3 Easy things you can do to make extra cash with your blog
"A profitable business always needs a plan worth following, cash follows the wise ."
Your blog is set up and you are churning out some fresh quality content on you niche.
You may be at the point of asking yourself, "how do I at least make a part time income with this?"
If you need to make extra cash there is NO reason why you can't implement a few strategies to get your blog in a position to pay you that money.
It's important to remember that it's OK to make money blogging.
When I first started I felt "weird" wanting to monetize my content.
Don't make this mistake!
There's not a damn thing wrong with looking to make a few bucks from all of your hard work.
Seriously, dump that mentality right here and now or you will never make the money you want, blogging or anywhere else for that matter.
This article aims to show you the three best ways to get on the right track to extra cash online.
Here's what we will cover ...
- Affiliate marketing
- Ad revenue
- Building an Email list
- Wrapping it up
3 Things to do now to make extra cash with your blog
Tactic #1 : Affiliate marketing
Once you have your niche tuned in and some great content written, affiliate marketing may be the best place to start.
Affiliate marketing has some awesome advantages that make it one of the easiest and cheapest online business models to get started in.
Affiliate marketing in 200 words or less
Affiliate marketing is promoting products for companies and earning a commission for each sale you send the companies way.
Think about it from the sellers point of view, what better way to bring in more profits and make more sales than to let bloggers and online creators promote your products?
The reach these companies achieve is FAR GREATER than they could reach alone. This makes affiliate marketing a win-win for companies and their affiliates.
Awesome things about affiliate marketing
- You never have to handle physical inventory
- There is a very low cost of entry
- You can promote products that you believe in and know will help your customer
- Commisions can be high depending on the program
I have set you up with a link to a lesson that's part of the Wealthy Affiliate "getting started" training.
This is a perfect example of me using affiliate marketing and I am going to be 100% honest with you, I will make a commission if you sign up for WA though my link.
AND YES, I recommend WA highly, that's the ONLY reason I am inviting you to check it out and sign up for your FREE account.
How do you start affiliate marketing on your website ?
The first thing you need is relevant content that attracts your target audience and provides the traffic you need to promote QUALITY PRODUCTS.
Again, QUALITY PRODUCTS!
The online space is full of scumbags trying to make a quick buck selling garbage to people that don't know any better.
If you are creating great content with the real purpose of helping people, do not make the mistake of promoting every and any product that will make a quick buck.
You lose your audiences TRUST and your site WILL suffer.
For the first few months focus on creating awesome content around the right keywords, don't waste too much time on promoting products at this stage.
GROW THE WEBSITE FIRST !
Build up authority in the niche you have chosen, after that you will know your audience well and you can recommend products you know will help them.
Traffic rolls in
Once you hit the point of consistent traffic daily you should be able to know which posts or other forms of content are bringing it in.
Having Google Analytics set up is critical to see this information.
The next step is to find a few products that fit your website and style, ideally you want products you have first hand experience with.
How do we do this?
Affiliate networks
Affiliate networks are platforms that bring affiliates (you) and vendors (companies selling the products) together.
Once you are approved by the product's affiliate manager you get a link that is specific to you, this link contains a "cookie" that let's the affiliate network track who sent the customer to the sale!
This link can be used within your blog, on social media, email marketing, pretty much anywhere.
If you can deliver quality information people will click your links and that's when you start to make real money with your website!
There is a TON to learn about affiliate marketing, this is just a brief overview of how the whole process works.
Learn everything you need to know about affiliate marketing and how to make extra cash online, start your free account today!
Learn how to start your own affiliate marketing business today !
Start a forever free account today, I'll see you around the platform!
Tactic #2: Ad revenue
You see them everywhere, TV, online, billboards, magazines, stores, etc.
Did you know that YOU can get in on the action of earning ad revenue?
Platforms such as Google AdSense allow you to include ads within your content, without needing to do a ton of work.
Getting approved
Once your site is up and running and you have at least 10 to 20 good quality posts written it's time to start thinking about whether you want to show ads on your site or not.
Google has an "auto ads" feature that will automatically show ads on your site, all you need to do is get approved and place a small piece of code in your header script.
What I don't like about ads
The auto ads placement has a tendency to put ads where it wants, even though there is a place in the Adsense dashboard to eliminate certain areas from showing ads it doesn't always work.
I have had these ads COMPLETELY disrupt the flow of my sites, make sure to check your site frequently to make sure to fix it before it costs you traffic.
The other thing I don't like is auto ads slow my page load speed down A TON!
This is probably the BIGGEST reason I steer clear of auto ads, slowing down the load speed is a bad idea in all cases.
How fast your website is is far more important to me than making a few bucks running ads.
What I like about ads
With all of the above stated ads can be a great way to make extra cash with your blog.
If you have at least 50 to 75 visitors a day I recommend running ads.
I suggest placing the ads yourself rather than choosing the "auto ads" feature, this will allow a much better control over the aesthetics of your blog.
There are plenty of Word Press plugins that can help you with this... I highly recommend the advanced ads plugin for Wordpress.
Tactic # 3: Email marketing
Now we lay at the KING of things you can do to make extra cash with your blog , (in my opinion.)
E mail marketing is by far one one the best ways to make money online, the process looks something like this ...
- You create something of value to offer your audience
- You build forms and pop ups that attract sign ups to your list
- Email your list awesome content and extras just for them
- Strategically send offers to your list
- Earn money
Creating a valuable offer
Ready to hear me harp once again on quality??
Quality - Quality - Quality
You need to offer readers something that they can't refuse, you can create a e book, report, quiz, really anything that you think will benefit your readers.
You don't need to go nuts here, it doesn't have to be a huge elaborate thing.
It does however, need to be worth the person giving up there e mail.
If someone signs up and gets a crap two sentence "lesson" they will unsubscribe really quick never to return again.
Building forms and pop ups
The next step is getting the word out about your blog while attracting attention to your offer.
Plenty of email responders can help you with this, in future posts I will cover email marketing in depth.
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No spam, no ridiculous claims, just good blogging advice.
Getting sign up forms and pop ups right
Don't overthink the form or pop up, keep it simple and to the point, let your reader know what they can expect by being on your list.
Don't be afraid to experiment with different styles, offers, and approaches. Sometimes even a simple tweak here and there can really boost engagement from readers.
Above is an example pop up that is direct and to the point, there is a VERY clear offer that pulls readers in to see what they can learn.
People do not want "fluff" with these keep it to the point!
The next step ... Emailing your list
This step is the most important of all, it's time to hold your word and send your subscribers the great content they expect.
This is vitally important for 2 reasons ...
- It keeps your list "warm" and your readers engaged
- It allows you to build a relationship with your readers
I suggest emailing your list at least once, maybe twice a week with good content.
The last thing you want to do is annoy your followers by sending them everything under the sun!
This is the point that balance can go a VERY long way, treat your followers like they are super important (because they are) make sure that everything they get from you is classy and informative.
Some other e mail tips ...
- Always try to get the first name of subscribers at sign up, this makes e mails more personal when you contact them by name
- Design a basic layout for your brand and stick with it, consistancy is key
- Don't be afraid to reach out and ask your list what they want more of
- Have some fun with it! Really show your subscribers you value them, this goes a long way!
The offers ... How the money is made
After building a relationship with your subscribers through honest information, the time will come when there is a product or service that you know will help them with something related to your niche.
For example I use a few products for my blogs that I know are awesome, if I have taken the time to build up a relationship with YOU (my readers) you will trust my opinions and views.
When I send you an email saying, "XYZ is the best product I have used for this situation." You are much more prone to taking a look.
Balance is key
Remember that the people on your email list are your subscribers first, not "just people" you are trying to make money on.
You should be sending them MUCH MORE free information and quality content than offers to buy XYZ, whatever that may be.
Wrapping up 3 Easy things you can do to make extra cash with your blog
WHEW! That was a long one :)
I hope that this post gave you some insight on making some extra cash through all of your hard bloggin work!
I suggest looking into each of these but I also want to remind you that content and giving you readers quality should always be your first priority over making extra cash.
The secret cash making tip BONUS!
So here is the "secret" of making money with a blog ...
Wait for it ...
Wait for it ...
Write good stuff and create content that's WORTH paying for! After all my friends, that's what blogging should be all about!
I know It's not a real spectacular tip :) but 100% true none the less Thanks for reading!
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