In today’s day and age, people are making money through several different avenues, such as online business on sites like eBay or Etsy, selling items on Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace, producing videos on YouTube, etc. Millennials especially are deviating from the standard norm of working traditional jobs, and are looking for alternative ways to supplement an income.
Andrew Arnold of Forbes affirms this generational shift, stating “[Millennial’s] ideal concepts of work and career do not include traditional long-term employment with a single enterprise – climbing the career ladder and collecting the gold watch after 35-40 years,” continuing to write, “Instead, they prefer alternative work styles and are enamored with the idea of entrepreneurship and perhaps multiple streams of income from several side ‘gigs.’”
One huge way that millennials are making money online nowadays is through blogging and monetizing such blog. Blogging has blown up within the past 20 years, and has blossomed what were once “normal” people into celebrities. “The Pioneer Woman” Ree Drummond, for example, started a blog just to document her day to day life with her husband and children. She now has a full cookware line at Walmart, five bestselling cookbooks, a Food Network television show and millions of followers.
I have even entertained the idea of monetizing a blog, because it’s a creative and fun way to both do something you like and make money at the same time! Are you a blogger or a soon-to-be-blogger? Wanting to make some money on your posts? Unsure of where or how to start? These four tips on how to monetize your blog will make your blog a money maker!
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Before diving into the tips, it’s worth noting that making money with a blog is not a “get rich quick” scheme, it does take a while to cultivate a strategy and establish a following, so be patient!
1. Be Smart, Not Cheap: I love saving money and being frugal, however when creating a blog, you don’t want to be cheap. By saying this I mean you don’t want to create a blog on a free website such as WordPress, because there are certain limitations that restrict you from monetizing your page. Instead, purchase and establish a custom domain name and buy a web hosting plan through a site like BlueHost or HostGator to guarantee that you can generate revenue through your unique page.
2. Create a Strategy: When establishing a blog, it is important to create a clear strategy of what you’re going to produce, the audience you want to reach, etc. Syed Balkhi of the Huffington Post suggests important questions to ask yourself, like:
- What is the niche of your blog?
- Would you create content yourself or outsource it? If you plan to outsource, do you have the budget to spend on content creation?
- What is your blog monetization strategy?
- How will you grow your blog audience?
- Who are the competitors in your market?
By figuring out the answers to these questions and figuring out your strategy now, management of your blog will be way easier down the road!
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3. Produce Meaningful Content: The whole purpose of your blog is to share a piece of yourself with your audience. To monetize your blog, you’ll want to make sure you produce meaningful and reachable content to your projected audience, not only to generate traffic to your page but also to gain more followers! Look to popular pages and blogs that are producing content similar to how you want to and note their strategies, how they appeal to their audiences, their blog post schedule, etc. Once you have an idea of what to do and how to reach your audience, create an “editorial schedule” to plan when you will share your blog posts!
4. Grow Your Audience: One of the most important aspects of having a monetized blog is having a following and an established audience, because without one, there’s nothing to be made! There are a few ways to grow your audience, such as SEO, Social Media traffic, and networking.
- SEO or Search Engine Optimization is one of the biggest ways people will find your blog. Through SEO, Syed Balkhi says, “you can increase the visibility of your website in search engines and ensure that your content is displayed at the moment your target audience is looking for it.”
- Social Media Traffic: Promote your blog on social media networks, such as Facebook or Instagram. Create specific pages on these sites for your blog and link your blog website on your Facebook and Instagram so not only can people reach you on social media, but they can also share your posts to spread the word! Use hashtags and look at the best times to post of each social media site to optimize your reach.
- Networking: Networking online is no different than networking in the real world. Find people in your same niche, connect with them, follow their blog pages and establish a relationship. Through networking, you can collaborate with people and expand your audience!
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Creating a blog and generating revenue from your blog is not necessarily an “easy” process. There’s a lot that goes into it, such as picking the right host, establishing a strategy, producing attractive content and growing your audience. While the process does take a little bit of learning and some time, if you are looking to make money off of your creativity and have an alternative income, it’s worth it. As always, good luck!