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Not to take away the importance of business fundamentals, testing and market research, but what if you thought of your online business as art? What if you thought of yourself as an artist?

Would this line of thinking make your business better? I think it would.

The internet is being more and more overcrowded with new sites and online businesses. More people are jumping online to try to make money. This list has over 200 make money online blogs. Many of these blogs are less than a year old. I think the artist metaphor is an excellent way to help you stand out from the big crowd and be unique.

Your website is your canvas. Your content is your art. Your marketing is art too. Even the way you monetize can be art.

Art, by definition, is unique. Art is worth more. Art provides a unique experience. Art touches the heart not just the head. Art happens when you’re being yourself.

An Example

I’m thinking of starting a blog in a relatively small game-related niche. However, this niche is filled with rabid fans that spend a lot of money.

I had a plan of how I was going to create and run the blog. My thought process was pretty simple. My plan was to write quality content, market it to the popular forums in the niche, and then put up AdSense, advertising, and affiliate programs to make money.

Seems like a good plan, right? But as I thought about the artist metaphor, I realized that my plan was too boring. My plan was not interesting. My plan was the same plan as everyone else’s. My plan was not artistic.

So, I took some time to brainstorm and here’s where I’m at with my plan.

• Instead of just text blog posts, I’m gonna produce podcasts, videos, and even sketchcasts.
• Instead of just doing forum marketing, I’m gonna build friendships with the gamers in the forums and then start running tournaments with those gamers. I’ll even pay for the prizes myself. Also, I’ll go to offline tournaments to befriend gamers in person. Then, through the friendships, I’ll introduce them to my blog.
• Instead of just monetizing through AdSense, advertising, and affiliate programs, I’m gonna have a paid membership program where I give away my best content. Also, I’ll write an ebook and sell it. Also, I’ll take that ebook and create physical audio and video products based on it and sell those too.

Not Just a Blogger

I don’t want to think of myself as only a blogger.

• Artists are passionate about their niche. Bloggers oftentimes are only out to make money.
• Artists create unique, timeless content. Bloggers oftentimes just write rehashed content and report the news.
• Artist go the extra mile. They’re bold. They take creative risks. Bloggers are oftentimes just trying to meet a weekly post quota.
• Artists engage and converse with their audience. Bloggers oftentimes don’t do much marketing!

Think of the difference between Ford and Lamborghini. Ford is boring. But Lamborghini… now were talking :) Lamborghini cars are exciting. They make you feel a certain way. They’re a status symbol. They’re interesting not boring. They’re unique. They’re works of art while Ford cars are not.

Make your online business like Lamborghini instead of Ford. There are too many sites that are boring like Ford. The sites that will survive in the overcrowded web will be very unique like Lamborghini.

And the more unique you are, the more you can charge. Perception is reality. A unique perception translates to a higher profit margin. Also, you don’t have to worry about the competition, because you are the leader. As you become successful, people will try to copy you. But since they’re copying you, they will always be behind.

The Post was Inspired By…

How to Create Ebooks That Sell (especially the last section)
Death of the Book: Publishers Will Become Interactive Media Artists (Thanks, Jon.)

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