertone… LoveClients has me hooked. I feel like their affiliate program is a great place to be if you are looking to see some large profits off of just a few referrals. As far as the affiliate systems go, LoveClients is a pretty good start up. The main problem is that it is a very new company, so the trust level isn’t going to be there for most people. Take a look at their services, and see if you like them!

-The Net Fool

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Many bloggers nowadays offer sponsored/paid review postings as a main source of revenue for their websites. While some may label these for-money marketing “sell-outs,” I maintain that offering to accept money to write reviews is honest work. With this in mind, the problem remains the question of how much to charge for these sponsored posts on your blog?

Let me start out by saying that the rates on The Net Fool dot com are too low, I know this, and people that buy reviews from me know this. However, I feel that you should never raise your rates more than once a month… and I am more than happy to offer a deal until that point. That being said, there has been a long-going debate over whether you should under-charge or over-charge for paid plugs on your blog.

The Pros
Under-charging: Having a backlog of sponsored posts is always a good thing. Also, having a shortage of supply for advertising slots can create it’s own artificial demand that will eventually get you higher prices.
Over-charging: While you may not see as many posts, having a high rate will make sure that every post you sell will be well worth your while. You’ll be making more per post, and this may more than compensate for slower demand.

The Cons
Under-charging: While you may have high demand, you don’t want to saturate your blog with sponsored posts all the time. Sometimes its more valuable to post useful content than slowing yourself down with advertisements. Additionally, perhaps you feel underpaid; after all, you could be making more.
Over-charging: Sure, you make a great profit whenever someone orders a review… but perhaps offers are coming in too slow for your liking? We all like to make money, and artificially high prices could crush your demand a bit too much.

The problem now is for setting your prices in the first place. For those bloggers that have had the opportunity to test the waters, it’s going to be mostly intuitive whether they are under-charging or over-charging for paid reviews. If you feel demand slowing, maybe you offer a limited time deal on cheaper advertising. If the opposite, maybe you announce higher rates and take it from there. But if you really haven’t dealt with sponsored articles thus far, its a bit harder to determine what prices are appropriate.

The Net Fool’s Suggested Paid Review Rate Chart
The best metric to base your decision off in my opinion is your RSS subscriber numbers. These are typically tracker through a third party like FeedBurner, so sign up if you haven’t already. Here is a table I have drawn up for suggested advertising rates, but keep in mind that you need to have the traffic… not just the subscribers.

Please keep in mind that this table is subjective, but I do feel that you should stay inside these subscriber/price brackets if you want to get as close as possible to that all-important equilibrium pricing point. The equilibrium point will occur when the price corresponds with an equal supply and demand. This is basic economics, and this will maximize your profits if you are a for-profit blogger.

We typically find that once a blog breaks out of the 2,500+ subscriber range, these super-bloggers will be able to use their pricing power to basically demand revenue as they please. So I am not going to continue the list upwards from 5,000 readers.

As always, it is important to make and include an “advertise” page on your blog with a display of your stats in order to convince potential advertisers that you mean business. I would suggest the OIO Publisher plugin to manage your reviews, links, banners, etc. as it will definitely make things more organized and streamlined. You want to make advertisements as easy to order as possible, and this is the tool to do it.

Stay bullish on the net!
-The Net Fool

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Hey TNF readers,

The Net Fool’s Outrageous Blog Contest is wrapping up at the end of the month (May 31st), so you have just a few days left to get your entries counted! This contest has been running all month, and offers over $4,500 in cash and prizes up for grabs. Get your entries in now for your guaranteed prize and shot at a bigger reward for your efforts!

I wanted to take this post to highlight one of the more generous prizes on our list, and that’s the $250 credit from the PepperJam Network. You want a shot at this prize? I gotta tell you, the list is small so you have a fantastic chance at winning a big-time ad campaign… pre-funded for your success. All you need to do is sign up for free as an advertiser, and you’ll be on your way!

PepperJam is one of the most popular advertising networks for bloggers, and has been ranked #1 by many bloggers as the friendlier and better paying alternative to Google Adsense. Why not give them a whirl and sign up today? You may get a nice $250 bonus from the Net Fool.

A lot of people have been asking me… if I enter now, can I still win? Absolutely! In fact, there really isn’t any advantage of entering earlier… it’s going to be a completely random draw. Check out the ways to gain entries here:

• Subscribe to our RSS Feed (required)
• Blog about the contest (10 entries)
• Comment on The Net Fool (1/4 entry)
• “Stumble” a post with StumbleUpon (1 entry)
• “Digg” a post with Digg (1 entry)
• “Favorite” our blog on Technorati (1 entry)

Subscribing to the blog is an obvious first step, and by doing it you will get a great chance at winning a prize. Yes, there are going to be multiple winners. I wouldn’t even think of giving someone all of that loot at your expense. So with only about 200 RSS subscribers… your odds are fantastic!

I’d recommend blogging about this contest as a hands-down best way to win. In the past, about 70% of my winners have been those who have blogged about my contest. It’s free for you, and it’s going to count tenfold… giving you a huge advantage over everyone else in the contest. Commenting on my posts is fast and easy, but using StumbleUpon, Digg or Technorati is a lot more woth your while time-wise.

Get involved! This contest has been a great success and will be over at the end of this week.. but that shouldn’t stop you from getting a few last-minute entries in, eh? The more people you tell, the better the prizes will be for future contests… so it works in your favor to spread the word.

Don’t forget to check out the official contest post for more information, and all of the posting guidelines to drive your success in the blogging world. Stay bullish on the net, and good luck in the competition!

-The Net Fool

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Many people have asked me what my normal routine is after I make a new blog post. In other words, what sort of things am I doing after publishing a new article in order to assure that I get traffic headed my way?

There is nothing worse than publishing post after post and getting little to no traffic for all your work. If I am going to spend a few hours sitting down and writing, I want to be repaid in the form of traffic. Knowing this, the work isn’t over just because the post is out, you need to let people know about it! Think of this like a post-interview follow up; you may have had a good interview, but you need to put yourself out there to get the job. Here are the best five marketing strategies that I use for maximizing my exposure after every blog post:

1. Send “Pings” to Web Servers
In the blogging world, many web servers scan blogs regularly for updates and publish the most recently updated sites. By “pinging” one of these servers, you are letting them know that you update… and people will be able to find your posts a lot easier. Luckily for us, WordPress now comes with a built-in pinging mechanism that alerts the popular “Ping-O-Matic” service (comprised of multiple servers). If you want to let more people know about your site, you can use additional services such as Pingoat to reach a wider audience.

2. Submit Posts to Blog Submission Networks
One of the most recent services available, these new submission networks allow you to notify entire communities of people of your new posts every time you update. This is completely free, and can be done in seconds. The two best services I have come across are Blog Engage and Blogsvine, both of which you should join and use. Essentially, you sign up and submit your posts after you publish them. These networks provide a link back to your post, as well as a voting system that will allow you to get these articles on the front page… where you can see some very impressive traffic. The whole process, start to finish, shouldn’t take more than 20 seconds.

3. Submit Your Article to Social Media Networks
This is probably the most commonly used method of getting some publicity to your posts, using social media networks. There are many large communities out there that allow bloggers and readers to submit articles that they like so that others can have a look. Using a service like StumbleUpon or Digg can literally account for upwards of 50% of your web traffic if executed properly. There are many other networks that are just as good, but a bit undiscovered: Mixx, Sphinn, Propeller, Reddit, del.icio.us, Technorati.

I’d go ahead and try out a few of these services. They are all easy to use, completely free, and I know some people getting insane traffic on a daily basis from these programs. It is best if you have other people discovering your stories, rather than you, but it can work for you either way. You can increase the odds of this happening on your blog by installing the free WordPress “ShareThis” plugin.

4. Comment on Blogs In Your Niche
One of the most overlooked tools for increasing traffic is being a regular commenter on blogs that publish information relevant to your website. I’m not talking about the five-second “nice post” comments, you need to be making useful commentary on the posts you are reading in order to get good feedback. After I make a new post on my blog, I typically load up my RSS reader and go down the list of blogs I am subscribed to, making constructive comments along the way. I usually see a good deal of traffic just from people clicking on the link in my comments every day… and it can be an awesome way to pick up new RSS subscribers interested in your focus area.

5. Submit Articles to Free Article Databases
Submitting articles is commonly known as “bum marketing.” However, I feel it is entirely different when you are changing around and submitting your blog posts to the service. Basically, article databases register quite well in Google searches, so you will get people reading your stuff and clicking on the link back to your website (you need to include this in the “resource” or “about” area). I would highly suggest submitting your best blog articles to these databases, namely eZineArticles.com, which is the only service that I will give a recommendation for.

Bottom Line: At this point, you are probably thinking to yourself “wow, that’s a lot of work.” Well I think you’ll find that once you do this a few times, you can get all of your publicity/networking/marketing done after you post within a few minutes. It is always very important to get the word out after you make a new blog post.

-The Net Fool

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