The truth about making money online is this: it doesn’t have to cost you anything. That’s right. You do not need to pay to get paid. Better yet, you don’t even have to sell anything. You don’t need expensive programs or tutorials. You need a brain. And you need to know how to use it.

There really isn’t a trick to making money online. The reason that some people make more than others is because they’ve taken the time to learn. So set aside your phobias, don’t even say the words, “I will never understand this.” Trust me, if I could learn this, you can, too. When I started I was completely Internet ignorant.

If you seriously need to make money, then get busy and learn how to do this. If you dedicate the time and apply the principles you’re about to learn, you can start making more money. Since I began working with this method, I have seen my income increase 250% a month. And, I’ve been using free sites and blogs. Free! As in, they don’t cost me a cent.

Finding Your Niche

Let’s start with the basics. Your idea. Before we even talk about blogs, or writing articles, you need a good solid idea that you can turn into you own little niche. Using Google Adwords Keyword Tool, as I’ve explained in “How to Choose and Use the Best SEO Keywords Free“, get a list of four or five keywords with an average CPM of about $4 to $5. You will make about 20% to 25% of the CPM per click through on your sites that pay per ad click. Some base their payouts on views, but it is still in some ways related to advertising.

Writing

Now that you have your niche keywords, write 12 to 15 articles within that topic. Be sure to use the keywords in your title and content. A good way to begin is to write a general article, with each subsequent article focusing on specific detail. Now, keep in mind people want to read original thought, not general knowledge that you’ve simply restated. Put some thought into it. The whole point here is to write articles that will keep people coming back for more. Keep each article concise, informative, on point, and no selling. Unless you want to turn people off and fall flat on your face right out of the gate. One other thing, don’t try to be an authority figure. Keep it real. Write with a conversational tone and avoid the big words. Just talk to people. They will appreciate that more than anything.

Blogging

You’ve got your keywords, your niche, and several articles to get you started. Now find a blog, get your domain name with your top keyword in it. Get creative if you have to, add “the”, “my”, or something to make it yours if it is already taken. Once you’ve got it set up, get a Google Adsense account. Then start posting your blog articles, one or two a day, and getting exposure.

Building Your Network

This is where it all comes together. It’s called anchored backlinking, and it is the key to getting good page ranks, increasing views and increasing your writing income. In addition to your blog, you need to be publishing on other sites (that pay, of course). With your niche topic in mind, begin writing related articles and posting them on writing sites such as Triond, Hub Pages and eHow. Remember, these are related articles with many of the same keywords, not duplicate material. Copying and pasting articles onto several websites really doesn’t help you at all. In fact, it puts you in competition with yourself. It is far better to write pieces with similar content, post links to your blogs and articles that you’ve written on other sites. If people follow your links and find a copy of what they’ve just read, you’ll lose that reader. Probably forever.

As  you continue your blog, you will also continue writing on the other sites. Not only does this backlink your articles, it exposes your work to more people. The next step is to promote your articles through participating in online communities, social bookmarking, and offline activities.

Your success lies with you, and the quantity and quality of the work that you produce. Obviously, the more articles you publish the higher your earning potential. But, quality counts, too. There is nothing difficult about this. In fact, it is so easy, you could have ten or more blogs up and running in a few months.

Good luck and happy writing.