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There have been days when I earned ten thousand dollars through my blog. It's not unusual.
It took a lot of dedication and hard work to reach millions of readers. To make this kind of money, you need serious traffic. You shouldn't expect it to happen overnight.
Nevertheless, your effort and time are all that stand between you and this type of success.
There are many more opportunities to make money blogging than ever before. If you're willing to work hard, it is possible to make a few extra hundred dollars per month.
This guide will show you how to make money blogging, avoiding the same mistakes that I made over the course of my 10 year journey.
Sound good? Let's get started.
Your 2-Minute Cheat Sheet
To make money online, the first thing you should do is come up with a name and an idea for your blog. Consider the topics that you would like to write about frequently.
Sign up for the Bluehost Basic plan. This plan is a bargain at only $2.95 per monthly, even if you don’t have a lot of money.
Register your account and make sure to not add any extras, except domain privacy or protection. It's worth spending a few dollars more to ensure your privacy and security.
This will allow you to have your blog domain. Hurrah!
Next, you will need to install WordPress (it is a one-click installation with Bluehost), and finally write and publish your first blog post.
After you have published a few posts and started getting some traffic to your blog, you can start to monetize your blog to make your first dollar.
To make money via ads and affiliate marketing, you will need to create an Amazon Associates or Google AdSense account. After driving high traffic to the site, you can sell your products and services.
Those were the basics. Let's now get to the details.
Step 1: Figure Out Your Blog's Niche
First, decide what your blog will be about. You can talk about CBD, veganism or marketing.
Your idea does not have to be groundbreaking, but it does need to be unique.
These are two ways to choose a niche for your blog:
Select Something You Love
This may sound cliché, but it is true.
It is a mistake to blog about things you don't like. Your writing will reflect this and your readers will notice. You won't be able produce consistent high-quality content that will build your audience and then monetize it.
You should make a list of subjects that interest you and are interesting to you. Think about the advice you get from your family and friends.
Determine if a Prospective Niche has a Readership
You can only make money with your blog if there are enough visitors.
Let's say you have a blog niche already and are looking to write about arts & crafts.
It is a smart move to narrow down your niche and create a blog that is exclusively about scrapbooking or paper art. You enjoy writing on both, but you prefer to concentrate on one topic.
How do you decide between these two options?
Answer: Do a quick Google search.
You can see that there are more results for paper art than scrapbooking. It makes sense to write more about paper art because that is what the audience is looking for.
It's best to avoid general topics. As long as there are people who will take it up, don't be afraid of being specific.
If you are trying to start a food blog, for instance, don't use the word “food”; instead, use “barbecue”, or “vegan”.
Do you get my point?
Step 2 – Name Your Blog
After you have an idea, it is time to name your blog.
Is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanyotta your favorite name? You might think so.
But I bet Lady Gaga does.
Lady Gaga is actually Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta. She chose a more memorable and easy-to-remember name that is more in tune with her music.
This is the power of the right title.
It can be both exciting and scary to choose a blog name. This will be your brand name, and will determine how people remember you.
Do not overthink it and do not name your blog anything offensive or random.
When choosing a name, keep these questions in mind:
- Is it representative of what your blog will be about?
- Is your target audience interested in it?
- Is it easy to spell and pronounce the name?
- Is it concise and clear?
My domain name (NeilPatel.com), is my own. It's my brand and Neil Patel is who it is. You could either do the same thing I did, or create something completely different.
No matter what name you choose, ensure it is available on website domains.
Bluehost's domain checker can be used for this purpose. To find out the availability of each name, type it in the search box.
If you can, I recommend a.com. They can be expensive, however.
Don't panic if all the good ones are gone. Think about your primary URL keywords.
TalkCBDto.me is a cheaper alternative to talkCBDto.com if you're unable to reach the site because someone else did.
Do not buy a domain that is currently available. I have a free way to get it.
Step 3 – Sign up with a web host like Bluehost
To make your blog live, you will need to sign up to a web hosting company along with a domain name. This will be your blog's address.
Bluehost is hands down the best web hosting company, and it's also affordable. They offer excellent service and a free domain.
Did I mention that NeilPatel.com readers get an additional discount?
You are welcome.
Bluehost.com: Click on the green Start Now button.
Next, sign up to the Basic plan. Although you can upgrade later, it is better to keep the Basic plan as you are just starting a blog.
You don't have to pay any extra to register the domain name that you created. Before you click Next, make sure that the drop-down is set up to.com.
After that, sign in with your Google account. You can also manually enter personal credentials.
Scroll down to select your registration term. It can be either a 36-month, 24-month or 12-month agreement. A three-year contract is required to get the best deal (only $2.95 per month).
It's not over yet.
Package options include Domain Privacy + Protection and Codeguard Basic. Bluehost SEO Tools, Microsoft 365 Mailbox Trial and SiteLock Security Essentials are all available.
Domain Privacy + Protection is all you need to protect your contact information from unsolicited emailers and scammers. You can ignore the rest.
Next, enter your payment information and read the terms and condition, then hit submit.
This is where your blog will be!
Follow the instructions to create your account. Then, move on to the next step.
Step 4: Install WordPress CMS
Next, you will need blogging software.
WordPress is easy to use, features-rich and free. WordPress runs all of my blogs. You can also install thousands of plugins for free to enhance your blog's functionality and personalize it as you wish.
Bluehost will grant you a domain and hosting account for free after signing up. After logging in, fill in your credentials. Click on Install WordPress.
Next, click on Do it yourself (FREE), and then hit Install. After that, check Domain. Finalize your installation by accepting WordPress' terms of service.
Ta-Da! Now you have a WordPress blog that is fully functional and ready to go.
Step 5 – Design Your WordPress Blog
You need to choose a WordPress theme that is attractive and affordable in order to design a blog.
This is why you need it. After signing up for WordPress your blog will look like this:
It's not exactly what you would call welcoming and sleek. Your website's appearance can drive more traffic to your site, which in turn will help you make more money.
WordPress offers thousands to thousands of themes. I have compiled a list of the top themes. Here are some tips to help you choose a WordPress theme.
- Log in to your WordPress account.
- In the sidebar menu, click Appearance.
- Select Themes from the drop-down menu.
- To access thousands of premium WordPress themes, go to Add New. It is located at the top of the screen. To filter your search and see more options that suit your needs, you can click Feature Search.
It is important to choose a theme that suits your style but also fits in with the niche of your blog.
- To see the theme in action, preview it.
- Click on Install to see a sneak peak of a theme. Next, click Activate.
Your website will look more appealing and modernized with a new theme.
Step 6 – Come up with interesting blog topics
You can increase your website traffic and encourage more signups by email by providing interesting content to your readers.
Make a list of the questions you receive most often. You'll have a lot of ideas for blog topics in no time. It is important to consider the viewpoint of your reader when examining things.
Focusing on higher-level questions is also possible.
Let's say you are interested in starting a parenting blog for moms who stay at home. Below is a list I created of questions and answers regarding the mom blog.
Q1: What is an interesting or compelling talking point that your readers could find?
Topics related to homeschooling and sleep training are great places to start for stay-at-home mothers.
Q2: What are your readers' pain points and challenges?
Common household problems for stay-at home moms include meal planning and understanding developmental milestones.
Q3) What character traits are your readers?
Moms are usually patient and kind and love a good sense of humor.
Q4) Which niche topics appeal to you the most?
Stay-at-home moms might be interested in the child's emotional, mental, and physical development.
Q5: What would you hate most about my niche topic?
Mothers who stay at home don't want to be judged by others. You could also write blogs about society's perceptions of them and their impact.
You can also use the questions above to generate ideas for your niche. You should also create a headline that grabs attention and makes your reader click to your blog.
Step 7 – Optimize Your Blogs For SEO
Search engine optimization, or SEO, is an essential step in making money blogging. This is where you optimize your website so that it ranks higher in search engines for certain keywords and phrases.
You may have been following me for some time and know that SEO is my secret weapon.
I have successfully driven over 30 million people to my site by using certain keywords and phrases. Are you shocked?
SEO is the key to this power.
You can optimize WordPress content and blogs by downloading Yoast SEO plugin.
Click on Add New in the Plugins Menu. Then search for Yoast SEO using the search bar.
To complete the installation, activate it.
This plugin will provide you with a variety of suggestions and improvement tips based on your keyword to optimize your content. To improve SEO and content accessibility, I recommend that you include as many suggestions as possible.
Step 8 – Sign up for Google AdSense
The best way to monetize a blog is to set up ads. However, you must be knowledgeable about this.
People make the biggest mistake of bombarding their websites with blinking ads. This is a huge mistake.
Instead, you should focus on creating targeted ads that are appealing to your customers and not annoying them.
You will need to have a Google AdSense account in order to start making money from ads. Go to the AdSense page and click Sign up now. You will need to create a new Google account if you do not have one. Sign in if you already have a Google Account.
Before submitting your application, please fill out all required information. Each application is reviewed by AdSense and, if all goes well, you will be accepted!
Follow these steps to create your account.
- Click on My Ads> to open your AdSense dashboard.
- Choose the size and type of ad you want. After you are done, click Save to get the code.
- The code you receive will be copied and pasted between the body> tags on your page. This is how it will look.
- Your ad will go live once you have copied the code. You will find all the information you need about your earnings in AdSense dashboard. Make sure to check it often.
Although you can place ads on as many websites as you like, I recommend that you start with one or two to get a feel for how your audience reacts.
You should consider repositioning current ads if you notice a higher bounce rate in your dashboard.
Step 9 – Create an Amazon Associates account
Affiliate marketing is something you might be familiar with. Affiliate marketing is the best way to make passive income.
Sign up to Amazon Associates and you can immediately start earning through display ads, referral links, and Amazon-based shopping carts.
You'll receive a small commission if your visitors use your referral link, or click on the display advertisements.
All you have to do to sign up for Amazon Associates is go to the website and click on Register Now.
This is a very effective strategy. For more proof, just look at these earnings from Brendan Mace.
Amazon Associates isn’t the only affiliate program.
It will be a delight to learn that many companies have their own affiliate programs. Some of these companies pay higher commissions than Amazon. Be sure to do your research before becoming an affiliate for any brand.
However, I would like to stress the importance of only advertising products and services you have used or believe will benefit your audience.
10: Offer a product or service for sale (optional)
Bloggers are often viewed as only earning income from advertisements. While this might be true for some, you will find that many bloggers earn a lot of money selling products and services.
This will only work if you have a loyal readership and steady website traffic, such as Nomadic Matt. Once you are at this stage, don't be afraid of taking the leap.
Here are some things you might consider selling.
- Training courses
- Books
- Video courses/webinars
- Coaching services
- Consulting services
Next, decide how you will sell your product. Digital products can be sold using services like Shopify, WooCommerce plugins for WordPress, Amazon, and Etsy. You will need to create a larger ecommerce store if you are selling physical products (such as phone cases or clothes).
Let your audience know all about your product by sending them email. To build your email list, you can also create lead magnets such as whitepapers, PDFs, or pre-recorded webinars.
Conclusion
There is a big difference between having a blog and making money from it. You will need to be more proactive and focussed in order to make this transition a success.
This is what you have!
Keep your eyes on the prize and keep working hard to improve your blog and build trust with your readers. Follow my steps to get started.
Stick with what works and you will have a winning formula.
Are you a blogger? Please share your experiences.
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By: Neil Patel
Title: How to Make Money Blogging
Sourced From: neilpatel.com/blog/how-to-make-money-blogging/
Published Date: Mon, 13 Sep 2021 18:00:00 +0000