How To Turn Your Blog Into a Business

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.