This is part two in a series of articles about Creating a Blog for Fun and Profit. In this article , we will look at choosing a theme and topics for your blog.

An appropriate theme is essential to attracting and retaining new readership. Choosing the right one for your blog can be difficult.

To begin, ask yourself the following questions: Who is my target audience? What do I want to share with them? Where else can they get this information?

Next, think about the blogs and websites you admire. What makes them successful? How are they unique? What keeps you coming back?

Some of my personal favorite websites include: TechCrunch, LifeHacker, Gizmodo, Smashing Magazine, and A List Apart.

• TechCrunch is a “weblog dedicated to obsessively profiling and reviewing new Internet products and companies.”
• LifeHacker is a “blog that features tips, shortcuts, and downloads that help you get things done smarter and more efficiently.”
• Gizmodo is a “blog with the sole purpose of writing about tech and gadgets as fast as possible.”
• Smashing Magazine “delivers useful and innovative information for designers and web-developers.”

A List Apart “explores the design, development, and meaning of web content, with a special focus on web standards and best practices.”

Each of these websites has a technological focus, but they differ in their approach and core subject matter.

Finally, consider the purpose of your blog. What is it you ultimately wish to gain from your writing and publishing?

Finding purpose in your writing

Bloggers fall into 3 distinct categories:

1. Those wishing to strike Internet gold
2. Those with a passion for or knowledge about a given subject
3. Those writing about themselves or their business

Blogging as a gateway to fame and riches

As in any good business, blogging for profit requires a careful and well-planned strategy. High-traffic websites with an active community have proven the most attractive to advertisers.

When choosing a theme for your website, consider which topics are most likely to result in viral distribution, repeat visitors, sponsorship opportunities, and community interaction.

Blogging as an outlet for passionate discourse

Genuine passion is evident in both the quality of a blog’s content and the commentary it inspires.

One of the most effective ways to increase your website’s visibility is to focus on thoughtful, quality content. Interact with your visitors and the community at large, and people will see your website as an essential destination.

Blogging about you or your business

Blogs with an individual or business focus tend to target friends, family, business associates, and potential partners. Because of this, the implied theme of the website is you.

Maintain a loose structure, generate new and interesting content, and your visitors will keep coming back.

That’s all for now. Stay tuned to next time as we tackle Part 3: Finding the right name

In this series of articles I will discuss the process and research that go into starting your own website for fun and profit. Many of these suggestions can be applied to the creation of other websites, but for now we’ll focus on one of the more popular formats: web logs or blogs as they are more commonly known.

As with any website, launching a blog requires careful planning. To the joy of many, what isn’t required is a reason! Anyone can launch a website at any time and for any purpose.

Still, careful planning can sometimes make the difference between success and failure. So let’s look at some of the necessary steps:

1. Creating a blog for fun and profit
2. Choosing a theme and topics
3. Finding the right name
4. Deciding how to manage content
5. Finding a web host
6. Designing your website
7. Launching your website
8. Gaining exposure
9. Retaining readership
10. Recruiting contributors
11. Having fun
12. Making a profit

Look at all these steps! Who knew that launching a blog requires so much work?

In reality, very few of those steps are required absolutely. As I’ve mentioned before:

Anyone can launch a website at any time and for any purpose.

Keep that in mind and you’ll have fun. Even if your website isn’t wildly popular, the crucial advantage can still be won. By focusing on each step, you may also reap the benefits of gaining exposure, retaining readership, and making a profit. After all, you aren’t just doing it for fun, are you?

With the right combination of careful planning, creativity, hard work, and passion anyone can be a success!

That’s all for now. Stay tuned to next time as we tackle Part 2: Choosing a theme and topics for your blog