How to Make Money from Blogging

Have you been blogging for some time but haven't earned what you thought you would? Do you need tips on how to improve your blog or better yet get visitors to actually come to your blog?

These were some of the concerns I had when I was blogging but I had the opportunity to attend Blogelina's 4-week course on How to Make Money from Blogging. Aside from the insightful course I also got a year's free of webhosting!

Sign up now!

Until Aug 31st!

The course is being offered up once again at only $5.00! Take advantage and learn the aspects of how to improve your blog, get ideas for your posts and the best platform to work with for blogging.

I have 2 blogs and I took advantage of this offer with my other blog Art of Being a Mom. I've experienced drastic changes with my blog. Increased visitors and I'm more inspired to blog. After getting the free year of webhosting, I decided to buy a domain and transfer from Blogger to Wordpress. This is also the same plan that I have for this blog in the near future. 

If you want to know more about the course you can comment below. 

Dropbox: Free Online Storage

Working online requires storage of your files, pictures, projects and even portfolios. If you're a transcriber receiving large dictation files you may need an alternative to receiving it through your inbox. 

The best cloud storage that I've come across by far is Dropbox. I found out about it through one of my past employers who would send me hour long dictations. It's convenient, accessible offline and safe to use.

I've recommended this cloud storage to my other employers and it has made work easier for both of us.

There are many online storage sites but Dropbox has offered me free space and the ability to get even more space by referring friends. I've earned more than 4GB by referring friends and linking my social media accounts. I was on the free plan for 2 years and have now switched to their Pro Plan at $9.99/month for 100GB to better get the benefit of more storage and security. They also offer 200GB & 500GB plans and  a Business Plan at 1TB for 5 users. 

The security is one of its best features as it allows you to store sensitive and confidential documents. You can connect all your devices to your Dropbox account and for extra safety use the 2 step verification they offer for added security. This entails you logging in and then being sent a code to your mobile phone which you will need to enter to get access to your folders and files. If you have a trusted device such as your desktop at home then you can do away with this.

Along with storing the files to the cloud and on your computer they have an app you can use to be able to access it through your smartphones and android phones. I use an iPhone and the Camera Upload feature is a great way to get pictures and files uploaded without the use of cables and memory cards.

You can also create as many folders as you'd like and share particular folders as I do with my employer. They've recently launched a Photo feature where you can create albums that you can easily share with family and friends.

Downloading time is quite fast. It may take some time if the file is large but from experience the files come through quickly. 

Free PDF Tools

Source: Klaus Tiedge (Gettyimages)

When you work at home you'll often need specific tools depending on the job. Some are provided by employers and some you'll need to have on hand. Personal assistants, virtual assistants and the like will need a tool they can use to convert PDFs, merge and split, etc.

The tools you'll need if provided by you will become a work expense just like the electricity you use and the internet connection you pay for that's why it's great to have free online tools available.

I was needing a PDF converter on a project I had and was lucky to find PDF Fill. It has worked great for me as I mainly use merging, splitting and converting of PDF files which are all part of their free tools.

They also include encrypting and decrypting options, rotating and cropping, reformatting of multiple pages, adding headers and footers, adding watermarks, PDF Form Fields, and more as part of their free package.

When you download the tool you also get their free PDF & Image Writer. There is also a PDF Editor available for a minimal fee.

Ideal Time Management Program

                                                           Working online gives you plenty of flexibility when it comes to your schedule. You may work 8 hours straight or break it up into chunks completing a certain number of hours throughout the day.

Some employers put their trust in you and let you track your hours on your own. You may also get employers who want you to keep track of your hours through a time management program or software.

I've used a few and found Worksnaps to be an excellent online program to use. They have 4 plans available.

You can recommend this program to your employer if they would like to track your time. They will receive a daily email of your hours worked specifically the minutes worked on a task. They can also check screenshots of your work online.

It's a helpful program for both the employer and freelancer. It will help you manage your tme and keep you on track. You'll be focused on working instead of browsing.

Have You Done an Internet Speed Check?

Efficiency online has a great impact on your work output. Your internet speed will play a big role in delivering projects and tasks to your boss on time.

If your potential employer doesn't ask you for one it's still recommended to have a speed check done on your computer.

Some jobs may require a certain speed for instances such as working on secure servers or if you're making calls.

A speedtest will also ensure that you are getting the right internet speed that you're paying for.

                                                                                I have personally used and recommend Speedtest.net. The program is free and very easy to use. On the lower left hand corner of the test screen it will show you your IP address and internet provider. All you have to do is click Begin Test (Recommended Server) and you'll have your results in just minutes.

It will calculate ping speed, download speed and upload speed. For beginners or new to the internet speed scene here's a brief explanation of what these speeds mean.

Ping is a test that's done to see how long it takes for your computer to get a response from another computer. It helps to establish whether internet is connected and used. You can do a manual ping test in Windows by doing the following steps.

Start -> Run-> type CMD into Run box -> press Enter or OK

Type ping IP address -> press Enter

Look for PingOutput for your results.

For download and upload speed this will depend on what your subscription plan is.