Most people start blogging because they enjoy writing and sharing their views and opinions. I think you have to be passionate or at least enjoy what you are writing about as the financial rewards aren’t immediate. If you thought you could quickly earn money blogging you were probably disappointed to find out that you have to put some work into it.
In order to earn money from your blog you need to go through the ropes of establishing your voice, making sure that people and search engines know your blog exists. Then once you have built your audience you need to make sure that you keep them coming back. Basically you need to write, engage with your audience, promote your blog and write some more.
If you\’ve been doing that for a while and decide it’s time to start making money from your blog but you don\’t want to create a product, what are your options?
Google AdSense
Google AdSense is one of the easiest programmes to join and easy enough to implement. If you have a Google account then you can apply to join their AdSense programme. Google ads are served as text or graphic banners and come in various sizes; you\’ve probably seen them all over the web.
Once you have signed up all you need to do is decide on the type of banner ads you will show on your page, create your banners and grab the code to place on your site.
For a WordPress site, the easiest way to add the code is by pasting it into a text widget but there are Google AdSense plugins available if you want to go that route. One of the best plugins I know of is Easy Responsive AdSense; it takes into account mobile users and allows you to choose the size of the ad that is served up when someone views your site on a mobile device.
If you have a YouTube channel you will be able to show AdSense ads on your videos too.
AdSense is a per click programme which means if someone clicks a banner on your site, you make a small sum of money. You should check the programme details to find out exactly how much you can make. Bloggers have claimed to be making thousands per month from AdSense, I\’m pretty sceptical about that.
I said before AdSense is an easy programme to join, it’s also the easiest to fall foul of so make sure you read their terms and conditions very carefully.
Affiliate Programmes
There are lots of affiliate programmes to choose from and many ways you can earn from them. Affiliate marketing is a quick and cheap way to start making money online as you don’t have to create any products yourself, it\’s not necessarily the easiest (there are no get rich quick schemes).
Generally, as an affiliate, you will promote a merchant’s products on your website. For instance, you can write reviews on products that match your niche and link to the products. When a reader clicks on the link and buys the product you get a small commission. Or just like the AdSense programme, you can place banners on your site.
Affiliate programmes can operate on a pay per click basis or pay for action. For instance if someone follows your link and buys something, you earn a percentage of the sale. These programmes tend to pay more than per click programmes.
The easiest affiliate programme to join is Amazon; they\’ve come a long way since their humble beginnings as an online book store. Products range from DVDs, downloadable music to household furnishings. If you already shop on Amazon.com then joining the Amazon Associates programme is a breeze. If you want to make a real go of it there\’s a book you can buy on Kindle called How to Make Money as an Amazon Associate
ClickBank has been around for over 15 years and it\’s free and easy to join. You can earn commissions up of up to 75% from some merchants. They have some really informative guides and videos on how to get started as an affiliate so you won\’t feel lost.
ShareAsale.com is another popular affiliate programme that has been around for over a decade. They have over 2,500 merchants available so, from the fashion blogger to the tech geek you should find merchants to match your niche.
There\’s also Commission Junction and even iTunes has an affiliate programme where you can link to music and apps.
These are just a few ideas to get you started on the road to earning money from your blog. Whichever programme you join bear in mind that people are becoming blind to banner ads as they read through your content. If you really want to make a go of making money online consider writing reviews on the products you choose. You’re writing anyway, right? You also want to make sure you don\’t fall foul of Google who has guidelines on affiliate programmes.
There are lots of websites promising bucket loads of money from affiliate marketing all you have to do is pay some money and join, it\’s easy to get sucked in but have a little patience. All the programmes I have mentioned above are free to join and if you are just starting out I think you should try a few of them before you think about parting with your cash. As your blogging business grows promise me you won\’t become one of those affiliates who use pop-ups to keep visitors from leaving.
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