How to monetize your blog

This weeks question is from Mena again over at Cool Moms, Cool Tips.

She asks “ How do you monetize your blog?”

When I first started blogging, I could have only imagined that someone would want to purchase ad space or sponsor a post.  I was so happy to get companies on board to do reviews and giveaways, I didn’t really give much thought to having anything paid on my website.

When my daughter was younger (and slept a lot during the day), I spent hours and hours and hours working on my blog, all for free – essentially.  I was not paid for a review and did not have any ads on my site.  My husband, who is more tech savvy than I am, suggested that I make a spot on my site where advertisers could put their logo.  I thought it was crazy, but with the traffic I was getting at the time, he said it would be a good opportunity.

When I first started with ad space, I made a button which showed companies where they could have their ad.  I also had a  Media Kit link on my blog that allowed retailers to know how much my prices were.  Companies did not have to contact me for pricing, it was laid out there for everyone to see.

I have a few different prices for ad space depending where the company would like their ad to be placed on my website.  Premium space, which is above the page fold (meaning there is no need to scroll down and the companies ad will be shown as soon as visitors land on my website) is the most popular, and is more expensive than ads below the page fold. I also have a banner ad at the top of my site that I let people know about when they ask.  I do not advertise this space for sale, it is something that I mention to people if it is available when they inquire about as space.

Another type of ad that you can add to your blog , feed and newsletter is Google Ads.  You will get  paid each time someone clicks on A Google Ad that is on your webpage.  Google Ads will change as your posts change.  Google will look for the content on  your blog, and match it with their customers so the ads posted on your site will be similar  in demographic to your readers.  Prices per click are different for each company, and you can keep track of your earnings by signing into Google Adsense.  Make sure that you (or anyone else using your computer) does not click on any of your own ads as Google can track this and your account could get suspended.   These type of clicks are considered fraudulent.  Google Ads are paid out at the end of the month, once you reach $100 USD, so sometimes you have to wait a little while for your $$ to make it into your account.

You can also monetize your blog by offering paid sponsored posts.  In my case, if a company wants to host a giveaway through my site without offering a product to review, I will write a company profile for them.  I do charge money for these types of posts, for my time.  The benefit to the company is that they do not have to send a product, pay shipping charges, or risk that I may encounter a problem with one of their products.  With these types of posts, I do not write reviews about any of the products, because I have not experienced them, and I do not want to endorse any product that has not been tested.  However, the companies still get to reach my audience.

You can also monetize your blog by affiliate marketing.  This is where a company will pay you a percentage for each sale they receive that came through your website.  There are websites like Shareasale, and Commission Junction which make affiliate marketing very easy to use for both you and the company.  I just started (this week) looking at this option.  So far, it has been easy to set up, but I have not yet made a penny.

These are the most effective and popular ways to monetize a blog.  I’m sure there are a lot more ways to make money blogging, but this is all I have time for right now.  Although I make a few dollars every month, I am in no way ready to leave my full time job for blogging.

If you have any advise for Mena on Monetizing your blog, please leave a comment below.

Tagged as: Blogging Q & A, how to monitize your blog