The internet has made mainstream blogging, to the point where there may be over half a billion blogs online as you read this article. While making money from the internet is not the only reason (or even the best reason) in the blog world, chances are there for people to create additional income with blogs.
If you're new to blogs or just getting started in the blogging world, I congratulate you!
I hope your main motivation is to provide valuable content to your readers because that's how you build an expert status in your niche in the long run. However, there is no harm in making extra money through blogging.
To make money with blogs, you should start by choosing a profitable niche; something where there's a market that's proven to be intersecting with your own passions, interests, and skills.
Once you've done that, it's just a matter of getting traffic to your website, building your email subscriber list, and making money online through the following proven methods outlined below.
1. How To Make Money From Google Adsense Blog
Google Adsense is probably the fastest and easiest way for beginners to start earning passive income with a blog. The basic idea behind Adsense is that you can display Google Ads on your site and when visitors click on those ads, you get a percentage of advertising costs.
Adsense is a contextual advertising network that places partner (business) ads on your site. Easy to set up all you have to do is copy and paste some code given to you from Google where you want your ads to appear on your website. Google will then show ads from advertisers that match the content on your site so ideally your site visitors see relevant ads.
Do not worry that your blog niche will not be able to attract quality ads to your site. Google Adsense is one of the largest networks on the Web, so you should get a list of sites that can be compiled well enough to attract your readers.
Make sure your content is high quality!
Although Adsense is a popular choice, I think that marketing affiliate information is also the best way to generate passive income online.
2. Amazon Associates
Amazon Associates is an old in-house affiliate program founded by Seattle-based Amazon.com - the largest online retailer in the world today. It offers an opportunity for bloggers to earn commissions by advertising Amazon products on your website provided by visitors through clicks from your blog to Amazon.com and making purchases.
The basic idea with Amazon Associates is that you can get a unique tracking link for you that connects to products sold on Amazon.com. If someone clicks a link on your blog and returns to Amazon and purchases the item, you will be credited with the sale.
There are many ways to promote Amazon products on your site. You can enter a product catalog (pulled from Amazon.com) on your blog, you can write product reviews and link to the products you recommend in Amazon, and you can have a recommended resource page on your site; just to name a few.
One caveat about Associates is that it might suit bloggers who write about merchandising, retail products and fair shopping. Logically, this will help your performance if visitors arrive at your site that is already likely to buy.
This program works by getting Amazon links, banners, or widgets (eg slideshows, 'My Favorites', 'Wish List Widgets') to your page.
One additional benefit is that if someone clicks a link from your website to Amazon and ends up buying some items (not just the items you are promoting), you'll get credit for the entire sale.
3. Affiliate Marketing for Digital Products
As I mentioned above, my favorite way of making money on the internet is by promoting digital information products as affiliates. Just as Amazon.com is a market of physical goods sold on the internet; There is also a market of digital products that are sold on the internet as well.
One of the most popular digital product markets is Clickbank.com. You can search the Clickbank marketplace for products related to your market and promote it on your website, write product reviews, etc.
Just like with Amazon, if someone clicks a link and returns and buys the product you are promoting, you will earn a commission for a percentage of the sale.
One interesting feature to promote digital information products is that commissions tend to be higher than physical products; ranging from 10% to 50% or even higher.
4. Create E-Books and Information Products
A regular blog is an ideal workout for creating e-books, still one of the most popular forms of information sold by today's online entrepreneurs.
Consider your blog as "free" information that you offer to readers to showcase your skills. Over time, they become your fans and are ready for more in-depth material. Here's your chance to make money-by presenting your e-book for sale next to your free blog.
Make sure that your e-book builds on your blog's output do not just repeat what they've seen! After all, these people are now paying customers and will be disappointed with the old information. Then, as you become more established and your archival material becomes wider, poll your readers to see what topics they are interested in to learn more about and potentially what e-book topics they will be interested in.
Note that I avoid putting certain dollar numbers on the amount you can generate from blogging. It will go down to your work ethic, your skills as a writer, your ability to generate targeted traffic, and your usual old luck. It's like a baseball: everyone plays it as a kid, only a small part reaches the college ball, even smaller numbers become professional, but only the cream of the harvest goes to the department.
You have to decide where in blogging the "big leagues" you want to end up.
The fact is that more and more people from all over the world are exploring the online world, the harder it is to gain online attention and generate revenue. That's why it's so important to focus on building your email list, so you can follow up with your visitors, build relationships and increase sales.
In other words, there are many success stories out there, and the formula for success is very simple. It's just up to you to get it done!
