This post was updated on June 30, 2022.
For many, blogging is a passion: it's an opportunity to share interests, issues and ideas with people from all over the world, creating a network of people interested in the same topic. Furthermore, creating a blog helps improve SEO and significantly strengthens the online presence of brands, companies and organizations.
But, as many of us know, passion alone won't pay the bills, and building a successful blog is a time-consuming task. Keeping the blog updated frequently with interesting posts, promoting them online, sending newsletters, and interacting with readers are all activities that need attention and perseverance, and which don't always pay off from an economic point of view.
However, it doesn't necessarily have to be that way. There are, in fact, various ways to monetize your blog. First, it's important to focus on the basics: start a blog that's successful, solid, and attention-grabbing for your audience.
Then, in this article, we'll cover figuring out how to monetize a blog, from writing sponsored and affiliate content, to selling merchandise and products online.
The principles of blogging
Before thinking about how to monetize a blog, it will be necessary to create a solid base of readers, starting with the creation of interesting content. To do this, you need to follow the five basic principles of blogging:
Identify your market niche: every self-respecting blog needs a well-defined target audience. Instead of writing about any subject you can think of, pinpoint specific topics within a defined market niche to build an established reader base. Use your blog to showcase your expertise in a specific area to the world and to meet specific needs of your readers
Offer quality content: if the quantity of posts on your blog is important, the quality is certainly more so. Be consistent in how often you post articles to your blog, but don't let that limit your ability to create quality, insightful content. After all, your goal is for readers to like your articles and come back to the blog for more posts
Offer valuable content: just like every business needs to offer some value to its target audience, so does a successful blog. Whoever reads your blog does so to satisfy specific needs: whether it's to learn something new or to find a solution to a problem, your job is to give your readers what they're looking for. Don't create 'cookie-cutter' content, and instead aim to write articles that stand out as in-depth, original and helpful
Encourage engagement: Your blog should not only address the needs of readers but also encourage them to learn more. Make sure you post interactive content like videos or quizzes, and add a forum to build a community for your brand. The more you engage with readers, the easier it will be for your blog to make money later on
Once you put these five blogging tips into practice, you'll be able to create quality content and build a loyal audience for your blog. At this point, you'll be ready to start monetizing your blog.
how to make money with a blog
Offer a paid membership
Become a freelance blogger
Earn money with online advertising
Fai affiliate marketing
Write sponsored posts
Get sponsored by a brand
Ask your readers for support
Sell e-books
Sell courses online
Create a podcast
Create a webinar
Host virtual conferences
Offer coaching or consulting services
Vendi merchandising
Promote your blog on a regular basis
01. Offer a paid membership
Your blog posts offer more than just an opinion or idea. They are the perfect mix of your experience, skills and personal point of view. People want to read your articles because they offer added value - whether it's professional advice, tips, personal growth or any other type of information. While it's recommended that most of your posts be accessible for free, consider creating memberships where you make exclusive content available to paying members only.
To convince your readers that this content is worth paying for, make certain parts of this content available for free. These previews can help you attract an audience interested in exclusive content and paid insights. Either way, make sure your blog has a balance between premium content and free content.
02. Become a freelance blogger
Another effective strategy for monetizing your blog is to offer your services as a freelance blogger to well-known online magazines within your market niche. Even if your blog isn't attracting much traffic yet, your posts can still form a valuable portfolio that you can leverage to become a freelance blogger for other online platforms. By using your content to establish your authority and expertise in a particular field, you can create income opportunities by writing for other blogs and, eventually, could even turn it into a full-time job.
To find these opportunities, search online and join dedicated freelance groups and platforms, or reach out directly to brands looking for bloggers and content creators. In any case, be sure to always include a link to your blog to showcase your skills and competencies and why not attract more readers.
03. Earn money with online advertising
Using Google AdSense, you can define which ad fields, industries and categories you want to appear on your blog to ensure they are suitable for your audience. Additionally, you can customize the appearance of the ads to match your blog's design. When you create a blog with Wix, you can directly add Google AdSense to your blog and earn money for each click on your ads.
For ads on your blog to be profitable, you need to make sure they are relevant to the interests of your audience. If your blog is about health and wellness, your readers will likely be less inclined to click on real estate listings. Instead, choose ads that promote wellness and personal care products and services.
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04. Fai affiliate marketing
This type of revenue, based on performance, works best when both parties involved are targeting the same audience. Partner with brands whose products or services your readers can really care about. Otherwise, the possibility of generating leads and sales will be reduced. Having an affinity with the brands you work with also means being able to promote them in the best possible way. Promoting products that really have to do with the content of your blog will allow you to make the most of them, resulting in an even higher number of sales.
While there are tons of affiliate programs to choose from, one of the most popular among beginners is the Amazon affiliate program. As an affiliate, you can place advertisements linking to Amazon products in your blog content, and receive a commission for every purchase that passes through your site.
05. Write sponsored posts
Another option is to create sponsored content that talks about a specific product or service. It is an effective form of advertising for brands and, at the same time, a great way to make money with a blog.
To get started, you need to find a brand to partner with. Sometimes it happens that companies contact bloggers directly, but we recommend that you take the initiative to send emails to brands with which you are interested in collaborating.
A sponsored post often takes a product review or demonstrates how the blogger uses the product in question for professional or creative purposes. It's a great strategy for making money with your blog, because (unlike advertising and affiliate programs) you know exactly how much you're going to make right out of the box.
If you choose to write sponsored posts, keep the following tips in mind:
Look for a partnership that allows you to create a series of sponsored posts spread over several weeks or months to ensure a recurring source of revenue
Don't try to hide sponsored posts. Be honest with your audience and always clarify if they are collaborations with a short disclaimer
Don't let collaborations like this promise your integrity as a blogger. Only recommend products that you truly believe in and believe will offer real value to your readers
06. Get sponsored by a brand
This type of sponsorship can be especially helpful if you find a brand that you really love and is highly relevant to your niche. When discussing the terms of the partnership with the brand, make sure both parties are clear about expectations and goals, so you never feel like you're promising your work.
07. Ask your readers for support
You can also monetize your blog by simply asking for donations. While it's best not to be pushy, you can always leave a quick note for your fans expressing your appreciation and thanking them for their support. You will be surprised to see how many of your readers are actually inclined to support you financially, even more so if your blog offers interesting and quality content. Sometimes, to receive, you just need to ask.
The principle behind donations is to allow your audience to thank you for providing them with free and valuable content. For this reason, it's best to avoid asking for donations if you're already selling your content.
08. Sell e-books
As you work to build a solid reader base for your blog, you can offer your fans insight into your content in the form of an e-book. Your e-book can be an elaboration of the topics you already cover in your blog or it can introduce a new topic that is particularly relevant to your target audience.
For example, if you're a photography blogger and regularly post photography and editing tips, your e-book could showcase the best places you've visited and how you've captured them with your shots.
As you create your e-book, share tips and stories from your own experience. Teach readers something new and show them how they can apply these tips in their daily lives.
09. Sell courses online
Consider repurposing your most successful content in the form of online courses. Selling video online will not only help you get more engagement with your content, but it's also an effective strategy for making money with your blog.
While we recommend that you continue to offer short-form video content for free, you can always pay for longer or more in-depth videos. Wix Video allows you to sell, rent, and download your video content on your terms. This allows you to decide the prices and even limit the duration of the video availability.
To get the most out of your online courses, think about the type of content your target audience might find interesting enough to pay to see. For example, you could create a video tutorial that offers insights beyond what your audience can already find for free online: from educational videos like online coding tutorials to a series of at-home fitness class videos.
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10. Create a podcast
If you're feeling particularly creative, another option for monetizing your blog is to start a podcast. Instead of creating your own audio content from scratch, you can simply convert the content you already have on your blog into episodes of your podcast.
Podcasts are becoming more and more popular and riding the wave of this trend can help you give your blog more visibility and increase traffic. In addition, you can receive additional income by placing advertisements in your podcast, along the lines of short radio announcements.
11. Create a webinar
Another way to put your knowledge into practice and make money with your blog is to create paid webinars. The webinar is not only a great tool to teach your audience something new, in an original way, but it is also the ideal means to build deeper relationships with your audience and increase their engagement on your blog.
There are various types of webinars: slide presentations, tutorials, workshops or based on audience questions and answers. No matter which format you choose, be sure to focus on a specific topic that you are an expert on. You can also cover content that's already on your blog, but remember to offer additional insights into topics that aren't already available for free. Finally, remember to wrap up your webinar with actionable advice so your audience feels like they learned something useful after the session is over.
12. Host virtual conferences
Another type of paid online event you can offer to monetize your blog is virtual conferences. Typically, this is a video interview with experts discussing a certain topic. These events are often free for the first 24-72 hours, after which subscribers can choose to purchase a "pass" to continue viewing those events.
Virtual conferences not only help you make money by selling "tickets" to viewers, but they are also a powerful marketing strategy to create interest in your blog among new users. This will help you expand your reach and increase traffic to your site, generating revenue in the short term while helping make your blog profitable in the long run.
13. Offer coaching or consulting services
As you build your online presence and share your knowledge with your readers, you can supplement your content with one-on-one coaching sessions. Regardless of your field of expertise, there are several ways to turn your experience into useful training for others.
For example, if you write a blog to share your passion for gardening, you could offer one-on-one video sessions offering tips and advice on how to improve your home garden. Or, if you're a digital nomad and travel blogger, you can offer customized travel itineraries to customers based on their interests and budgets. Likewise, if you are an entrepreneur or professional training expert, you can offer business or life coaching sessions to your audience.
14. Vendi merchandising
Many bloggers make money by selling products inspired by their content. Some of these are already well-known influencers, but it should be noted that being famous online is not a necessary prerequisite for selling merchandise.
So, how to open a blog and earn. You can open an online store and sell products related to your blog's niche market, or you can offer specific items that have to do with your industry or generic products with your custom logo.
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15. Promote your blog consistently
In order for the methods listed above to be effective, it is important to promote your blog on a constant basis, so as to bring more and more traffic, interact with your audience and strengthen your reader base. When writing posts and monetizing your content, implement the following strategies to keep your blog making money:
Optimize your blog for search engines: content optimization for search engines, or SEO, is essential nowadays. When writing your posts, always try to refine your content to facilitate a high ranking on Google and other search engines. This will allow you to gain visibility and bring more and more traffic to the site. To learn more, check out this guide on the most effective strategies for getting your site found on Google
Keep audience engagement high with email marketing: Newsletters are a great channel for engaging your audience. Promote your latest blog posts with eye-catching emails that keep your audience coming back
Discover how to start your blog reading our step by step guide and check out these examples of successful blogs to find inspiration and create your blog!
