Monetizing your blog means making money through blogging, and there are many ways to do this. However, not all monetization strategies work equally well with all blogs or sites, so it’s important to choose the right one based on your own personality and goals. In order to help you decide which monetization strategy is right for you, I’ve listed five different monetization techniques below that can be used by any blogger to make money from their site. These techniques are ranked according to how simple they are to implement and require the least amount of maintenance once they are up and running.
1) Revenue Sharing Programs
Offering your own products and services on your site might not be something you’re ready to do just yet, but affiliate marketing may be a good way for you to start earning money from your site. There are many websites that offer affiliate programs, such as Amazon, ShareASale, Commission Junction and Impact Radius. You simply use their tools and place an affiliate link in an area of your website where people can buy products from these companies. You then make a small commission on any sales generated through those links.
2) Google AdSense and other ad networks
This is where many bloggers start when trying to monetize their site. Google AdSense allows bloggers to add advertising code to their website and then earn money every time an ad is clicked. Other ad networks are available, including Chitika, Mediavine, and ZergNet. The catch with these types of ads is that they don’t tend to be as lucrative as a blogger might like and can even detract from reader experience if not handled correctly.
3) CPA Offers
A CPA (cost per action) or PPP (pay per performance) ad is a form of online advertising where you are only charged if your visitor completes a specific call-to-action. The three most common calls-to-action are filling out a form, clicking on an offer/product and registering for email updates. Many affiliate networks will offer different types of CPA offers for free or for sale on their website.
4) Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing is where you get paid a percentage of whatever product or service your site’s visitors buy from third-party websites. As long as you aren’t engaged in illegal activity, there are few downsides to affiliate marketing. In fact, it can be quite lucrative if you put in enough effort and have a good website on which you promote affiliate offers.
5) Selling Products
Some of your readers will appreciate your product so much that they’ll go ahead and buy it. There are tons of ways you can sell products; in fact, you could use all five methods described here. Some bloggers have even created an entire online store and started their own ecommerce site to sell their products—not only is it a brilliant idea but it also means they don’t have to worry about paying third-party sites like eBay or Etsy fees when they sell things on those sites.
