Today I’m taking part in a fun series of tips with some great bloggers! We’re talking about 5 Simple Ways to improve photos, dress for less, save time cooking, successfully homeschool, live a natural lifestyle, organize, decorate your home, start using coupons, and yes, make money from your blog!
Making money from your blog. Sounds like a dream job, right? Well, it can be, but making even a part-time income requires a great deal of time and effort, much like owning your own business!
So, what if you have a just-for-fun blog, but wouldn’t mind making a little bit of money from it? After all, you’re doing it anyway – why not earn enough to pay for a pizza night now and then, or to do something you might not otherwise be able to do?
Here are five simple ways to earn money from your blog. They’re things anyone can do, no matter how big or small your blog. They don’t take too much time or effort or technical know-how.
You won’t get rich, but they’re easy ways to help your family with that extra pizza night.
1. Put up ads with Lijit.
Most banner ad programs are either inaccessible to smaller bloggers, or require a lot of maintenance and setup to make sure they only show family-friendly ads. But, I’m really excited about the Lijit ad network!
Their ads are easy-to-use, and in my experience, very nice looking ads that seem to be very family-friendly. You get paid when the ads are shown on your site, not when someone clicks or signs up for something. They’re virtually maintenance-free, and it’s a cash payment (minimum of $25 in earnings before you’ll receive a payment).
Depending on the size of your blog, it may take awhile to add up, but it’s so easy it’s a no-brainer. You can use it on a WordPress blog, or Blogger, or really any blogging platform!
Go here to read more about Lijit and sign up.
2. Get referral credits.
Many daily deal sites like Groupon, Mamapedia, and Living Social offer referral credits when you share their deals on your site. Groupon will credit your account with $10 in Groupon bucks when a friend you’ve referred makes their first purchase; Living Social offers $5.
As a side note, you may want to talk to a CPA about any money you make from blogging. Those $10 Groupon credits are awesome until you realize that you may need to report them as income and pay 30+% income taxes on those “free” credits.
But you’re saying I’m not into blogging about good deals, just personal, family stuff like a trip to the zoo? Well, if you used a Groupon to pay for a trip to the zoo, mention it to your friends when you tell them about the awesome time you had at the zoo! If you’re blogging about a fun experience you had shopping downtown, tell them you got a great deal at that little boutique with a voucher you got from Living Social!
3. Earn by helping your friends earn cash and gift cards.
I love sharing about ways to save money, but I also love sharing about how to earn money! Here’s a couple of easy programs you can use to help your blog readers earn cash and gift cards, and you’ll earn right along side them:
You can help your friends earn Amazon or Starbucks gift cards through programs like Swagbucks – if they sign up under your referral link, you earn points when they earn points; so you both win!
I recommend only promoting companies that you have personal experience with or otherwise know to be reputable. There are lots of scam “making money” programs out there, so do exercise caution when referring friends!
I love referring people to places like MySurvey and Pinecone Reseach – two legitimate survey sites that actually pay out in cash! And, MySurvey gives you points whenever a friend you refer completes their first survey! (Pinecone Research does not have a referral program and they only accept applications periodically.) These sites usually love families with small children – that demographic gets lots of surveys.
Again, you don’t have to do a whole post about Swagbucks to use your referral link. Maybe you’re going to tell them about the great deal you got on EMU boots from Amazon and how you paid for part of it with Amazon gift cards you earned from Swagbucks!
4. Recommend relevant products
Have you ever written about how awesome a new toy you got for your kid’s birthday is? Or about a fun new book you’ve been enjoying recently? Chances are you probably linked to the product on Amazon or the manufacturer’s website so that your blog readers could find out more about it.
Well, in many cases, you can actually earn a “commission” if they happen to buy that product or another one after clicking on your link to that site! It’s called an affiliate link, and the link allows the company to know that you clicked to their site via your friend’s link, and they’ll credit that site with a small percentage of the sale if your friend happens to buy it. It’s how many companies choose to market their products instead of paying up-front for other advertising – this way, they just pay the affiliate “advertiser” if they happen to make a sale.
Never recommend a product just because you might make a commission on it! Here’s my commitment to my readers.
You can join Amazon’s affiliate program here – unless you’re in Colorado or a few other states that they don’t work with because of sales tax laws.
Or, another, simpler option is to sign up with VigLink. It’s a simple script that you can embed onto your blog that automatically adds a personal affiliate link to the links on your blog if that merchant allows it, and it extends much farther than just Amazon. Obviously, VigLink takes a cut off the top of that, but once it’s installed, all the work is done for you and they just pay you via Paypal.
5. Sell your own products.
If you have a blog with any readership at all, you have an audience that is interested in what you are doing. Maybe, just maybe, you might be able to use your blog to launch an Etsy store, or publish an eBook.
If you’re always showing off your amazing craft projects and people are saying “I wish I could do that!”, why not make those projects and sell them on Etsy? Or, you could make an eBook with step-by-step instructions for a variety of craft projects, and sell the eBook.
Marketing products, whether tangible or digital, is difficult. Trust me: I’ve done it. But, it can be fun and financially rewarding to sell something you enjoy creating!
That’s all I’ve got.
I’ve now written over 1,200 words about Five Simple Ways To Make Money From Your Blog. Somehow, I’m thinking I got a little farther from simple than was intended, but trust me – it gets lots more complicated!
I hope this post has been helpful to you, and gotten you brainstorming about ways you could use your blog to make a little bit of extra spending money.
$1.25 for Lucerne (half gallon) at Safeway, Fri-Sun Only
Wow – I just stumbled on your blog and this is a terrific post, especially for a newbie blogger like me. Thanks for these terrific tips and resources! Rachel
Hi- I looked at adding the ligit ads to my website, but when you go to enter your SS#, the site is not showing that it is a secured site. That’s not good. What is your take?
sorry, that was the lijit ads.
Hi, Molly! I’m not sure – I would perhaps email them to find out why it’s not showing as secured.
What a great post! I knew about quite a few of these programs but there were a couple that were new to me. Thanks for posting.
Great post! These are things that even a beginning blogger can implement on their website and earn a little extra money.
Toni
Thanks for sharing these ideas!
As a pre-beginning blogger, meaning I’m still trying to figure out what to blog about, this is great advice. I found you through Laura at orgjunkie.com, and I’ll be back for a visit now and then. Thanks!!
Thanks so much for this post! I hadn’t considered ads on my blog since it’s private so I don’t get a ton of traffic on there, but I figure there’s no harm in trying if if doesn’t take a lot of work.
I had heard of Groupon, Ebates and Swagbucks for a while but was skeptical that they were “too good to be true.” But I trust you 100%, Carrie, and so I gave them a try after I found out that you use them and I have been so pleased with the results! I have referred people on my blog to all 3 programs and have gotten way more freebies that way. Thank you!
I tried to become an affiliate with Amazon a while back and was puzzled that it wouldn’t allow me to since I live in CO. I had known people here that were a part of that program, so when I contacted Amazon about it, they mentioned the tax rule and said I could write to our govenrment to request that it be changed. I know you said not to get you started, but I don’t really know much about the rule and am curious if you think the law is bogus or if Amazon should have just abided by it? And if you don’t want to get into that, I’ll respect that :)
Haha, Sharon! I don’t mind getting into it, just didn’t want to in the post. ;)
Amazon kicked Colorado affiliates out when we passed a law that required us to pay sales tax on all online transactions. As I understand it, Amazon isn’t actually required to collect and file the Colorado sales tax (believe it or not, we the taxpayer are now supposed to report all transactions we conduct online and pay sales tax of our own accord), but they felt the intention of the law was to make it difficult for the online retailer so that they would just collect the tax. Which, obviously, Amazon doesn’t want to do.
So, Amazon kicked Colorado affiliates out in protest of the new law. In my opinion, this was an irrelevant decision – how many Amazon affiliates in Colorado really just use their program to market to Colorado residents? So, I think it was stupid to punish Colorado affiliates because of something our legislature did. But, I’ve gotten over it and since then I’ve heard more things about Amazon affiliates that’s made me think they really just don’t care about their affiliates at all.
There’s debate as to whether or not the law should even be legal, but I’m not going to get into that because I don’t understand enough about it to speak intelligently. I do know that it seems that Colorado is overstepping its boundaries in the area of internet sales tax.
I know some Colorado Amazon affiliates have simply changed their mailing address to out of state, but I personally don’t think that’s a wise move. I’m not into working the system. :)
VigLink does pay out on Amazon sales, but it’s a very small percentage of what you’d make through the actual Amazon affiliate program.
Hi,
I have been thinking about starting a blog recently, and this hepled me a bit; but I was wondering just how much a blogger can make in a typical month? Would you mind telling me about how much you make off of your blog? I am trying to quit my parttime job, and so I don’t have a large income to replace, but I’m just not sure if I can make enough through a blog.
Hi, Rachael! What you can make depends on a *lot* of factors. I am able to make a good part-time income working from home as a professional blogger; however, it’s much more like owning my own business than working a part-time job. I LOVE it, but it has taken just as much work and sacrifice to build it up to a regular income as it would to start any other business.
I would encourage you to do some strategizing about what you’d like to blog about, then do some research to find out how you’d be able to earn money by blogging about that topic. Then, try it for a few months before you quit your job. You want to make sure you love all of it – not just the writing part, but website maintenance, ad sales, marketing, networking, etc. – before you decide if you could develop it into something that would replace an income.
And, you don’t have to love *all* of it – I personally hate selling ads, so what ads we sell directly, my husband handles. Most bloggers outsource design and the technical stuff, but I actually love it so I do all of it myself (which saves money).
Anyway, I would just encourage you to give it a go for awhile to see if you can make it work! It’s not instant income – you’ll likely blog for quite awhile without making much at all, so you have to be dedicated for the long term.
http://savvyblogging.net is a great resource for aspiring bloggers. :)
Carrie, what a great post and thank you for including Lijit in your roundup. We love bloggers and we love making them money, too!
Your advocacy and continual feedback is greatly appreciated and we’re happy to hear everything is working out for you!
If any readers have any questions, they can always directly e-mail me. I’m happy to field any questions, feedback, ideas, etc. I’m: grace at lijit dot com
Cheers!
Grace Boyle
Publisher Services Manager @Lijit
Thanks so much for this. I am on the verge of monetizing my blog. I just need the push to do it. I’ve been doing a lot of research on it. This article helps a lot (as in I am already familiar with several of the things you mentioned – I already use Groupon, Mamapedia, and Amazon A LOT). You really gave me a lot to think about and a boost of confidence to get going!
Oooh thanks for reminding me that I can get my Amazon affiliate account back since I no longer live in CO!!
Haha, you’re welcome! :)
Great info, thanks for sharing!
Very neat, something every blogger can easily start doing because every little bit helps!
Kind of funny that you’re talking about Ads because there is an annoying ad on the screen now that is causing me to NOT be able to read this post. GRRR!
Sponsored by Novo Ink on the left of my screen? I can print screen it if you want?
Allie
Allie, can you tell me what resolution your monitor is? It shouldn’t be in the way unless you have a very small monitor. I’ll take a look at it if you can tell me what resolution you’re viewing with.
Carrie,
This is such a timely post for me as I’m starting a new bargain blog! I am wondering if you have used SkimLinks? VigLinks and SkimLinks seem similar. I am just wondering if the commissions one can make are much more if you go through companies like Commission Junction yourself (without the middleman)? Although both companies claim to make a higher % from companies because of the higher volume of sales, do you think it evens out? This is the first I’ve really heard of VigLinks, so I’m trying to decide what to do!! I have found it a bit overwhelming to keep track of all the businesses that I’m an affiliate of. So much to learn!!
Sorry to ramble on so….
Thank you for such a great post!
Weird, I thought I replied to this but it didn’t save it! Well, anyway – yes, it’s always better to go to the merchant’s direct affiliate program if you can. In the interest of writing about 5 *Simple* Ways To Make Money From Your Blog, I didn’t write about the ins and outs of that as it can be quite complicated!
Any program like VigLink is going to take a cut off the top of your commissions, so it’s better to go directly, though it’s obviously much more work. I do have a list of some of the affiliate programs I use in the disclosure linked about or here: http://springsbargains.com/about/disclosure-policy/
Thanks so much, Carrie!
Excellent post! I already do some of those things on my blogs. I am going now to check out Lijit, as I had never heard of it.