In, Can Your Homeschool Blog Earn Money?, Part 1 and Part 2, I discussed the background information you need before starting a blog that has the potential of earning you a profit. If you missed those two posts, please take time to read them as blogs without a proper foundation do not earn profits. Not all profits can strictly financial but we all want to know now to earn cold hard cash. There is no easy answer but there are avenues you can take to drive your blog to the bank.
Here are some of the most popular ways to begin but the list is not exhaustive.
Ads: Selling ad space on your blog is one of the most popular and utilized ways of earning a profit. Ads are those little buttons or 125×125 squares on the sidebar that when clicked lead to you another site. While not the most effective way of marketing, people will still pay about $20 to $50 a month, depending on blog traffic, to advertise. You can also offer banner ads for an increased fee. If you are interested in this avenue, you will want to study up on blog traffic, what “above the fold” means, and how to gain and maintain ads on your site, as well as ad packages.
Affiliate Links: The earning potential varies with affiliate links. Some people earn hundreds a month while others say they hardly earned a dime in years. However, it costs you nothing to sign up for affiliate programs. The best programs to sign up for are those that correspond with your blog. Amazon has an affiliate program and since they sell a variety of items, it is a nice place to start. All About Reading and Bright Ideas Press are popular curriculum and also have affiliate programs. The trick is to insert affiliate links through out your posts. Then pray someone decides to buy something. Almost every blogger with an ebook has an affiliate program as well. The more you sign up for the more earning potential you have.
Sponsored Posts: Sponsored posts are posts that you were paid to write or paid to post. Most sponsored posts are pre-written. You can earn $25 to $100 or more. Finding sponsored posts is not always easy but PayPerPost, BlogVertise, and Sponsored Reviews are a few leads. I used to work with BlogVertise and they do pay. I no longer do sponsored posts since posts are your greatest asset and it is essential you are careful in how you use them. Readers are turned off by too many sponsored posts. It may also ruin your credibility if not used wisely.
Donation Button: Ah the donation button…the source of much discussion. There are two schools of thought on this one: 1) Bloggers choice and readers can simply ignore it or chose to donate. 2) Trashy…forgive my French…and a turn off to readers.
I do have one and each time I see one, I wonder if I should get one. Then, I feel that it may be offensive to some and who am I to ask for donations. Blogging is a choice not a job. If it is a job than no need for a donation button. After all, I do not ask for donations when I engage in other hobbies. So, I always steer clear. However, a donation button or tip jar does not offend me but I never click to donate.
All that to say it is your choice. Some say to get a read on your readers first but I think it is better to start off with one than to add one. Adding always causes more backlash.
Selling: On my blog, I sell unit studies and I design blog buttons, headers, and such. If you are a crafter or write unit studies, copywork books, or lapbooks, then sell them on your site. If you sell downloads then get an account with e-junkie or a similar site so your customer is delivered a link right away. You will not want to have to send out a PDF each time…that is inefficient and could grow very frustrating to you and your customers.
Product Reviews: Reviewing curriculum is one way to acquire free curriculum. Free is always good and money not spent is money in your wallet. As time goes on and bloggers are seeing their worth in this arena more businesses are learning that paying a blogger for her time in addition to a product is expected. You can earn $50 to $75 for a review depending on your experience and blog traffic. If you want to learn more about becoming a product reviewer please read my series:
- Becoming a Product Reviewer, Part 1
- Becoming a Product Reviewer, Part 2
- Becoming a Product Reviewer, Part 3