How to Monetize a Blog: 7 Proven Ways in 2022

Are you looking to quit your day job for good and make a living from your blog?

Or maybe you just want to earn a little extra pocket money from your side hustle?

In any case, you’ve come to the right place.

The average monthly salary of a blogger is $8,000 and 25% of WordPress bloggers make a full-time living.

Or if you are running a blog to promote your business, then you should know that a company blog generates 126% higher lead growth than non-blogging businesses.

And it is easier now than ever to get started.

In this comprehensive guide, we will walk you through each method of how to monetize a blog with step-by-step directions on how to do it.

We’ll cover display advertising, ebooks and digital products, member exclusive content, affiliate marketing, sponsored posts, online courses, and selling physical products.

Monetizing your Blog from Scratch or Buying Turn-Key

If you’re starting a blog from scratch, there are a few things you need to do before you can start monetizing it. First, you need to choose a niche.

What are you going to write about?

Who is your target audience?

Once you’ve decided on your niche, the next step is to choose a domain name and host. We recommend using WordPress as your platform and WPX as your host because they make it easy to set up and manage your blog.

Buying a blog that’s already been established is a great way to get started if you don’t want to start from scratch. When you buy an existing blog, it should come with a pre-existing audience, content, and monetization methods.

This can save you a lot of time and effort in getting your new blog off the ground- and monetized in 90 days!

Once you’ve chosen your niche and set up your blog, it’s time to start publishing content!

Write articles, create graphics, record videos, whatever type of content you want to publish, just make sure it’s high quality and informative. The better your content is, the more likely people are to read it and the more traffic your blog will get.

How to Monetize a Blog

There are many different ways to monetize a blog. The best way for you will depend on the type of content you publish, your niche, and your audience. In this section, we’ll cover each of the most popular methods for monetizing a blog so you can choose the best one for your business.

Advertise on Your Blog with Google Adsense

Ads are often what comes to mind when thinking about creating a blog to make money. How can I monetize my blog using Google Ads?

Google AdSense is a web-based advertising network that runs ads for websites. When a user visits a website that has AdSense installed, Google will serve an ad on behalf of the advertiser.

The owner of the website then gets a cut of the ad revenue, typically around 68%. Google AdSense is one of the most popular means of blog monetization for bloggers because it is an easy way to make money when your website has a decent amount of traffic.

Advertising plugins can be especially helpful for this monetization strategy.

They can be used for a variety of purposes, including inserting advertising in the middle of blog post material, targeting display ads to some people but not others, automatically randomizing advertisements, and so on.

Here are some of our favorites:

• AdRotate – Show random banners, use Google Adsense, get stats, get email notifications, and much more.
• WP-Insert – Pop in ads anywhere you want in your blog- before your content, after your content, in the middle, or to the side of your content.
• Google Adsense Plugin – From your blog, you may easily change the settings for your Google Adsense advertisements, such as size, color, kind, placement, and more.

Sign Up and Get Approved

Now that you know how to get started, it’s time to sign up for an account with Google Adsense.

Once you submit your application, Google will review your website to make sure it meets their quality standards.

Once you’re approved, typically within a few hours to a few days, you will be able to create ad units to monetize a blog and generate income.

Install a Code Snippet

To connect your website, Google will give you a code snippet to insert into the HTML of your site.

We recommend using a plugin like Insert Headers and Footers or the Google Adsense Plugin to get started.

You can find this code under the My Sites tab, in the left-hand sidebar.

Click on the site you want to get the code for and then click on Ad Units.

Choose Your Ad Types

Once you have the code installed on your website, it’s time to choose what type of display ads you want on your blog.

There are many different ad types to choose from, including:

• Text ads
• Image ads
• Video ads
• Rich media ads

You can also decide how many ads you want to show on each page and where you want them to be displayed.

We recommend starting with one ad unit per page and then increasing the number of units as your traffic grows.

Monitor Your Earnings and Performance

Now that your blog is up and running, it’s important to monitor your earnings and performance to see how well your ads are doing.

To do this, log into your Google Adsense account and click on the My Accounts tab.

From there, you’ll be able to see how much money you’ve earned, what kind of traffic you’re getting, and which ad units are performing the best.

You can also use this information to make changes to your ads, such as changing the ad type or placement to improve your blog monetization strategy.

By following these steps, you can start monetizing your blog with Google Adsense and begin to make money online.

It’s important to remember that it takes time to build up traffic and earnings, so don’t get discouraged if you don’t see immediate results.

Keep producing quality content and building your online presence and you will see your revenue stream grow over time.

Create and Sell Ebooks or other Digital Products

If you have a knack for writing or design, you can monetize a blog with ebooks and other digital products.

This is a great way to make money if you are an expert on a particular topic or enjoy making templates, calendars, music, worksheets, audios, videos, images, and other types of content creation.

Creating and selling ebooks or other digital products is relatively simple. There are many different ways to do this, but we will outline the most important steps below.

Design your Digital Product

The first step is to design your digital product. This includes creating a cover, writing content, and formatting the file.

There are many different programs you can use to create your ebook or  digital product such as Google Docs, Adobe InDesign, or Canva.

Once you have created your product, you will need to save it as a PDF file.

This will ensure that it can be downloaded and viewed on any device.

If you are not a writer or designer, there are many ways to outsource this task. You can find quality writers and designers on Fiverr or Upwork.

Create a Sales Funnel

The next step is to create a sales funnel for your ebook or other digital product.

The landing page is where people will go to learn more about your product and decide whether or not to buy it.

Your landing page should include:

• A headline that catches attention and makes your audience want to learn more
• A description of what your product is and how it can help your readers
• An image or video of your product
• The price of your product
• A call to action button that takes people to a checkout page so you can get paid

There are many different ways to create a sales funnel, but we recommend using WordPress or one of the many landing page builders such as ClickFunnels.

Set Up Shop

If you don’t have time to create a sales funnel, you can also sell your products through an existing marketplace such as Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing, Podia, or SendOwl.

Podia is a great platform for selling digital products. You can create a sales page, add your product, and start selling in minutes.

SendOwl is another great platform for selling digital products. They offer a variety of features to help you sell your product, including automatic delivery, coupon codes, and more. 

For selling ebooks, we recommend using Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP). With KDP, you can upload your book, set a price, and start selling on Amazon. You can also enroll in their 70% royalty program to earn more from every sale.

Amazon is a great platform for selling digital products because it has high traffic and low fees. KDP also offers some great features for authors, including the ability to create an author page, add reviews, and connect with readers.

Promote Your Product

The final step is to promote your product and drive traffic to your sales page.

There are many different ways to do this, but some of the most common methods include:

• Sharing your product on social media
• Blogging about your product
• Creating an email marketing campaign
• Running PPC ad campaigns

By following these steps, you can create and sell digital products from your website. This is a great way to monetize a blog and make money from your content.

How to Monetize a Blog with Exclusive Content

Turn your blog into a membership site and sell exclusive content.

If you have a lot of great content on your website like blog posts, tutorials, or how-to guides, you can turn your blog into a membership site and sell exclusive content.

This is a great way to monetize your blog if you have a lot of valuable content that people would be willing to pay for. Plus, it’s a great way to build a community around your blog!

Choose your Platform

There are a few ways to turn your blog into a membership site. The most common being WordPress using a membership plugin.

A number of website builders such as Squarespace and Wix also have membership features built-in.

The key is to choose a platform that is easy to use and has the features you need to run your membership site.

Look for some of the following features:

• Gated Content: You’ll need to have a way to gate your content so that only paying members can access it.
• Payment Processor: You’ll need a way to process payments from your members and get paid. This can be done through a number of different platforms, including PayPal, Stripe, and Authorize.net.
• Member Management: You’ll need a way to segment your audience between members and non members.
• Membership Levels: To differentiate between pricing tiers.
• Automated Workflows: To save time by automating welcome emails, follow ups, password resets, and other common tasks.
• Analytics: Understand how members engage with your site and optimize with a data-based approach.

Add Content

Now that you have created a membership level, you will need to add some content for your members. To do this, simply create a post or page and then select the membership level you created earlier.

This will restrict the content to only be viewable by members of that particular level. You can add as much or as little content as you want, and you can also add new membership levels at any time!

We recommend adding at least five pieces of content for each membership level. This could be anything from articles to tutorials to how-to guides.

Start Affiliate Marketing

You can also try affiliate marketing to monetize your blog.

You can join an affiliate program and start promoting products and services through referral links on your website.

Whenever someone clicks on one of your affiliate links and makes a purchase, you will earn a commission.

The key to success with affiliate marketing is to choose the right products or services and promote them effectively.

When you promote products through an affiliate network, you make a fee from it for that purchase.

For example, when you partner with Flippa, you can earn 15% on all and any successful site, store, app, or digital property sale or listing referral.

Join an Affiliate Program

The first step is to find an affiliate program that you can join. There are many different affiliate programs out there, so it’s important to choose one that is relevant to your niche with products relevant for your audience.

There are a number of programs to join in standard categories like web hosting, website builders, VPNs, travel, finance, fashion, beauty, and fitness.

Even sports, music, video games, cryptocurrency, and marijuana/CBD oil.

You can also partner with companies directly and inquire about their affiliate program.

Some companies will have an affiliate page on their website where you can sign up, while others will require you to contact them directly.

Add Affiliate Links

But, regardless of what you’re linking to, a redirection plugin like Pretty Link Lite or Simple URLs should be in every affiliate marketer’s toolkit. What these plugins do is convert long, unsightly URLs into clean, easy-to-remember URLs that appear to lead to another part of your site.

So, for example, if you link to Amazon with a URL that looks like this:

amazon.com/xyz-water-bottle/ /dp/PWWOUE329/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1367729447392&sr=8-1

You can turn it into a link that looks like this:

mysite.com/xyz-water-bottle/

This will make it easier to share and promote your affiliate links, as well as increase your click-through rates.

Compare and Promote Products

Using a product display and link cloaking software like Lasso, you can create beautiful, user-friendly product tables and comparison charts that make it easy for your readers to find the best products in your niche.

Especially with large, established websites, it can be difficult to manage and optimize links across hundreds or even thousands of pages.

But, with a plugin like Lasso, you can quickly and easily add links to your blog  posts to increase click through rate and double your affiliate revenue.

Sponsored Posts

Another great way to monetize your blog is through sponsored posts. A sponsored post is when a brand pays you to write about their product or service on your blog.

There are great AI writing tools on the market today that can help you write content efficiently. 

This is a great way to monetize a blog, as you are essentially being paid to advertise for a company regardless of whether they make a purchase.

Be sure to always disclose to your readers that you’re providing sponsored content with the intention of selling as required by law, whether it’s through affiliate marketing or sponsored posts.

Grow your Blog

Monetizing your blog with sponsored posts can be a great way to earn money.

But, it’s important to remember that you need to grow your blog first when you’re starting out or invest in already established digital real estate with regular traffic, monthly readers, and published content.

Make sure you’re writing quality content that is relevant to your audience and promoting your blog regularly before you pitch to brands.

A few KPIs to monitor and optimize before you monetize a blog:

• Steady Monthly Traffic
• High Domain Authority
• Content Engagement
• SERP Rankings

There are quite a few paid and free SEO software tools to help you track and improve your blog.

If you would rather focus on the content and relationship side of your online business, you can always connect with a digital marketing consultant to help manage SEO and ads for your blog.

Write a Dedicated Sponsor Page

One way to make it easier for brands to find you and work with you is by creating a dedicated sponsor page on your blog.

This page should include information about your blog traffic, social media following, and any other relevant information that potential sponsors might be interested in.

It’s also a good idea to include your rates or how you typically like to work with brands to provide value for your audience.

This will make it easier for brands to find you and work with you, as they will know exactly what you’re looking for and how much you charge.

Work with Brands Directly

Another great way to monetize your blog is by working with brands directly.

You can reach out to companies in your niche and offer to write sponsored posts, review their products, or even just mention them in your blog content.

Many brands are always looking for new ways to reach their target audience, and working with bloggers is a great way to do that.

Outside of manual outreach, there are a number of websites that connect bloggers with brands such as Blog Meets Brand and Real Clever.

Negotiate your Prices

When you’re working with brands, it’s important to always negotiate your prices.

Many brands have a set budget for how much they’re willing to spend on bloggers, but that doesn’t mean you can’t try to negotiate for more.

It never hurts to ask, and the worst they can say is no.

Keep in mind, however, that your prices should always be in line with your blog’s traffic and social media following.

If you have a small blog without much traffic, you won’t be able to charge as much as a blogger with a large following and established website.

Social BlueBook offers tools to assess market value to learn what you can charge for content in your niche.

Create and Sell Online Courses

If you’re an expert or even somewhat knowledgeable on a particular topic, then you can create and sell online courses. It may make sense to invest in an online course platform to get your business going.

Many bloggers are hesitant to create their own course because they feel like they need to have everything figured out before they launch. 

But the reality is, you don’t need to have everything figured out – you can always add more content and modules as you go!

And you don’t need to be an expert to create a course. You just need to be passionate about the topic and be able to share your knowledge in an engaging and valuable way to your audience.

Creating and selling online courses is a great way to monetize your blog because it allows you to leverage your time and earn passive income. And once you create the course, it can continue to make money for years to come.

The best part is you do not need many leads or customers for a successful online course. In fact, most courses only need a few hundred students to be successful.

Choose your Topic

First, you need to choose a topic for your course. Think of your hobbies, interests, or even your profession. What do you have expertise in that you could share with others?

For example, if you are a personal trainer, you could create a course on how to start your own business or even offer fitness classes on demand. Or if you love to cook, you could create a course on how to start your own catering business.

The sky’s the limit when it comes to choosing a topic for your course. Just make sure it is something that you are passionate about and solves a pain point or problem for your audience.

Find the Best Hosting Platform

Once you have chosen your topic, it is time to find the best hosting platform for your course. There are many different options available, but we recommend using Udemy or Teachable.

Check out these WordPress plugins if you would rather keep your course on WordPress:

• WP Courseware
• LearnDash
• LifterLMS
• LearnPress

Create Engaging Content

Next, you will need to create the content for your course. This can be done by recording videos, writing blog posts, or creating other types of content that will be valuable to your students.

Share with the World

The last step is to promote your course on your blog, social media channels, and with your email subscribers.

Better yet, you can create your own funnel with one of the many landing page builders online and run targeted ads.

When you’re first learning how to monetize a blog it is best to have a simple marketing plan and ramp up over time.

Sell Physical Products

Another great way to monetize your blog is by selling physical products. This could be anything from t-shirts to coffee mugs to books. To do this, you will need to create a store on your blog and then add products that you want to sell.

You can use software like Shopify or WooCommerce for WordPress to create an online store. These eCommerce platforms make it easy to add products and accept payments.

To do this with WordPress, you’ll need a shopping cart, so look for a WordPress e-commerce plugin like MarketPress from WPMU DEV (this plugin also lets you sell digital products).

Choose your Products

First, you need to choose the products that you want to sell. These should be related to your blog niche and something that your readers would be interested in purchasing.

For example, if you have a cooking blog, you could sell kitchen supplies or cookbooks. Or if you have a travel blog, you could sell travel guides or luggage.

Decide whether you will make the product yourself, buy inventory from a wholesaler, or get started with dropshipping.

Build your Online Store

Once you have chosen your products, it is time to build your online store.

Fortunately, there are a number of platforms that make it easy to create an online store, even if you don’t have any technical experience.

Shopify is one of the most popular options because it is easy to use and has everything you need to get started, including a shopping cart and payment gateway.

Another option is WooCommerce, which is a WordPress plugin that turns your WordPress site into a fully functioning online store.

Finally, you could also use a platform like BigCommerce, which is similar to Shopify but offers more features and flexibility.

Once you have chosen your platform, it’s time to start adding products to your store. Be sure to use quality photos and write engaging product descriptions and sales copy that resonates with your audience.

Promote Your Blog and Online Store

Start by creating social media accounts on platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Then, start sharing your products with your followers and promoting special deals and incentives.

Email marketing is another great way to promote your store. You can use a tool like MailChimp to create newsletters and send them to your email subscribers.

You can also run paid ads on social media and search engines. This is a great way to get your store in front of a larger audience in your niche.

Build Your Email List

One of the most important things you can do when learning how to monetize a blog is to build an email list.

Email marketing is one of the most effective ways to monetize a blog because it allows you to build a relationship with your readers and sell products and services directly to them.

You can use your email list to promote new products, share exclusive discounts, and drive traffic back to your blog or online store.

The best way to get started with building an email list is to create a signup form on your blog and promote it prominently on your website.

You can offer incentives for site visitors to sign up such as:

• A discount code
• Free shipping on their first order
• A helpful guide or checklist download

Once you have a few hundred subscribers, you can start sending out regular emails with updates, coupons, and new product announcements.

Connect With Your Email Subscribers

To monetize your blog with email marketing, you’ll need to sign up for an email marketing platform like MailChimp, Convertkit, or a WordPress favorite: OptinMonster.

This will allow you to create and send newsletters, promotional emails, and other automated messages to your email subscribers.

You can use a platform like MailChimp to create automated email sequences that are triggered when someone subscribes to your list.

For example, you could create a welcome email sequence that introduces new subscribers to your blog and offers value to keep them coming back.

You can also segment your list into different groups so that you can send more targeted messages.

For example, you could segment your list by interests and send different emails to people who are interested in different topics.

This is a great way to monetize your blog because it allows you to sell products and services that are relevant to your readers.

Final Thoughts

There are a number of different ways to monetize a blog and make money online.

Display advertising, Ebooks or digital products, member exclusive content, affiliate marketing, sponsored posts, online courses, and selling physical products are all great ways to make money from your blog.

So what are you waiting for?

Visit Flippa and shop the #1 marketplace to buy a blog today!