Are you looking for proven ways that show you how to blog and make money with your blog content? If so, you’re in luck! In this guide, we will discuss eighteen proven monetization methods that you can use to make money from your content. Some of these methods are old standbys, while others are a bit more innovative. Regardless of which methods you choose to use, remember that the most important thing is to provide valuable and interesting content that your readers will love. Let’s get started on your blog content and monetization strategy!
Blog Content Strategy
Find Your Niche
I recommend when you launch your first blog, you blog about something you are passionate about. Blogging requires consistency and if you aren’t passionate you may lose interest before your blog gets traffic.
I remember one of my blogging groups where one of the members wanted to blog about colon cleaning. She was insistent that this was her passion. After writing about clean colons for a few weeks, she quit because she grew tired of the topic.
Blog about something that you can talk about anytime, anywhere, even in your sleep because you are the local expert in your community
Find Keywords
After you find your niche, you will need to find keywords to use on your blog. I recommend finding some core keywords and some long tail keywords that you plan to write about in your blog posts. You want your blog to have a focus so your readers and your community know what your blog is about. Always use your keywords as your content planning guide so you are intentional with your content and pick keywords that you plan to write blog posts about or create videos about.
Install WordPress
After you have your niche and keywords, you want to install wordpress. WordPress is my preferred blogging platform. I have used it for nearly a decade and it is my favorite way to write online. I use BlueHost for some of my blogs they have WordPress platform inside of this hosting service.
Select a hosting service that allows for scaling or growth. There is nothing worse than a huge traffic spike because of your awesome content but your blog crashes because it can’t handle the traffic
After you install wordpress, you will need to select a theme and use plugins that are helpful for your blog. Your theme is how your blog will look as visitors come to your blog. Select a theme is mobile friendly and fast. Don’t make the mistake of getting a fancy theme that is slow. Slowness will turn potential visitors away from visitors from your site.
Your plugins will add functionality to your blog. You want plugins that will make your blogging easier. Examples of plugin functionality includes: https setup, privacy disclosure plugin, analytics, and blog ad rotations.
- 1. Advertise on Your Blog with Contextual Advertising or Banner Ads
- 2. Sell Advertising Space on Your Blog
- 3. Affiliate Marketing
- 4. Offer Coaching Services
- 5. Start a Consulting Business
- 6. Sell eBooks to your audience
- 7. Write and make money from Kindle books
- 8. Sell physical products
- 9. Sell digital products
- 10. Create and Sell an Online Course
- 11. Turn your blog into a membership site
- 12. Host a paid webinar
- 13. Create a private forum
- 14. Sell Printables
- 15. Start an e-commerce store
- 16. Make money from Private Label Rights (PLR) products
- 17. Create a high-converting funnel and recommend products
Monetization Strategy #1: Banner Ads
1. Advertise on Your Blog with Contextual Advertising or Banner Ads
Contextual advertising may sound intimidating when you first see this term but if you have ever been online and seen an ad in on a webpage or video, that is where contextual advertising appears. You can also can them banner ads.
Contextual advertising is a type of online advertising that focuses on the placement of ads in relation to the content of the web page. The theory behind contextual advertising is that ads are more effective when they are placed next to relevant content, making them more likely to be noticed and clicked on by users.
One of the most popular platforms for running contextual ads is Google Adsense. Adsense allows site owners to place ad units on their pages and earn money when users click on the ads. In order to be successful with Adsense, it is important to carefully select where to place ad units and what types of ads to display. Additionally, it is important to have a well-trafficked website with quality content in order to generate clicks. When done correctly, contextual advertising can be an effective way to monetize a blog or website.
2. Sell Advertising Space on Your Blog
Another way to monetize your blog is to sell advertising space. This works similarly to Google Adsense, but instead of ads from Google, you will be selling ad space directly to businesses. The amount of money you can charge for this depends on a number of factors, including the size of your audience and the type of business that is interested in advertising.
The best part of selling advertising space is you are in charge of who is allowed in the space and the rates for the available space. This is a great idea if you have a city directory and local business want to showcase their businesses on your blog.
Sign up here for to sell ad space on your blog: Ad Rotate free or premium version
3. Affiliate Marketing
If you’re looking for ways to monetize your blog, affiliate marketing can be a great option. By partnering with businesses in your industry, you can earn commission on products or services that your readers purchase. In some cases, you may even be able to negotiate exclusive discounts for your audience. And best of all, affiliate marketing is a relatively passive form of income, which means you can earn money even while you sleep. So if you’re ready to start earning money from your blog, here’s what you need to know about affiliate marketing.
You typically have to apply to the affiliate program and an affiliate manager will review your site. Sometimes you get accepted, sometimes you don’t. Continue to post quality content and your will be accepted into affiliate programs so you can make more money with your content.
Monetization Strategy #2: Niche Services
4. Offer Coaching Services
If you have expertise in a certain area, why not offer coaching services? You can use your blog as a platform to promote these services, and then charge for coaching sessions. This is a great way to monetize your content and help others at the same time.
Why is this a great method? Coaching is a great way to make money on your blog because your visitors found you and if they are repeat visitors, they like your content. You may have even gotten online request for individual or group coaching.
5. Start a Consulting Business
Starting a consulting business is a great way to monetize your blog and turn your writing skills into an income source. To get started, you will need to identify your target clients and create a relevant and engaging marketing strategy. For example, you could create free resources like ebooks or webinars to build interest in your services and attract leads.
Additionally, you may consider partnering with complementary businesses or advertising on social media platforms like Facebook or Instagram. Once you have established yourself as a trusted and knowledgeable consultant, the sky is the limit – you can take on new clients, expand your services, and grow your business however you see fit. If you are passionate about blogging and want to turn that passion into profit, starting a consulting business is the perfect way to do so!
Monetization Strategy #3: Digital Products
6. Sell eBooks to your audience
If you have valuable information to share, why not sell it in the form of an eBook? This is a great way to monetize your blog content and give your readers even more value. You can sell eBooks on your website or through online retailers such as Udemy or Amazon.
This is another way to create a product once and resell it over and over for recurring income for your business!
7. Write and make money from Kindle books
One of the best ways to make money online is by writing and selling your own Kindle ebooks. With the growing popularity of self-publishing, there are lots of opportunities for authors to get their work out there and earn a good living from their writing. And one of the easiest ways to get started with publishing on Kindle is to start a blog.
Through blogging, you can build an audience for your kindle books, promote them to new readers, and become an authority in your niche. You can also use your blog as a venue for connecting with other ebook authors and exchanging tips and strategies. Whether you’re just starting out or already have an established platform, blogging can be an effective way to make money online through ebooks. So why not get started today? Start writing, building your audience, and selling your ebooks right away!
8. Sell physical products
Another great way to monetize your blog is to sell physical products. If you have a product that you would like to sell, you can use your blog as a platform to promote it. You can sell physical products through your website or through online retailers such as Amazon or Etsy.
Shopify offers print on demand physical products through its extension called TeeLaunch. TeeLaunch lets you create tshirts, hoodies, blankets, tumblers, mugs, shower curtains, etc. The list of products lets you be creative in the products you offer to your visitors to your blog.
The best part is the products are print on demand. This means, the customer pays from your blog directly to TeeLaunch and once it ships, you keep the profit! Definite win/win for blogger and visitor!
9. Sell digital products
If you have valuable information to share, why not sell it in the form of a digital product? This is a great way to monetize your blog content and give your readers even more value. You can sell digital products on your website or through online retailers such as Udemy or Amazon.
Digital products could be a checklist, worksheet, flyer or online document that you use to simplify your workload. This document may seem easy to you but others may find it difficult to create or replicate. This is where you can monetize your knowledge!
Monetization Strategy #4: Become Online Expert
10. Create and Sell an Online Course
If you have valuable information to share, why not create an online course? This is a great way to monetize your blog content and give your readers even more value. You can create and sell courses on sites like Udemy
If you have expertise in a certain area, you can create a paid course that your readers can take. This is a great way to monetize your content and help others at the same time. You can host the course on your website or through an online platform such as Udemy, Thinkific, Teachable or Skillshare.
11. Turn your blog into a membership site
If you have valuable content that your readers would love to have access to, why not turn your blog into a membership site? This is a great way to monetize your content and give your readers even more value. You can charge a monthly or yearly fee for access to your exclusive content, and then provide it through a password-protected area on your website.
12. Host a paid webinar
Another great way to monetize your blog is to host a paid webinar. This is a great way to share your expertise with your audience and make money at the same time. You can charge a fee for people to attend your webinar, and then provide valuable information that they can use in their business or personal lives.
These webinars can also be recorded and resold to new members. This is a great way to create a product once and resell it over and over!
13. Create a private forum
Instead of creating your website as membership websites you create private forums where everyone pays to access it. A forum is essentially a page of your website in which users may talk to one another on different topics. Having a forum is a wonderful tool to get more traffic to your blog. In addition to paying subscriptions, you can earn income on the website. Easily create private Forums on your website via WordPress plugin.
Monetization Strategy #5: Sell Printables
14. Sell Printables
This can be a great way to generate revenue, as well as build up your brand and reputation. Of course, before you can start selling, you need to figure out what products or services you’re going to offer. This will likely depend on the niche of your blog. For example, if you write about fashion, you could sell buyer’s guides; if you write about food, you could sell unique recipes; if you write about travel, you could sell travel guides.
Once you’ve decided what products or services to offer, the next step is to set up a system for selling them. There are a number of different options here, including setting up an online store, using a third-party platform like Etsy or Gumroad, or even just using PayPal buttons on your site.
Whichever option you choose, make sure it’s easy for your readers to use and that it fits in with the overall look and feel of your site. And finally, don’t forget to promote your products or services! Make sure they’re prominently featured on your site and that you’re regularly sharing information about them on.
15. Start an e-commerce store
A blog can be a great way to share your passion with the world. But what if you want to turn your hobby into a business? One way to do this is to start an e-commerce store. By selling products related to your blog topics, you can generate additional income while still providing value to your readers. Of course, starting an e-commerce store requires some initial investment and effort.
But with a little planning and perseverance, you can quickly start seeing results. And who knows? With a successful e-commerce store, you may even be able to turn your blog into a full-time business. So if you’re looking for a way to monetize your blog, an e-commerce store is definitely worth considering.
Try Shopify for free for 14 days here
16. Make money from Private Label Rights (PLR) products
If you have valuable information to share, why not make money from Private Label Rights (PLR) products? This is a great way to monetize your blog content and give your readers even more value. You can sell PLR products on your website or through online retailers such as Udemy or Amazon.
17. Create a high-converting funnel and recommend products
A high-converting funnel starts with a great blog post. The post should be well-written and informative, providing value to the reader. It should also include a call-to-action, inviting readers to click through to the recommended product. Once they reach the product page, they should be presented with an eye-catching image and an irresistible offer. The product page should also include plenty of social proof, such as customer testimonials, to reassure readers that they are making a wise purchase. By following these simple steps, you can create a high-converting funnel that will help you sell more products on your blog.
Monetization Strategy (BONUS): Build An Email List
Email list are the most effective ways to stay in contact with people who follow your blog or want updates from your blog. As you blog, keep this valuable method on your action list to implement as soon as your blog is getting traffic and website visits! Remember this motto, your email list is your money list!
All successful bloggers know the value of an email list. Not only does it provide a direct channel to communicate with your audience, but it also allows you to monetize your blog by promoting products and services. While there are many ways to build an email list, one of the most effective is to offer a freebie in exchange for subscribers. The freebie is known as a lead magnet and it is a great way to incentivize visitors to subscribe to your email lists!
Your lead magnet could be an e-book, report, video or mini-course. The key is to make sure that the freebie is relevant to your niche and that it provides value to your audience. Once you’ve built up your email list, you can start utilize email marketing to promote products and services that will help you achieve your blogging goals. With a little effort, you can quickly turn your blog into a thriving business.
These companies have excellent email marketing
- Aweber
- Constant Contact
This list of 18 methods can be the start of your monetization strategy. Treat your blog as a business and these methods as ways to bring income into your business. You don’t have to use all of these methods but one or a few of these methods can bring in reliable money for the valuable content your offer to your readers.
Do you have any other tips on how to monetize your blog? Share them in the comments below.