Hello fellow bloggers, how long have you been a blogger and how many friends have you invited to join? Being a blogger is truly a rewarding hobby. There are numerous benefits that you can gain when deciding to start a blog and write articles in it. Many people have successfully made money from blogging, while others have become smarter and more knowledgeable after becoming bloggers. By being a blogger, we are essentially writing useful articles that will always be read by others... let's consider it as a form of ongoing charitable contribution in the future, hehe.
Blogger is one of Google's popular blogging platforms. Initially, Blogger was owned by Pyra Labs and then in 2003, Google acquired it entirely and made all its features available to the general public for free.
A blog itself is a means or place for a writer to share their opinions, spark healthy debates, and enrich the information available on the internet. A blog can be made publicly accessible for all readers or be kept personal for specific audiences.
As time goes by, blogging has also become a profession for some people who believe that earning money from a blog is easy. Simply create quality articles, monetize through advertisements, participate in SEO competitions, or offer product review services, and a blogger can earn a monthly income.
However, behind the success stories of bloggers that have recently been exposed in the media, there are still some ordinary people who hesitate or fear to enter the world of blogging for various unjustified reasons, in my opinion. After all, a blog is a personal possession. When someone likes our blog, let them read all the articles we have written. And if they don't like it, let them visit other blogs that they consider better than ours.
I have often invited my friends to create blogs and even offered face-to-face learning specifically for those who are still beginners. Some are willing, but the majority decline, citing reasons like not understanding, and so on.
Being a blogger does not depend on any educational background; as long as you are willing to make an effort, you will succeed. Look at the reality, Mr. Eka Lesmana used to be a duck farmer, but now he is successful and earns a salary in dollars from AdSense. Then Mr. Sugeng, who only graduated from junior high school, also achieved success. And Mr. Henry, a market porter, is now successful in earning thousands of dollars per month from Google AdMob. They all didn't have a strong educational background but still achieved success.
The reason I invite you to join the world of blogging is so that you can generate income every month like them. Of course, the fantastic amount of income depends on each individual's fate, because every person is destined to receive a certain amount of sustenance from birth. If someone is destined to have abundant sustenance, they will easily succeed, but due to doubt or laziness, they may have difficulty obtaining the sustenance that is destined for them.
Now, what about those who are said to have little sustenance? In Islamic teachings, we know several forms of worship to facilitate the arrival of sustenance. Please read my other article for more details: "Worship to Facilitate Sustenance."
Let me now present some common reasons for rejection that I often receive when inviting someone to become a blogger:
1. I'm not good at writing, sir.
Being a blogger is always associated with writing useful articles every day and publishing them for public reading. If you don't enjoy writing articles, then don't become a blogger, but consider becoming a YouTuber instead.
Writing original articles is important because only original articles receive the best rankings on search engine pages. Unfortunately, even if you don't like writing, you can still become a blogger by choosing a different niche.
For example, if your niche is downloading free software, you can take the descriptions directly from the official website. Similarly, for downloading movies without copyright, you can take the synopsis from IMDb. As for guitar chords and song lyrics, you can simply copy them.
You can also create a blog focusing on news articles. Simply take articles from reputable news sites such as Detik, Merdeka, Kompas, etc. Don't forget to provide the official source so that your blog readers won't believe the news content until they see the source themselves.
If you are already familiar with blogging, I encourage you to start writing original articles in your own words. Don't hesitate because everything begins with practice.
You know, I used to think that managing three blogs was difficult, but now I have over 50 blogs with various niches. Writing 1000 words is easy.
2. Confused about SEO concepts
To be honest, every time I read articles shared by the masters, I still get confused about SEO strategies. Fortunately, I didn't pay much attention to SEO and focused on managing a few dummy blogs. Nevertheless, I could enjoy earning money from AdSense. It's quite rewarding to have a side job that pays as much as or even more than my main job.
SEO can be divided into two parts: on-page and off-page. Ignoring SEO doesn't mean I don't apply it to my blogs. At the very least, I have done basic optimizations such as keyword research, hero-to-zero article strategy, backlink pyramid, image optimization, and so on. All of these are learned as you start blogging.
Implementing SEO strategies can be dangerous for a blog if you are still new to it. For example, let's say you are promised backlinks from an "edu acid" domain, which is said to be of high quality and can quickly boost your blog's ranking and increase its traffic.
Novices might think this is a shortcut to their dreams. But those who understand know that the metrics of an "edu acid" domain are not the only factors to determine whether a backlink is of good quality or not. There are other metrics like DA (Domain Authority), PA (Page Authority), the number of external links, spam score, link relevance, and many more that need to be considered. Sounds difficult? It may be for novices, but for us who have been involved in the blogging world, we can quickly evaluate the quality of a backlink.
What about increasing page views? They mostly come from bot crawls through inbound links. And what about improved article rankings? They are a result of an increase in inbound links, which push the article's position up in Google search results. However, all of these are temporary.
Why do I say SEO optimization is dangerous for novices? Because when the blogs they manage don't grow, they don't know how to improve them.
On the other hand, experienced bloggers seek out the causes. For example, they check the webmaster notifications, fix any violations, and request a review, so their blogs can recover within a few weeks.
Or they check the incoming backlinks and examine the spam score. If it's high, it means the backlink is burdensome for the blog and hinders its rise in the SERP. The solution is to filter and disavow it through the webmaster.
There are other pitfalls, such as being misled by outdated articles about incorrect robot.txt settings or using backlink generators that actually harm the health of your blog in the long run.
It's better to learn gradually, starting from the basics of writing articles, then gradually increase on-page optimization and do some off-page optimization only for pages with potential. As time goes by, your knowledge of SEO will grow, and it will be time for you to start a case study based on the knowledge you have acquired so far.
3. I don't have the capital, sir.
Capital refers to the expenses incurred to support a job. In blogging, capital is divided into several aspects.
If you don't have internet capital and can't be online too often due to the high cost of internet packages, you can go to the city park or a place with free WiFi corners. You know, most bloggers who are now earning income also went through difficult times.
Capital in the form of money is needed to buy a domain and rent hosting. Who says a subdomain blog cannot be successful? Look at blogs like Struktur Kode and Lindakeiji; they used subdomains and are now earning a monthly salary. Start with the free ones first, and when you have the capital, switch to a custom domain. Don't be afraid of losing traffic because visitors from the subdomain will automatically be redirected to the web address with a top-level domain (TLD).
If you don't have a laptop or computer, you can use an internet café or blog through a smartphone. The journey may be difficult at first, but that's the challenge.
If you're confused because your blog has thousands of visitors but you still haven't been accepted by AdSense, try joining the AdSense joint venture program. If the results are good, consider buying an AdSense account for your personal blog. In addition to AdSense, you can also display third-party ads such as Mgid, Adnow, or Ylix.
Renting tools can be considered as capital. The most recommended tools to support blogging activities are Ahrefs, but the rental price is high. Don't worry, on platforms like Pstore or Fiverr, you can find services from popular SEO sites at affordable prices. Afraid it won't be beneficial? Just use free SEO tools; there are many available on Google.
4. Blogging is just a waste of time, and I can never succeed.
If you're unsure whether blogging can generate income and you consider it a waste of time, don't become a full-time blogger. Treat blogging as a side hobby.
A common mistake made by beginner bloggers is expecting blogging to be a shortcut to becoming rich. Do you think someone like me, who has been blogging for a long time, has hundreds of blogs? And you have to compete with the numerous dummy blogs I own. What about the experts? How many thousands of blogs have they created?
When I first started blogging, I used to wake up at 2 am to write articles because I was busy with various activities during other hours. Initially, it was just a side gig, but now it has become a habit.
There are many benefits we can gain from blogging, such as money, useful knowledge, continuous rewards in the hereafter if we pass away, more blogger friends, and broader knowledge. Blogging serves as a platform to channel positive hobbies.
Once again, the question of success or failure depends on each individual. I cannot guarantee your success as a blogger, and even Allah will only change the fate of a people if they are willing to make an effort.
5. Unhealthy Blogging
The blogging patterns of each blogger vary. Some stay up all night in front of the computer until morning, then sleep irregularly, rarely eat, rarely exercise, and spend all day in front of the PC, which leads to health problems.
As for myself, I always sleep between 9-10 PM and wake up at 2 AM to manage my blog. I then perform my morning prayers and engage in light exercise. I don't sleep in the morning until sunrise because, according to my religion, sleeping in the morning narrows the door of sustenance.
That's why I maintain a routine. I use an anti-radiation screen or screen guard in front of my PC to minimize the effects of blue light. I also drink water regularly. All of these practices are tailored to individual needs.
Indeed, most young people nowadays prefer to stay up late and wake up late. That's why they usually blog until late at night.
My advice for bloggers is to manage their free time wisely. You can schedule your articles to be published at specific times, allowing you the freedom to go anywhere you want for recreation.
6. Being Called Unemployed and Useless by Friends
Perhaps you feel inferior when your friends or even your own family call you unemployed or say that you spend too much time in front of the computer, even though you're working hard to earn money from your blog. From morning until evening, you're focused on managing your blog. Do you know how to silence them in the future? By showing them your earnings in the future. Consider their mockery as motivation for you to take blogging more seriously.
Every successful person goes through various painful experiences at the beginning. No one instantly achieves success in cryptocurrency, blogging, CPA, or online shops. There are always ups and downs at the start.
Consider the challenges in blogging as levels you have to overcome to rank up. A year ago, your income was only 3 million, then it increased to 6 million in the second year, and in the third year, it increased again to 12 million. In the future, your blog will update automatically because you'll be able to hire writers, hehe.
Just think positively because everything you think will become a reality. Remember the principle that Allah's response to His servant matches their expectations. If you always have negative thoughts and believe that negative thoughts will always come true, it's all because of the expectations stemming from your own fears that are unconsciously acknowledged by your soul. For example, if you say, "Blogging is just a waste of time, and I won't succeed," then Allah will grant both the good words spoken from the mouth and the heart of a person.
7. No one taught me how to blog
Back then, knowledge was expensive. When I was in high school, I asked a computer-savvy friend about how to reduce the size of a video file. My friend remained silent, even when I asked about changing the background of a photo.
I knew people in those days were stingy with knowledge because they were afraid of competition or something. Look at the reality now, we live in the millennial era where all information is discussed on Google, including on my blog, www.factqyu.com. I share all the knowledge I have without hiding anything.
Many people sell ebooks on blog optimization, keyword research, and so on. But they don't sell because the masters on Google have already shared their case studies.
Back in my day, I searched for backlinks using dorks and even created an expensive ebook to sell. But now? It's free. Feel free to find ways to get backlinks using dorks. Many SEO websites discuss it in detail.
Confused about how to create a blog? Confused about custom domains? How to submit a blog to the search console? How to submit a sitemap? How to optimize keywords? Free SEO tools — everything is available on Google. Please don't say that blogging is difficult due to a lack of knowledge, especially when I have written hundreds of articles on blog topics for beginners like you.
8. I'm not good at programming
Well, it's the same here. I'm not particularly skilled in coding either. The most I can do is editing templates by placing verification codes below the <head> tag, changing menus by editing the HTML code, and if there's an error, I can just revert to the default template. If I want to add a widget, I simply use the "add widget" function.
In the world of blogging, coding skills only account for about 10%. The important thing is to understand the functions of each tag and memorize them, so if an error occurs, you know which script needs to be removed.
If you're willing to learn coding on your own, that's even better. As for me, I don't delve too deep into it; I just know the basics.
9. Blogging can be tiring, it turns out.
They say you have to update your content every day, and it has to be original. Managing a blog is not easy, leaving backlinks is exhausting, and so on. Has this become a habit for you? If not, try doing those things a little longer.
For beginners, writing articles and optimizing images can be very exhausting. But for someone like me who's used to it, it can be done in just an hour. And as for backlinking, it only takes 15 minutes to finish.
You need to be good at managing your time. Personally, I don't recommend updating content every day like the blog www.factqyu.com. It can be challenging for beginners who are not accustomed to it.
By this point, I've already reached 2013 words and spent 25 minutes. If I wanted to, I could just end it here with a thank you for reading an article on the IT Person Blog. However, since I'm not tired yet, I'll continue to the next point.
10. Confused because I don't have a specific interest
Blogging is a long-term activity, and the chosen theme should align with the writer's interests. Don't force yourself to choose a niche like automotive if you don't actually enjoy it. Otherwise, your blog will be neglected and left unattended due to lack of enthusiasm.
Some friends struggle to determine their niche when they start blogging. When asked about their interests, they respond with "I don't know." It's tough when you're in that situation.
Just try to choose a niche that aligns with your daily life. For example, if you work in agriculture, consider a farming niche. It's a great opportunity to learn about animal husbandry and write about it on your blog. Or maybe you're currently unemployed, spending most of your time scrolling Facebook and reading interesting articles. In that case, create a lifestyle blog where you can gather articles from your feed or Facebook groups.
Don't be afraid if your blog doesn't get many visitors because every niche has its own audience. Even lyric blogs attract a lot of visitors. However, if you're serious about it, I suggest you be bold and choose a high-potential niche.
12. Afraid of competing with mediocre skills
Good news for those who feel their skills are mediocre, there's no need to be afraid of competing with other people's blogs on Google's search results page. Nowadays, one of the factors determining a blog's ranking is the human activity within it. If visitors enjoy staying longer on your blog, it automatically sends a signal to Google that the posts are relevant, and Google will give you a good ranking even without backlinks.
How do you make visitors stay longer on your blog? Create articles that are human-friendly. If you're still unsure, try creating content with the skyscraper concept. This means your articles should be more comprehensive compared to other blogs.
Also, pay attention to your blog's navigation. Make sure you don't have too many widgets installed. Sometimes, newcomers to blogging like to add strange effects or animations to their blogs, or create numerous thumbnails like news blogs. However, all of these actually slow down the blog's loading speed.
What about larger websites? They are supported by fast servers, plugins that automatically optimize cache and reduce image sizes without compromising quality. They also use CDNs, so resources from external sources are accessed within the theme, taking a maximum of 1 second to respond. They implement lazy load scripts where new articles are loaded as the blog page is scrolled, and so on.
