Why Full-Time Blogging is About So Much More than Writing
Most ‘how to’ guides won’t tell you this
You’ll have noticed there are a LOT of articles online revealing ‘how to make money blogging’ — and they’ll fall into this template:
- Set up a blog (possibly following an affiliate link so that the article author makes money);
- Choose a hosting provider for your blog (definitely following an affiliate link, making the author at least $50 if you sign up);
- Choose a niche;
- Choose an SEO-friendly or branded URL (affiliate link to domain service);
- Get writing;
- Monetize your blog (by using affiliate links such as the ones you’ve been clicking on, or running ads once you have 10,000 daily visitors to your site);
- And hey, if you want to fast-track your success, there will probably be a course you can pay for as well.
NOWHERE (usually) does it detail the fact that you’ll be doing the equivalent jobs of a whole TEAM of people in order to be a success as a full-time blogger.
Most of these jobs have nothing to do with writing.
Don’t be too daunted about this, just realise that a lot of pieces have to come together to make up the profitable pie.
A lot of hard work is involved too.
And likely a good dose of learning new skills, even if that’s just reading other blogs and following videos on YouTube.
I do the jobs of 17 people
So, to give you an example. My ‘office job’ for many years was a journalist. When I decided to go freelance, and also move into blogging, of course I became self-employed.
That status takes on a raft of responsibilities you didn’t have to worry about as an employee.
I’ve compared the roles at a newspaper with my roles as a blogger, and it works out I do the jobs of 17 people.
Never take for granted the roles you are taking on. Appreciate your value. Although multi-skilling is now a feature of many jobs, you will genuinely be taking on tasks that would normally be divided between a whole workforce.
So here are the jobs I’m doing — your list will be similar.
1 — Writer
An obvious one to start with. Writer, journalist, blogger, whatever — the person who does the research and then communicates a story with the reader through their own choice of words and phrasing.
2 — Editor
Whereas a writer would submit an article to an editor — like you may do as a writer here on Medium — as the boss of a blog-based website, you have the final say on whether what you’ve written is good enough for publication.
3 — Sub Editor
The ‘sub’ is the person who corrects the grammar, writes the headline and either designs the page or fits it into the template slot. You may have Grammarly and other apps to help with this.
4 — News Editor
The news editor keeps on top of what is happening in the world and dishes out writing tasks to report on them. Your job as your own boss is likewise to keep informed, and react accordingly.
5 — Features Editor
Not everything is news — feature articles focus more on personalities, go into greater depth, investigate matters or provide the lighter, fluffier things in life, such as celebrity gossip and movie news. There are, of course, other section heads, such as for sport, but that doesn’t apply to me on this project.
6 — Secretary / Admin Clerk
Who opens the mail? Who replaces the ink in the printer? Who writes appointments and holidays in the diary? Who basically keeps you on the straight and narrow, doing all the admin work and making sure you don’t procrastinate yourself into obscurity? Yep, that’s YOUR job now. Good luck.
7 — Advertising Salesperson
This is an area I knew nothing about, a dark underworld I did not need to inhabit. Until I remembered I had to earn money. There are many ways of monetizing a blog, but remember, convincing a company boss to promote their services on your site, provide a sponsored post, or work with you on affiliate marketing commissions, requires a different level of communication than when you are merely writing. Practise, practise and practise again. Talk things up. Be over-enthusiastic. You’ll get there.
8 — Web Designer
You need a website. Medium is a great blogging platform but don’t think for a second that you have control over where it’s heading next. There are services like Wix and Squarespace that make it easier for you to build a site with no knowledge of coding. But it still requires research, self-training and getting things wrong several times to make a good-looking site that actually works well. When you make the bold move to design a website on Wordpress, you’ll never look back. Mainly because you’ve been through so much pain to achieve a site resembling something close to what you desired.
9 — Graphic Designer
Logos, artwork, blog banners, customised maps, you name it, I’ve only got two words for you — Canva Pro. (That’s an affiliate link to try the software free of charge, by the way — an illustration of how you can potentially make money blogging!)
10 — Photographer
No longer can I put in an ‘unreasonable’ request to get an unfeasibly difficult perfect photo to illustrate my story. Same goes for you. Take the photo yourself or design something smart on Canva (other software does exist!).
11 — Brand Manager
I once worked with a brand manager who didn’t have a clue what he was supposed to be doing. Neither did the boss who appointed him. What the job should entail is building a brand that connects with people, so that they can trust it. This is a hell of a task for a sole trader who can’t rely on a full-day conference with 30 other people to knock ideas about.
12 — Social Media Manager
Everything you write must be shared on a variety of social media channels to reach and build a loyal following. Yes, we know all that — but actually DOING it is time-consuming, creative work!
13 — Technology Support
Basically, you get the smug satisfaction of sauntering up to your own computer and muttering those immortal words, “turn it off and turn it back on again”. Carry a hammer just in case that doesn’t work.
14 — Marketing Manager
This is the bigging-up of your business. It may involve paying for adverts, it may involve writing endless posts on LinkedIn. But it’s vital that you do it well.
15 — Accounts Manager
Oh, it was so easy when you received money at the end of the month and all the tax was worked out and deducted, plus any pensions worked into the equation. That’s your job now. Do yourself a favour, keep records as you go along and put money aside each month towards your annual tax bill.
16 — Purchasing Department
It was often difficult persuading those holding the purse strings and tasked with keeping the business operational to buy new equipment when it was needed. Now you have control. Ooooh look, there’s a new iMac! Can you really afford it?…
17 — Course Trainer
I’ve mentioned retraining and learning new skills a few times, but think about it — if this happened in an office environment, there would be someone leading the training, probably earning an extortionate amount of money for doing so. Instead, you’ve got to research the training material and discipline yourself to understand it.
And there’s more…
If you’re working from home, you could easily throw into the mix grabbing food and drinks instead of using the works diner (a luxury in most places).
And if you’ve got children to look after too… well, being a parent isn’t strictly a job, is it? Although it does deserve a huge salary.
So if you are seeking to go it alone, make blogging a full-time job, do take note of all the jobs you’ll be required to do.
And then do it. Enjoy it. When things go well, nothing much beats the satisfaction of being your own boss.
Hopefully, one day, you’ll earn the equivalent of 17 workers’ salaries, as well.
Read my latest blog-based website (thank you) on greengreengreen.org
