How to transform your blog into a full-time job

You might consider yourself quite the writer, typing out and sharing recent experiences about places you’ve been, local restaurants you’ve eaten at, or pressing issues in your industry. If you’re keeping a blog, it could act as a hobby, a place to put all the details of your thoughts and feelings. But, if you’re looking to get a bit more serious with this side project, there are plenty of ways you can take your blog and transform it into a full-time job.

Blogging can be an excellent avenue towards building your personal brand or refining your writing skills, but it can also be a source of income. Many businesses are shifting towards hiring people with content marketing, blogging, and social media skills. So, even if your personal blog doesn’t draw in the big bucks initially, it could help you land the job of your dreams!

Here’s how to transform your blog into a job!

1- Write for your target market

If you’re not already thinking about it, take inventory of your blog and consider the ways in which you can reach a concrete audience. Ask yourself: what do you think your niche is? And what about the demographics of people interested in reading it? This is crucial information to gather if you’re hoping to turn your blog into a source of income. Finding out who your readers are and curving content to appeal to them is one of the best ways to grow your brand, visibility, and followership.

Take stock of how you plan, execute and organize your content. Find blog posts that are your most successful in terms of readership and take note of what sets these posts apart. In a similar fashion, take a look at some of the posts which didn’t perform very well. Discovering your weaker points will allow you to strategize when it comes time to determine which subjects to focus attention toward. Therefore, start by defining your strengths and weaknesses as this will allow you to reach the specific public you’re hoping for.  

2- Understanding SEO and keyword research basics

Of course, if you began your blog as a hobby, it’s unlikely you’re coming from a content marketing background. However, if you’re looking to increase visibility and really draw people to read page to page, understanding the basics of SEO and keyword research is important.

In a nutshell, web traffic is driven by search engines and they play a major role in how much online visibility you receive. Search engines rate websites based on their information in relation to user queries. For the most part, Internet users search for things in the form of a question, and thus, content that’s written to answer specific questions or concerns in informative, useful and creative ways is likely to receive a higher ranking.

Essentially, it’s about creating a well-structured, user-friendly and useful website to increase traffic and visibility. When writing blog posts, you should always be gearing it towards your target market and making content as digestible as possible. If you’re looking for a more detailed understanding of how SEO works, our article on that subject is an excellent resource.

Keyword research ties directly into SEO practices, and comes down to information included in your blog posts and how these are directed towards your target audience. Consider your reader's wants and needs in relation to your blog, and what the words they may be used in search engines that would direct them towards you.

Narrow down the search-intent of your visitors through the words, and these can become some of the keywords you employ in your copywriting. Keyword research can be confusing at first but look into our article on the subject so that you can begin employing some of the tactics in your own blog. 

3- Network to get noticed

As you’ve noticed, there are some technical aspects of your writing that will allow you to increase traffic and visibility of your blog. But of course, there are some alternate, creative strategies. Blogging is not just about writing a ton of information and hoping someone, someday will find it useful enough to read it. No, standing out on the world wide web takes a concentrated effort.

This effort should involve a networking strategy, including getting in touch with other bloggers, sharing posts and interacting with readers across social media platforms and even attending industry-related events in real life. Also, do a little bit of research to determine who are the influencers in your field as well as the best times of day for you to post your blog. Even if these efforts don’t bear fruit initially, they will definitely pay out in the long run.  

4- Write, write, write

Writing is tough, but the only way to make money from your blog is to do just that. Not only should you concentrate your efforts towards making your content interesting, unique as well as useful but it’s important to expand your efforts and try to write a guest post or two for another blog in your marketplace. Many blogs accept guest posts, and while these might not pay upfront, after a few that might change!

Make sure to branch out to both influencers in your network, notable as well as local blogs. Just think, one of these connections could turn into something permanent such as a long term collaboration.

5- Expand your practice

A running theme throughout this article is that your content is key to your visibility. If you’re creating throwaway articles, chances are you’re not going to make money off your blog. Further, you’re not going to be able to find a job if it still appears to be a hobby. If you’re looking to invest in your blog, then you should find ways to refine and improve your writing and content creation skills. Think about taking a writing workshop or intensive content marketing course. If these options don’t appeal to you, why not do plenty of research regarding the in’s and out’s of creating content.

Not only should you focus on your writing, but what else can you bring to the table? Do you have the design or technical capabilities? What about photography? Any way you can add some personal refinement and flair to your blog is going to take you far. Develop additional skills alongside your writing, and this can give you a leg up in the wide world of blogs.

The only way you’re going to see results and make money from what you produce is by putting serious time and attention into your craft. Blogging is a skill that will improve over time with tons and tons of hard work, energy, love, and attention. If you want to make it work, give it all you've got!