Blogging was a joke to most of the world not so long ago. People perceived blogging as a diversion from everyday problems or a hobby to kill free hours. Today, however, the perception of blogger has changed dramatically. Blogging is one of the best ways to make extra money, and in this post, I am going to discuss some details.

The main reason why blogging is now a profession is its ability to provide an outcome that surpasses the salary of middle- and some executive-level employees. The most profitable blogs like Smashing Magazine and Mashable earn up to a million per month. They have already transformed into companies that gather significant income through advertisements.

Yet, most of the blogs were created without sufficient funding. For example, Mashable was started in 2005 by Pete Cashmore in his home. He had a passion for creating helpful content and it paid off well.

how to make extra money as a blogger?

What about you? Are you interested in receiving some serious income from your blog as well? Well, let’s review the ways to turn your WordPress blog into a money-generating machine.

#1. Create Useful Content

No blog can generate income if it does not contain a content that people consider helpful. Of course, you cannot create content that could be used for anyone, so the choice of content will depend on what your blog is about. For example, the aforementioned Mashable is a go-to source for social media and high-tech news.

Only useful content will make a blog profitable. Here are the results of a recent sharing patterns study as illustrated by Coschedule:

Image Credit: Coschedule

That’s why you need to focus on creating content that creates value for a certain target audience. This content needs to help people trust you and consider you as a reliable and trustworthy source of tips.

Creating useful content requires to follow a number of rules:

• Try to narrow a topic down; don’t try to fit too much information into one post
• Use visuals like infographics, videos, gifs, and images. People love visuals!
• Engage readers by asking a question or taking a survey
• Keep your posts brief and to the point. Readers don’t want to spend a whole day reading one article.

#2. Be Responsive

Some bloggers make a mistake by focusing too much on content creation. By doing so, they forget about engaging readers. You need to avoid that because, well, who wants to read a blog of a person who does not care enough to answer to a comment?

When you start to notice that visitors engage with your content, for example, by asking you a question in the comments section, you need to change your focus. This is not to say that you should not worry about content anymore because it’s still profoundly important.

Rather, you need to pay attention to comments and respond to them because this helps to keep people returning to your blog. Also, if you have an opportunity to reach someone personally through an email, do it.

No money can be made without an engaged reader. So, here are tips on cultivating good relationships with answers to readers’ comments:

• Don’t be a know-it-all. You don’t want your reader to be left with a feeling of disdain.
• Strive for a personal voice. It’ll help readers to feel more comfortable.
• Use readers’ names. Your readers are your friends. And how do you call a friend? That’s right, by name!
• Be empathetic. Always reply with empathy to show that you care.
• Respond! Silence is not an option!

#3. Promote Affiliate Products

Another good way to make cash using your blog is to join up with affiliates. They need to match the content of the blog. This method is really similar to direct advertising but instead of selling space on the blog you will be creating content that promotes the brand.

However, to promote affiliate products, you need to have a decent readership. Bloggers with a lot number of daily readers cannot use affiliate marketing, for obvious reasons. However, if your blog has a lot of traffic, you can try to affiliate with companies that match your content.

You’re making money when readers click affiliate merchant’s link and make a purchase. The commission of bloggers typically ranges from 10 to 30 percent of the price.

Here is an example of an affiliated blog PinchofYum:
The site has the Shop section where the owner of the blog, Lindsay, promotes products of various brands:

Lindsay selected perfect brands of kitchenware for her cooking blog, so we are featuring it as an example.

To create an affiliate blog that brings money:

• Pick a profitable niche (cooking, social media, beauty, etc.)
• Select popular products to ensure there is a demand for them
• Create amazing content!

#4. Other Ways to Make Money Blogging

Many bloggers make a mistake by not exploring all monetization options. For example, some choose to go with affiliate programs because of a misconception that they are the most profitable. Check out some other ways in this map:

As you can see, there are various ways to monetize your blog. For example, you can sell merchandise such as stickers, mugs, posters, t-shirts, anything homemade that can be sold with your logo on. This way, you can build your brand, item by item.

Wrapping Up

Turning your blog into a money-making machine requires a lot of persistence and hard work. Feel free to try these tips and see what works best. Let us know what helped you to develop a successful blog!

If you know some other best methods to make extra money online, share with us, add your comments below.