Jun
23
Thousands of blogs are launched every single day with the intent of making money. You can see just how popular this is by observing how many “make money blogs” and blogs about blogging exist. I’m sure you’re aware that only a select few make money bloggers have actually made significant and consistent money with their blog. That’s not to say that there’s no value in a blogger who is writing about the journey. I enjoy Caroline Middlebrook’s blog where she discusses her own efforts and talks through her opinions with readers. I also enjoyed following Ben Cook’s progress through his one year Blogging Experiment before he sold it.
The truth is that very few bloggers will ever make a full-time income by blogging. In my opinion, that opportunity is very much available, but few bloggers have the persistence, patience and ability to get there. What’s more likely is a respectable part-time income, but many are let down when they conclude that this is as far as they’re going to get.
Many bloggers tend to lean on ad revenue as a source of income. Top blogs can usually make a pretty good amount from ads alone, but most bloggers are fortunate to make a few hundred dollars per month. I’m not attempting to discourage anyone from going after ad revenue, it’s certainly a major piece of the puzzle in most cases, but I think most bloggers don’t really calculate how much traffic they’ll need in order to earn a living on ad revenue.
Why Blogs are Difficult to Monetize:
People are used to getting something for free
Blog readers have gotten used to the fact that blogs produce content for free. As a result, this becomes expected and many bloggers that try to develop some revenue streams face the difficult task of convincing readers that there is something worth paying for. An example of this is premium content, membership sites, or even e-book sales. We’ve gotten so much for free that it can be difficult to create something that’s going to lead people to open up their wallets.
Ad blindness
Most blog readers visit a decent number of blogs and websites on a daily basis. As a result, they see the same ads over and over again, and they start to ignore the ads. Ad blindness makes advertisements less effective than they could be otherwise, and that means bloggers can’t make as much with the advertisements.
Affiliate sales can be frowned upon
Depending on the niche and the audience of a blog, placing affiliate links in posts can really offend some readers. When I first started blogging I put a couple of affiliate links in a post and I got a few readers who questioned the practice, including one who flat out was against it. Affiliate sales are a big source of income for many top bloggers, but if your audience isn’t ok with affiliate links (assuming they can even identify an affiliate link) it could be a big struggle to generate sales this way.
Traffic and effort has to be constant
I couldn’t even tell you how many bloggers I’ve seen over the past year that looked like they were on their way to running a very successful blog, but they gave up somewhere along the way. Not that many people are able to stay interested and motivated when it comes to building a blog, because it takes constant work. Take a month off with no posts and your traffic and income will fall, and you’ll have to build yourself back up again. Especially if you’re hoping to earn a full-time income, the consistency becomes an even bigger issue. As a part-timer you can probably deal with up and down income, but that might not be possible without another source of income to fall back on.
Compensation is usually not direct
I think most of us are programmed to expect to be paid according to the work that we put in. With blogging, you could spend hours researching and writing a post, but if it doesn’t do well you may not have anything to show for it financially. This is actually a positive, because once you’ve built a successful blog you can earn much more money for your efforts, but it becomes a discouragement to those who are just starting out.
Many traffic sources are difficult to monetize
When it comes to making money with your blog, not all traffic sources are equal. For example, social media is a leading source of traffic for many blogs, but these visitors are notoriously difficult to monetize. They’re not going to click on ads, they usually leave after seeing only one page, and they aren’t as likely to subscribe as other types of visitors. As a result, you may be able to produce impressive traffic stats and not even be able to really make anything significant from it.
Uneven playing field
Small bloggers trying to “compete” with blogs that have a full staff of writers are at a significant disadvantage. Additionally, established blogs have a much easier time than those that are just getting started. While I don’t think that this is really a negative to blogging for money, it does make it difficult for the little guy, and many don’t have the patience to make it to the other side of the fence.
What Can You Do About It?
1. Be realistic
One of the leading causes for bloggers giving up is the existence of unrealistic expectations. It’s a one in a million shot that you’ll be making a full-time income from a blog in a matter of months, yet that’s what some people have in mind. There’s nothing wrong with ambitious goals, but they should also be accompanied by some realistic understanding or there’s a very high chance of disappointment that won’t be overcome.
A part-time income from blogging can be pretty nice, but when you’re expecting much more it can be disappointing. Whatever your goals and intentions are, take some time to realize what’s involved and what others are able to accomplish. Appreciate and celebrate your small victories along the way and take a long-term approach to building an income.
2. Diversify income sources
Rather than just relying on ads to make money, why not find other ways to do so, such as selling an e-book, doing reviews, etc. While one source of income is unlikely to support you full-time, three or four may be able to do the trick. Take a look at top bloggers like Darren Rowse and John Chow. They make money in a number of different ways that all add up to a six-figure income.
3. Get creative
The income sources from your blog don’t have to be the typical ones mentioned above. Get creative and find some new ways to make money. Niche-specific job boards are getting very popular, and for blogs with a decent-sized and focused audience, this can be an excellent source of income. I mentioned Blogging Experiment earlier. When Max Davis bought the site from Ben Cook he turned around and offered a membership course on buying and selling websites, and he almost recovered his investment in just a few short months.
4. Provide a service
Many bloggers have the opportunity to sell a service in addition to their blogging efforts. Michael Martine wrote a post several months ago about selling consulting services through your blog. Services can be an excellent fit for bloggers. As you publish content on your blog you’re selling your readers on your knowledge and expertise. Once you’ve built some respect you’ll have a natural marketplace for your services.
5. Freelance on the side
While you’re building your own blog you may want to consider writing for others on a freelance basis. Freelance blogging can be a nice source of supplementary income and it may keep you motivated as you’re seeing real money coming in.
6. Build your name
Many pro bloggers earn a living by running multiple blogs. If this is the case, name recognition is very important. Once you have built an established audience at one blog you could branch out to another one and take many of your readers with you. Then you’ll have two successful blogs instead of one. We’ve seen this in practice recently with the quick success for NETTUTS and VECTORTUTS riding on the wave from PSDTUTS.
What Are Your Thoughts About Blogging for Money?
Do you blog with the intent to make money? If so, what’s your experience and what do you feel are the biggest challenges?
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Hi Steven,
Good article, I think the major problem as well is the fact that people see this as a “make money quick” opportunity, and when the dough doesn’t come rolling in immediately, they quickly lose interest.
I think it’s important to realise that blogging should be a long term venture, it should be part of your everyday life. Also, the income should really be a bonus – you should really be blogging for the enjoyment, not for just making money otherwise your article quality will suffer.
Just my 2c
Well, it all depends on quite what kind of income one is looking at when monetizing a blog. Most bloggers, would appear to welcome whatever comes their way after a while of regular blogging. This is because, for most bloggers, blogging is not the main income generator.
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I think you first point is most important. Sure set big goals, but make sure you have very small goals also that will lead you to the big one. This will help you stay on target and motivated
With over a million blogs on the web, they cannot all make money. I have been posting for a few years now and still have not got my head around running my own blog, it takes serious amounts of hard work to achieve. They do have their purpose though and can act as an effective marketing tool to communicate with current clients and future clients.
I completely agree. Not all are going to make money, many are done for personal reasons. Also, like you said, a blog can help you to better your business in other ways besides direct income.
Excellent post with lots of good ideas. I think perhaps a good option is to not even attempt to seek making all your income just from blogging. Building a source of some income can be a great result for many people. I think the reality is that is the most realistic goal for most successful bloggers. And this can make many more people successful in their blogging endeavors (by setting realistic goals).
Diversifying income works within the blog income – and for your overall income. Perhaps build up income from your job, some from blogging, some from real estate or other investing…
John,
Good point. Diversity of income is important too.
This is an excellent article! Goals is always one thing I’m having trouble with– setting them, actually.
Not really the follow through part, since once I set my eyes on a goal, there’s not really stopping me. 
Great post and it hits the nail on the head. I, too, make six figures as a full-time blogger and I can attest that depending on ad revenue alone is a dicey proposition. Diversification is key.
Good post. I think long term selling products or services directly or indirectly through your blog is the way to make good money. Advertising is always going to bring you in some cash but should be less that selling directly.
Sphunn
I’ve always thought that websites that are built just to make money are much less successful than ones built around a passion or real enthusiasm. Making money should be a secondary purpose, and a perk, not a motive.
Andrew,
True, it’s good to have other motives, but when you’re running a website/blog as a business making money has to be a priority or the business won’t work. Passion is great, but when the blog is more than a personal hobby passion isn’t really enough.
Trouble with most of us is that we get used to a certain way of making money off the blog. Then shifting to something else needs time and effort both of which may not be too forthcoming.
“Diversify income sources.”
I like that most. Most bloggers try to diversify by going into other niches. I think it is less effective because you have to maintain and keep up with two niches, which can be difficult.
I agree that making money has to be the priority if you are running a business but people typically read blogs for information, not with the aim of purchasing anything.
PS3,
You’re right. Must of us don’t read blogs to buy anything. That’s one of the main reasons it’s difficult to monetize a blog.
I think that if you want to start a blog with the sole intention of making money then you must treat it as a business.
When you look at search engine marketing (PPC) and do the math you’re doing well to get one, maybe two purchases for every 100 clicks. And for those 100 clicks you may need to have your advertisement seen perhaps 10 -20000 times. Now if you convert that to your blog you may find that the number of visitors you need to even make $25 to $50 is going to be in the vicinity of 10 to 20,000.
Even though I have a couple of blogs in different niches, if I want to make any regular cash I’ll take my chances with PPC first.
You mention that one of the problems is that your visitors are expecting things for free. I think there are ways to use this as an advantage. Give them something for free, but have appropriate affiliate links to make money off them still.
Tom,
That’s true, but it can go both ways. Depending on your audience affiliate links can be a turn off. In most cases it seems to be accepted, but the first time I put affiliate links in a blog post I had a few comments where people thought I was trying to fool them into buying.
I built my blog for the content, and that’s like, my main riff. Content is king, and you should “blog to move someone.” Do I want to monetize it? Yeah, but I want it to be primarily for the subscribers. I don’t expect to make millions, but the occasional $10 honest review is fun to write and hey, enough for a coke and a sandwich! My blog is another examples of my design and copywriting work that I can put on my portfolio, and I have fun doing it.
People, who think they’re going to make money hand over fist in the first month or months – are in for a rude awakening.
Yes, there are those who have done it – however, it’s a slim number who have.
So, be patient, keep your eye on the prize, have a plan and stick with it.
I think you first point is most important. Sure set big goals, but make sure you have very small goals also that will lead you to the big one.
I think that blogging should be seen as a way of promoting some freelance work or other products. Living from blogging today is almost impossible.
I thoroughly enjoyed this post. I analyzed the current situation facing new bloggers and attempted to put things in their proper perspective. Thanks for sharing your observations and experience. It will help some for sure. Cheers.
Stick to things that work and prepare to work for it. Making money online is not easy like some people make you think when selling their products.
Every business takes time to succeed and a blog is a business. Make sure that there is demand, that you offer a good product and give your clients the best possible service. Like business if you follow these philosophies you “should” make money. Advertisers will pay to be on sites that offer value.
Nice post, you covered all the angles. It’s easy to see how new bloggers can get all juiced up, create a couple of blogs and then wait for the cheques to roll in. When they see certain bloggers flashing around massive cheques it’s easy for them to say ‘wel if so and so makes 10 000 month surely I can make 500′. What they don’t realize is that it takes a good blog about a year to gain traction, sometimes less if it’s more controversial. But for the average blogger it does take a lot of persistence and a commitment to work at it for a good while before you start seeing results.
Bruce
I’m sure the only people making money online are the ones selling those e-books telling us how to do it!
Steven, seriously, has it occurred to you that there are more bloggers than readers and most readers are bloggers too! This makes the whole thing kind of incestuous and I wonder how long this can go on!
Except for serious blogs that give academic value for visitors, the money making blogs seem to be heading for an eventual small income per blog situation, if at all!
Nicole,
Yes, it has occurred to me. You’d have to be pretty blind to not see that as a potential issue. But that also depends on what niche you’re in. Blogs can make money without covering the topic of blogging for money, and in other niches not everyone is another blogger who’s trying to do the same thing as you.
I disagree with you that money making blogs are heading for less money, if any. Blogs that are being run as businesses are increasing in popularity and income, and most of them aren’t in the make money online niche.
“Ad blindness”–this is especially true for new blogs since your readers are most likely to be other bloggers that have seen all of your ads elsewhere.
If you are not really good at writing blogs, you can always ask for outside help. at a cheap price. Start reading those articles and in a few weeks or so you should be able to do them as well as “your” previous posts.
The hardest part is not to pull in new traffic but it is to keep the existing traffic consistent for a long period of time.
I think this can be done only if you had good quality.
You have to focus on the content a lot.
This one’s a great post too — I blog, have blogged, and love to blog — and I think the most important thing to remember is to find things that you sincerely like to talk about, deal with, think and write about — and things that will also hold your interest over a longer period of time. Then use the blog as a journal / document of your discovery of things. I was never a “going green” type of guy, but decided to try it and at the same time, to blog about it. A decent example of my point.