How to Make Money from Blogging

Blogging is still a big deal. From micro-blog posts on Instagram or Twitter, do brand blogs like this article you’re reading on Swagbucks.

A blog is a more casual way to share information with readers about topics the author knows a lot about. Personal blogs will have a personal feel. Brand or corporate blogs will reflect that style and feature relevant topics.

Whatever the style or theme of the blog, it’s a great way for the author to make a more personal connection with their readers and to share their honest opinions on a variety of products, services, or issues.

How do beginner bloggers make money?

If you want to have your own blog and move it beyond being just a hobby, there are some things you will have to learn. Yes, you can make money blogging, but you might not be super successful right off the bat. If you think a single blog post will launch a huge new career, you are bound for an island called Disappointment, my friend.

Successful bloggers typically do not happen overnight, although there are a few who had that one post that went supersonic and bam, they are the new golden child.

If you want to have a profitable blog, it might be in your best interest to consider taking at least one online course to learn the basics. Some of the things that you are going to need to learn about include:

Search engine optimization or SEO.
How to add affiliate links.
How to find a profitable niche.
How to create quality content.
How to use Google Adsense.
The basics of building a website.

Beginner blog creators make money by having good content, in a hot niche with solid traffic. Become an active member of Facebook groups to find out what people are talking about the most and you will have found your blog’s niche. Now, do the keyword research to find out how to get top rankings, get your blog on the best blogging platform and start earning.

How do bloggers get paid?

Most of the money that bloggers earn will be affiliate income. Bloggers earn money through marketing and blog monetization. From banner ads to being part of an affiliate program, there are plenty of ways to generate passive income and make real money blogging about the things that interest you.

You may have to build your blog up to get accepted by some of the ad networks, and selling ads is easier on an established blog, but the hard work will be worth it in the end. Most new bloggers give up because they have tried to start a blog in the same niche as everyone else and they are not making enough money for it to be worthwhile just yet.

Yes, you are going to be competing against other bloggers. If you can get that first couple of sponsored posts under your belt, you will be on more solid footing. Before that becomes possible, you will have to make sure your blog topics are on point, hone all your digital marketing skills, and drive that traffic.

Now is a good time to mention that there are plenty of blogging tips floating around for free so most of the time you should not have to pay for any of that information. In fact, within the blogging niche, one of the digital products that they offer is a step-by-step guide to creating your own website so that you can become a blogger too.

But, wait. Shouldn’t they want the newbies to fail? Why would they want to create additional competition for themselves?

They do, and they know they are not. They want to get you excited about the possibilities, give you some of the basic info “free” and then once you implement that info, crash and burn, they are ready with their “pro” help that yep, you guessed it, you pay for.

Another way that bloggers get paid is by selling their own products directly from their website. Pretend you have a fitness blog. You offer consulting services for personal training or to improve a person’s mile time. But, you are also making money selling supplements, workout wear, and some equipment. Every time you blog it is a chance to get more eyes to your online store and vice versa.

Do bloggers get paid for views?

Yes and no. Successful blogs absolutely get a lot of views (the number of people who see them) each month but that is not how the blog makes money. Views mean zero if there is no way to profit from them.

Most bloggers will get hung up on the content. Yes, you do need good content or why would anyone come to your site at all? But, unless those same people are willing to give you money for your every word, beautiful as they may be, you are not going to make money. You have to offer them something more of value whether that is from the ads that are placed on your blog or the products that you sell.

The more views you have, the more opportunities for making money.

How many views do you need to make money blogging?

Making money could mean nearly anything from a few dollars to a full-time income. At the beginning of your blogging journey, when you only have a few page views and you are still finding your way through the blog jungle, you may only make a few dollars a week or even a month.

As you build your blog and start driving more traffic and really reaching your target audience, you will start seeing an increase in the amount you make.

According to most experts, it takes around 100,000 unique page views to make what would be considered full-time income or enough money that a family could live comfortably.

Can I make a blog and make money?

You can! You can create a blogging business and you should if you meet these criteria:

You have something you want to say.
It is something that other people want to read about.
You know how to write blog articles.
You know how to create a WordPress blog. (It’s easy to set up a blog on free platforms like WordPress. If you know how to code or work with plug-ins, you can do more sophisticated things. This article, for example, is published on a self hosted WordPress blog.)
You know how to drive blog traffic.
You have a web hosting account.

What? You only meet some of those? You can take free online courses to learn how to jumpstart your own blog. Or read other blogs that you like and read those bloggers’ stories. How did they get started? Can you write a guest post for them to get your name out there?

After you learn the basics, you can use that new knowledge to create a successful blog article teaching other people the stuff that you just learned.

It will take more than just a few months (or days) to find readers. But you can absolutely make money blogging. New successful blogs launch every single day.

What niche is best for blogging?

If you plan on making money online with blogging, you have to have the perfect niche. Here are the top 6 topics that a new blog could use:

Digital marketing.
Blogging about blogging – this includes learning how to set up a blog, creating content, and more.
Personal finance and money-making information.
Health and fitness such as weightlifting tips and training information.
Recipes and food.
Personal development and self-care. This could be just sharing information about a favorite hobby and how it helps in times of struggle.

How long should blogs be?

Your post should be a minimum of 300 words or it will not rank and few people will ever see it. Ideally, you will want to have around 1000 to 2000 words, preferably broken up with images. Some posts will need far more words. Some can accomplish their goal with fewer words. Sometimes you have to play it by ear.

Your blog content should satisfy your audience’s questions but should also leave them wanting just a little bit more so that they will come back over and over again.

Who is the biggest blogger in the world?

Arianna Huffington founded the Huffington Post in 2005. The multi-focused blog is now called the HuffPost but still brings in over 59 million views and generates an income of over $250 million a year.

Why do bloggers fail?

There are dozens of reasons that bloggers fail including getting frustrated and quitting too early. Other possible reasons:

Choosing the wrong niche. Whether it was a niche that you weren’t that knowledgeable about or one that was either too narrow or too broad, the wrong niche can stop you cold.
Not learning about monetization or not implementing the things that you did learn.
Failing to reach your target market.
Not creating good enough content.
Not engaging with readers. If you are never going to respond to comments on your post, why bother?

How many bloggers are successful?

That depends on how you gauge success. It also depends on the number of bloggers that are being counted. Industry reports suggest that around 30% of bloggers are successful.

Blogging is continuing to grow so it is important to always keep your skills honed, learn the new ways to market so you are always ready for the next trend, and remember that you have to rise to the top of your particular blog niche if you are going to remain successful.

How else can I make money on the side?

Side gigs can go far beyond just blogging. Some people just do not have the patience or the ability to write a blog of their own. Sure, you can maybe do some guest blogging but unless you have something super cool to bring to the table, no one is going to let you get rich piggybacking off their blog.

If you only have a few minutes of random free time during the day, you can make a few dollars by taking surveys. If you join a survey site like Swagbucks, you can take surveys, watch videos, discover new products, and do many other things while earning points (SB) which you can redeem for gift cards to dozens of retailers or restaurants or Paypal cash if you prefer.

It is free to join, you can do as many surveys as you want and you can earn more SB whenever you are shopping online. You also will earn cashback from some merchants. The site also has coupon codes that you can use so you are saving money while you are making money.

How long does it take for a blog to make money?

Again, this depends on a lot of factors but the average blogger should start making money blogging within the first year. Some may take half that time and of course, others may take slightly more than a year.

If you have been blogging for more than a year and have not made any money yet, it is time to start going through the checklist to see what you can change and how you can improve whatever it is that you are doing.