4 Easy methods to boost your content and get paid to blog

Blogging has become a booming industry. It grew into a space where individuals could share their interests and thoughts with whoever was out there on the internet. In the past twenty years, blogging has become somewhat of a profession. We now live in an age where they have even become micro-celebrities. With a platform, there is no need for the middle man. There is a new form of entrepreneurs and blogs that have become the forefront of this phenomenon. The question I will explore is how can you get paid to blog. I will look at the different avenues you can take to monetise your content and get revenue from your content.

Use ads

Advertising has always been a good way of monetising any community, even before the Internet. Now, bloggers have the power to contact agencies, or be contacted, and set up a straightforward way of profiting from ads. The idea is to build up a fanbase because that means that you have a group of people to sell the items too. Also, blogs tend to revolve around a certain topic or interest. This means that companies know what individuals are being targeted by placing ads on the platform.

Example

Techcrunch is a popular blog that revolves around technology. On their home page, they currently have an ad for the new Huawei smartphone. Their ads reflect their content. This is because their audience is individuals who read the blog because of their interest in tech, making them more likely to purchase the product.

Offer memberships

These are yet another way to get paid to blog. If you have built up a loyal community around a product, why not make this profitable? You can create different levels of membership set at different prices. What this changes is that there is certain content on your blog that is only accessible to those who pay to see it. This creates a level of exclusivity as well as a sense of community. By providing premium content, you are profiting by turning your blog into a business.

Example

Tuts+ is a blog that provides content for design, code, and illustration. It has a huge amount of free content but for $16.50, a month you can get so much more. By paying the membership fee you get video content, ebooks, tutorials, online courses, design ready assets and templated in return. Forbes stated that the blog has 2,000,000 buyers and earns up to $175,000 a month. This is only one example that shows that memberships are a fantastic way to get paid to blog.

Sell products

If you have built up a brand around your blog why not sell it? This is your turn to get even more creative. Once you have a following, you already have a pool of potential customers. Selling on your blog can be done in two ways. You can sell your products or you can also sell other people’s products. It’s a great way to form partnerships and earn a percentage of what is being sold. If you want to sell your merchandise this can range from cool t-shirts to mugs with funny catch-phrases on them. Get those creative juices flowing and get selling!

Example

Wonkete is a blog that discusses political gossip with heavy overtones of comedy. They mostly discuss American politics but sometimes write articles about other countries. This blog has rapidly grown in popularity since it was launched in 2004. Their shop section is full of hilarious merchandise. From mugs to posters, they all come with a hilarious image. One of their top products is their Nancy Pelosi ‘Ride or Die’ T-shirt. Wonkete is a great example of how to monetise your blog by adding items that your followers can purchase.

Create Viral Content

The Internet is an amazing way to get your content out there. If you can create viral content, you’re golden. The way to go from this to paid blogger is by gaining enough recognition that you can become a freelance blogger. If you can gain the skills to write SEO posts, use WordPress and appeal to individuals on social media, you have all the skills to be paid to blog. A lot of content marketing is written by freelance blogger and there’s no reason to catch on to this trend. Give it a go and try to make a career out of it!

Example

Carol Tice is a great example of how to go from blogger to paid professional. Her blog is dedicated to teaching others how to make a living writing. One of her most popular posts talks about how she makes $5,000 a month as a paid blogger. She explains that once she began writing for notable websites, such as Forbes, the offers came rolling in. The idea is to establish yourself, and use your blog as a sample of your skills. Once you do this, you can begin making money from your writing.

Should I give it a go?

100 percent. Once you have set up your own blog, even if it’s as a hobby, there is no reason why you shouldn’t be rewarded. You can monetise this community and profit from the following you build up. It’s worth looking up how you can apply these four methods to your current blog to become a paid blogger. Whether you are a professional or it is just a hobby, give it a go. There’s no harm in trying.

What are other alternatives?

Here at Disciple, we believe that you can go above and beyond by creating your own community app. If you already have a following, this is an alternative and potentially better solution. You can publish content directly into the app and users can access it anywhere. This will enable your users to become more than just readers. They will become a community.