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It is the biggest question in the blogging world.  “I have a blog, but how do I make money blogging?”  Over the last 2 1/2 years, I have really learned a lot about this topic.  Am I earning a million dollars?  Not even close, BUT I am making some money and you can too!  Blogging takes a lot of time, and it is nice to make a little money while doing it.

Make money blogging

Here are the 5 best ways that I have found for how to make money blogging:

1. Ad Networks

All of these ad networks work about the same way.  You either get paid per impression or per click.  Those are two VERY different things, so make sure you know which is the one that you are getting paid for.   All you need to do is sign up with them and then place ads on your sidebar.  EASY way to make some money.  (Remember that where you place your ads and the amount of ads you have on your page is going to directly effect the amount of money you make.)

HyperX Media– These guys are awesome!  Seriously.  They are really great about helping you with any problems on your site, they do a full SEO evalutation, and also help you make changes so that you drive more traffic to your site.  They have awesome suggestions and are very approachable.  If you sign up with them, would you mind telling them that I sent you?  They do offer a referral incentive 🙂

Rivit Media– I have worked with them before.  They pay regularly and they will accept pretty much anyone to join their network.

2. Affliates

There are a lot of companies that offer affiliate programs.  The basic idea behind it is that for every sale that is made through your link, you get a certain percentage of the sale.  The percent will change depending on each company and their policy, so make sure you know when you sign up what you are signing up for.

Is there a company that you find yourself buying from often?  Find out if they have an affiliate program.  It is the easiest way to promote a product because if you love the product, you probably have readers or friends that would enjoy buying it as well.  If they are going to buy it anyway, why not have them buy the item through your link so that you earn a little money from it?

Here are some affiliates that I personally use:

Tiny Prints– They usually have really good promotions for free cards or discounted items that are really cute.  I don’t promote this one very often and should probably promote it more.

Amazon– Such an easy affiliate program to apply for and use.  They make it really easy to share your affiliate links.  Plus they allow cookies which will make it so that if people click on your link but don’t buy the item you shared, you will get credit for any other purchases they make within a certain time period.

Pick Your Plum– If you haven’t heard of Pick Your Plum, you need to.  It is a daily deals site that sells really cute stuff!  This is the best affiliate program I have and the one I make the most money with.  You get a really good percentage of the sale, PLUS you can use your own link to purchase your own items from their site.  It is like getting a discount on an already awesome price.  You can register to be an affiliate on their site using this link.

3. Sponsored Posts

Social Spark– This is a company that brings bloggers and companies together.  They give you leads for sponsors that are looking for a post to be written for them, and the price that goes along with it.  You see the price and the opportunity including what the sponsor is requiring in the post before you make any commitments.  If you are ok with the payment and the terms, you say that you are interested in the lead.  The sponsors will then look at the blogs that are interested and choose which ones to use.  If you are chosen, you will then be extended an offer and then you write the post in exchange for money.  There are a lot of leads that come to me that aren’t a good fit for my blog.  Make sure you are selective in the offers you choose so that you are staying true to who you are and what you want your blog to represent.

4. Sidebar Ads

You should offer some sort of sidebar advertising.  In the beginning, offer it at a really low, reasonable rate.  Once you get ads in place, make sure that you are doing a good job of advertising the sponsor.  If they like what you do, they will want to stick around.

5. Sell Something

This is an obvious one to some, but not to others.  Find something that you are really great at making.  What do you make that people are always telling you that they love and/or think you should sell?  If you can think of something, DO IT!  make a page on your blog that is dedicated to selling things.  I have a page below my header titled “Shop” where I sell thing occasionally.  I use Paypal to embed a Buy Now button on my blog which makes it really easy for people to buy from my site.  The easier it is to purchase something, the more likely it will happen.

If you aren’t the crafty type, what are you knowledgeable in?  Maybe you could make an e-book to sell to others that would teach them a concept or a project of some kind.

The VERY best advice I can give to anyone wanting to get their name out there?  Network.  The more people you know the more opportunities you will have open to you.  Don’t be afraid to go to that blog conference or that get together you heard about.  Not only will you have fun, you will meet people that could likely connect you with companies that are looking to work with new bloggers.

Let me know if you have any questions since I know this is a ton of information in a very condensed format.  I hope this is helpful!

 

*as a disclosure, I am not being paid to write this post, but I am using my personal affiliate links.  Just trying to share what I have learned and what has worked for me.

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