How To Make Money Blogging In 2022 [The Ultimate Guide]
There are various methods to learn how to make money blogging.
And, you’ve probably heard that blogging is a great way to make money online (otherwise, you wouldn’t be here reading.)
I’m here to tell you that it really is but to clear up all the confusion out there, it’s not as easy as just putting your blog “out there” and waiting for the cash to roll in.
In all seriousness, I’ve seen blogs become money-making machines, but it depends on some factors.
I will share with you the steps that can make you a millionaire blogger and other ways to monetize your blog.
1. When should you start to focus on monetizing your blog?
If you’re just starting out, it’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of starting a new blog.
You might hope that after two months, your blog will be generating enough income for you to become a full-time blogger and ditch your day job.
I’ve seen many bloggers talk about this idea and how they were able to accomplish it, but I’ve also seen dozens of blogs fail. After all, there are many blogs out there.
WordPress claims that there are 30 million websites created through their service.
Squarespace powers 2.8 million websites, Blogger (Blogspot) powers over 622,000 blogs, and Tumblr usage stats show 541 million accounts.
All these numbers and, of course, there are other blogging platforms in the world.
The thing is that each month, approximately 409 million people view more than 20 billion pages.
All this means that the competition is fierce…
It takes a ton of hard work and dedication to become a successful blogger, and although it can be done quickly, it is rare.
If you want to learn to make money blogging, you need to start thinking about monetization strategies from the beginning.
You should focus on making money blogging from the first day of your blog’s life and growing an income stream that will keep you afloat while building your audience.
Blogging is a lot like baking. Many people have tried it, but only a few have truly mastered it.
And even fewer have made money from doing so. Starting a blog that makes real money is a serious task that requires planning and dedication — and a whole lot of patience.
You will not make overnight riches with your blog. That said, starting one can be very rewarding and lets you turn your passion into a full-time career (or side hustle).
Blogging is like any other business — you have to invest time and energy into it before you see results.
It takes time to build up your audience and turn traffic into revenue. But your blog does have the potential to earn an income for you down the road.
But…. “this isn’t answering my question” – I hear you say. Well, you are right because there isn’t a formula that I can share with you.
The closest I can get to a formula is: try to get steady traffic first before you start thinking about monetizing your blog.
1.1 Do bloggers really make any (good) money?
The answer is a yes (well… it also depends on what “good money” means for you)
You can learn to make money via blogging, and depending on the type of blog you start and your level of experience, you can even make a full-time income from it.
For example, Ariana Huffington was the highest paid blogger in 2021, with a revenue of $250 million per year.
And as long as you’re willing to put in the work, anyone can earn money from blogging.
But making money from blogging is not necessarily easy (although it’s not hard either).
Like everything else in life, if you want to make money with your blog, you’ll have to work for it.
1.2 How much money can beginner bloggers make?
According to recent studies, bloggers can make between $500 and $2,000 a month even in the first year.
So, you can only go up from there (if you really know how to make money with your blog, of course.) You can easily make $25,000-$50,000 your first year, $100,000+ your second year, $250,000+ your third year of blogging, and so on (you get the idea.)
However, many factors come into play as to how much you can make as a blogger:
- The size of your audience (number of monthly views),
- What niche you’re blogging about
- How many people are searching for that topic,
- Your own skills and experience,
- Where you promote your content (blog or social networks)
- And whether it’s just an extra income or your sole source of income.
1.3 Do you want to learn to make money blogging? The email list is your tribe and king.
You can build a good blog without an email list, but it will be much harder.
Why? Because without an email list, you have no way to build an audience over time. Even if you get a ton of traffic from Pinterest or Google, it will likely not last long-term.
Email generates $42 for every $1 spent, or an astounding 4,200% ROI.
That’s why the email list is so important. It gives you a chance to build an audience over time and then monetize it.
The email list is what will become your go-to place when you want to promote something.
You can promote affiliate products, sell your own products, or sell other people’s stuff.
You can even turn your blog readers into clients when you’re running a service-based business. Heck, you can even use it to get more readers for your blog!
All of these are possible because of a simple thing called an email list. What is it? Emails from people who have subscribed to receive emails about what you have to say or offer.
It’s not just about making money with the email list, though. It’s also about building relationships and trust with your audience.
So, here are the top 7 ways how to make money blogging
1. Sell online courses or workshops.
As a blogger, you have a unique opportunity to build trust with your audience.
If you’re already blogging in your niche and have an engaged following, it’s a good idea to promote courses that complement your content.
Most bloggers who sell online courses or workshops use their blog as the hub for their business.
They may offer free content on their blog, like helpful articles or videos that provide value to readers.
And then, they create paid content like an online course or workshop that helps readers solve a specific problem.
Sure… you may be able to find people to buy your course through paid ads and promotions, but these strategies don’t come cheap.
And individuals who read blogs are often looking for information that will help them solve a problem or reach a goal (which is exactly what an online workshop does.)
2. Ebooks and books
You can promote them in your blog, both your own and those written by others. After all, Statista forecasts that revenue in the eBooks segment will reach $17,036 million by the end of this year.
If you’re like me, you love reading, so this is a great way to combine your interests with your blog.
If you’re knowledgeable about a particular subject matter, or if you know someone who is, it’s likely there’s a good book or ebook on the subject that would appeal to your readers.
And if you’re in a position to recommend it… then why not? This is a great method that I suggest when people ask me how I make money blogging.
3. Affiliate marketing
There are several ways to generate revenue from your blog. But one is easier, faster, and doesn’t require any technical knowledge — affiliate marketing.
Affiliate marketing involves adding links to relevant products on your blog. When users click those links and buy something from the retailer (or another qualifying action), you get a commission.
This is one of the best ways to learn to make money from a blog
What’s great about affiliate marketing is that you don’t need a blog with thousands of visitors per day.
Even if you have just a handful of dedicated readers, you can make decent money as an affiliate marketer.
But of course…the more, the better.
And the best part is that studies show that the expenditures from affiliate marketing will only continue to grow in 2022 and beyond.
4. Advertising
While there are many ways to monetize a blog, showing banner ads is one of the most common.
Most bloggers think it’s good to place banner ads to earn extra income despite the niche. Well, that is the worst thing you could possibly do.
You will learn quickly that you shouldn’t do this unless you are a desperate blogger looking for ways to make a quick buck.
However, if you talk about fashion, style, and news (which are hard to monetize through many of the other methods mentioned here), you can use ads.
These advertisements can become a supplementary income source.
5. Coaching and/or consulting
You can make money blogging by offering consulting and/or coaching. This is a good revenue stream for bloggers who have a pretty solid audience and are looking to dive deeper with their readers.
Consulting and coaching can be offered in person or online (and could include things like business strategy, life coaching, financial advice, fitness training, weight loss guidance, and so on).
This is another way to make money blogging while providing value to your readers.
6. Paid memberships
Other ways you can make money blogging include offering a paid membership plan.
This is where your readers pay a small fee in order to gain access to exclusive content on your blog.
This is a great way to create recurring revenue in your business, and it’s one of my favorite ways to monetize a blog.
Bloggers can offer memberships that include exclusive content, digital products, or services.
For example, your blog might be focused on DIY projects. Your members could get access to a forum where they can ask questions about their DIY projects or access to videos that explain various projects step-by-step.
Or like my monthly Superstar SEO Academy, which offers beginner, intermediate, and advanced SEO training.
7. Sell your services as a freelancer
Another way you can make money with a blog is through freelancing.
You can specialize in everything from content creation to social media management and even web design, depending on your experience level and interests.
And then you offer your services in Legiit, for example.
Freelancing is an excellent way to earn some extra cash while still being able to focus on building your own blog and brand.
However, if you choose this route, be sure to have at least some experience under your belt before trying it out.
Many clients won’t consider hiring someone who doesn’t already have reviews from previous employers or a portfolio of past work.
Topics for the blog posts vary from product reviews to personal advice, to opinions, and more.
Most people who are hired as freelance bloggers are paid for each post that they write. Some businesses require a minimum number of postings per month, and others do not have any monthly requirements.
According to data from Glassdoor, the average salary for freelancers in the United States is about $44k a year.
All you really need to get started is Legiit for clients to reach out to you.
3. A framework on how to make money blogging (step-by-step)
1. Choose your profitable niche
When you’re just starting out, it’s a good idea to pick a niche where you have some expertise and are passionate about.
Maybe you’ve been a teacher for years, or maybe you love animals and have spent your free time volunteering at shelters.
Either way, focus on building a strong online presence related to that subject matter IF it’s profitable enough.
According to recent research, food, finance, lifestyle, and travel are the most profitable blog niches out there (as of now, of course)
(Hint: there are no wrong answers here.)
If you choose one niche today, but tomorrow find out that this was not exactly what you wanted, it’s ok too!
You can always change your blog’s course and start on something new without having to delete your first blog or abandon it forever.
You can even blog about more than one thing if you want (and I definitely recommend doing so).
This is one of the best parts when learning blogging.
As mentioned above, Google AdSense and other monetization tools can help support content in your area of interest by placing relevant ads next to your writing.
Plus, people who read articles about things they care about tend to spend more time on them (or share them with others) than those who don’t.
So, if you choose well, there will be opportunities for brand partnerships down the road.
2. Establish yourself as an authority
If you want to be a successful blogger, you have to establish yourself as an authority in your niche.
You have to become the go-to person for your topic, and you have to build a relationship of trust with your readers.
One way is to create your own content, but another way is to curate the best articles and blog posts from around the web into one handy resource.
For example, if you’re writing about parenting, try finding 7 or 8 of the best articles on that subject and compile them into one post (don’t forget to link back to the original articles, though).
Another way to make money from a blog is guest posting.
It is an excellent way for bloggers to get themselves noticed and increase their blog traffic.
Finding guest blogging opportunities can be challenging, especially if you are a beginner blogger who wants to break into the industry; however, some platforms allow you to post, such as:
Guest blogging allows you to get your content published on a new website. It also helps build your personal brand and reach new audiences.
The same goes for the blog you are writing for. Bloggers are always looking for high-quality articles that add value to their content.
If you have something useful to say, they will be happy to publish it on their website.
So… all in all…here are a few reasons why guest blogging is important:
- Increase the visibility of your brand online
- Boost your search engine ranking
- Help you generate targeted traffic.
- Establish yourself as an expert in your industry
- Build relationships with other bloggers in your industry
- Collect quality backlinks to your own website or blog
3. Content is kiiiiing. ?
That’s the saying, right? It’s true in a sense. Your website is just a wrapper for your content.
You need to invest in quality content. Pushing out thin, low-quality content will only hurt you — you need relatable topics that are popular.
And if you’re smart, your content should also go beyond these obvious brochure-type elements and help your readers achieve their goals or provide them value.
In the end, no matter how much time and effort you put into your blog, it’s not going to become successful if you don’t know how to deliver value to readers.
Readers come back for more because they like the writing style of the blogger, the personality and uniqueness that comes across via the content.
So, do you want to know how to make money through blogging?
Build an audience around something that matters to them.
While there’s no hard-and-fast rule requiring you to be a skilled writer as you begin your blog, it’s a good idea to keep honing your writing skills.
Even though most of your readers will be drawn to your content, some of them will be interested in your writing ability (and even judge it.)
4. Get traffic to your blog
If your goal with your blog is to make money then it’s simple – you have to know how to get traffic to your blog.
You have to learn how to use Google and social media sites to your advantage.
Let’s face it, no matter how good your content is or how compelling your blog is, if no one ever reads it, then you will fail.
And if you are running a business blog that needs to sell products or services in order for it to be profitable for you, then getting traffic is the most important thing.
You can see the sources for all of the traffic for the most popular niche websites in the image. As you can tell, Google is by far the top source of traffic for all of these sites.
But, the best way to get traffic to your blog is by SEO or Search Engine Optimization.
SEO is the art of getting organic search traffic from the search engines, and a critical part of it is implementing the right keyword in your blog.
It’s an essential skill to make money as a blogger, affiliate marketer, or in any online business.
Learning SEO takes time, but it’s well worth it. Because once you’ve learned it, then you can make passive income for years without much extra work.
And if you need help with optimizing your website, you can always use tools like Audiit and do that in just a few seconds.
And if you want to leverage the potential of social media, you can either do that organically (by going viral) or through paid ads.
This means that you need to start sharing your content on sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter (depending on your niche).
These sites alone can bring in hundreds of thousands of visitors every single day.
5. Grow your email list
As I mentioned before, when it comes to building a successful blog and business, your email list is one of the top resources for you to focus on.
Having a list of qualified subscribers is an asset that can help sustain your blog over the long haul.
If you want to learn blogging and be successful, you have to know how to grow your email list.
Some people will tell you that they don’t use email because social media and SEO is where it’s at.
But don’t listen to them; they are doing you a disservice.
Building an email list is essential if you want your blog or business to be successful.
But why build an email list? What’s so special about it? Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why you need an email list and what it can do for you.
- Across all industries, the average email open rate is 19.8%, the bounce rate is 9.4%, and the click-through rate is 11.3%.
- Those who use segmented campaigns notice a 760% increase in revenue.
- 78% of marketers saw a huge increase in email engagement in 2020.
- There are 4 billion daily email users, and this number is expected to climb to 4.6 billion by 2025.
- 72% of people prefer to receive promotional content through email, compared with 17% of social media.
So why aren’t you using email marketing?
There are many reasons for this, but most likely, it’s because you don’t know where to start.
Everyone has been in the same boat at one point too.
But today, I’m going to share with you some of my best tips on how to grow your email list.
These tips have been tried and tested over the years, and they work!
- Don’t be afraid to ask people to sign up for your email list.
- Be consistent with your emails so that people know when they should expect them.
- Build trust by offering something useful in return for signing up, like a free eBook or video series that teaches them something new and valuable about their topic of interest (e.g., cooking).
- Make sure your opt-in forms are placed prominently on every page of your website or blog so visitors can easily find them without having to search around.
6. Sell with affiliate programs
Let’s assume that you managed to find your niche and establish yourself as a go-to authority.
Now it’s time you learn how to make money blogging through affiliate marketing that I mentioned above.
Remember when we talked about how much money bloggers make?
Well, a huge part of that money comes from promoting the products or services of others.
And before you say anything – No, it’s not that saturated as many people think.
Affiliate marketing is a popular way to earn money online, and around 15% of online media’s revenue comes from this type of marketing.
In the United States, affiliate marketing drives approximately the same number of orders as email.
So, here’s how to do it:
- Select a niche
- Get to know your audience
- Select products or services to promote
Affiliate marketing is often trumpeted as a “get rich quick scheme” by sites offering pyramid schemes that promise quick cash for little effort.
Make no mistake—successful affiliate marketers like Pat Flynn put in a lot of effort toward building an audience and creating quality content that brings in sustainable passive income.
If you want to learn how to make money blogging, you have to keep in mind that thorough research is critical in this case.
By analyzing what your customers are buying from other affiliates, you can get a sense of what they might want to buy from you. If they like X, they might like Y.
And if they don’t… it’s not worth your time and effort to create Y (obviously.)
That’s why affiliate offers are really just a form of market research.
In the process, you get paid commissions on your readers’ products.
So not only are you learning what your audience wants to buy, but you’re raking in the cash while doing so. Talk about a double win!!
In order to find companies to partner with as an affiliate, search for different affiliate marketing programs that can connect you with brands or products.
Affiliate marketing is most commonly found on blogs and social media sites.
The most common and popular programs include:
- CJ Affiliate
- Rakuten Marketing
- Amazon Associates
- ShareASale
- eBay Partner Network
- Clickbank affiliate
Do you want to learn how to make money blogging?
Remember that you should always focus on providing value to your readers first and foremost.
The best affiliate marketers don’t come across as pushy salespeople or “affiliate marketers”; they give their readers valuable information that the readers would not otherwise have access to.
7. Presell your products/services
No matter how good your content is and how much traffic your site gets, if you can’t turn your visitors into customers, all of that is for nothing.
If you’re not familiar with preselling, it’s the process of convincing readers that your product or service will help them with their problem by providing them with information about it.
The concept is simple; however, it can be difficult for bloggers who need to make money now because the benefits are in the long term.
Preselling is all about building relationships with your visitors.
This is one of the most critical pieces of advice when learning how to make money blogging.
It’s about helping people understand that you’re not out to rip them off and care about their problems.
By doing this, they’ll trust you more and be more likely to buy from you when they are ready.
When it comes to preselling, there are three things that every blogger should do:
- Let readers get to know who you are
- Be honest about what your product or service can do for them.
- Give free samples of what they will receive.
Preselling is what you do when you create hype for a product before it comes out.
It sounds risky, but in many cases, preselling is safer than trying to sell something that’s already finished.
This is especially true if you plan on creating a digital product — an ebook or software or something similar.
If you’re going to be writing your book anyway, why not try to presell it?
Are you planning on writing an app? Why don’t you try selling it before it’s done?
If you will offer a course about a specific service, why not sell it before to see how many people are interested?
Are you preselling your services without having to actually do any work (except maybe a few hours of planning)? Then I say go for it!
You’d be surprised how often this works.
As long as you can get people excited about your idea, many of them will click that buy button when it finally shows up on the site.
Do you want to know another way how to make money blogging?
Well, it’s…
8. Influencer marketing
One of the least common ways bloggers make money is through sponsored posts and reviews since you’ll need a big following and an established reputation to make it work.
People who run blogs can make money by working with companies or products to write posts and reviews about them.
When you think about influencer marketing, your mind pulls up images of the influencers you know on Instagram and Youtube.
However, sponsored blog posts written by people outside the business are an important part of the industry as well.
By the end of this year, the influencer market is projected to expand to a whopping $16.4 billion industry.
However, if you are learning how to make money blogging, you must focus on one crucial thing.
The main drawback of sponsored posts/reviews is having a significant online presence before companies will pay you.
Companies will only spend money sponsoring posts if they lead to sales, and many established bloggers have plenty of sales to monetize.
New bloggers should look elsewhere for a monetization system.
But…as your blog picks up steam, it’s a smart move to get in the good graces of companies whose products or services you already use and offer to write a sponsored post or review.
You can find a list of companies that provide free products for bloggers in exchange for a review here.
These types of transactions usually go hand-in-hand with an affiliate relationship.
For example, if you’re reviewing a new pair of running shoes and you like them, you can link to them on Amazon using your affiliate code.
You can also apply directly to companies you’d like to work with that don’t have a formal program in place.
Earn a living blogging!
So… to conclude
Anybody can monetize their work if you follow my tips on how to make money blogging.
This is not just for the lucky few.
You need to be as passionate about your niche as you are about generating income.
The real key is to figure out how to find consistency with whatever you are creating.
If there’s something you can do every day (or even most days of the week) and you enjoy it, then try that for a couple of months and see where it goes.
You can make money blogging in many ways, some of which I address here.
If you want to get rich quick, don’t quit your day job.
Learning how to make money blogging it’s not something that will make you a millionaire overnight.
But if you want to supplement your income (at least at first) or are looking for a hobby that can lead to more than just some extra spending money, blogging can be one way to do it.
Just as with any business or entrepreneurial venture, though, it’s crucial to have a well-thought-out plan and goals before you start.
And because this is the internet we’re talking about, those plans should include strategies for attracting key audiences.
And don’t forget about converting those visitors into loyal readers and bridging those readers into loyal customers (that take your advice to heart and make purchases worthy of your recommendation).
Well… there you have it.
If you know how, blogging can be a fun, profitable endeavor.
