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April 12th, 2007 by Spud Oregon
What happens when you combine a pretty face with a blog about making money online? You get banned by Google!
People click-bombing her ads might be the reason why Kumiko Suzuki was banned by Google Adsense. I can imagine her readers trying to help out the cash-strapped, part-time university student, but in the end, they’ve done nothing but remove her main source of online income… or have they?
Tokyo-based Kumiko is back on her cash quest with more desire than ever. Â
THE QUEST SHALL NOT BE STOPPED!
This is not an end. It’s not even a setback - it’s a new beginning! The banning has given me the motivation to explore making money online with an enthusiasm that I have not had before!
If you haven’t been over to Kumiko’s very pink blog, now might be a good time to start. Is it really posible to earn a significant income from a blog without Adsense? We’re about to find out. Expect to see Kumiko go to town on paid reviews, affiliate programs and any other source of income that could replace her lost earnings. Those of us that are too dependent on Google ads could learn a lot from this young Japanese ”seeker of online cash!”
Kumiko’s Cash Quest is a diary of her road to online wealth and has a similar appeal to John Chow’s site when he first started to monetize his blog. I’ve been looking back through her archives and have added a bunch of new affiliate programs I hadn’t heard of to my “Things-To-Add-To-My-Things-To-Do” list.Â
If you’re new to Kumiko’s site, here’s a taster from her article “How I Achieved Over 1500 Hits In My First Two Weeks“:
Most people aim for the major link-directories with a high Google PageRank as they feel that this will increase their PageRank too. That philosophy is quite sound, yet don’t ignore the smaller directories! While these directories may not list as many sites and lack a high PageRank, your site will stand out a lot more. Being a big fish in a small pond can generate quite a few hits. The underlying advice with directories is to submit to all of them - big or small.
Good stuff, right? However, after that she suggested using traffic generation sites to get visitors:
If you’re a blogger, join traffic generation sites such as BlogMad and BlogExplosion. These sites are fantastic and easy for bringing hits to your site. But there is a downside �Esurfers to your site will usually only stay the required amount of time and then leave. However, if your blog is good enough, they’ll come back. Another word of warning is to be careful if your site displays Adsense. Using these traffic generation sites can violate the Adsense Terms of Service.
Although Kumiko went on to say that she didn’t use these sites to bring traffic directly to her blog, her recent banning does make you wonder!
Nevertheless, she has written lots of good stuff including Increasing Traffic Is No Longer a Secret in which she talks about Digital Point, MyBlogLog and MyLot. She has also written a wonderful countdown of the top 5 sites every blogger must visit if they are serious about earning money online, and last but not least, she wrote a highly controversial anti-Agloco article which is to date, her most popular post.
Away from blogging for money, I like to read Kumiko’s thoughts on life in Japan. Her post on why men go for Japanese women is an interesting read. Let’s have more Japan-related posts please, Kumiko! Oh, and if you’re ever in the Gifu/Nagoya area, look me up!
Like my wife, who is also Japanese, Kumiko probably eats rice every morning for breakfast, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t vote this review up by giving her some more! And do check her site out… it’s Adsense-free!
Rice: 
Posted on April 12th, 2007 in Blogging for Money.
Comments: 8
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I love Kumiko’s blog. Great review Spud!
This was a great review! Thanks!
Thanks guys, it was fun writing it!
Nice review. I’ve been a fan of Kumiko’s for a little while now, and I agree that she should do more Japan-related posts.
I started reading Kumiko’s blog a little while ago. It’s pretty good!
I liked it from the start, and I think what keeps me going back is the “down-to-earth” feeling I get from most of her posts.
I hope she keeps it up.
Regards,
I have just reviewed Kumiko’s blog, as well. She is doing a great job there and you did a great review for her blog.
This is my first time seeing her blog. And I find it rather, uhmm… pink? Kidding aside, I really like her blog and the story behind it. Instead of giving up after being banned, she still has the courage to continue on. Now this is a girl worth giving rice!
Spud, so you have a Japanese woman for a wife? interesting. ^_^
Wrote a review for Kumiko at http://www.bloglyne.com/2007/06/05/kumiko-is-pink-or-green-rather%e2%80%a6/
FYI… Kumiko’s new site is at http://www.cashquests.com