Can I Cash In?

  There are many sites on the internet that talk about how to make money from blogging.  Sites like www.stevepavlina.com and www.problogger.com.   I've spent some time reading these types of sites and I have found that they are very generic.  They say things like "Find something you are passionate about and write about it" and "use Google adsense".  While knowing places to look is helpful,  I don't believe that tells you just what is REALLY involved.  How much time do you have to spend on it?  What kind of knowledge do you have to have?  So, I decided to do an experiment.  I'm going to try and set up a site and earn money from it.  I'm going to document everything I do, in blog format, so that you can see what I've done and what it took to do it.  I will also document openly what, if anything, I make from each attempt.  That way, when your sitting around wondering  how "Can I Cash In" by blogging on the internet, you will know what you're in for.

  To be completely open and honest, I have been running a personal, not for profit, blog for many years.  So, I already have a web server with blogging software installed and I have a general familiarity with the software and how it works. 

  To start this off, Here is what I have done.

1. I spent about a half hour at GoDaddy.com searching for appropriate and available domain names.  You can use any domain registrar you like.  I already have an account and domains registered with GoDaddy which is why I chose them.  The cost was $9.99 per year per domain plus the ICANN fee.  So I registered one domain (canicashin.com) for two years.  That brought the amount to 20.38.  I had an email from GoDaddy with a 15% off coupon code which brought my final total to $17.38.
   
2. I spent 12 minutes setting up the web server and firewall and creating a basic index.html file.
3. I spent 2 minutes setting up DNS.  I use the "Total DNS control and MX records" feature of GoDaddy.com to do this.  I do not run my own DNS servers.
4. I added a new blog in MovableType and pointed it to the new web space I created.  MovableType is the blogging software I use.  They recently released version 4 which is very different from version 3.  So, it is taking me a little longer than usual to do things because of the new interface.  For instance, I wanted my page to have three columns.  I wanted a thin column on each side with a wide column in the middle to hold the articles.  It took me about a half an hour to accomplish this as I finally found the setting inside a comment tag.  I'm not sure why you put actionable settings in a comment tag, but that is where it was and changing it worked.
5. I signed up for Google Adsense.
6. I wrote this page.

  Please note, when signing up for Google Adsense, or any other advertising program for that matter, you will need to provide all of your personal information that will allow them to do tax reporting.  As an individual, this means giving out your Social Security Number.  If you are uncomfortable with this, you will need to either give up or setup a business and file for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) to use instead.  You will also need to already have a site setup that they can view to ensure it meets with their policies.  It will take up to a week before your account is approved.  ENSURE YOU READ EVERYTHING.  These programs have a lot of rules and if you break them they will cancel your account.  You can't make money if you don't have an account.

  All further steps will be documented on the blog.  Continue Reading! >>