Monetising your blog (i.e. making some wonga!)

[TheAlphaParent]

My blog is almost a year old and whilst I see it as merely a hobby, it would be nice to make a few quid as a by-product of my hard work.

But I don't want to put Google ads on it. The main reason is that I want to avoid inappropriate ads. For instance, a lot of my blog's content slags off formula companies, so an advert for say, Aptamil, would discredit my blog's content.

I was thinking of contacting some small parenting-related businesses and asking if they would like to advertise for a monthly fee. But I'm not sure what the going rate is. Any ideas?

How do you monetise your blog?

There are lots of ways to monetise your blog including sponsored posts, paid links, affiliate links, selling stuff etc. The thing that puts me off Google ads more than anything is the fact that it looks crap and nobody ever seems to make any money off it.

For parenting blogs, the going rate for a small ad is around £40/month, though I have been offered (and turned down) much less, eg £20/year. Research the issues surrounding blog ads as much as you can, especially follow vs no follow links. If you are using wordpress.com then I believe it's against their T&C's to carry paid links & sponsored posts - some people have had their entire blog suspended because of this.

Thanks Joanne. I'm on Blogger. Do they have a similar no-paid-links policy?

Can't believe you were offered £20/year. What cheek!

Which method do you think brings in the most cash? What are affiliate links?

I've seen some blogs (quite popular ones) offering a 100px square advert space for $5 for 3 months. It seems that there is not too much money to be made through advertising unless you are in the big league.
I hate google ads and they would have to pay a lot of money before I add them to my blog. When I read other peoples blogs I get bombarded with the same advert all the time 'is your mac running slow?' gah.
I think blogs are great if you have a product to sell no matter how small (could be physical or ebooks etc). A good example is crochet patterns - some people sell them on their site for just £1 but if you sell a lot it would soon add up (just an example as I know you don't have a crochet blog).
Lots of parenting sites sell printables, membership to a forum, presentations, consultations and all sorts so I think you just have to think a bit creatively about what product you could sell rather than how you can advertise someone else's (and get a tiny weeny percentage of the gain).

I was approached by a lady from a media company who said she'd like me to write sponsored posts and include a link to various companies. My first was for Tesco life insurance...I got paid on receipt of the draft but apparently Tesco have a backlog of articles they have yet to verify. I won't be given another project until my first one goes live...I've been waiting a good few weeks now so it won't be the fantastic money-making scheme I was hoping for!

If you're serious about monetising "Mom Blogging For Dummies," by Wendy Piersall is un-put-downable -- and tells you a lot of what you need to know. I'm in the early stages of a business plan for Mums Write! ([email protected]), so not really trying to generate revenue yet, but the book gave me a great framework for going about this, and gives you a lot of quick info you may need. Good luck! jo

You can download a free ebook on making money from your blog via the Tots100 here - it's very useful, definitely worth a read.

Affiliate links are schemes where you make a small cut if somebody buys via your link. The most well known and easiest to sign up to is Amazon Associates. When I do a review, Amazon is usually the cheapest place to buy the item, so I usually link to it via an affiliate link and make maybe 5% if somebody buys. I also have a permanent affiliate link in the sidebar of my blog (top LHS) to my book on Amazon, so if somebody buys one I make the royalties plus the 5% affiliate fee. It doesn't cost the person buying any more, and to be honest it doesn't make me a huge amount but it all adds up.

I think generating as much traffic to your blog with links to products you are happy to promote would be an easy way to go about it. You just have to have a passion or truly believe whatever it is you are promoting :)

Do take a look at the free resource that Joanne has linked to on the TOTs, it is very good. I foudn that once I was registered with the ranking charts I started to get emailed and offered paid work. I am registered with TOTs100 and Wikio.

You will find the higher your rank the more work you get offered though and the better rates they are willing to pay.

Do approach appropriate companies as well though, you never know until you try. What you ask for £ wise will depend on how good your traffic, engagement, page rank etc is.

Good luck, Mich x