You’ve embarked on your blogging journey with the goal of making money online. But when should you start monetizing your blog? Should you immediately go for it, or wait until you’ve amassed a certain number of daily visitors or email subscribers? These are crucial questions that need answering for anyone aiming to make money with blogging.
After nearly a decade of building and growing blogs, I’ve experimented with various monetization methods, both immediate and delayed. Here’s when you should start monetizing your blog and the best methods to do it.
Monetization For Blogging – When Should You Start?
The key to answering this question lies in understanding how you plan to monetize your blog. A survey of over 1000 high-traffic bloggers reveals the most popular ways to monetize. Here are some tried-and-tested methods.
From my experience, here are the most practical ways for bloggers to make money:
- Advertising via Google Adsense and other networks
- Affiliate marketing using programs like Amazon Associates or digital product promotions from CJ, ClickBank, and more
- Selling digital products such as eBooks, courses, and memberships
- Offering services in consulting or freelancing
- Publishing sponsored content on your blog
- Selling your blog through website flipping platforms
How Are You Monetizing Your Blog?
Your monetization method will dictate when you should start. Let’s delve into each method in detail.
1. Monetizing a Blog with Advertising
In this method, you allocate ad space on your blog. Networks like Google Adsense display ads tailored to your visitors’ interests. You earn money when visitors click on these ads.
Google Adsense is the premier advertising network, used by over 11 million websites globally. To earn significantly through ads, you need substantial traffic, ideally at least 100 daily visitors. Adsense rewards vary by niche, with high-ticket industries paying more per click.
2. Monetizing a Blog with Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is a popular monetization strategy. It involves earning commissions for promoting third-party products. You make money by driving sales without owning the product.
Amazon Associates and digital product affiliate programs like CJ and ClickBank offer numerous options. Since affiliate marketing doesn’t require high traffic to start making sales, you can begin monetizing immediately. Even blogs with 50 daily visitors can generate affiliate income through effective promotions.
3. Selling Digital Products on Your Blog
Selling your digital products like eBooks, courses, and memberships can generate significant revenue even with low traffic. However, the process requires effort and planning. Digital products offer a one-time creation cost with perpetual sales potential, making them highly lucrative.
Launch your digital product when you reach around 1000 email subscribers for impactful results. Alternatively, you can leverage Facebook Ads to kickstart your course sales even without a large subscriber base. This approach offers immediate monetization opportunities while building your email list.
4. Selling Services on Your Blog
Offering services like freelancing or consulting is another viable option. Unlike selling products, you can start offering services from day one. Build your brand and leverage your blog to attract clients. Freelancing in niches such as web development, content writing, and graphic design can be highly profitable.
Consulting services pay more than freelance services due to the more significant problems they solve. Whether as a blog consultant, content marketing advisor, or niche-specific consultant, you can leverage your expertise for higher income.
5. Flipping Your Blog for a Profit
Website flipping involves growing a blog to a certain level of traffic and revenue, then selling it for profit. Platforms like Investors Club, Flippa, and EmpireFlippers facilitate blog sales.
The sale price is usually 12-24 times your average monthly profit, depending on various factors like monthly traffic, traffic sources, income diversification, blog age, backlink profile quality, email list size, and content quality. While a long-term strategy, website flipping can be highly profitable.
Conclusion
The best time to start monetizing your blog depends on your chosen method. If using Adsense, start placing ads once you have at least 100 daily visitors. For affiliate marketing, begin immediately. When selling your own products or services, aim to have around 1000 email subscribers, which can take up to 6 months.
So, when should you monetize your blog? It hinges on your strategy and traffic levels. By understanding these factors, you can make informed decisions and optimize your blog’s monetization approach effectively.
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