How to Make Money Blogging
For years I have noticed that bloggers were making money online. Some were making a lot of money that I wondered what special trait they had. However, I noticed that they were regular people like me, so I thought I could make money using the same method as well.
Before I give you the tips on how to make money online more specifically through blogging, you must know that it is not a very easy task to complete and many give up while being on the cusp of making it.

This is just my precautionary measure of ensuring that I relay as many facts as possible about how to make money blogging.

You must note that get-rich-quick options do not last for long. Instead, you must be prepared to put in the hard work and be patient like with all small businesses. Get this right and the watch that money roll in.

Just imagine being able to earn from anywhere you have connection to the internet

Do bloggers make money?

Yes, bloggers make a lot of money and legitimately in that case. Look around the internet and you will find so many bloggers posting and breaking down how much they make from each revenue stream. Many do this monthly for example check out these guys.

How do the bloggers make money?

Most successful bloggers use their blog to build more streams that give them profits. The main magic happens at the blog site. This is your hub. Your world. You invite readers into your world with your content.

This allows you to chose how direct or indirect you make money through your readership. This can snowball into an avalanche of income when done correctly.

When you next look at your favorite website think to yourself how does this site make its money? It could be ads, courses, eBooks, services.

How much do bloggers make?

The amount of money that bloggers make hugely varies depending on several factors. Some make millions of dollars in a year, while others make nothing. In blogging, there is no specific amount of earnings guaranteed, and it is not easy to give an exact figure of the same. That is one of the beauties of blogging.

Some of these factors can be:-

  • Niche Size
  • Traffic
  • Buyer Intent
  • Writing Style
  • SEO
  • Website Design

Some bloggers choose to publish their income reports online. However, the problem with this is that every blogger has unique circumstances. If anything, many bloggers including Pinch of Yum no longer provide their income reports even though some like Pat Flynn, Create and Go provide theirs.

“Making money from blogging requires you to do only two things: drive a lot traffic, then maximize the income from that traffic.” -John Chow

How long does it take to make money blogging?

It takes many hours per week to keep a quality blog. Also, it takes some months before you can start making anything from your blog.

For beginners, it will take about 3-6 months to start earning a decent part-time income, and it will take a couple of years for you have a consistent full-time income. However, these are just average figures. You

In that case, it is unrealistic to think that you can start your blog today and have a full-time income in a few months. This is because there is so much to learn including how to build your site, your content library and enhance your presence in social media.

Blogging is therefore not an option if you are looking to make money straight away. However, be discouraged not because I have managed to get some good income from blogging after a few years. It is worth the effort. You can do it.

What are the ways that bloggers make money?

Let’s get to it this is what you came for the main ways bloggers make money. I would say these are the 5 ways you can get paid from your blog.

  • Advertising
  • Digital Products
  • Physical Products
  • Affiliate Marketing
  • Services

Advertising

Given the fact that companies are looking for potential customers for their products, they may be interested in your blog if your audience can be their potential customers. Here are ways that you can incorporate advertising with blogging:

  • Having display ads such as banner ads in your sidebar, header, footer or within the content of your blog
  • The companies might give you a free product so that you can highlight the same product on your blog.
  • Videos/ newsletters/ podcast sponsorships
  • Through sponsored or underwritten posts, you can receive payments from companies so that you can write about their products to your audience if you have the right audience for the company.

Advertising is easy to start and is a popular stream for many bloggers. However, you will need a lot of traffic for companies to approach you and make any profits.

It is therefore not one of my top recommendations for new bloggers and on new sites It can turn readers off.

Affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketing works by you as a blogger promoting someone else’s product to your audience. All you need to do is link the product to your blog using an affiliate link so that when someone clicks on it, he/she can purchase the product.

As an affiliate marketer, you will earn from the commissions. There are many affiliate programs and networks that you can join including Amazon, Genesis, Bluehost, Affiliate Acceleration and Target amongst others.

Affiliate marketing is good because you do not have to do the work of creating or maintaining the given product.

Very good for beginner bloggers also you can make money without owning a site

Digital Products

Bloggers also make money by creating and selling their products digitally. The main advantage of these products is that you do not require an inventory and you can distribute them easily.

Examples of digital products that bloggers create include Ecourses, Ebooks, Premium Contents, audio or videos, apps, plugins or themes and photos amongst others.

Good for established bloggers who have an email list or lots of traffic. It is better to have eyes (traffic) on a launch of a digital product. It can be done by beginners, but you may have to pay to get traffic on your new site.

Physical Products

Bloggers also make money by selling physical products such as books, handmade products, retail arbitrage and manufactured products amongst others.

While this is a profitable venture, it can get messy with manufacturing, keeping inventory, shipping and returns amongst other factors.

Services

Some bloggers choose to use their expertise to get money from people who hire them. They offer their services either locally or virtually. Some of these services include speaking, virtual assistance, organizing, decorating, and cooking amongst others.

Offering services is one of the fastest ways to make money as a beginner because you are paid for your skills.

However, the downside is that it is not scalable unless you build a team.

A blog can make you money for years and years.

The steps to make money blogging

  1. If you do not have a blog, build one.
  2. Develop the blog by making it excellent and useful regarding certain topics of your choice.
  3. Choose and implement your sources of income.
  4. Make your blog top of everyone’s mind by interacting with people online.
  5. Repeat the steps above (from the second) until your blog becomes a go-to source.

How can I start my blog and make money?

Creating a blog is easy. Build a blog if you do not have an existing one, then focus on building a website with 10 to 30 blog posts. While at it, be resourceful and full of good content giving your audience value. Figure out income streams that are natural to your post. Also, focus on building a relationship using social media. Use Quora, Facebook groups, LinkedIn groups and forums are good places to find your audience. Be helpful with your conversations and eventually people will start looking at what you have to offer.

Can I start a free blog and still make money?

Yes, this is possible. However, the problem is you will not have complete control of your blog. This is risky, especially if you depend on the blog for income. I recommend that you create a self-hosted WordPress blog.

Extra tips to make money blogging

Use as many income streams as possible. Diversification is key

Be a unique blogger. Be YOU.

Provide excellent content

Explore all the possibilities available

Be patient in your venture

Do not use Adsense to start with.

In my opinion do not use Adsense on a new site. If you don’t have a lot of content it looks tacky and people will click away from your site because they will only see a small site with ads on it. People come for content not ads.

Wait till you have more traffic and content to make it worth it.

Get a mailing list first

If possible, get a person’s email address first. This way, you can communicate and transact smoothly. Emails are very effective and stable.

If Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or whatever social media traffic source you use for traffic was to close tomorrow. How would you contact your audience?

If you build an email list from the start you will be able to contact your audience whenever you like with an offer that will appeal to them.

The money is in the list.

Study people who have done it

It the field of blogging, there are people like Glen Allsopp, Neil Patel or Pat Flynn who have worked transparently and made it. Find such people and derive a thing or two from them.