GirlsGospel has been online since 28th June 2018. That’s just over 3 months (or 14 weeks if you want to be precise). I’ve been blogging for much longer though, so already had an idea of how I could earn money from a new blog. My own blogging journey started in 2009, when I created a weight loss blog. I have learnt a lot since then, and wanted to share some tips today.
Ways to earn money from a new blog:
The first thing to consider is how you want to earn money from a new blog. You can earn income from several means, and I will go into those more in detail below…
Sponsored Posts:
Are you hoping to attract sponsored posts? (This is where you get paid by companies to insert a follow link into a blog post, or to write about a specific topic or event). Once you have a well established blog, you will sometimes get contacted directly by SEO companies hoping to collaborate.
The best way to get yourself “out there” in the early days is via companies like Get Blogged. With them, you pitch on potential blog collaborations, and then they’ll email you if you are successful on any of the paid blogging jobs you pitched for.
Affiliate Links:
First, you join an affiliate network (Like Webgains). Next, you get personalised affiliate links to place within your blog posts. If anyone clicks through this link and makes a purchase, you can earn commission.
The downside to affiliate links is that nowadays, most people use cash back websites, so 80% of the time, the people who follow your link will then go to a cash back website before they purchase, so that they get a cut of the commission. This means the other site steals your commission as they are the website who most recently directed the customer to their store.
Banner Adverts:
Lots of bloggers use banner ads. This is a bit of code you put into your blog’s side banner. Some ads work via affiliate links, so the same rules as above apply. Other bloggers will accept a payment to put an advert in their side banner for a month. The more traffic you get, the more you can ask. Personally, I avoid using these, as they can clutter up your sidebar. You also have no control over what is shown on the ad you are plastering all over your own blog. The company might have sofas on there one day, and funeral directors the next.
How To Become Eligible For These:
New blogs start with a Domain Authority of zero. You won’t get offered any kind of monetising opportunities until this is higher. The first thing you need to do to increase it is make sure you have good blog content. Make sure you have installed the Yoast plugin if you’re using WordPress. Make sure that you have at least 10 posts which are over 500 words apiece. Ensure that all of them rate “good” on Yoast.
Comment, Comment, Comment!
Once you have done this, get involved with blog linkys. This is a brilliant way of boosting your traffic. I find Silent Sunday and My Sunday Photo are perfect for this, as you only have to post a photo. Make sure you add the linky badge to your blog post and then comment on every single other post which is linked up.
This is a lot of work, but getting your blog’s link out there is critical when it comes to boosting your Domain Authority (or DA). The links you get back will be no follow links, but even so – this gets your blog picked up and you will get traffic by doing it. The higher your domain authority becomes, the higher your rates should become, and the more likely you are to get on company’s radars for blogger outreach opportunities.
Great Quality Content
The quality of your work, combined with your blog’s stats are what most SEO companies are looking for. By all means, building your social media reach is important in getting your work “out there”, but this is best done naturally, over time. Never ever buy followers – this is painfully obvious and will see you crossed off most decent companies’ “books”.
One Last Thing:
Make sure you familiarise yourself with what you are legally required to do if you earn from your blog. Also be aware of what google do and don’t like you doing – they are two very different things.
I hope these tips have been useful for you. Do let me know if you have any other suggestions of ways to earn money from a new blog. Finally, don’t forget you have to declare to the tax man if you earn money from a new blog, (or any blog for that matter).
Thanks for all the info.