If you enjoy sharing your thoughts and photos with a wider audience, you should definitely start blogging. Why is it a good idea? Because, eventually, you can get a paid blogging job and turn your blog into a source of income. Actually, being a blogger has already become a full-time career for many people. It all starts with a single idea and a bit of commitment. If it sounds like it might be a dream job for you too, keep reading and find out how to make money while doing what you like.
But what does it mean to blog in the first place?
Let’s start from the beginning, shall we? A blog is often defined as a regularly updated website – it can be an online diary or a simple web page dedicated to a certain topic, run by an individual or a group of people. There are many types of blogs, that differ from one another in terms of topics, content, design, and the way they are being updated. Basically, it’s up to you and what you feel the best at – it can be plain text, images, videos, images, and so on. The length of your blog posts also depends on your own preferences. That’s precisely why anyone can start blogging whenever they feel like it.
Before you do so, though, make sure you have a clear goal and some ideas on how to achieve them. Provided that you’re serious about your new hobby, that is. The best thing about blogging is that it can be just a simple pastime or a remote job you fully devote your time to. In fact – once your blog becomes popular, it will be very tempting not to turn it into a source of income. Especially when it’s relatively simple to get a paid blogging job and make a decent amount of money out of it.
It’s hardly surprising that blogging has become so popular nowadays. It has many benefits – it can bring you great joy and take your mind off of things, just to name a few. Depending on your commitment and the content you create, it can also become a job that pays your bills every month. Still, you have to be aware of your competition – there are many bloggers out there and it may be difficult to stand out, especially at the very beginning. The effort may eventually pay off, though – the biggest advantage here is having the possibility to write remotely and be flexible with your schedule. If you play it right, your blog can open new doors for you, and even allow you to collaborate with brands you like. How to make that happen, then?
Different ways to make money from your blog
Fortunately, there are many different methods to make the most out of your blog. The most common choice is the above-mentioned collaboration with brands, but it’s not the only option. Here’s how you can get a paid blogging job.
- Affiliate links are probably one of the most popular and fastest options to get a paid blogging job. It all starts with endorsing a product or a service (with a relevant link to it) on your blog and making sure the Call-to-Action is encouraging enough for people to get interested and click on the link you provided. Once they do, the advertiser tracks the number of users who were referred from your website, and you get a commission for bringing people to it. You can check out Commission Junction or ShareASale if you’re interested in finding products to write about.
- Reviews work pretty much the same, as they revolve around sharing your opinion on the chosen product or service. Usually, they are much more detailed than just a simple endorsement on your blog. Nonetheless, remember to stay transparent and honest when deciding to review a product. You can easily lose a loyal audience if you do otherwise.
- Guest posts and sponsored articles mean allowing others to publish their content on your site. It is less obvious and invasive than traditional ads, yet still effective. That may be the main reason why many brands are interested in this form of promotion. Plus, if you’re picky, you can even get some great pieces of content for your blog as well.
- Speaking of valuable content, you can charge your audience for premium content you create. This form of monetisation makes a lot of sense if you’ve already grown your audience – you can simply sell an ebook, presentation, podcast or whatever you think your followers can perceive as valuable, directly through your website. The only issue here is to make sure the piece of content you’re offering is actually valuable enough for people to pay a certain amount of money for it. You can also use so-called “content lockers” and give your readers just a sneak peek that should encourage them to pay a small fee or click on a specific ad, just to see more of your content.
- Get involved in advertising. Becoming a publisher and starting to run ads on a blog is a very common practice these days. No wonder – it can bring you great benefits, provided that you join the right ad network first. It’s important to do your research, though. Get familiar with all the possibilities available to you, and choose the one that can bring you the highest income.
The best networks to help you make money from a blog
- Google Adsense is a well-known choice among both starting, as well as seasoned publishers. It’s mostly because it’s Google’s flagship product, plus it’s very intuitive and easy to set up and start making money. On the other hand, its guidelines are quite strict, so make sure you get familiar with them.
- Media.net is basically a direct competitor of Adsense since it serves ads from Bing and Yahoo. The ads look quite different (and are often very distinctive, depending on the design of your blog), but the ad approval process is easier – especially since the requirements are not that strict.
- Whitepress.net, on the other hand, is a relatively new ad network to take advantage of. Still, it gives both advertisers and publishers plenty of opportunities to start a collaboration and benefit mutually.
- Bidvertiser may also not be as big as Adsense and Media.net, but still has a lot to offer. You can choose from a variety of ad formats (such as skyscrapers and inline ads). It also has its own referral program if you want to try such an option out as well.
- Shorte.st also offers something more and lets you make money from your blog when using shortened links. Once someone clicks on them, there will be an intermediate web page with an ad displayed first, which you basically get paid for.
- PopAds, on the contrary, specialises only in pop-under ads and is known for using quite an advanced technology to fight ad blockers when displaying them. If this sort of ads is something that interests you, you should definitely give it a try. Especially since the approval process is fast and easy, and there’s no minimum traffic requirement.
What else can you do to get a paid blogging job?
As you can see, there are many ad networks and websites that you can partner with in order to make money from a blog, but not all of them accept new publishers that easily. Therefore, you may also take other options into account.
Apart from monetizing your own blog, you could easily engage in paid blogging on other websites as well. There are even specific platforms dedicated to finding such guest post opportunities. Typically, they pay you per post – usually between $5-$50, depending on the length, complexity, and the source you get published on. Here are some examples of such networks:
- Problogger.net has possibly one of the best marketplaces that connect publishers with bloggers, which may be the reason why it attracts very popular ones,
- Writer’s Weekly, on the other hand, is a great resource for freelance writers that displays weekly job listings,
- Elance is another marketplace for freelancers of all shapes and sizes, including bloggers,
- Whitepress.net – apart from being an ad network, it also offers opportunities especially for bloggers,
- Performancing is basically a community of bloggers with a forum that contains offers for blogging jobs, as well as various tips that are useful especially for beginners,
- And last but not least – BlogVertise, which is a platform dedicated to sponsored content opportunities.
If you’re not interested in such long-term opportunities, you can also consider flipping your blog. It’s not the most recommended option since you’re selling it to a new owner, but it’s definitely a possibility to earn some money. Believe it or not, but there’s almost always a market out there for a website or a blog. If for some reason you don’t want to work on your content anymore, you can easily sell it. The most popular marketplaces for that purpose are Flippa and We Buy Websites.
Making money from a blog
Getting a paid blogging job is now easier than ever, mostly because there are many options you can choose from. You can either monetise your own blog and promote other brands, or choose to write for other blogs or websites yourself. Actually, certain platforms and ad networks can help you find exactly what you’re looking for. It might take some time and effort to make a decent amount of money out of blogging, but it’s definitely worth it – especially if you enjoy it.
Try out different solutions before you settle for one that works best for your blog. Plus, you should make it clear that you’re open to cooperation – leave a relevant note (preferably in “About me” section), informing brands and platforms that you’re interested in getting a paid blogging job. By doing so, you will eventually get contacted by potential clients. You can also try reaching out to brands yourself and ask about the possible options to collaborate.
Even though it might seem difficult at first, especially if you’re just starting to make money from your blog and don’t have much of an experience with partners and ad networks – don’t get discouraged. You’re not alone! After all, many bloggers have already started to get paid blogging jobs. It may be high time for you to do the same – especially since now you know a few methods to make money from your blog. Make the most out of them!