Getting The Best From Blogitive

In How I Get Paid To Blog, I told you about a (then) new way of earning money from your blog. That was back in April, and although I've updated the original post, people have been asking me questions about how it works. So here are the answers in one tidy(ish) package, as well as a few tips I've picked up along the way. Old hands may wish to scroll down to question 9.

1. How does Blogitive work?

Just in case you're new to this, Blogitive works by giving bloggers key phrases to use in their blogs, with a link to a particular website. Blogitive gives you a web release as well, which you must refer to. For each successful post you get $5. I have made way more with Blogitive than with Adsense, so it does work, and if you look around WritingUp, you'll see plenty of other bloggers using it too. To get started, you just need to register your blog with them.

2. Will they accept all my blogs?

They may not. I tried to get this blog accepted three times before I succeeded - and my WriteNiche blog still gets rejected. The best way to make more money with Blogitive is to register all the blogs they will accept. Then your only problem is how to write all the ads.

3. How often do blogging offers come along?

This varies considerably. When Blogitive started, there were only a few offers and the more people signed up, the fewer offers there were to go around. That seems to have improved. I usually get offers twice a week, near the start and end of the week, sometimes as many as 10 at a time, because I have three blogs registered with them. Occasionally, I go a whole week without offers. This no longer panics me.

4. Can I reject offers?

Yes.

5. How else can you make money with Blogitive?

By referring other people - $5 a time. Just tell them sharon [at] doublehdesign [dot] com sent you. :) There's also talk of making money by writing posts for others eventually, but so far that hasn't happened. The referral system is a bit hit or miss. I've been credited for some referrals but not others.

6. How often do your posts get rejected?

I had two rejections in the first week and none since. The first rejection was because I corrected the grammar in the link they gave me (it was missing an apostrophe). Once I'd gritted my teeth and put the phrase back the way it was, I got paid on that one. The second was because I had too many other links in the post (no more than three other links are allowed). The third key thing to remember is to put the link in its own paragraph with no other links. And finally, remember to refer to the web release.

7. Do I need a Paypal account to get paid by Blogitive?

Yes.

8. How often do Blogitive pay?

They pay weekly. You'll get a notice of a pending payment, which clears in a few days. If you get a lot of offers, you may find it difficult to remember which ones you are being paid on.

9. What's the best way to include the links on your blog?

When I started, I used to create a whole post around the phrase. This was good creative writing practice. Now that I've got more offers, I take a more workmanlike approach. I simply put a paragraph at the end with the link and the reference to the web release.

10. Do you write a different ad for each blog?

Not usually. I usually try a paragraph on one of my blogs and if it works I use it on all of them.

11. Can you include more than one Blogitive offer in your blog?

Yes, I usually include two. I haven't dared to go for three yet, but one day I might. As long as I put each in its own paragraph and use the correct phrase, my posts are accepted.

12. Can I use Blogitive on old posts?

Yes. I have put Blogitive offers on posts that are more than four weeks old. Again, these have been accepted. (Thanks, gracepub, for this tip).

13. Is putting ads on your blog wrong?

As far as I'm concerned, I'm a freelance writer and writing is how I make money. There's little difference between writing an article or an ad for money. On my blog I try to signal by a horizontal rule (ugly, but effective) or a change of font that the content that follows is not the main subject of my blog. Most people who came to WritingUp were attracted, at least in part, by the prospect of Adsense money. Even if that's not the primary motivation any more (being the get-rich-slow scheme that it is), there's nothing wrong with it, in my book.

These are the answers to the questions I've been asked most about Blogitive . If you have any more, be sure to let me know so I can add them to this post. And if you have any more Blogitive busters (strategies that have worked for you), I'd love to hear about them.