Being a blogger for money is considered by some as an ideal profession (probably not your Mom, who would prefer you were a doctor) but the thought of sitting at home in your pj’s in front of the computer and getting paid for it does seem to have its attractions.

However, as anyone who has ventured into the pro-blogging world will tell you there is a little more to it than that.

Here are three things to keep in mind when you set out on your pro-blogging career:

Taxes

If you are earning income from your blog then you are going to have to pay taxes on it.  It is worth getting paid advice from a CPA on how to structure this.  Maybe a DBA or LLC is the way to go for you - I am not qualified to give you that kind of advice, what I can tell you is that you don’t want an IRS audit, so think this through before you start earning serious money.  The upside of this is that, in the USA, there are approx 350 different right-offs for a small business, so setting up your blogging enterprise properly can actually entitle you to many of these that will save you money in the long run.

Shield Laws

The Federal government in the US and most states do not recognize Bloggers as “journalists” so Journalism Shield Laws, such as they are, do not apply to bloggers. So if you disclose information that is of interest to local law enforcement, either about your own activities or those of others be prepared to be on the receiving attention of their inquiries.

SPAM

No, not the processed meat. You know what I mean. Of course you don’t spam anyone. Do you send out updates about your blog? Do you send newsletters or other marketing materials to your subscribers? If you do or you intend to, you need to make sure you are compliant with the CAN-SPAM act otherwise you could face serious issues. Using a compliant software tool like Constant Contact or iContact can save you a lot of headaches.

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