Blogging isn’t just a hobby! Many people start a blog in hopes of getting out of a 10 to 5 job. But it’s not that easy. In your mind, you always ask how to make money with your blog?
Sure, there are a lot of bloggers who earn thousands of dollars per month with just their blogs. But it isn’t so much easy as it looks (harsh reality).
Almost 99% of the blogs fail! Why? There are many reasons why most blogs fail, one mistake is that new bloggers make many mistakes & don’t fix them. One other reason is that they Quit too early!
Now, Why do people quit blogging?
One reason why people leave blogging too soon is that they are looking for quick money. You need to be damn patient to make money from a blog (if you’re a first-time blogger).
This leads to another question (you might be wondering if I’m asking questions again & again, but it can’t be helped.)
How to make money from a blog? We all know pro bloggers make a lot of money, but how do they do it?
Don’t worry, If you don’t know I will tell you. There are a lot of ways in which you can make money from your blog. But remember, you won’t make money overnight with blogging, it will take a lot of work (hard + smart).
How much you can make depends on – how much effort you are willing to put. Don’t expect any income from your blog in less than 1 year.
EFFORT = MONEY! The more effort you put into your blog, the more money you will earn. For earning some money, first, you need to grow an audience.
Coming back to the main topic – in this article, you will read about some methods in which you can monetize your blog.
9 Ways To Make Money With Your Blog
Now, get ready for learning about 9 ways in which you can earn money from your blog. Make sure to implement these methods after learning about them. (Else, it’s of no use.)
#1 Show Ads
Without a doubt, the most common way to earn from your blog is to show Ads to your visitors. (It’s also the easiest way.) Most of the bloggers who start out – think of making a blog, writing some content, then putting Ads and earning money.
There are many “Ad Networks” that you can join in order to show ads on your blog. Some of the popular Ad Networks are – Google AdSense, Media.net, Outbrain, etc.
First, you will need to sign up and wait for your account approval in these Ad Networks. Once they confirm you meet the criteria, they will approve your account.
You will make money either on “CPC” basis or “CPM” basis. CPC basis means you will earn money once someone clicks on your Ad, CPM basis means you will be paid for 1,000 Ad views.
This method is great for beginners to learn about how they can earn money from their blogs. After getting some experience with showing Ads on your blog, it’s better (and much more profitable) to try another method.
#2 Affiliate Marketing
When you recommend a product to your audience (and they buy through your tracking link), in return, you receive a commission. That’s affiliate marketing. (I’m also doing it on this blog.)
Let’s take an example – You sell someone’s item for 50$ through your blog (or any way), and in return, you get 20% i.e, 10$. You can even make up to 100$ to 1000$ from a single sale (depending on niche).
There are a lot of affiliate programs that you can join. (Almost every niche has some affiliate programs.) There isn’t any limit on how much you can earn. The more sales you get, the more money you make.
Although, you need some experience to master affiliate marketing. It isn’t as easy as showing ads on your blog but isn’t as hard creating online products (we will talk about that later).
#3 Sell Ads Space [on your Blog]
It’s easy to start earning from your blog by showing ads, but there’s a limit on how much money you can earn. And also, there isn’t any fixed amount that you will earn with each ad click. (It varies, always!)
Selling banner ad space on your blog is a much better option. You don’t have to depend on any middleman (i.e, Ad Networks). You can contact people who want to show ads on your blog and negotiate the price with them.
Most people buy ad space on “CPC” or “CPM” basis. You can just skip that. How? It’s simple, by charging a flat rate. (This way, you don’t need to keep track of views or clicks.)
However, it is much harder to manage than showing ads. You have to find people who would be willing to put their ads on your blog. Then you have to negotiate the price, create some terms & conditions, and create invoices.
You can use marketplaces like BuySellAds, which makes it easier for both advertisers and owners to get in contact with each other. Selling ad space on your blog is much more profitable, you just need a blog with good traffic.
#4 Write Sponsered Blog Posts
There are many bloggers who don’t like to show ads on their blogs. After all, there are many reasons for not showing ads on their blogs – ads looking spammy, users using ad blockers, etc.
For these kinds of bloggers, there is another way and that is – to make money through sponsored blog posts. Sponsored blog posts work just like sponsorship works in sports, movies and everywhere else.
It’s just a big company pays you to write something about their product/service, & represent it to your readers. In simple words – you will promote a company through your blog posts & social media accounts, and in return, they will give you money.
To get sponsored blog posts, your blog needs to have a good amount of readers. Else, big brands will not want to give you any kind of chance. Make sure to publish monthly reports in your blog or have an “advertise here” page.
By doing so, companies can check if you have got decent traffic or not. Depending on your blog’s niche & traffic you can earn up to 200$+ for a single sponsored blog post!
#5 Write Paid Reviews
Writing paid reviews on your blog is a great way to earn some money. Basically, it’s just like sponsored blog posts but not the same as them. There is a difference between “sponsored blog posts” & “paid reviews”.
When you get to write “Paid” reviews, you usually at first get the product to test by yourself & write about it. You should first use the product yourself & then review it.
Note – Your review should be genuine if you don’t like the product write what’s the truth. There is no need to fear, you may get more paid reviews in the future but if your readers buy a bad product & it wastes their money, they will lose their trust in you.
The process of getting “paid reviews” is the same as getting “sponsored blog posts”. You need to show others that you have got a good amount of traffic by putting monthly reports & an “advertise here” page.
You can also make use of websites like PayPerPost and SponsoredReviews for finding someone who wants to get paid reviews. Popular bloggers earn up to 500$ to 1,000$ per review!
#6 Sell Ebooks
Ebooks are the best way to start selling digital products on your blog. They are fun to create and can be created by anyone (who has decent knowledge).
Creating Ebooks & selling them is a great way to make money with your blog. Of course, you can sell Ebooks on sites like Amazon, but publishing them on your own blog makes it much more profitable.
Also, creating an Ebook is (very) much easier than creating a full course (as creating an Ebook doesn’t require full technical knowledge!). Now, you would be thinking why selling Ebooks on your blog is better than selling somewhere else?
It’s because when you sell Ebooks on your own blog, you control everything! You can decide at what price you want to sell your Ebook! (And you don’t have to pay anything to anyone else.)
If you’re a blogger, then creating an Ebook will be much easier for you. You will be having written content on your blog, you can add more to them and convert it into a nice Ebook. It won’t even take a lot of time!
#7 Host Webinars
Before we jump into how to make money from Webinars, we need to know the meaning of it. Right? So, What’s a Webinar?
A webinar is like an online seminar where the host (that is you) delivers a presentation on the topic that your audience will love to watch. Basically, it’s a conference where both the audience & the host can speak to each other (and also record it).
They are just like online courses, but they are live-streaming and have a Q&A section. Now, there are two types of webinars – paid & free. You can make money from both (free & paid) webinars.
You can tell about a product that can solve the problems of your readers at the end of free webinars and ask them to purchase it (with your affiliate links). With paid webinars, you should make sure that you deliver more than what you’ve promised (or it’ll put a dent in your reputation).
Hosting a webinar is hard! (Especially, when you’re just a newbie blogger.) But, it’s a great way to connect with your readers & become an authority blogger in your niche!
#8 Sell Online Courses
Selling online courses is a goldmine for bloggers. You know if you do it right, then you are bound to earn a lot of money. There are many bloggers who earn more money from selling online courses compared to any other method.
Creating an online course is hard (if you don’t know how to create one). On the other hand, there are even online courses which teach others how to create an online course (you can learn from there). It isn’t as hard as you think!
Usually, an online course sells at a much higher price than an ebook, webinars (paid ones), etc. I’ve even seen people buy online courses for thousands of dollars. (So, why do people buy online courses?)
There are people in every niche who want to learn everything. Of course, even if most of the information is free (on many blogs). People learn better through courses! (Also, some online courses have a USP, that is not everywhere. )
You can also create an online course. But remember, whatever price you decide, you must provide 10x its value to your students. The extra value that someone gets from your online course will be its USP (Unique Selling Point).
#9 Provide Services With Your Blog
Selling your services on your blog is one of the best & easy methods to make money blogging. If you’re blogging for a long time, chances are that you have got some experience and skills as a blogger. Why don’t you sell those skills & make money?
The best part – there isn’t any kind of investment required when you’re selling your services. Finding your first client will be easy if you create a “hire me” page on your blog. You can offer any kind of service in which you’re an expert!
You can offer freelance services through your blog. Some freelance services that you can provide are – web designing, article writing, web development, graphic designing, etc. Two other kinds of services that you can also provide are coaching and consulting.
Selling your services is a lot profitable. You’re just selling your expertise, and it doesn’t come at any cost. Most of the time, bloggers charge thousands of dollars for business coaching & consultation.
Make sure that you show your prices on the “Hire Me” page. This way it will be easier for those who want to purchase your services.
Final Words.
These are some of the best ways to make money with your blog. The other methods to make from blogs (also much more profitable) are –
- Developing & Selling WordPress Themes/Plugins (or software products).
- Hosting Events.
- Creating a Membership Site/Private Forum.
Also, there are many other ways to make money online, you can read about them in this guide.
The best monetization method depends on what’s your blogging niche. For most niches, selling online courses & products is the most profitable.
Affiliate Marketing is the second best method to make money with your blog. If you’re having a blog on niches like sports, entertainment etc. then maybe showing ads will be the best option for you.
There isn’t a perfect method for everyone. You should try out 2 to 3 methods and see which works the best for you. This way – You will be able to get the most revenue out of your blog. (Without making it look like spam.)
So, Did you find what you were looking for? What’s your favourite way of monetizing your blog? Let us know in the comments below.