Bloggers are everywhere. They’re popping up in movies and commercials. They’re commentators on news shows. They’re the author of the recent book you bought. You may be wondering, “how did they do that?” It’s a common question. After all, bloggers are serving up their information, rants and daily chaos for free. How is it that they make money?

I recently read where 80% of consumers go online FIRST to research before making a purchase. Many of those consumers find the information they want from blogs. This has led bloggers to become the go-to source for advertisers because they have mass appeal and sway over consumers.

So what does that have to do with blogging success? For too long, many people have believed that simply launching a blog with a few posts and ads was all that it took to make money. And while it’s possible that some money will be made with such a strategy, it’s unlikely that it will make enough to live on. There are several other steps that need to be followed beyond posting a blog if you hope to make any significant amount of money.

1. Write stuff people want to read. Bloggers do well because they have a fan base of readers that not only keep coming back, but tell others as well. The only way that will happen is by providing material people want to read. It may be information, funny stories, rants, news…it can be anything as long as readers like it and want to continue to read it.

2. Write for readers first, but use SEO techniques on the back-end. While you don’t want to rely on search engines alone to deliver traffic, they are a good source for letting people know about your blog. But the materials that search engines use to index and rank your blog are different from what readers view. Too often to optimize a blog, people write content that has keywords that search engines like, but boring titles and dry information for readers. So always write for your readers first. Make your content lively, engaging and fun. Use keywords and their synonyms, but only as they naturally fit into the content. Use plug-ins to such as Greg’s High Performance SEO to add alternative titles, keywords and descriptions that only search engines see and use.

3. Market, market, market. Waiting for people to find your blog will take forever and probably never lead to enough traffic to make a living. Blogging is like any other business venture, you have to help people find you. Start by defining who are the most likely groups of people to be interested in your blog. Determine where they can be found. Then supply articles, comments, and other materials that let them know about you. My favorite marketing techniques are article marketing, commenting on other people’s blogs and social networking. But there are many other strategies you can use as well or instead of those.

Bloggers who make money, receive free stuff and get book deals have lots and lots of readers. So the secret to blogging success is getting lots and lots of readers. The three strategies above can help you achieve that.

To learn more about making a living blogging, check out the newly revamped Profit Blog Blueprint that takes you step-by-step in getting started and ongoing resources and support to help grow and make more. Plus it includes FREE WordPress install! Check out Profit Blog Blueprint for details.