Think appropriate – Make sure you only put up ads that are appropriate for your readers. Obviously if your blog are for kids do not become an affiliate for adult websites. Advertise things that will be of real interest to your readers.

Do not use your sole sidebar purely for monetization – As I mentioned in my previous posts one of the major benefits of sidebars in the increase in usability. Make sure you still put in navigation elements so that people will have a way to get around your blog more easily.

Make it pretty – A deluge of varied ads can make for a messy looking sidebar. If you are putting up sponsor blogs limit them to specific dimensions so that your blog will at least look streamlined. Think about your color scheme and don’t put up ads that really clash with your blog’s look. You can ask sponsors for several (color) versions of ads so that you can choose to post the one that best fits your blog. For adsense, you can always tweak the color scheme so don’t settle for the default.

The truth though is that I do know that in any case, whatever it is called, what matters is getting results (measured in the amount of money you make in this case). If you aim to make more money through speaking gigs and find that blogging works for you in terms of building your rep and getting more clients, then go ahead and capitalize on your assets!

Fair warning to those who might fall in the trap of thinking that they will eventually become popular guest speakers in events soon just because they blog: It takes more than just a regularly updated blog to get to where the gurus are. As always it takes real expertise in their field and good speaking skills. I know some are boring speakers but you’ll notice that it is the good speakers that get asked back repeatedly and are in greater demand. So if you want to make money this way start WORKING your way to becoming an expert, and believe me no one becomes one without dedication.

As one of the top fifty affiliate networks in Website Magazine, Logical Media has reached a standard of customer service that many affiliate sites are simply unable to attain. Through the use of excellent placed ads, customer service and daily updates throughout the ads which are placed on the website, there are many reasons that you should consider Logical Media for marketing that can begin to earn you money from the moment you begin using the program.

With the added incentive that bloggers are equipped with, to earn twenty five dollars for signing up for the service, the blogger can begin to make money right away. With many other services, it seems that you are waiting weeks and even months for money to accrue within the account. However, with the instant twenty five dollars, just for signing up – you can begin to see an immediate profit!

With an easy to set-up and user-friendly interface, you can be up and running within a matter of minutes. Through the information which is provided and targeted keywords, ads will be developed that will be suited to your blog, your readers and your genre.

There are many other services which are offered to bloggers, in addition to the paid ad placement that can be taken advantage of throughout the blog. Through the use of valuable referral programs, in which the referrer can earn up to five percent through each referral and the real-time reports which the blogger will have access to, there are many ways that the blogger can learn to better the site – All while getting paid!

There are very few other paid ad placement companies that offer a high sign-up bonus. With the twenty five dollars that is offered to new customers you can begin to see your account move upward, through each click which is made on the ads placed within the blog. Are you seeking a program that enables you to track these movements in real time, while making real money? If this is the kind of program that you think would work for you, consider Logical Media, as the services offered are one of the many reasons more bloggers are choosing the company.

When it is time to get paid, bloggers always get paid on time, and the right amount. Through the use of intricate bookkeeping, bloggers are kept happy with accurate payments, regular payments and a variety of methods which are used to complete payments to bloggers that have signed up for the program. A reliable way to monetize your blog, more and more bloggers are choosing Logical Media.

New guidelines, expected to be approved late this summer with possible modifications, would clarify that the agency can go after bloggers–as well as the companies that compensate them–for any false claims or failure to disclose conflicts of interest.

Naturally, many bloggers have found this disturbing. Whether or not you accept paid posting and similar deals, the mere fact that the FTC is focusing on blogging now can be quite disturbing. You never know what they may come up with! The possibility that the FTC might become too strict and limit the freedom that bloggers currently enjoy has also been brought up.

Companies like IZEA (PayPerPost) have already issued statements to the effect that disclosure is the key to this issue. CEO Ted Murphy says that “the companies that should be worried about these changes are those that have no standards and no way to enforce disclosure. We have invested millions of dollars creating systems that allow us to automate transactions and verify standardized disclosure.”

While nothing is set as of yet, I think that this is a preview of what might become of blogging in the future. Just a heads up!

But what do you do when the natural flow of ideas dry out? This does happen, you know, and at one point or another, you are going to experience a dry spell. When it does happen, what are you going to do? Where do you get ideas to turn into blog posts that will be of high quality?

My tried and tested technique is simple – read, read, and read some more. This is actually a very good thing to get those creative juices flowing. And it applies even more to niche blogging. You can search the web for sites that touch on your chosen niche. I suggest that you compile a list of reputable and reliable web sites which you can visit regularly for news and features related to your niche.

More so, make it a point to regularly visit those sites and read up on anything and everything that has to do with your topic. By doing this, you will always have something new to write about. You don’t even have to write exactly what you read – you can always get the basic idea and then spin it to come up with something original.

In the next few posts, let us look at more specific ways to find good content for your blog.

So now that we’ve established that, how often should you post on your niche blog? I have to say that there is no hard and fast rule with regard to this. Some people would tell you to post everyday. Others would say that three times a week would be enough. What do I think? I would like to update everyday if I could. I am currently starting up two niche blogs of my own. I also have work on this blog. I still have a personal blog. Aside from that, I have other freelance activities. Now you can imagine how full my schedule it and I have no doubt in my mind that most of you are in the same boat. In this kind of situation, posting everyday just might be impossible.

So my suggestion is this – set a schedule for your niche blog (or each of them, if you have more than one) and make sure you follow it. I think that three times a week would suffice. This would be enough to keep your readers coming back and at the same time give you enough time to come up with quality posts.

Does this make sense?

Other people opt to purchase a domain at the outset. Their rationale is that buying a domain is not that expensive anyway and if their niche blog flies, they would not have to deal with migrating to the new domain.

Both make sense and I suppose it depends on you which route you take. Personally, I prefer the second one. I have already experienced the former and migrating to a new domain meant more work for me – work that could have been avoided had I gotten my own domain at the outset.

Let us focus on how to choose your niche blog’s domain name. Perhaps the most common way to do this is to find related keywords to your niche and incorporate one or two into your domain name. For example, your blog is all about mobile phones, you can choose names such as mobilephonecenter, allmobilephones, mobilephoneworld, and so on. One thing that you should remember – it is vital that you determine the sought after keywords in your niche if you are going to take this route.

So how do you actually determine which blogs are the best blogs in a niche? Well, there are certain tools which you can use. These tools are already very popular and the chances are that you have heard of them. You just need to know the specific purpose that you want to use them for and you are good to go.

First there is Technorati. Most any blogger – niche blogger or otherwise – knows about Technorati. You probably already have an account with them. But did you know that you can download a file which contains information on the best 10 blogs in any category? This is basically what we are looking for – the top blogs in a niche. The good thing is that Technorati has a certain degree of authority and you can be sure that the information you are getting is accurate.

Del.icio.us is also another tool to find the best blogs in your niche. Again, you have probably been using Del.icio.us for quite some time now. Take a look again and look for the best blogs on a topic – http://del.icio.us/tag/topic+blog.

What you do with the information you get is up to you – use it to your benefit!

Learn by example
The most popular blogs in a certain niche did not get there because of nothing. They must be doing something right. So if there is one thing that you should do as you are starting your niche blog, it should be to find out which blogs are the best in your niche. You can read through their posts and learn from their style and content. You can pay close attention to their formatting and every other little detail in the blog. You can then learn from their example – pick out the good things and avoid the “bad” things.

Leave comments
More than learning from the best blogs in your niche, you can also grab the chance to start making your presence felt online. One of the best things about blogging is that there is a lot of interaction. You can leave comments in other people’s blogs and share your own opinion. More than that, you can actually leave your mark and let other people know that you – and your blog – exists. You leave your name and link or blogger profile, which can leave a trail for other people to follow.

In the next post, let us look into some ways by which you can determine the top blogs in your niche.

What topic are you interested in?
Interest is a very important thing. Think about it, you will be working on this blog every day (or maybe several days a week) for many weeks, months, or even years. If you do not have enough interest in the topic, how can you sustain your momentum? True, you can still plod on but would you really like having to write about something that is absolutely of no interest to you?

Is the topic popular enough?
Interest is important but it is not everything. Just because you are passionate about a topic does not mean that thousands, even hundreds, of people feel the same way. If you are aiming to attract people to your niche blog, then you should consider the potential of the niche. If there isn’t much potential and you want to make money off your niche, then I suggest scouting around for another niche that catches your interest.

Will you be able to provide enough content?
Content – and lots of it – will help you on your way to success. You should analyze your topic well and see if you can come up with lots of posts. Otherwise, you might find yourself floundering in the future.