There are many bloggers who abandon their online projects because they don’t know how to make money with a blog. Here are 25 ways to monetize your website .
Looking for the best ways to make money online with a blog? How do you make money with a blog ? What are the most effective techniques? And how much do you earn with a blog?
WordPress powers over 37% of all websites so with the right strategies it’s easy to make money on the internet with a WordPress blog.
Sit back and let us guide you on this journey where we will show you 25 legitimate ways to make money on the internet by creating a blog or website.
How to make money online with a blog
While there are several ways to make money online, this article will specifically explain how to make money with a self-hosted WordPress blog.
To create a WordPress blog , you need to have a domain name and a web hosting plan .
An internet domain is the address of your website on the internet such as Google.com or Creativemotions.it and hosting is the place where your website content and files are stored online.
Combining domain name and hosting can be quite expensive, especially if you’re just starting out.
Before we begin, keep in mind that these are not get-rich-quick actions. You will have to spend time and effort to achieve the intended results
Monetize the blog
Once you’ve decided to start a blog and the traffic is coming in, you can monetize your blog and start making money. Some ways to monetize your blog are:
- Google AdSense : Earn money by showing Google AdSense ads to your blog audience.
- Affiliate Marketing : Refer different products and earn a commission when someone buys from your referral.
- Sell Direct Ads : Keep 100% of your ad revenue by selling direct ads, without joining any ad networks like AdSense.
- Publish Sponsored Posts : Allow your sponsors to post on your blog and support their products.
- Post paid reviews : You don’t have to wait for someone to buy your affiliate product. Get paid by writing reviews.
Monetizing a website with Google AdSense is probably the easiest way to make money online.
1. Make money with a blog and Google AdSense
Google AdSense is an advertising network that allows bloggers and website owners to monetize their website through banner ads, videos and other interactive ads.
Here are some benefits of using Google AdSense to monetize your website:
- Minimum requirement : Unlike other ad networks, you don’t need to have huge traffic volume to sign up for Google AdSense. If you provide quality content on your website, you can apply to join AdSense.
- Higher revenue : Google ads are targeted by site content and audience. AdSense ads are more targeted than other contextual ad networks. Because of this, it helps you generate more revenue than any other contextual ad network.
- Easy to use : Ad management in WordPress is easy with Google AdSense. For optimal ad placement, you can choose an AdSense-ready WordPress theme or ad management plugin like AdSanity.
2. Make money on the internet with a blog and Affiliate Marketing
With affiliate marketing , you can choose a product you like, promote it online, and earn commissions when someone buys it through your referrals.
Best of all, with affiliate marketing, you don’t have to fill your website with annoying ads. You can report products within your articles and generate solid earnings when your readers buy them.
You can start affiliate marketing in 2 simple steps:
Step 1: Find the product you want to promote
The easiest way to find a product to promote is to join an affiliate program like Amazon Associates , Commission Junction, or ShareASale .
After selecting the product, you can get an affiliate link and promote the product via that link on your site.
Step 2: Promote products by placing affiliate links
Placing affiliate links on your website is easy. However, we recommend using an affiliate link management plugin such as Thirsty Affiliates or Pretty Links . With these plugins you can organize and manage all your affiliate links in one place.
In case the company you promote changes the affiliate links, you don’t have to waste time replacing every single link you have added on your site. Instead you can change it in the plugin panel and all affiliate links on your site will be updated.
3. Sell direct ads
Ad networks retain a portion of the advertising revenue you generate from your website. If you’ve developed a significant traffic base, you can start selling direct ads on your blog. This way, you can keep the entire profit from your site’s advertising revenue.
Using AdSanity is the best way to sell direct ads on your site. AdSanity is a lightweight ad management plugin for WordPress.
4. Publish sponsored blog posts
Publishing sponsored posts is one of the easiest ways to make money online.
You can run a sponsored post once in a while to earn some extra bucks from your professional blog.
When publishing a sponsored post, be sure to be explicit with your audience about it. Also in some countries, such as the United States, a blogger must abide by the FTC Approval Guide by revealing each time a post is sponsored.
5. Post paid reviews
Affiliate marketers often post product reviews on their site so they can report affiliate products and make money.
Did you know you can even get paid to write product reviews?
The easiest way to start posting paid reviews is to sign up for sites like Melwrite as a blogger. This way, you can easily get in touch with sponsors who want to post a paid review on your site.
How to make money online with a blog by creating a community powered website
A community-powered website requires users to sign up for an account. You can collect a monthly membership fee and earn recurring revenue with a blog.
- Create members-only content
- Sell courses online
- Create a private forum
- Create a niche social network
7. Create members-only content
Creating a site with paid memberships is another great strategy for earning money online. You can create a premium content library on your site and make it accessible behind a paywall.
The easiest way to create a premium content library is to reuse existing content. For example, you can turn your blog posts into downloadable resources such as eBooks and make them accessible behind a paywall.
8. Sell online courses
Are you looking to sell online courses? Do you want to create an engaging learning experience to teach your students through various gamification methods?
You should consider installing a Learning Management System (LMS) plugin on your site. With an LMS plugin like LearnDash , you can make learning on your site fun and easy.
The main difference between a typical membership plugin and an LMS plugin is that the LMS plugin entices users to purchase more lessons, builds engagement on your site, and increases the likelihood of retaining your students for longer.
9. Create a private forum
Creating a private forum with paid memberships is a great way to earn recurring revenue on your site. To integrate a forum into your WordPress site, all you need to do is install a forum plugin like bbPress .
Then, you can limit forum content based on membership level with a membership plugin like Paid Membership Pro .
Building a niche social network or integrating it into your existing WordPress site is another way to make money with a blog.
A niche social network gives you more options than a forum. You can create a niche social network that has powerful features like activity streams, groups, member profiles, messaging, and everything you’d expect from a regular social network.
Now, you may be wondering, why should you build a community around a popular social network?
In addition to generating revenue, it gives you more control over your content, allows you to build a niche community and establish your experience.
You can install BuddyPress on your site to create a niche social network.
How do you make money with a blog by selling products
Selling a product on your blog / website allows you to create a steady stream of income that can last for a long time. Here are some ways to make money by selling products:
- Sell eBooks : If you run a blog, the simplest product you can create is likely an eBook.
- Kindle Direct Publishing : Earn royalties by publishing your books through the Kindle Direct Publishing program.
- Start an Ecommerce Business – Create an online store to sell physical products.
- Allow subscription-based purchases : Unlike a typical ecommerce business, a subscription-based economy relies on personalized retention rather than acquisition.
- Create a digital showcase : Create an online store for the sale of digital goods.
- Create an Amazon Affiliate WordPress Store – Creating products to sell can be tedious. Then choose the products from Amazon and sell them in your store.
11. Sell eBooks on WordPress
EBooks are probably the simplest digital product you can make and sell on a website. You can reuse your existing high-value blog posts into an eBook or write a new one from scratch.
After creating an eBook, you can get a cover copy designed by a low-cost service market like Fiverr.com.
Using Easy Digital Downloads is the easiest way to start selling digital products on your website. For more solutions, you can also read our guide on the best WordPress eCommerce solutions .
12. Kindle Direct Publishing
Kindle Publishing is the best way to reach millions of readers on Amazon. Once you’ve created an eBook, you can register it in Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) Select and earn up to 70% loyalty on sales.
KDP Select requires your eBook exclusivity for the Kindle Store. You can earn a share of the KDP Select Global Fund based on the number of pages and customers who read about your book.
You can also gift your eBook for free for a limited time.
13. Start an e-commerce business with WooCommerce
The e-commerce sector is booming and retail trends show that 51% of Italians prefer online shopping.
With WordPress, it’s easy to create an online store or integrate a showcase into your existing site. There are many WordPress plugins that help you create an online store, but WooCommerce is one step ahead of them all.
WooCommerce comes bundled with PayPal (for accepting credit card and PayPal account payments) and cash on delivery .
14. Allow subscription-based purchases
Subscription-based businesses are fast becoming the norm in every industry, including the e-commerce business. Many retailers now also sell subscription products in addition to their pay-per-product model, such as Amazon Prime. You can also find e-commerce businesses entirely based on a subscription model like NatureBox.com and BlueApron.com.
Unlike a typical eCommerce business, a subscription model helps you drive recurring sales. The entire business model relies on customer retention rather than acquisition.
With WooCommerce subscriptions , an additional plugin for the WooCommerce store, you can allow your customers to subscribe to your products and you can receive constant recurring income.
15. Create a digital e-commerce with Easy Digital Download
Do you want to create an online store only for the sale of digital products? You should install Easy Digital Download .
WooCommerce allows you to sell digital products on your website. The downside is that it packs in features you’ll never need to run a digital product store (like shipping options).
16. Create an Amazon Affiliate WordPress Store
Do you want to create an online store, but don’t have the time and resources to create products? You can create an Amazon Affiliate Store on WordPress.
Amazon is a well-known e-commerce store with hundreds of thousands of products. It allows anyone to sell online simply by listing the products in the store.
Amazon has a great affiliate program known as Amazon Associates that helps you earn affiliate revenue by promoting Amazon products. You can create a new online store that only promotes Amazon products or sell Amazon products in your existing store.
Make money with a blog by selling services
You can make money blogging by offering your experience to your customers. Some of the ways to sell services online are:
- Start your own consultancy business – Offer online consultancy and earn money.
- Offer freelance services on your website: If you have expanded an audience base around your site, you can convert them into paying customers.
- List your services on a freelance site: no audience base? No problem! Submit proposals to job listings and offer your expertise.
- Sell your services on Fiverr: Simply list your services on Fiverr. It is not necessary to submit proposals.
17. Start your own consulting business
Another method of earning money from your experience is by providing online counseling. Instead of selling services as a freelancer, a consultant offers advice and strategies to clients in need.
You can create a page on your WordPress site and start offering consulting services. Make sure you post a form so users can get more information .
18. Offer freelance services on your website
Offering your skills and expertise on your website as a freelancer is one of the best ways to make money online.
When starting out as a freelancer, you will need to spend time researching clients. If you create a website, you can list your services on it and encourage your visitors to hire you.
19. List your services on a freelance site
Converting your website visitors into paying customers can be difficult, especially if your website doesn’t attract the potential customers you want to work with.
Just because you list your experience on your site doesn’t mean you can be contacted as a freelancer. This is why service providers rely on freelance sites, such as Upwork.com, where they can pitch proposals to potential clients.
Here’s how Upwork works:
- Clients post jobs across hundreds of skill categories.
- Freelancers can submit their proposals.
You can show your Upwork profile on your blog. Showing off your profile can increase the credibility of your offer and encourage your visitors to hire you for their next project.
20. Sell your services on Fiverr
Fiverr is the largest small-scale service marketplace in the world where you can buy and sell service-based engagements. Unlike freelance sites, on Fiverr you don’t have to waste time looking for job advertisements and submitting proposals.
To get hired, all you need to do is list your service on Fiverr. Your potential customers can see your profile and purchase the service right away, just like ordering a product from an e-commerce store.
After receiving an order from a customer, you can work on a project and deliver the service within the specified time frame.
Earn money on the internet with a blog: monetize digital content
From podcasts to videos, you can monetize your digital content to make money with a blog.
- Start a YouTube channel
- Accept advertising for your podcasts
- Host paid webinars
21. Launch a YouTube channel
YouTube is probably the second largest search engine in the world after Google. Starting a YouTube channel is one of the best ways to create a steady stream of traffic to your site.
Popular entertainment sites regularly post videos on their YouTube channel turning their blog content into video.
You can upload quality videos to YouTube and start making money online by joining the YouTube Partner Program . To join the partner program, you will need to have at least 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 viewing hours in the past year.
To quickly increase your subscribers, you can embed your videos on your website and encourage your visitors to subscribe to your channel.
22. Accept sponsors for your podcasts
Getting started with podcasting is quite simple. To publish a podcast on your WordPress site, you need to have an audio file and an RSS feed that users can subscribe to.
In general, podcasts are large audio files. Since hosting podcast files on your website can take up valuable server resources and slow down your site, we recommend using a platform like Blubrry .
To earn money from podcasting, you can accept sponsors to run your podcasts. The sponsor message can be entered at the beginning, in the middle, and repeated again at the end.
23. Host paid webinars
A webinar is an online meeting or presentation held on your website in real time. A webinar is similar to an online course, but it is live and often includes a question and answer section at the end.
WordPress makes it easy to host a paid webinar. You can conduct a webinar on Google Hangouts and charge users for webinar participation with OnAir webinar.
How to make money with the internet: project development
- Sell WordPress plugins
- Sell WordPress themes
- Sell graphics
24. Sell WordPress plugins
If you are a developer you can consider developing and selling WordPress plugins. There are several ways to sell WordPress plugins.
The easiest way is to use a premium marketplace like CodeCanyon and list your plugin. You can also create a website and start selling your WordPress plugins on your site.
Creating a freemium WordPress plugin is another way to make money by selling plugins. This way, you don’t have to share your income with a market like CodeCanyon.
25. Sell WordPress themes
If you are a WordPress theme developer, you can create and sell themes on your website. As with plugins, you can use a premium marketplace like Themeforest to sell your WordPress theme.
Alternatively, you can release a free version of the theme and sell the premium version on your website. You can promote the premium version directly within your free theme.
How to make money with a blog: conclusion
That’s all! We have seen together a number of applicable ideas and effective techniques for making money with a blog .
We hope this article helped you have a clear idea of how to make money online with your blog.
