Do you want to start a blog and make money full time or for extra income on the side? Believe it or not, starting a blog is very easy and with a small investment, can be up and running within a few minutes.
However, to make money online blogging, you will have to strategize and learn how to get traffic to turn your writing into profit.
Start A Blog
Starting a blog is as easy as: finding a host, purchasing a domain and a template.
I have been blogging since 2010 and have tried a few options, however the most beginner friendly option for starting a blog is to purchase hosting, and buy the domain through the host.
Why? Hosts offer the domain and hosting cost bundled together at a lower rate than purchasing separately.
I host my blog through Bluehost, and have never had any issues with the service. My website remains fast, and WordPress integration is very simple and easy to update over time.
Another popular option is Squarespace, but I would recommend Bluehost for ease of moving your domain to a different hosting service at some point in the future.
Then buy your domain through whichever hosting service you choose.
Lastly, purchase a website template.
If you use Bluehost, your website will live on a WordPress platform, so seek out website templates that can be imported through WordPress. My favorite source for beautiful WordPress and Squarespace compatible templates is pipdig.
When starting a blog, you want an easy to use template with good support and features that are easy to navigate.
Follow the steps above, and you can get your new blog up and running in a matter of minutes. However, making money takes a bit more time and knowledge.
How To Make Money Online Blogging
There are countless ways to make money online blogging, and this post will very briefly go into the most successful options for bloggers. However, if you want a more in-depth look at any of the topics listed below, let me know in the comment section.
Typically, new bloggers begin earning a few dollars through Adsense. Adsense is a free advertising platform hosted by Google, in which ads are displayed on your website at no cost to the blogger. This is easy to set up, and you can choose what types of ads you want to display. Ad revenue is paid out through Google once you are over the payment threshold ($50) and deposited into your bank account.
All WordPress themes come with Google Adsense integration, so it is a very passive source of income. However, this particular ad revenue is related to the number of views on your website, and the profit margin is low.
Once your blog becomes more established, there are platforms like Adsense that will pay you to host ads on your blog. Mediavine is one of the most popular Advertising platforms for bloggers because of its relationships with big name brands. Usually, this option is available once your blog receives at least 50k pageviews or sessions a month.
- Affiliates
Affiliates are an organic way to make money sharing products and things you enjoy with your readers. You can link products through an affiliate and earn a small percentage of the sale if someone purchases through your link. There are several websites to do this from like shareasale or rewardstyle, and are very easy to use. Amazon is very popular because it is a one-stop-shop for a variety of products.
If you want to learn more about how to use affiliate marketing, take this course. Though I was familiar with several platforms, taking the Affiliate Marketing for Bloggers course helped me understand how I can make a steady income in unexpected ways through affiliates.
- Brand collaborations
This is the option most people are familiar with, but is also an income source that is only profitable once your blog has an established readership. Brand deals are very lucrative because you set the price, and is usually an added bonus for content you regularly create. Start building relationships with brands now, and over time, opportunities to collaborate will arise.
- Merchandise
Do you have a tee shirt idea in mind? Selling everything from printable downloads to planners can be a profitable offshoot of blogging. Establishing a trusted brand must come first, but then selling is a popular way to make money online because of larger profit margins. Again, this is usually an option after your brand becomes established with consistent views.
- Services
From time to time I offer consultations via my website on my areas of expertise. This can be in person, by phone, or via a video call. How much you charge will depend on the current market and the value your viewership places on your advice.
- Courses
Lastly, a very popular source of income for bloggers is courses. Do you have a specialty or expertise in a particular area? Create a course that provides value and will continue to passively make you income. Courses are popular for creators because once the course is published, people can buy over and over again without the creator having to come up with new content.
Usually, the cost for this type of service depends on whether you use your blog to set up and schedule appointments or go through a third party scheduling website.
How To Get Traffic To Your Blog
Now you know how to start a blog and the possibilities for making money online, but how do you get people to read your blog and buy what you offer?
Organic traffic comes through search engines like Google and Bing, so you have to learn how to get those search engines to show your blog posts in search results. This is where Search Engine Optimization comes in (SEO).
Writing good blog posts isn’t enough!
Above all else, you must create quality content. However, understanding how you get people to read your blog can often inform what content you create. I think one of the most important things I did to gain traffic was learn SEO.
At first, I downloaded the Yoast SEO plugin to make sure my blog posts would be seen by others, but once I took the Learn SEO course, my posts began to rank.
Download the free Yoast plugin, but BUY THIS SEO course and implement the advice inside to get traffic fast.
Don’t forget to market your blog posts!
Create a marketing strategy for your blog that includes sharing posts on social media and regular use of Pinterest. Pinterest is currently the number one source of traffic for my blog, followed by organic search, and then social media!
Plus, it’s free!
Share your posts with friends, family, and through hashtags to get more traffic on your blog. Pinterest has a very friendly algorithm that I learned how to navigate via this Pinterest Strategies course. After putting the information from the course to work, my Pinterest page gained over 100k views in just one month!
Invest in your blog by purchasing this Pinterest Strategies course now.
Build Your Email List
With platforms like Google Adsense and Mediavine, the number of pageviews and/or sessions your blog receives is directly related to how much money you will make blogging. Also, brands look at traffic to determine how much they will pay for a blog campaign.
Furthermore, the more people who see your merchandise or courses, the better chance you will convert them to customers. The last source for consistent traffic on your blog is an email list.
I use Mailchimp to grow my email list for free. The platform gives the option for landing pages and pop-ups while you build an email list.
Growing your email list takes particular strategies, but will pay off over time. Having a readership that you know is interested in what you offer, is one of the most common ways to make money off of branded merchandise, services, and courses.
You Must Have Passion For Your Topic
People blog for fun, to make money online, or a mix of both. One thing we all have in common is a passion for our topic! You can blog about your lifestyle, blog about blogging, or even your favorite rugs.
What matters most is a passion for your topic.
You will have to consistently create content for awhile that does not receive many views. For a time, you will need to learn how to get views while still consistently creating posts. The creativity needed to continue publishing blog posts without feedback will come from a passion for your topic.
As you may be able to tell, starting a blog is easy and there are countless ways to make money online via blogging. However, to make consistent income blogging you must consistently put in work to grow your audience and gain traffic.
