 Are you great in front of the camera and can match it up with good nourishing skills? There's something out there in the gig economy for you. I know we're not talking about becoming an actor. Vlogging, short for video blogging. It is one of the latest fads that have come about with the advent of cheap internet and smartphone availability. Essentially, blogs in the form of videos, the format allows for experimentation with different styles and is far easier to monetize. Today at Start It Up, we will tell you how to go about it. So, who can become a vlogger? Well, just about anybody. But to be a good and successful one, it has to be someone who is good at spontaneity in front of the lens and has the ability to keep the audience engaged with the narration. It is also not necessary to always put your face in front of the camera. Considering there are vloggers out there and successful ones at that who only have their voices running in the background. Apart from camera presence and voice, what you also need to be good at is making videos and doing research. A few years ago, you would probably not have needed as much research. But with so much competition, you really need to differentiate yourself in terms of what you put out there. Your topics may range from talking about comic books and television shows to everyday things such as cooking and making delectable delicacies. But whatever you choose, remember that there are others who are already doing something similar. So put enough work in before you begin. The first thing you would need for vlogging and it shouldn't come off as a surprise is a camera that captures high-resolution videos. If you think your content speaks and you can make do with hiring a videographer, think again. With that model, your cost would go up significantly. We would recommend venturing into this with a good handicap to begin with. You would also be needing other camera equipment such as tripod and a good label mic. Secondly, you would need to have a computer system and the requisite software to help you edit these videos. Adobe Premiere Pro and After Effects Audition are good places to go if you want high-quality output. There are also free video makers out there and if you are constrained for budget, they can help you build your base before you move on to these paid applications. While vlogging is fairly cheap, if you just want to test the waters with a simple phone setup and free software to take it to the next level as a professional, it would cost you a bit. A basic handicap will cost you upwards of Rs. 30,000 while adding the additional equipment may cost an additional Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 20,000. These are largely one-time costs. A decent computer system which will be your workstation may cost about Rs. 70,000. Buying the video software from Adobe will cost you Rs. 1400 per month for each of the three apps. But if you take the entire suite of products that includes several other apps, it would come to about Rs. 3500 a month. Well, do you need to spend on marketing? Perhaps. Since your earnings will depend on the number of people who see your videos, spending about Rs. 3000 to Rs. 5000 on ads initially is not such a bad idea. In terms of earnings, your primary source of earning would be from in-video advertisements. YouTube is still your best bet for this as they start paying you on a per-thousand views basis after you have reached a certain threshold. On average, a channel can earn $3 to $5 per-thousand video views. This is based on the fact that not everyone viewing the video will see the advertisements for more than 30 seconds. The metric to consider one ad view. If and after you are large enough in terms of subscriber base, you can also do sponsored videos by approaching brands as well as open an account on Patreon where your loyal viewers can contribute to keep you going full time. Well, that is about vlogging. And for more such videos, log on to www.entrepreneurs.com