Darren Rowse is the guy behind ProBlogger.net, which has become one of the leading places on the web for information about making money from blogs. He is a full-time blogger himself, making a six-figure income from blogging now since 2005. In addition to his blogging at ProBlogger, Darren also edits the popular Digital Photography School blog, as well as numerous other blogs. Darren is one of the founders of b5media, a blog network with hundreds of blogs across numerous different verticals, including business, sport, entertainment, style and beauty, and technology.
Darren, how is this book different than the content on your Problogger blog? Would you consider it a compilation?
Yes in many ways you could see this as a compilation. The idea for a book came about
out of the many requests from new readers to my blog who struggled to find a way to access the information in it in a logical way. With over 4000 posts on ProBlogger there is a lot of great information hidden away in archives that is difficult to find unless you know what you’re looking for. Reading it from beginning to end isn’t always helpful as the topics covered are quite scattered when you take them chronologically and over time the older archives date.
So the book was an attempt at compiling the best and most up to date information possible on blogging.
The other bonus of it is that in having Chris co-author it with me he brought a fresh perspective to my own teaching on the topic – something that actually makes it ‘new’ as well as being a compilation of older ideas.
In terms of personal branding, how might blogging become the foundation for creating a compelling eBrand?
I see my blogging as one important component in my overall personal brand. For me blogging is definitely a foundational part of my brand but also important are other elements such as social media presence (using tools like Twitter, FriendFeed, Facebook etc), the book (which opens up new opportunities offline), speaking at conferences etc.
Blogging is a fantastic tool in this mix because it enables you to build trust and develop an ongoing relationship with those who read it. I liken it to real life relationships – when you meet up with someone every day for a few years and they catch glimpses of different sides of you over that time a deep relationship can open up – this is the opportunity that blogging affords people
So in terms of ‘how’ to do this – I guess for me it’s about blogging in a personal voice (I try to write like I speak), about using images, video, audio to add a personal touch and only blogging things that enhance or build the brand that you’re attempting to build.
Do you think everyone should inspire for that 6 figure income? What are the soft or indirect benefits from blogging?
I encourage new bloggers to see direct income from their blogs as one possible benefit from blogging. Sure – it’s nice to earn money from blogging through advertising or affiliate revenue – but there are actually bigger benefits for many bloggers than that kind of direct income. For example – blogs have the ability to build your profile or perceived expertise in a niche. This can open up opportunities to speak, write books, consult, sell products etc.
Would you say this book is geared to companies, individuals or both?
Chris and I wrote this book for individuals wanting to get their head around how bloggers make money and wanting some starting points on how to do it for themselves. It’s aimed at the beginner to intermediate blogger. Having said that – quite a few more experienced bloggers and even business bloggers from companies have told us that they’ve picked up worthwhile ideas from the book. In writing the book we cover everything from SEO, to writing engaging content, to building an audience, to blog design – these are topics that anyone producing a blog of any kind can benefit from.
What differences are there between publishing a book and a blog? Do they support or compliment each other?
It has been an interesting process writing a book. At times it was overwhelming to put together because you commit to writing something that is many thousands of words – however the reality is that I’ve written many more thousands of words on my blog. I guess the challenge with a book is that you need to be a little more disciplined to stay on topic and take things through a logical process and to a logical conclusion. A blog has more scope for getting sidetracked, following streams of ideas, being a little more creative.
I see having a blog and book on the same topic as being complimentary. They both engage people quite differently yet reinforce one another quite well.
