Blog Income: The 4 Biggest Ways to Make Money Blogging

Blog Income: How Exactly Do You Make Money Blogging?

Have you read any blog income reports? It seems like bloggers are making a lot of money, right? I know when I started getting serious about blogging, I wanted to get in on that money!

While not everyone makes a lot of money blogging, it is possible to be making money even off your first blog. And it is possible to make money quickly, no matter what you blog about.

You don’t have to be blogging full time to pull in some blogging income either. You can find ways to monetize that suit your needs right away! (Just don’t forget to report that income on your taxes.)

Whether you publish income reports, read online income reports, or are just curious as to how your own blog stacks up compared to other successful blogs, it is important to be aware of all the different ways bloggers can make money.

Here are 4 simple ways to monetize your blog that you can start working on today.

Blog Income Sources

Something a lot of people love about blogging is all the different ways to make money. Whether you start out trying to make money or decide to turn your hobby into a business, you have several income generating options.

1. Advertisements

Ads are a pretty easy way to get income from your site. As people read your post they see ads and you get revenue in proportion to the traffic your site gets.

Ad Networks

This method takes minimal work. Often you just sign up with an ad network, decide where you want the ads to be, and they take it from there. Payment rates per month can vary, but you don’t have to actively chase down money.

Different ad networks have different requirements to join. Google Adsense is pretty easy to be a part of. MediaVine and AdThrive have stricter requirements.

One thing to note about ads is that some networks have a payout threshold. That means they do not send you your money earned until you reach a certain dollar amount. You maybe have ‘earned’ $12 last month, but if you don’t have a payout until you reach $100 you won’t see that money in your bank account yet.

So when determining the income you made, keep in mind that for tax purposes income means actual money you have received. Be sure to keep track what part of your blogging salary is actual and what is still basically theoretical.

Selling Your Own Ad Space

You can also just sell ad space on your own. With this, you work directly with a company or brand to create an ad on your site. A pro of this way is that you can really customize the ads for your readers. A con is that it is a bit more work to go through since you have to work out the contract yourself.

However, this sort of ad offers more control in terms of content and can potentially bring in more income as you are determining your rates.

2. Affiliate Links

Affiliate marketing is another way bloggers make money. This method can be thought of as a commission based method. You offer up a way for your readers to buy a product or service, usually through a link on your blog post or social media.

Like with advertisements, there are many networks you can work through. Amazon Affiliates is the most common affiliate network, but it is for sure not the only one.

Be aware that affiliate networks can have payout thresholds, meaning any money ‘earned’ is not really yours until you reach a certain limit. Keep this in mind when calculating your actual monthly income.

You can also become an affiliate directly with companies or brands. In these situations, you are paid based on a rate agreed upon by you and the company.

Affiliate advertising can be as little or as much work as you want it to be. A bonus of this sort of money making is that you can choose what products or services to offer to your readers.

3. Sponsored Posts

If you would like a way to make money that is not reliant on traffic there are sponsored posts. This is when a company or network pays you for a post about their product or service.

Once again, there are networks that connect bloggers with brands to make this sort of post happen. I should note it is not limited to blog posts. You can have sponsored social media posts as well.

You can also work directly with companies to blog for income in this way. This gives you the freedom to determine your own rates, which can help you reach the blogger salary you are looking for. (If you need help determining your rates check out Social Blue Book.)

This is a great way to get paid to blog if you don’t want to worry as much about traffic.

Payment Through Product

A specific way to get paid as a sponsored post is through product. A brand gives you a product in exchange for a mention or blog post. This is a form of sponsored post.

If you are receiving a good in exchange for a service you are taking part in a barter transaction. These products do count as income, and as such need to be reported on your taxes.

To learn more about how this income is calculated and reported check out this post—> Barter Transactions in Blogging.

4. Sell Digital Products or Services

If you don’t want to rely on a network or brands for income, you could be getting paid to blog by selling digital products or services.

Digital Products

Digital products are things you make and sell online. Think printables, Ebooks, and even digital courses. You create the product and sell it on your site.

You created the product so you get to decide the price point. It is also completely on you as to how you go about getting sales.

Coaching or Memberships

Your product can also be in the form of coaching, mentoring, or memberships. With these, you are offering services online. For example, you could be a health coach or sleep consultant. Paid membership groups let you offer your digital services to groups of people at the same time.

Again you choose the price point for these and are responsible for how the services are offered. You are also responsible for collecting payment and determining the terms of the services provided.

There are programs and services available to help you collect and process payments for both digital products and digital services.

Remember Taxes

You need to track all your income sources, as they are all potentially subject to income taxes. Even if you are a blogging hobbyist, money made can be taxed. Keep in mind this is on money that is actually made and available to you, not money before you have reached a payout threshold.

You are responsible for reporting your income even if you do not receive tax forms from brands or networks. Most will send out the appropriate form, but it is ultimately up to you to track your revenue.

(Get the easiest bookkeeping method for bloggers—> Blog Bookkeeping Organization)

Bloggers like to make money. These are some of the most common ways to generate income through your blogging. If your goal is to make income from your blog, these are for sure avenues you need to consider.