Making Money on your Blog!

Today I wanted to discuss some various options for ways to make money on your blog.

1. Ad Sense by Google. If you are on blogger there is a widget called ad sense. This is a "we pay you for click through" type thing. They review your blog and must approve you, so no naughty naughty things on there, and then you can have the widget (or multiple) that they will stream relevant ads to these widgets. You can also have more than one. 


2. Other stream widgets. There are other providers that do the same thing. Here is the Top Networks of those providers. 


3. Selling Sponsorships. In this aspect I am referring to actual sponsorships that you write a post that is an advertisement and then list that the ad is sponsored by Company XYZ. Some people don't like these as they want to see what you have to say, not what your trying to sell people. This could result in loss of viewers if you do it too much. 


4. Selling Blog Sponsorships. This one is when other bloggers pay you to be advertised on your site. Such as the way Lucky Pups does their sponsorships on a monthly basis. You can set your own pricing and you post about the sponsors through the month. This can also be people like Etsy stores, Cafe Press or Zazzle designers, or anyone that is willing to pay the fee. However be very careful to judge if you want that type of person advertising on your site. If your viewers click through to view your sponsors and find adult content when they wanted new dog bowls you might get people offended, fired (if they view at work) and loose viewers.  You should always tell people that you reserve the right to refuse advertising.


5. There can also be different types of ads. 
1. Text ads - "Check out my good friends over at Company/Blog ABC" and insert a link to go view them
2. Graphic ads - Use a button with an embedded link to send viewers to the desired location
3. Banner ads - These are graphic ads that are generally larger, and can have more than one link in them sometimes. 


6. Selling your Services. This is something that you can do by sometimes guest posting for a fee or freelance writing for other publications. There are other ways to sell writing services, but as I am not a writer and haven't done this I don't know that I would be any good at suggesting options. 

Now not all of these methods will be highly lucrative, but the more you post, the more followers you get, the more you work your blog, the more likely you are to make more money.

Keep in mind, if you post controversial things or if you are amusingly irreverent it is highly likely that there will be people that do not want to advertise on your blog, or that you will get turned down by an ad service. This is not a personal affront to you, but just means you can try other avenues for funding.

Good luck out there! 

March Featured Seller - The Little Chick

 

Tell us a bit about yourself.  

In my previous life, I owned Designs I.C., a corporate aviation interior and residential design firm.  I traveled a lot and when I had my daughter I didn’t want to leave her so……I refocused my life.  I now devote my time and attention to her, my husband, two dogs and The Little Chick Boutique.

Apart from creating things, what do you do?  

Aside from working in my studio, I spend time with my daughter at the zoo (where if she had her way, we would go every day).   I do a lot of volunteer work with the Junior League of Little Rock and I am training for my second half marathon, which will be in two weeks……

What would be the title of your memoir? Why?  

“Crazy, Hectic, Fantastic Lady…….I mean Life.”  I wouldn’t change anything in my life, unless I could win the lottery, then I might make one or two changes.  My life is crazy, hectic and fantastic…..I think I’m pretty fantastic too most of the time.  I only have that confidence because I juggle my daughter, my husband, a small business and a household.  I think most who can handle this are pretty fantastic and there are a lot of us out there.        

Where does your inspiration come from?  

My inspiration comes from fabric.  I love to look at and imagine all of things that I can make with it.  I love to weave together different patterns and colors.  Not one thing ever looks the same when you mix fabrics so it’s inspiring to see all of the things one can come up with. 

What does handmade mean to you? 

Handmade to me means exactly what it says “Hand Made.” My items are all completely handmade except for the obvious items; such as, fabric, thread, etc.  Buying an item; i.e., a backpack, shirt, burp cloth, etc and monogramming a name on it is not handmade…..its partial made.  I have a separate website besides Etsy for those items that I carry that are not handmade.    

Who has been most influential in your craft?  

My mother!  She sewed all of my clothes growing up and even though she always wanted to teach me how to sew, I never wanted to learn until I was older, but I must have paid attention more than she ever knew. 

When did you know you were an artist/maker?  

I always felt like an artist when I was doing design work with aircraft, even if I was just designing and watching other people make it, but I truly felt like a “maker” when people started wanting to pay me for things that I made. 

How would you describe your creative process?  

Scattered…..I wouldn’t call it a process at all.  I have a journal beside my bed because most of my ideas come in the middle of the night and I have to jot them down before I can go back to sleep.  It’s always fun to wake up in the morning and see what I thought about because lots of time I don’t remember. 

If you could peek inside the studio of any artist, designer or craftsman (dead or alive), who would it be?  

Rachel Ashwell because her shabby chic style is right up my alley.

                                                                                        

What handmade possession do you most cherish? 

The clothes and blankets my mother made for me when I was a little girl.  She kept a few of them and they are special to me because my daughter has actually worn a few of them.

How do you get out of your creative ruts?  

Running…..it never fails when you’re on mile 2 or 3 of a 4 mile run, you will think of something creative and have nothing to write it down.

Where would you like to be in ten years?  

In ten years, I won’t say how old I will be, but my daughter will be in school so I hope to have more than two days to really devote to my craft.  I hope to be doing more tradeshows and quite possibly have my own brick and mortar shop….the last one is on the lottery list so I’m not holding my breath. 

  

To Find The Little Chick Boutique check out their Blog, Facebook, Etsy Store, and their Web Page. 

Rockin' Robin Tweet Tweet Tweet

So today I wanted to explore the power of Twitter and the pull of social media. I can recall back in the early 90's when my mother and I started our company that we had to pay for advertising in the newspaper, we put ads in magazines, we pounded the pavement talking to designers, and a plethora of other methods to get our name out in the community for our services.

It took about 6 months to really get enough clientele to break even and another 6-9 months to be making a good profit. This was all accomplished with countless 12 hour days and sleepless nights of solving design issues.

Now starting a company can be so very much different. You can file for your own company status on Legal Zoom for about $100. You can create a Facebook, Etsy, Twitter, CafePress, Zazzle, Tumblr, Blogger, Wordpress, or Stumble Upon page (as well as others) totally free. You can then almost sit back and watch it happen.

However, the best way to really make those pages become visible is to use them to your benefit. While I have never been a fan of social media I am beginning to understand the lower common factor in the media can help me tremendously.

When I started my Etsy store August 31, 2011 I thought this will be a fun side thing to do. Then the halloween season came and I had orders, so many I turned some away. It was quickly obvious to me that there was more to this than just a little hobby. Slowly but surely I started to create pages, Facebook was first which allowed me to have the benefit of friends that could see things that were going on. Then later I created a blog of my own, which has turned out to be so much FUN!!! If anything my kids will have this as a chronicle of our lives and the weird stuff that happens. Then came Twitter. 140 characters of sound bite glory!

You can put links to new posts on the blog, can link Facebook to it, can link up to your other sites as well. I honestly think Twitter could be the best starter gun to the entire process. I started by following all our team members and some of my pageant girls. Then I found other blog writers I loved on Twitter and followed them. I would reply to various tweets and figured out quickly that Twitter really does push social media on a second by second basis.

I know some of our members have a twitter accounts. I would suggest to all of you to explore this option. Most phones have a twitter application that you can use to keep your name in the minds of your customers. It also allows people to start seeing you less as a store and more as a person that they can get to know, which makes them want to buy. I don't make this stuff up there are articles and research that state that customers will tend to buy more from stores that they feel they "know" the people that work there.

So Tweet away, heck we even have a bird in our AREtsy logo, so maybe it was karma.

Happy Valentine's Day

Today is a day that seems to be either a love or hate it kind of day. There are those people that love to buy gifts and mementos for their loved ones just as an additional reminder that they are loved. Then there are those that are very ambivalent about the day and call it Hallmark's creation.

I am a bit of both! Every year I buy something small and special for each of my daughters. I sneak into their rooms at some ungodly hour in the middle of the night and put the little treasures on their respective tables. Then in the morning I make then a big breakfast with eggs and sausage (or bacon), biscuits, juice or coffee... THE WORKS!! Then I send them off to school to have a day that started with love.

Of course for the last 10 years my boyfriend (same guy 10 years) has been out of town. This year in Vegas. When he returns we will likely go on a bit of a date and enjoy some time just the two of us. *happy face*

What the day is really about, in my opinion, is that through the hustle and bustle of the day to day grind sometimes we forget to tell those people we love how much they really mean to us.

So today I wanted to tell all my team members that I am glad you are here. That you are creative. That you share your little wonders with the world through a small venue called Etsy. That you are an Arkansan. Most importantly that I have the overwhelming pride and blessing to be one of your team leaders.

Thanks to all of you, and without sounding too weird, I love you!

Making your Blog Better!

We have quite a few team members that blog, and in the process of starting my own blog I have read and learned a lot about blogging in general.

I am currently reading the eBook "Grow your Blog: Proven ways to add followers every single day". It is written by The Simple Dude and for the most part I can say it seems to be a decent educational tool for bloggers to read,  and gives some tools for ways to progress your blog. It is a short eBook too, so give it a shot if you have a couple of hours.

I have also been turned on the Bloggers Blog of Note (BON). I think this featured blog listing is kind of like Etsy's featured seller. You go along in your little world and hope that someone notices, then things go haywire!

I have previously posted about the Ping-O-Matic feature that helps your blog come up in search engines, and that it can be a helpful tool to find your little corner of the vast internet.

I have also mentioned in facebook posts and other miscellaneous spaces about Arkansas Women Bloggers. There are a vast number of groups out there for bloggers that are geographically and demographically specific. These groups are great for helping to grow your own blog and get traffic to your various pages be it Facebook, Twitter, Etsy, or otherwise.

I think the additional information I want to add today, is the layout of blog pages, and what fancy features you have on your page.

There are widgets, and gadgets, and buttons and a massive array of things you can have on your site, and those things may or may not be helpful to you. Take a look at your blog page, do you have a bunch of stuff that really doesn't pertain to the way you want your blog to grow? If you are on Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, or other sites do you have follow buttons? Do you have your various feeds on there too? Are those two things close together or far apart?

You can add almost anything you like to your blog, and those things are always personal choices, but the real questions you have to ask yourself (and I am asking them to myself as well) ...... What items do I want/need that will help promote myself and my internet adventure in the best possible ways?

Now let's go out there and do some blogging! I know I need to start with some rearranging and site review of my own personal blog.

New Members?!?!

As most of you know we started working on a membership directory, which was a daunting task to undertake at the beginning with about 250 members there were a lot of messages to send out in order to make the necessary contact.

Well now we have gotten through that and only have to keep up with the newer members, but this morning there was a run on membership requests! I had to add FIVE! new members this morning alone! I love that people want to join our team! I truly hope that we can continually progress to make our team one of the best on Etsy with activities and events that help promote all of us!

As of right now our membership is at 292! We have a total of 113 listed in the directory! We really want to try to get as many people in the directory as possible, so if you know of anyone that is a member make sure they have sent in their information! Due to the leaders busy schedules we haven't gotten the blog updates finished yet, but they are in the process, so hang in there.

If you know of any craft shows, events, anything that might be fun for team members to attend or participate in, please let us know!

February Featured Seller - Best Loved Child

Tell us a bit about yourself.

I’m Cathy Lane and I, with my husband, started Best Loved Child.  I make artistically painted children’s décor and play sets.  My parents were ranchers in the wilds of the mountain west but I gave up that life when in college I fell in love and married a California beach boy.  I have a store of knowledge about cattle, farming and wildlife that is only useful now when buying meat at Sam’s or drawing and painting my creations.  I’m a wife to one, mom to six and unbelievably 8 amazing kids call me Grandma.  18 years ago my husband’s company relocated all their operations to Little Rock and we relocated from Southern California to beautiful Arkansas where people still ask me where my accent came from.  I’ve been lucky enough to be doing the Etsy shop for the last 2 years.  When I lost my job, (I used to fire people for a living, Then I got fired) I decided to go for it and have been fortunate to have a supportive husband. 

 Apart from creating things, what do you do?  

I’m an obsessive reader.  I’m very involved with my Church.  In my stay-at-home-mom years I had a custom sewing business and I still love to sew, especially for my girly granddaughters. Hubby and I moved (from 20 miles away) and completely renovated a rental house (I painted or restored, every single surface, inside and out except the roof, myself) and we are planning to do another one. 

What would be the title of your memoir? Why?

“I Could Make That”.  I come from a family of terminal DIY souls.  Mostly, making things yourself was a way to afford things we felt we would never have the money to buy.  It can get out of control.  After my daughter’s wedding my sis said we all should be forced to stand in a corner and repeat “catering, catering, catering” until we believe we are capable of hiring one.

Where does your inspiration come from?

I love seeing other artist’s work. I am very influenced by illustrated children’s books, especially those from 1900  through the 1940s. 

What does handmade mean to you?

Handmade is a unique connection. The best way I know to express my love is to make you something.  My Wrangler jeans were sewn by hand by an unknown someone, but they are not “handmade”.   Unlike those jeans, the quilt my great grandmother made and the mug I bought from a potter in Washington state, connect me to their makers each time I view or use them. Though neither maker knew me, these creations are expressions of love the maker had for someone and/or the love they had for their craft. The handmade movement also represents the ultimate “job creators”.   When we make and sell, we are crafting our own jobs as well as our art/craft and that needs to be acknowledged, supported and celebrated.

Who has been most influential in your craft?

My parents.  They never imagined me to be an artist, but taught me, by their example, that I could learn how to do anything.

When did you know you were an artist/maker?

I always considered myself a maker.  Everyone I knew was a maker. They made quilts, built houses, planted gardens, sewed clothing, created jam and welded parts for the clothes dryer.  When I was seven, I sewed a yellow cotton dress with set in sheer sleeves, a fitted bodice and full skirt for my Barbie.  It was hand sewn, by me, from a pattern of my own invention.  I was proud, but in my family this was not considered remarkable. Becoming an artist took much longer, mostly I think, because I was never exposed to any art education or any artists. (Don’t get me started on the lack of art education in schools.) I kept trying to learn to paint and draw (mostly self-taught) and was well into my 40’s before I started to dare think “I’m an artist”. The Etsy shop has helped me validate that label.  I loved hearing my son tell someone recently “my Mom’s an artist”.

How would you describe your creative process?

It’s fueled by doing.  I have too many ideas running through my head. I keep journal/notebook/sketchbooks full of drawings and images I love.  When I settle on an idea I research photos and images and sometimes take my own photos. My ideas are somewhat vague until I’m doing the actual work of sketching, cutting and painting.  As I make an item, ideas come to me of how it can be improved that I can’t believe I didn’t think of in the planning stage.

If you could peek inside the studio of any artist, designer or craftsman (dead or alive), who would it be?

Maud and Miska Petersham.  They were an award winning husband wife team illustrating children’s books from 1917 through the 1960’s.  I’m so in love with all their drawings and amazed at how they lived and worked together for so long.

What handmade possession do you most cherish?

I have so many! Top of the list may be my dining table and buffet with hand carving that was made by a great uncle of mine for another great uncle and aunt. I can’t believe I scored it over my siblings.  I also got teary eyed hanging some of my kid’s grade school handmade Christmas tree ornaments this last Christmas. 

How do you get out of your creative ruts?

I force myself to finish whatever I have on the work table.  That usually clears the problem.  I get “stuck” trying to solve design problems and the best way, for me, is to just slog through it.  Perspiration really helps inspiration.

Where would you like to be in ten years?

I’ll be approaching a birthday that many readers would consider Really Old. I very much hope to be:  healthy, in a smaller house, still creating and selling, better known for my work, traveling more, and living closer to the short people in my life.  

Catch up on all of the Best Loved Child items.  Etsy Store and Cathy's Profile and Her Blog.