*This post may contain affiliate links. Please read the full disclosure here.
Are you wondering how to blog and make money?
Maybe you already know of ad income and affiliate marketing, but did you know there are 13 ways you can make money blogging?
Today’s post highlights ways you can increase your blog income. So don’t worry if you haven’t made money yet, let me show you a few other ideas.
**This post may contain affiliate links. Please read disclosure.
1. Ads
Let’s start with the obvious-ads.
Display advertising that you see on any blog, website or even a YouTube channel can make the business owner money.
While there are many advertising companies available, Google Adsense is the best place for beginners that are only a few weeks into blogging. Once you have gained over 10,000 pageviews you can apply with Monumeric, that offer higher rates as opposed to Adsense.
The best of the lot is Mediavine. I use Mediavine on one of my blogs and make over $3,000 a month with ads. You will need to get over 25,000 sessions to be eligible to apply. [Please be aware that it is sessions and not pageviews].
2. Affiliate Marketing
This is when someone clicks on your affiliate link and makes a purchase within the cookie window, you earn a commission.
There are many ways to add affiliate links on your site.
You can add banners within the posts or sidebar, affiliate links in posts leading to physical or digital products.
Here are just a few examples:
Physical products
- Amazon purchases
- Subscription Boxes
- Fashion & accessories
- Groceries
- Books and electronics
- Travel gear
Digital products
- ebooks
- online courses
- printables
- graphic templates
3. Sponsored Posts
Sponsored posts are when a brand/company offers to pay you to write a post on your blog.
You might probably ask, how will a brand reach out to me if I am a small blogger? If they don’t you can definitely try by sending them an email. You will be surprised how many small bloggers are getting paid sponsorship deals with brands.
Another easier option is by applying here to receive weekly sponsorship deals in your inbox.
4. Sell ebooks
If you are good at something and would like to convert that knowledge into an ebook, you can get paid for doing that. Even a 100-page ebook can be worth between $20 to $100 based on the value of the content provided.
I have in the past created an ebook and made up to $500 a month for a $17 product.
You can create an ebook on a free platform like Canva and use Sendowl ($9/month) to handle transactions.
Check out this post on how to create an ebook if you are interested.
5. Sell courses
Selling courses is similar to writing an ebook. The difference being, adding videos and being able to update the course easily in an e-course.
Teachable is one of the recommended platforms for creating online courses.
6. Services
If you add a hire-me page on your blog/website you can provide personal services. You can add a price to the service you offer, or choose to leave an email address to provide a customised quote.
You can accept payments by PayPal or use a platform like Sendowl to securely accept payments.
Some services to offer:
- Blog audit
- Pinterest set up and audit
- Blog set up
- Virtual assistant services
- Consultations
- SEO services
7. One-on-one coaching
If you can provide personal coaching services you can also add this to the “Hire Me” page. One-on-one coaching can be made relevant to your field of interest.
Your hire me page can also include a few testimonials of customers who have used your service.
If you are just starting out, you can offer to provide your service for free in exchange for an honest testimonial. Testimonials are great because customers get to read what others have to say about your service.
8. Online store
While Etsy is a great option for those looking to make money selling handmade products, there are a few drawbacks.
With Etsy, you are not entirely in control of what you sell. You will have to pay a few additional fees, each time your product sells.
Opening a Shopify store and connecting it to your blog or website is a better option.
With a blog connected to your store, you can write about your product in blog posts and link to the store – increasing sales.
9. Flip websites
Did you know you can start a blog and sell it in as little as 2 months?
This is called blog flipping, where you start your own blog, write a few posts and put it up for sale. Most often you end up making 24 times your monthly income or 2 times your gross income.
So if you are earning $100 a month on your blog, that means its $1,200 a year, and can sell for almost $2,400!
If you are interested in starting this side hustle, do check out this guide to blog flipping.
10. Freelance writing
Bloggers make great writers and freelance writing is the next best option to diversify your blog income.
There are a number of blogging Facebook groups that offer work for freelance writers.
Rate of pay is quite competitive, so if you are just starting, charging lower than the market value can get you more work. Once you have built yourself, you can start charging higher.
11. Proofread blogs
Most bloggers have the knack of spotting errors in blog posts. Grammarly is one free tool I use for this. But if you are good at correcting grammatical errors, you can offer proofreading services.
Freelance proofreaders can earn an average of $40,000 a year.
If this is something that interests you, here is a free training that will give you more information.
12. Sell stock photos
Ivory mix and Pixistock are two of my favourite stock photo sites for bloggers. Both these sites are run by bloggers that turned their passion for photography into a successful online business.
Selling stock photos is a great way of building a passive income.
13. Sell pinnable image templates
Pinterest is a popular platform for new bloggers to promote their content. If you possess good graphic designing skills or well versed with Canva or Picmonkey, you can offer to make customised pinnable images.
Another less time-consuming way is to provide a set of “Pin templates” for sale.
These pin templates work like fill in the blank Pinterest images. You will create the pin image and allow for editing of image and text. You can choose to sell them in a pack of 4 or 6 or 10, for a set price.
14. Sell Digital Stickers
The last but fun way to make money as a blogger is by selling digital stickers. As a blogger, many of us are so used to creating images for social media promotion on Canva. Personally, I love the creative side of creating fun images to share.
If you like me enjoy playing around on Canva, you will love this side hustle. Michelle Simpkin is one creative side hustler that made over $7,000 in 6 months by selling digital stickers on Etsy. Want to read all about Digital Stickers, check out this interview with Michelle to see what she has to say.
There you go!
It’s not just ad and affiliate income for bloggers. There are many other ways to increase your income with a blog. Let us know if there are any additional ways you make money with your blog and I can add it to the list.
