Blogging is being touted as a great way to make money online, and there are no end of experts who will show you how, if you just subscribe to their blog. (Come to think of it, that sounds like us, doesn’t it?)

If you’re looking to make money online, you want honest and truthful answers to the following questions: Is blogging a good way to make money? Is it easy? What can I write about? How do I set up a blog? How long will it take before I start to earn a regular income from blogging?

First, let me clarify the difference between a blog and a web site. A blog is basically just a web site that is regularly updated with fresh posts, like this one. So then…

“Is blogging easy?”

I guess it depends. Compared to mining or sweeping chimneys (ask your grandparents), blogging is easy - but it does take some time and effort, assuming you want to create a quality blog that will actually be read by more than just you and the occasional passing search engine.

For instance, it takes me about 2-3 hours to write a blog post. I know some people can write faster, but I prefer to put out good quality.

I aim to post at least 3 times a week. So if we say it takes an average of 2 and a half hours to write each post, that’s 7 and a half hours a week to write the material.

Then there’s promoting the blog. That can take up to the same amount of time. So now we’re up to 15 hours a week in total.

Finally, there’s the technical maintenance. Setting up a blog can be time consuming (it took me a couple of days to set this one up), but once it’s running, it’s probably a couple of hours of maintenance a week, if that. So that’s a total of about 17 hours a week.

17 hours a week sounds like a part time job, doesn’t it? Fortunately, there are ways of cutting that time down. Some people may be able to write faster, reducing the time it takes to write a post. Or you could simply allow guest posts, so that others write some of your content!

As for promotion, you can cut that time down when you know how to do it efficiently and effectively - but you should never neglect promoting your blog!

To create a blog that people want to read, you’re probably looking at spending 10 hours a week or more on it. (Plus, at least a few days setting it up in the first place.)

“Is blogging a good way to make money online?”

It can be, but it’s certainly not the quickest way. Blogging should be seen as a long-term way to make money. It takes time to build a blog, a search engine presence and a loyal readership.

Unfortunately, many people take up blogging in the hope of making a quick buck, then abandon their blog after three or four months because they’re still not millionaires. The problem is, they had unreasonable expectations from the start.

My suggestion to potential bloggers is to expect not to make money from your blog for up to a year! It’s perfectly possible to earn from your blog much more quickly than that (and I’ll show you plenty of ways to do so in future posts), but by not expecting quick money, you’re not setting yourself up for disappointment if things don’t materialize as quickly as you hoped.

In short, view your blog as an investment that you contribute to regularly. but that only starts to yield profitable dividends after a year or so.

“What should I blog about?”

The advice that’s always given by blogging experts is to write a blog on a subject about which you are passionate - that makes it much easier to write in the first place! (Otherwise, you might find that you lose interest after 3 or 6 months, before your investment starts to mature.)

However, if you’re planning to earn a good income from your blog, you also want to blog in a field where your readers also potentially spend money! Your passion might very well be dating tips for broke college kids, but will your enthusiastic audience spend money with you, given that they’re… broke college kids?

The perfect scenario is for you to blog in a niche in which you are passionate, and in which your audience spends money! (Later on UpperMoney.com I’ll show you how to find those niches.)

“How do I become a blogger?”

It’s just a question of setting up a blog, and posting to it! You could start out with a free blog from Blogger or WordPress.

However, I’d personally recommend grabbing your own domain name, web space, and installing blog software such as WordPress on your own site. This gives you much more control over your content, can look more professional and is much easier to promote and brand.

Over the coming days and weeks on UpperMoney.com I’ll show you how to choose a great blog topic that will be read by people who actually spend money, how to set up a WordPress blog from scratch, and how to start promoting it - so make sure you’re subscribed! (Click here to learn more.)