There are currently a large number of unemployed people, as well as stay-at-home moms who are looking for ways to earn some extra money. Many have been active “hobby” bloggers, but are looking for ways to turn their hobby into cash.
So how exactly do you turn your blog into the cash cow that Internet guru’s are proclaiming it can be? Many pro bloggers will tell you that the most common and profitable way to turn your blog into a cash cow is through the use of selling advertisement space on your blog. Have you ever came across blog themes that laid aside space specifically for advertisers? Well this is due in part to the popularity of blogs and their far-reaching effects. Bloggers can make money by selling advertising directly to companies who are looking to reach readers in specific niches. Also, bloggers can make money by writing posts related to a particular product from a company in exchange for money, or through the use of affiliate ads. Whichever method you choose, blogs are a form of raking in cash for both the company and the blogger.
If you plan to sell advertising there are a few ways you can go about this on your blog:
- Look for sponsors who wish to place ads on your blog either through advertisements or paid posts
- Join affiliate networks
- Find a job as a professional blogger
Beginning with the first method, there are many websites set up to match companies with bloggers in what is called “paid blogging.” Websites such as PayU2Post and ReviewMe pay bloggers to write natural-sounding paid advertisements on their blogs in exchange for cash.
Looking at the second method, bloggers can take control of the entire advertising process by posting advertisements of their choosing. Programs such as Google’s AdSense (which is what we use on this web site), Commission Junction, and a host of other affiliate and CPA (cost per action) networks are available for you to choose which advertisements you would like promote. Affiliate networks sometimes represent thousands of online merchants. Signing up for an affiliate network gives you access to many of the top online stores and it is easy to find merchants related to your blogging niche.
The advantages of any affiliate program are innumerable as they require very little effort on your part to begin raking in large sums of money. Furthermore, bloggers never have to worry about having a physical product to sell as they are simply a ‘virtual spokesman’ for the company whose product or service they are marketing.
Some of the largest and best affiliate networks are the following:
Another option bloggers can consider is to actually sell advertisements to big-name companies. While this method takes a little more work and a larger blog following, it is still very lucrative. When you sell advertisements to a company you should ensure that you have plenty of connections in industries that are related to the your blog’s subject or niche. If you have a strong background in marketing or sales, you already have the knowledge that it takes to pitch proposals to companies who would be interested in purchasing advertising space on your blog. In order to succeed in this method your biggest selling point will be the traffic that is being accounted for daily on your blog. You will need to show proof of your traffic and that you are an authority on your chosen topic. A high level of readership will give you the upper hand in most negotiations regarding how much you will charge advertisers.
As blogging continues to become a lucrative business, many businesses are scrambling to find out how they can get in on this Web 2.0 action. One way that big companies are capitalizing in on this blogging revolution is by creating blogs themselves. Usually however, they don’t write these blogs themselves and instead employ an established blogger to create a platform for them that will appeal to their consumer base. This particular job is yet another way that bloggers can cash in on blogging. If you’re one of the lucky writers who has the pleasure of obtaining this job, you can make large sums of money blogging on behalf of large corporations.
So what are you waiting for? Get to blogging today!