Make Money Online Interview With Blogger Christian Hollingsworth

This is the first part of the Make Money Online Interview series, that will be doing continuously with some of the bloggers who are really making money online and are proud to share their tips and suggestions with their readers. I hope you find these interviews useful and I hope they help you in your efforts to make money blogging.

This week, I have my good buddy Christian (Aka Social Media Rockstar) who shares his insights and tips on what he does best.

Could you describe what you do and how you earn your living Christian?

I do a myriad of things to earn a living online. A few (in no particular order) go as follows: Website flipping, social media management, blogging, freelance writing, web development, consulting, product sales & speaking.

Most of my time these days is spent as VP of Social Media for a few companies, and maintaining their online presences. This includes the management of teams who produce content, web development & interaction with customers. All the while streamlining processes and seeking to expand the growth of each company.

I also operate a blog network, and although it’s not too large, it brings in a nice income on the side to help pay for hobbies like dog sledding, tennis & traveling.

I understand that you make money online using Sponsored Tweets, Can you share something about it and also some of your other monetization methods?

SponsoredTweets and BuySellAds.com have become two important money makers for me in regards to Twitter. Although I don’t like to spam my followers, I still post a few ads (with my personal flavor and touch) each week. Done in the right way, I believe ads can actually be a benefit to your readers.

Across my blog network, InfoLinks also brings in a decent income in regards to monetizing traffic. The Amazon Affililates program was once my biggest money maker, but that his since been stopped in the state of California. I now make more from affiliate marketing product sales anyways – so I guess it’s been a change for the better.

What advice would you give an Internet entrepreneur trying to Make Money online?

It’s going to take two things. Time & hard work.

Many people who first get started trying to make money online don’t realize how difficult it is to get involved in making money online (as the industry is saturated) and that it’s going to be a time investment as well. If you’re not willing to put in long hours of hard work – then it might not be for you.

There are many who also have the notion that you will become ultra rich from blogging alone. This is also a fallacy. The blogging portion is most always combined with social media involvement, jobs coming from your blogging efforts, affiliate marketing and more appendages than you can even count.

There is no such thing as a free ride or get rich quick method. Unless, that is, you win the lottery or marry wealthy. I’m still working on both.

A lot of people make mistakes when creating their first blog, what would you recommend to keep away from?

Choose a topic that you’re passionate about. Period.

Don’t choose a niche just because you feel you’ll make money from the industry. Give me a few moments and I’ll find many people who make great money blogging about their favorite hobby or activity. It’s possible.

I’d also recommend starting with a self-hosted WordPress blog as soon as you get serious about traffic and making money online.

Running an Internet Business gives you choices and freedom to do what you want, whenever you want. What would you say the Internet Lifestyle is for you?

The internet lifestyle for me is the opportunity to be mobile. I love having the ability of packing up my laptop and a set of clothes – and heading to an extended family member’s home for a short time. I can spend time with the people I love everywhere, and still work from wherever that location might be.

 What would you say is the biggest single reason for your success at Make Money Blogging?

The reason for my success, I feel, comes from starting at an early age and the incredible support from others. Everyone online has been extremely supportive of my pursuits and ventures – and for that I will be extremely grateful.

As for starting young, I started teaching myself HTML code and blogging when I was around ten, so I’ve had a lot of experience learning about the industry of online marketing.

I also wouldn’t be where I am without the support of my Mother and advice of my Father. My Father is a brilliant event marketer, and he’s taught me much of the craft.

If you could go back in time when you were just getting started, what strategies would you like to change regarding making money online?

I would have liked to get more involved in producing a whole lot more content right from the beginning. In the beginning I was only focusing on one niche and producing content in that industry, but I feel I would have found more success by producing more content in more niches.

I started an email list right from the beginning in some of my niche blogs, but for others I didn’t. If you haven’t started your email list – start it today!

Thanks very much for the interview, Have you any plans (personal or business) that you can share with us about your future plans / goals?

I always have lots of plans. Maybe too many. As of now I’m focusing on recovering from my illness, and then continue working online as I go to school part time. Although I could continue throughout life without full degrees working in the capacity I do already – I have the strong desire for learning. I’d love to go to school and get a degree in a variety of professions. Psychology, music, marketing, medicine & law are a few that interest me.

I also plan on traveling the world in some capacity over the course of the next few years, getting more involved in dog sledding races, hiking some big mountains & producing some music that I’ve been working on for some time.

There’s a lot to do in this short life. I plan on using the time well!