7 Powerful Strategies To Monetize A Blog And Make Money Online

So, you’ve been writing blogs for over a year now, and after all those months of experience, you realize that you’ve started to lose interest for reasons you can’t quite point out – that’s when you had a sudden epiphany.

You’re finally ready to take the next step: Make money out of your blogs.

Sure, writing may be one of your biggest passions, but surely, that won’t put food on the table. Plus, think about the responsibilities you’re putting up with – brainstorming ideas every day, proofreading and editing, creating ads to promote your content, and emailing subscribers to keep them posted.

All these AND MORE without earning a single dime? 

Thankfully, more and more avenues are becoming available for bloggers who are looking to monetize their work. You won’t be spending thousands of dollars to set up and maintain a website anymore.

All you need is a solid marketing plan, which includes three components: Quality content, a profitable niche, and a monetization strategy that works best for you.

In this article, we’ll first tackle the fundamentals of blogging, outlining the ways on how you can grab the attention of your audience and generate income for yourself.

Then, we’re going to show you seven powerful strategies to monetize a blog and make money online. Sounds exciting, huh?

Let’s get to it!

The Four Key Principles of Blogging

First things first, you’ll need to build a foundation of powerful content to grow your audience.  To do that, you should be able to fulfill the cores of blogging, and these are the following:

1. Identify Your Niche

Before starting your blogging career, you have to know what your posts will be centered on, and who your ideal audience are. It’s important to create a specific type of blog to keep your readers engaged and fulfill their needs.

As much as possible, choose a niche of your expertise. Not only will it be easier for you to come up with topics, but your audience will see you as a credible source.

2. Create Quality Content

Everyone loves a well-written blog post. Don’t focus on the quantity of your posts alone, rather, make sure that you’re also creating exceptional content that will keep readers looking for more.

Aim to write posts that stand out from the rest while providing helpful information at the same time. Bear in mind that people read articles to address a need, whether it’s to find a solution or learn something new.

3. Engage Your Audience

Engaging your audience is a surefire way to maintain their loyalty. Besides writing superb content, you can post creative ones like videos, photos, and even memes.

Of course, you’d also want to keep your website as interactive as possible. A community forum, message section, and live chat should definitely be on your priority list.

4. Demonstrate Authority

The more knowledgeable you are in your field, the more people will want to read your posts.

Get the word out about your work by making your presence felt on other platforms. Publish articles on sites like Medium, build a strong following on social media, and guest post on other online publications or company blogs.

Without a doubt, Internet folks will see you as a leader in your expertise, driving more traffic to your website.

Monetize Your Blog Using Seven Powerful Strategies

After you have a loyal audience, that’s the time you can start making money from your blogs. Here’s how:

1. Become a Freelance Blogger

Becoming a freelance blogger in your niche is hands down one of the easiest ways to earn money online.

Consider this: You settled on a blog niche mainly because it’s your expertise, so it’s only fitting to take advantage of it.

Companies are always looking for skilled writers who can create valuable content to fuel their marketing. Obviously, they’ll need someone who knows the ins and outs of their niche for that.

Although you might not be drawing in much traffic to your blog site yet, you can use your posts as a portfolio of your writing that you can leverage to freelance for established platforms.

Besides, all businesses really care about is that you can offer excellent content. It wouldn’t matter to them if your blog doesn’t have enough traffic.

Once they’re impressed with your work, they will most likely hire you for a contractual job, or perhaps even full-time if they see how dedicated you are.

How much you’ll earn will depend on the niche you’re covering. As per the Editorial Freelance Association, here’s how much freelance bloggers can earn:

Image Source: Contena Community

But where do you start? How can you find such opportunities?

You have two options: You either explore dedicated freelance writing job boards or you directly reach out to the brand of your choice and let them know that you’re interested to write for them.

Whichever choice you make, make sure that you highlight your writing skills and expertise by providing a link to your own blog.

2. Monetize Your Blog with Ads

Popular websites such as BuzzFeed, Huffington Post, and WebMD share a common secret – they make money running ads on their blog.

Guess what? You can too!

By displaying ads throughout your website, you can quickly gain revenue from each click. You don’t even have to put in a lot of effort anymore – just create an account with an online ads platform, connect it to your site, and you’re good to go!

Google AdSense might be your best bet. Here’s a couple of reasons why:

• It’s cost-per-click, which means that you get paid for every click on a banner ad on your site
• It allows you to define which fields, industries, and categories of ads should be shown on your blog to ensure they’re the right fit
• You can design the appearance of your ads to complement the layout of your blog site

See to it that the ads on your blog relate to your audience’s needs. For example, if fitness is your niche, you should choose ads that promote workout apparel and equipment. No visitor of yours would be interested in clicking on a fast food ad.

One thing to remember, however, is that while displaying ads might be the fastest way to earn passive income online, you might have a hard time collecting big bucks if you have fewer than 5,000 visitors a day.

That being said, running ads is most suitable for blogs that get plenty of traffic regularly.

3. Offer a Paid Membership

Think of your blog posts as more than just your thoughts and opinions.

Your audience look forward to reading your articles because of the valuable information they bring, whether it’s life hacks, professional tips, or motivational posts.

For this reason, you might as well make a pricing plan where you offer content exclusively for paying members.

A good approach is to persuade your audience that your premium content is worth the price is to provide a free sneak peek of your latest work. Leaving them hanging, especially if they’re really into the topic, will only give them the urge to become a member of your paid membership plan.

Another effective strategy is to let your audience buy subscription plans so they can gain access to your website. Aside from exclusive articles, the benefits they pay for can include webinars, reports, forums, and personal meetups.

If you already have a large dedicated audience, setting up a membership site might be the most profitable thing you can do. Making thousands of dollars from your blogs will no longer be a dream anymore, you just turned it into a reality!

4. Write Sponsored Blogs

Another way to fatten your wallet through blogging is by writing sponsored content that focuses on a certain product or service.

Look for a company to collaborate with. Though it’s not uncommon for brands to reach out to bloggers first, you should also make an effort to contact them and inquire about partnership opportunities.

To be an absolute shoo-in, your blog needs to have a strong reputation, authority, and a vast audience base. The more visitors you attract on a daily basis, and the more engaged you get them, the higher the chances are of an advertiser buying some of your blog’s real estate.

When you’re looking to promote a brand, be sure to keep these things in mind:

• Show them how they can benefit from sponsoring your posts
• Let them know about your website traffic
• Offer ideas on how you can include their products in your content
• Show them how the interests of your audience align with their brand

5. Become an Affiliate Marketer

Monetizing your blog with affiliate marketing involves partnering with a brand to promote their products or services. In turn, you will earn a commission for every sale that came from your blog.

It’s a win-win situation for you and your partner!

For instance, if you’re a blogger affiliating with a tech company, expect to get a cut for every gadget your readers purchase through your links. The same goes for finance bloggers who recommend certain investment or credit card options.

So how do you become an affiliate marketer? Check out these tips:

• On a company’s website, look for a link where you can sign up to be an affiliate
• Reach out to brands in your niche and form a one-off partnership
• Sign up for Amazon Associates to sell any Amazon product and earn a commission on every purchase coming through your website

6. Sell Online Courses

Another great way to make money blogging is by creating and selling online courses.

Don’t worry, you don’t have to be some sort of an expert to teach a course. In fact, you’ll only need to focus on a topic which you know more than the people you’re teaching.

The goal here is to know what your audience needs, after which you tailor a course that addresses them. Believe us, folks are willing to spend a huge ton of cash to learn online.

Your content should provide information your audience will find  extremely useful. One such example is to make a tutorial video that offers insights which aren’t available in free resources, such as graphic design, keto meal planning, and even blogging.

Udemy and Teachable are two of the best platforms to create and sell your course.

7. Promote, Promote, Promote

Last and perhaps the most important tip, promote your blog consistently. How will you be able to drive traffic and strengthen your readership if you don’t?

Implement these steps to maintain your site’s profitability:

• Be active on social media. Promoting your blog on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, or YouTube will give your website a steady flow of traffic. Remember, social media marketing and blogging go hand in hand, so make the most of it.

• Develop a robust SEO strategy. There’s no better way to get noticed quickly online than by optimizing your site for search engines. If SEO is something you need a lot of help with, consider hiring a professional team.

• Use email marketing. Keep your audience engaged by sending them newsletters. Remind them to give your latest blog posts a read with personalized emails.

Final Thoughts

Making money online doesn’t have to be a complicated task, as long as you follow these powerful strategies. So, go ahead and use your amazing blog to build your brand and generate extra income for yourself.