Many people started blogging to combine a hobby with passion. But what if I tell you that you can make a lot of money blogging. And I am not speaking about a few hundred dollars here.
You are blogging since months and not earned a single penny? Or you are just starting out? In both cases it is beneficial to know how to monetize your blog in 2024, so that you can turn your efforts into cash.
The internet has opened us a bunch of opportunities to do so. Let us explore how to monetize your blog in 2024 in 6 proven ways.
Monetization requires a Solid Basis
The journey of blog monetization requires a solid foundation built on understanding the core principles that turn a blog into a profitable venture.
At its essence, successful blog monetization starts with a clear understanding of your audience – knowing who they are, what they seek, and how your content can meet their needs. Without understanding these needs proper monetization impossible!
This foundational knowledge lays the groundwork for creating content that not only captivates but also sets the stage for implementing effective monetization strategies.
Finding the Right Time
Finding the right time to start monetizing your blog might be challenging as there is no rule or number that tells you when to start.
Nevertheless, regularly hitting decent page visitors is usually a good sign.
Why?
Well, there has to be something you are doing right so that people enjoy reading your posts.
In this stage you are slowly establishing yourself as an authority attracting an increasing number of people.
When you reach this level you can start wonder yourself how you can turn your words into profit.
Monetizing is actually all about numbers:
Example: You plan is to make $4000 a month blogging. You can achieve this by selling:
- a $20 ebook to 200 people
- a $200 online course to 20 people
- a $500 1 to 1 coaching to 8 people
Best Ways to Monetize your Blog in 2024
Luckily there is a huge variety of ways to monetize your blog nowadays. The best about it: You don’t have to decide for one single monetization method. It is way better to utilize the following methods together.
Before we get to the point of this post, please remember that all of these ways won’t make you able to earn a lot of money right away. To do proper blog monetization you have to be consistent and patient.
But at the end of the day it will pay off! That’s for sure!
Now let us look at the best and most popular ways to monetize your blog:
Displaying Ads
One of the most reliable ways of monetization is to display ads on your blog. And as soon as you have decent page views it is probably one of the simplest methods as well.
That’s because you just have to sign up for advertisement networks. The ads are usually displayed as web banners and banner ads throughout your website and you get paid per click.
So this method only works out when you get people click on these ads. When is this case? When your audience is interested in the product or service promoted in the ad! For you this means to only display ads that align with your audience interests.
Example: You have a travel blog? In your case you should display ads promoting holiday trips or a credit card that is great for traveling.
Displaying ads for kitchen utensils would most probably not interest our audience resulting in less clicks.
The acceptance chance of ad networks highly depends on your monthly page impressions and the quality of your content. Networks that have tough acceptance criteria are usually those that pay you better at the end of the day. These are the so-called premium networks.
These are the most well-known networks:
- Google AdSense
- Minimum traffic threshold: No
- Key Features: easy-to-start, good for beginners
2. Ezoic
- Minimum traffic threshold: 10,000 monthly visitors
- Key Features: technology-driven, US traffic= higher revenue
3. Mediavine (premium)
- Minimum traffic threshold: 50,000 monthly visitors
- Key Features: once accepted-> high income, high-quality ads (great user experience and viewability)
This is just a small part of the whole ad network landscape out there. There are a bunch of other networks that might be great for you!
Keep in mind that having a decent amount of traffic in the first place is key to be successful with ad networks. Growing your audience should be thus your main goal when you are just starting out.
Affiliate Marketing
Another income stream for bloggers is affiliate marketing. Affiliate marketing refers to promoting other people’s products through so-called affiliate links.
When someone makes a purchase through this link you get paid a commission. That is usually a percentage of the products price.
Similar to displaying ads, affiliate marketing ideally requires a lot of traffic.
The more people see your links the higher the chance that someone makes a purchase. Make sense, right?
To be successful in affiliate marketing it is vital to create high-quality content and to promote products that really help your audience. This will lead to more trust in you!
Affiliate marketing is not just about slapping as many of your links as possible into your post and hoping someone makes a purchase.
Create high quality content consistently and try to help your audience. This way you will be most likely successful.
Making money with affiliate marketing highly depends on the affiliate programs you signed up for. Therefore, I created an overview about the best and highest paying affiliate programs. Just click here to learn more!
Sell Digital Products
Selling your own products is more or less key to be successful in long-term. Let me tell you why:
- Direct Revenue
- Control over Pricing
- Tailored to Your Audience
- Builds a Loyal Community
- Direct Revenue
You retain a larger portion of the revenue when selling your own digital products compared to earning commissions through affiliate marketing or ad revenue. In most cases you just have to pay your payment services. That’s not a big deal!
2. Control over Pricing
Your product, your decision: You have full control over the pricing of your digital products. This flexibility enables you to experiment with different price points and strategies to maximize revenue.
3. Tailored to Your Audience
Maybe you struggle to find an affiliate product that 100% fits your audience’s interests.
Take it into your own hands and do it yourself!
You can develop digital products specifically tailored to the needs and preferences of your audience. This targeted approach can result in higher sales conversion rates.
4. Builds a Loyal Community
Offering valuable digital products can foster a sense of community among your audience. They may be more likely to engage with your content and support your blog if they find your products helpful.
The very best about it: Once created, you hopefully sell your product forever and make passive income!
Email Marketing
Email Marketing is an extremely powerful tool to maximize your revenue with affiliate marketing and your own digital products.
With email marketing it is possible to send targeted email campaigns to your audience offering your product, affiliate products, sponsored content, or other revenue-generating opportunities.
A huge advantage of email marketing is its higher conversion rates:
Subscribers who have willingly joined your email list are already interested in your content, making them more likely to convert on offers.
Several studies make proof of this: According to Dot Digital’s report, for instance, email marketing has a higher ROI (Return of Investment) than any other digital marketing channel.
In particular, according to Dot Digital’s report email marketing has an average ROI of $39 for every dollar spent.
The biggest challenge is to collect email addresses from your audience. There are different strategies that might help you:
- Offer Valuable Content
Provide high-quality, valuable content on your blog that addresses the needs and interests of your target audience. People are more likely to subscribe if they find your content helpful.
Why? You will appear more trustworthy and you establish yourself as an authority!
2. Create Lead Magnets
Offer free resources such as ebooks, guides, checklists, templates, or exclusive content in exchange for email addresses.
Important: Make sure these lead magnets are relevant to your blog’s niche.
3. Offer Exclusive Access
Another strategy is to promise exclusive content, early access to new blog posts, or members-only updates to your email subscribers. This makes the subscription feel more valuable.
Usually, creating lead magnets are the most impactful and effective way to start growing your email list!
Sponsored Content
Once you have established a solid audience, sponsored posts might be another attractive income stream.
Brands pay bloggers in exchange for content about their company or products. Whether or not people eventually buy the product is not crucial.
That’s the main difference between sponsored content and affiliate marketing.
Especially with a rather small amount of page visitors it is common that bloggers reach out to brands.
That can change at the time you are increasingly growing.
Advice: When reaching out to brands (especially for rather small blogs) try to show the brand how you would benefit their business with sponsored content. For instance, show them content ideas to include their product or service. Or make clear how your audience’s interests match their business.
Keep in mind the following tips, when choosing to monetize your blog with sponsored content:
- Build Long-Term Relationships
Whenever possible, aim for long-term partnerships with brands.This way, it enables you to create a whole series of sponsored content over week or months.
Eventually, building ongoing relationships can lead to more consistent income and helps establish a deeper connection between the brand and your audience.
2. Transparent Disclosure
It is recommendable to clearly disclose when content is sponsored. Transparency builds trust with your audience, and it’s a legal requirement in many places. So try to use clear language and place disclosures prominently within the content.
3. Niche Relevance
Successful sponsored content aligns with the blogger’s niche and the interests of their audience. Therefore, choosing brands offering helpful products or services in your niche is vital.
A seamless integration ensures that the sponsored material feels relevant and valuable to the readers.
Online Courses and Coaching
Once you established yourself as an authority over time, people will appreciate your expertise.
That’s the right time to leverage your expertise and authority in your specific niche to create comprehensive online courses that cater to the learning needs of your followers.
Additionally, providing coaching services allows bloggers to offer personalized guidance and support, fostering a deeper connection with their audience.
Both online courses and coaching provide an opportunity to showcase expertise, build a loyal community, and generate revenue by offering valuable knowledge and assistance to those who seek to learn and grow in the blogger’s particular niche.
As online courses and coaching are an in-depth and profound guidance for your audience you can set your prices accordingly higher.
When setting your prices consider the following aspects to make it fair for both your audience and you:
- Course Content and Quality
Offering unique and high-quality content that is comprehensively presented usually justifies a higher price.
2. Target Audience
When setting your prices it is advisable to consider the demographics and purchasing power of your target audience.
For example, selling an online course or coaching to businesses can enable you to set the price higher, whereas you should lower the price when selling to students or hobbyists.
3. Market Research
Try to research similar online courses and coaching to understand the pricing range. Consider what your competitors offer and at what price point. This can help you position your course competitively.
Final Thoughts
Now you have no more excuse to not turn your posts into cash!
We learned that you can monetize your blog through:
- Displaying Ads
- Affiliate Marketing
- Selling Digital Products
- Email Marketing
- Sponsored Content
- Online Courses and Coaching
I hope you have now an idea of how to monetize your blog in 2024!
If there is anything remained unclear, let me know I the comments.
