broadKast.me http://broadkast.me promote your work, ideas and thoughts Sat, 27 Jun 2009 15:38:55 +0000 http://broadkast.me/?v=2.7.1 en hourly 1 Monetizing Your Blog With broadKast.me http://broadkast.me/2009/06/25/monetizing-your-blog-with-broadkastme/ http://broadkast.me/2009/06/25/monetizing-your-blog-with-broadkastme/#comments Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:06:03 +0000 broadKaster http://broadkast.me/?p=148 Unleash the power of your blog and realize its full earning potential with broadKast.me today! You owe it to yourself and your readers to get the best bang for your blog. That’s right, you owe it to your readers to monetize your blog! A well monetized blog is simply better for your creative mind. If your blog is generating healthy income, then you are able to focus more on creating quality content, assured that your hard work is paying off.

The idea that putting ads on your blog is in any way evil, unethical, harmful, or selfish, is incorrect. Believe it or not, people’s attitudes to the Internet are maturing, and people realize that websites (especially blogs) are run by people, and people work best when properly compensated. If your content is benefiting others, why shouldn’t it benefit you as well?

The following are common ways to tastefully monetize a blog.

Text Ads – Text ads like Google Adsense are a great way to deliver contextually-targeted advertisements to your readers while remaining relatively unobtrusive. The format of Adsense ads are highly recognized and trusted. Many of your readers may actually find these ads helpful from time to time.

Merchandising – If your blog has a strong community bond, you may want to consider offering some merchandise sporting your blog’s logo. CafePress.com and similar services are the perfect way to offer merchandise to your readers without needing to carry inventory.

Affiliate Sales – You have a strong trust bond with your readers. If you recommend a product or service, it will receive serious consideration from your readers. Why not capitalize on this? If you feel deceitful by profiting from a recommendation, you can always offer a non-affiliate link alongside your affiliate link and give your readers the choice.

Link Exchanges – Even if you aren’t looking to directly profit from your blog, it can never hurt to have more readers. Participate in a link exchange and broaden your blogs reach!

Banner Spots – If your blog covers a specific niche, you will probably profit more from directly selling banner spots to advertisers than simply putting up Adsense ads.

You – Why not advertise yourself? Do you have other products and services? Do you do consultations or seminars? You’ll be hard-pressed to find a reader that is upset with you for advertising yourself on your own blog.

Donations – If you are really concerned with how people will react to you posting advertisements on your blog, ask that users contribute instead. Readers who frequently benefit from your content are often more than happy to support you.

Whichever monetization method you choose, you can rest assured that broadKast.me will be there to help you make the most of your blog with cutting-edge monetization tools. Using the broadKast.me “Advertising Manager” plugin will enable you to take full control over every aspect of your ad serving.

Sign up with broadKast.me and make the most of your blog today!

]]> http://broadkast.me/2009/06/25/monetizing-your-blog-with-broadkastme/feed/ Getting Started With Your First Ad Network http://broadkast.me/2009/06/25/getting-started-with-your-first-ad-network/ http://broadkast.me/2009/06/25/getting-started-with-your-first-ad-network/#comments Thu, 25 Jun 2009 20:52:42 +0000 broadKaster http://broadkast.me/?p=142 The path to a profitable blog starts with choosing the best monetization method. While selling ads yourself can be quite lucrative, sometimes it’s best to utilize an existing ad network.
There are dozens of great ad networks out there, and each has their own strengths and weaknesses. You should take your time to research your options and select the best fitting ad network for your needs. Some ad networks specialize in text links, banners, mini malls, and others are solely commission-based.
Most networks are relatively simple to join; with only minor site and geographic requirements.
For example, one can apply for Google Adsense (by far the most popular ad network) and get approved in as few as 1-2 business days - https://www.google.com/adsense/
Once you find right ad network for your needs, simply place the ad code on your blog and track the results. It is always a good idea to try different ad networks as well as ad sizes, colors, and placements. A small change in how you present your ads can make a huge impact on your blog’s bottom-line.

Other ad networks to consider:

Text Links:
VibrantMedia.com
PaidTextLinks.com
Adbrite.com
TextLinkBrokers.com
Kontera.com
ValueClickMedia.com
Publisher.Yahoo.com

Banner Ads:
Casalemedia.com/Publishers
TribalFusion.com
DoubleClick.com

RSS Feeds:
Pheedo.com
FeedBurner.com

Related reading: Monetizing Your Blog With broadKast.me

]]> http://broadkast.me/2009/06/25/getting-started-with-your-first-ad-network/feed/ How Can I Use My Custom Domain http://broadkast.me/2009/06/14/how-can-i-use-my-custom-domain-name/ http://broadkast.me/2009/06/14/how-can-i-use-my-custom-domain-name/#comments Sun, 14 Jun 2009 14:35:11 +0000 broadKaster http://broadkast.me/?p=118 broadKast.me gives you a nice sub domain like myname.broadkast.me for each site you create, optionally you have a possibility to use your own custom domain name (Ex: www.myname.com) instead of broadKast.me by mapping your custom domain to your site.

Step by step guide to use your own domain name

1. First, you need to make sure that you own a domain, if you already own a domain then skip this step; otherwise go ahead and buy one domain name if you like. There are various domain registrars out there from where you can buy your very own name.
Here is a small list of domain registrars: godaddy, name cheap, Yahoo etc. (Note: its only an example list, not a recommendation)

2. Ok, so (now) you own a domain. The next step is to add a mapping in your broadKast.me site to this domain:
(a) Login to your broadKast.me site

(b) From the site list select “Administer this site” which will take you to the dashboard
Administer This Site

c) Now select Settings -> Domain Mapping from the left side menu on the dashboard.
Settings Domain Mapping

(d) You should see a screen like the following: Add your domain name under “Add new domain” and press Add button.
Domain Mapping Screen

3. Now, you need to point your CNAME or A record to your site. These setting are available in DNS and should be available from your domain registrar (see step 1.). The easiest way is to change your domain CNAME to mysite.broadkast.me (replace mysite with your site name on broadKast.me) or you can also change your A record to point to an IP as specified in step 2. (c)

You are all done. You should be able to access your site from your very own domain name, please note that this may take from anywhere between 1 and 24 hours depending on your registrar.

]]> http://broadkast.me/2009/06/14/how-can-i-use-my-custom-domain-name/feed/ How to get Support http://broadkast.me/2009/06/06/how-to-get-support/ http://broadkast.me/2009/06/06/how-to-get-support/#comments Fri, 05 Jun 2009 23:05:39 +0000 broadKaster http://broadkast.me/?p=85 Support GroupWe have created a dedicated support group for broadKast.me users. If you get stuck and cant find any reference to your problem in the help section, feel free to drop your question on our support group wire.
Simply login to your account (if you do not have an account yet then create one now) and join Support Group. Once you have joined this group you will get an option to post your questions.
broadKast.me creators and community will answer your questions as best as they can.

]]> http://broadkast.me/2009/06/06/how-to-get-support/feed/ Tools and Settings http://broadkast.me/2009/06/06/tools-and-settings/ http://broadkast.me/2009/06/06/tools-and-settings/#comments Fri, 05 Jun 2009 22:28:16 +0000 broadKaster http://broadkast.me/?p=77 Tools section in the admin panel allows you to perform tasks like import your blog to broadKast.me from any other blogging software or service, export content of your site. Whereas ‘Settings’ give you access to various options like changing site defaults, using your own domain name, adding google analytics (site statistics), configuring advertisements to be shown on your site and lot more.

Watch this video to see some of the features in action. Note that many features are available once you activate an appropriate plugin.

]]> http://broadkast.me/2009/06/06/tools-and-settings/feed/ Amazing Selection of Themes http://broadkast.me/2009/06/05/amazing-selection-of-themes/ http://broadkast.me/2009/06/05/amazing-selection-of-themes/#comments Fri, 05 Jun 2009 12:46:37 +0000 broadKaster http://broadkast.me/?p=99 Choose from a selection of highly professional and web20 themes, each and every theme comes with a set of amazing widgets and color schemes.
This is a sample list of themes available in broadKast.me, many more being added constantly.

This does not stop here, you will be amazed to see how many themes you can choose from and how well you can design your site.

Don’t have an account? get one for free now and start broadKasting.

]]> http://broadkast.me/2009/06/05/amazing-selection-of-themes/feed/ What is a Widget? http://broadkast.me/2009/05/26/what-is-a-widget/ http://broadkast.me/2009/05/26/what-is-a-widget/#comments Tue, 26 May 2009 20:39:21 +0000 broadKaster http://broadkast.me/?p=43 We call it a widget, you might call it a gadget or an application. Using widgets you can customize various sections of your site, every theme comes with its own set of widgets to choose from.
To manage widgets, simply login to the admin console and go to the ‘Appearance’ -> ‘Widgets’ from the left menu. To add a widget to your site, drag it on the right side or click on ‘Add’.

Widgets Overview

To see it in action, have a look at this video Themes Overview.

]]> http://broadkast.me/2009/05/26/what-is-a-widget/feed/ Themes Overview http://broadkast.me/2009/05/25/themes-overview/ http://broadkast.me/2009/05/25/themes-overview/#comments Mon, 25 May 2009 21:49:47 +0000 broadKaster http://broadkast.me/?p=33 Theme defines the style and design of your site, which ensures that your site has a unique appearance. A theme is much more than just a style; it lets you define various sections, functionality and quickly change design and layout of your site. You can change a theme of your site anytime and as many times you like.

This video will help you understand a little more on how you can use themes.

Have a look at the available themes, more themes and widgets are being added continuously.

]]> http://broadkast.me/2009/05/25/themes-overview/feed/ Blogging Overview http://broadkast.me/2009/05/25/blogging-overview/ http://broadkast.me/2009/05/25/blogging-overview/#comments Mon, 25 May 2009 19:40:31 +0000 broadKaster http://broadkast.me/?p=12 Welcome to broadKast.me, here is a simple and straightforward introduction to the blogging interface.

]]> http://broadkast.me/2009/05/25/blogging-overview/feed/