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Maintaining a blog is hard work, but what do you do if you want to be able to express yourself online without the hassle of having your own blog? Here are 9 ways that you can tell the world what you think, without the need for a blog of your own. Some of them will even pay you for the privilege!
- Helium.com – At Helium, you can write articles, read others work, rate and get rated, and even earn some money doing it. I put this one first because it is an excellent place to put your work up, and get fair feedback on it, and because some of the tips that follow work better if you have a portfolio to show. Helium is an excellent place to build that portfolio.
- Gather.com – Similar in concept to Helium, except that Gather allows you to upload images and video as well. You can earn Gather points, redeemable for an assortment of stuff, and again, an excellent way to build a portfolio for some of the following tips.
- NewsVine.com – Are you a news junkie? NewsVine allows you to link to, and comment on, the latest news. On NewsVine you are also encouraged to write your own news column. In fact, it’s kind of integral to the community…
- Squidoo.com – make a “lens” that showcases whatever it is that you are interested in. Content can include links to other sites and original content that you create. Squidoo lenses pay 50% of advertising and product sales royalties on any and all lenses that you own.
- YouTube.com – If video is your thing, YouTube is probably the single most popular video sharing site on the planet today. Upload your video, comment on other’s videos, and build a fan base for your very own channel. Since Google bought YouTube, you can create a custom video player that is linked to your AdSense account. I’m not sure at this point how this exactly works, but the option is there.
- Zaadz.com – A community site that is geared toward the enlightened, spiritually aware, eco-friendly idealist in all of us. Your Zaadz profile includes a blog page.
- The last two entries in this list work best if you are active with at least one of the other resources previously mentioned.
- Guest Post on another blog – Why maintain your own blog when you can write on someone else’s? This is where having articles published on Helium or Gather comes in handy, for without your own blog, the blog owner will need to see some of your work before allowing you to play on their playground. Two articles that will help to get you started are Get Your First Freelance Blogging Gig from Problogger.net, and Seven Practical Tips On How To Be a Good Guest Poster from NorthxEast.com
- Write a column on another website – similar to guest posting, but the barrier to entry can be a touch lower. Guest columns often do not pay, but are an excellent way to showcase your work. The two articles mentioned there will also serve you well if you choose this route.
Whether you have your own blog, or prefer to contribute to other sites and blogs, just remember that blogging is as much about the community as it is about you. It is about your contribution to the community and your interaction with it. That’s the magic of it all.
Technorati Tags: blogging, writing
Wednesday, December 5th, 2007 at 6:51 pmand is filed under Blogging for Bucks, Strategy. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
