Turning a blog into a business is not an easy task. I remember when I first started blogging, I had no idea that I could make money from my website. And when I had my first opportunity to make some extra cash it was life changing. I couldn’t believe that this little website could provide a small amount of income for me. Money and blogging really can go hand in hand if you know what you are doing. And, like many other bloggers I for sure winged it and went into the business side of blogging with zero experience.
There are so many things you need to be careful of when you’re a blogger. The amount of scammer emails I have received over the last year of blogging is enormous. So many brands and companies claim to want to help you make money from your site, when in reality they just take advantage of you.
In todays post I want to share everything I have learnt about money and blogging, and how you can turn your blog into a business. This, of course is just my personal experience and advice. Everybody has different ways that they run and make money from their sites. So just bare that in mind!
ESTABLISH YOURSELF AS A BRAND
One of the first and probably most important things to do as a blogger is establish yourself as a brand. If you want to turn your blog into business, it’s important that brands and companies see you as a professional website and individual. If your theme and logo are not set, it will really have an impact on whether or not a company will want to work with you.
It took me a while to decide on a logo for my website. I think in my first year of blogging I had 3 different logos. And I always tell my readers this. It’s okay to change up your logo and theme until you are happy with it. Rather it be right and match you, than sticking with something that doesn’t represent you well.
There are many tools and companies out there who can help you develop your very own logo. Canva is a great website to use, and alot of their tools are free aswell.
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MONETISE YOUR WEBSITE
I remember the day when I upgraded my plan on WordPress to business, which meant I was then able to start making money from ads. I was so excited about the opportunity of making money, and that was really the first time I started making money from my website.
Slowly though, I realised that making money from ad clicks was hard. Personally, whenever I am on someones website I don’t ever click ads. Usually because they don’t interest me. I soon realised though, that if my revenue from ads was solely from clicks it would take a while for me to make any money at all. Just remember to be patient. And anything you make is more than you had before.
Research and look into other ad companies that might provide better ad revenue than others. I really like Google Ads over WordPress ads. (I actually have WordPress ads turned off.)
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SIGN UP FOR AFFILIATE PROGRAMMES
One of the best ways to turn your blog into a business is signing up for affiliate programmes. Have you ever seen when bloggers or influencers write AFF or say that the post is sponsored etc? Most likely they are using affiliate links in their posts. All it means is that if you click the link and make a purchase, a small percentage of the sale you made goes to the influencer. Usually its about 10-20% sometimes more, sometimes less.
Alot of the time with affiliate links there is some sort of incentive for the reader. For example, I have a Flodesk AFF link. Flodesk is the application I use for my email marketing. Which means you get a discount on your Flodesk subscription. So, if you use my link not only do you get a discount, I also make money if you sign up.
Here are a few of my own affiliate links:
Flodesk – Free trial and 50% off your monthly/yearly subscription.
Intellifluence – Make money and work with brands when you sign up. (I explain more about this in the next section!)
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UTILISE INFLUENCER MARKETING
Only recently I have I got into influencer marketing. If you’d have asked me a few months ago what it was, or what it meant I’d have no idea. “Influencer marketing is a form of social media marketing involving endorsements and product placement from influencers, people and organisations who have a purported expert level of knowledge or social influence in their field.“ – Wikipedia
To put it into simple terms, if you are a blogger or consider yourself a macro or micro influencer then you can be involved in influencer marketing. It’s such a great way for you to make money from your website or social media platforms. Alot of the influencer marketing websites involve you applying for assignments made by brands. And then waiting to see if the brand see’s you as a good fit for the assignment.
If you are successful, the brand will then let you know the requirements. Which usually involve writing a post and including a link through an anchor text word. Once the post is published, you then send over the link to the brand for them to approve. And then thats when you get paid. Its actually so simple and allows you to work with so many awesome companies.
Intellifluence (which I mentioned earlier) is the main influencer marketing tool that I use. The opportunities and payouts are awesome. Get blogged is another influencer marketing tool, but they don’t pay out as much as intellifluence do.
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How have you turned your blog into a business? Do you use any influencer marketing tools? Have you ever used an affiliate link?
As you can see, there’s a common theme in turning your blog into a business and money. They go hand in hand really. I hope you found this information helpful. And can’t wait to hear your thoughts on this topic.
Olivia x
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This page may contain affiliate links, meaning I receive commissions for purchases made through those links, at no cost to you.
A very educative blog will certainly help any blogger interested in generating income ..
Stay blessed always
🙏🌹🙏
Thanks so much for reading!
Hey Olivia! My name is Jessica and I ran across your blog about how to turn a blog into a business. What’s so interesting about this subject is I wanna turn my website http://help4urmentalhealth.com into a business since writing is one of the top things I love doing. I haven’t even started turning it into a business yet, and already I have over 500 views since I started it. My niche for my site is mental health and I write literature pieces or blog about whatever subject people and I deal with in life, and how it can all affect our mental health when we let it. And in case you haven’t already, take a moment to look at some of my blogs, tell me your thoughts on it, and if possible share it along with others.
Lovely! My blog is still in the baby stages of being a business, but those sites you’ve mentioned have definitely helped. One thing to note though is that I’ve found, if you aren’t maximizing your mailing list, it might be best to stick to a free version. But if you will be sending lots of newsletters, updates, promotions and such, definitely invest in a Flo Desk subscription.
Yes yes yes! Such good advice here Shelly 💖
Would love to turn my blog into a business some day soon, thank you for being so open and sharing what has worked for you!
Of course friend, always here to share my advice 🙂
Great advice! I’ve not yet made the plunge from a hobby into a business. I’m still working on my branding, when I have the time. Might attempt the google ads at some point! X
Great post! I’ve been using Awin and it’s got so many different brands you can be an affiliate for. I signed up to Intellifluence but haven’t really gotten anywhere :/
These are really helpful tips and I’m so glad that I read your blogpost today. I’m currently stuck at making my site look professional, switching to business and Google Ads but your surefire tips will make things easier when the time comes. Thanks a lot!!!
This is a really informative post, thanks for sharing 🙂
Great post Olivia. I thinking making an income from blogging is awesome if that’s your goal. These insights will definitely come in handy.
Great tips! I haven’t tapped into monetizing properly as my blog is mostly a hobby blog, BUT making money passively from ads feels good.
Thank you for this post Olivia! Do you mind if I ask one question?Can you please tell me that by upgrading to premium or personal plan google adsense can be approved or not 🙂?
This is so helpful as a new blogger! Thank you for sharing😊
I fully agree with you! Since I’ve started making money from blogging, its been life changing and so rewarding! Love all of your points here. Thanks for sharing babe xx
Lynn | https://www.lynnmumbingmejia.com
Thanks for your sharing. It’s really helpful for me. I’m running a blog as well. It would be grateful if you could visit my blog as well.
https://mystorytellings.com
Thanks a lot. ❤️
Thank you so much for this post! We want to turn this into a full time business but it seems like the first year is hard!! This has been very helpful in deciding what next steps to take
Hey Olivia, I really liked the points you have discussed and are found really helpful. Thanks for sharing such piece.
I haven’t turned my blog into a business yet but I am open to monetisation and I am still blown away by the fact that my hobby can generate a small amount of income. It’s amazing and I can’t wait to see what is in store.
I haven’t turned my blog into a business yet but I am open to monetisation and I am still blown away by the fact that my hobby can generate a small amount of income. It’s amazing and I can’t wait to see what is in store. Great post!
I haven’t launched my blog just yet and I am a bit nervous to start but after reading this it gives me such a great guideline and things to consider! Thanks for the great advice 🙂
This is so exciting!! I am so excited for you to start. You will not regret it. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help!
very nice out come
Thank you for sharing your tips! I think I’m just overthinking this blogging process. I keep thinking that I need a certain page view number or following to be successful and it might take away from the quality of my site. I gotta stop worrying and just do it!