From the outside, blogging can look like a get-rich-quick scheme. Lifestyle blogs in particular can give the impression that the person behind it spends all their time engaging in the leisure activity that the blog highlights and just has to throw up a few photos or quick video now and again and watch the money roll in. Nothing could be further from the truth, and this is one reason people often get discouraged quickly when they set out to make money blogging. They don’t realize that it takes both time and effort to build an audience and make money. The tips below can help you decide whether it’s worth it to you to try and monetize your blog and how to go about it if you do.
Understanding Costs
One reason blogging is often an attractive business proposition for people is that they assume it won’t cost them anything. This isn’t accurate though. Costs associated with a successful blog can include paying a designer, hosting fees, paying for promoted posts, and other advertising, purchasing camera equipment, and hiring a professional video editor or buying the software to do it yourself. Some or all of these costs might be incurred by people who are simply blogging as part of a hobby as well.
If you’re looking for a way to cover the costs, you may want to look at personal loans as one option and a better one than credit cards since the payment terms may be more favorable.
To Monetize or Not to Monetize?
You don’t have to monetize your blog no matter how successful it is. There are plenty of popular niche blogs that people just run for fun, and not monetizing can take away the pressure and ensure that it stays fun.
On the other hand, monetizing can do everything from build passive income by providing a little extra cash now and again to covering some of the associated costs of running the blog to replacing a full-time salary. This is very much a personal decision to make based on your lifestyle, your current career and your goals.
When to Do It
The time to consider monetizing is when your audience has started to grow or when the costs of running your blog start to outstrip your ability to keep up with them. Too often, people try to monetize too early and then become discouraged when they are not successful. It really does take a lot of time and effort to become popular.
If you feel like you’re getting lost in a sea of similar content, think about how you can carve out a niche within your particular area. What kind of information isn’t out there that people might need?
How to Do It
There are several different ways to approach monetizing, and most people use a combination. You can add premium content for subscribers. You can have affiliate links that allow you to get a small amount of money when people follow links from your site.
Some companies may offer you products in exchange for featuring them on your site. You may be able make money beyond your blog as well, such as with popular videos on YouTube or with a related podcast.
Salman is a prolific environmental writer, and has authored more than 500 articles in reputed journals, magazines and websites. He is proactively engaged in creating mass awareness on renewable energy, waste management, sustainability and conservation all over the world.
Salman can be reached on salman@cleantechloops.com
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