Before you can start earning money from your blog, you need to create one. By picking the right blogging platform and a niche that suits you, you can set yourself up for success.
Choose a blogging platform
You have two main options when it comes to setting up a blog: you can use a free blogging platform, or you can create your own website. We'll take you through both, outlining their pros and cons.
Free blogging platforms
Best for – Casual bloggers and those not interested in making money from their blog
Pros – Easy to set up and completely free
Cons – Limits on customisation and video/image upload, you often can't place adverts or use affiliate links, you can't create a custom URL and the platform retains the right to delete your blog.
Blogging platforms like WordPress.com, Blogger and Medium let you set up a blog for free. They're very easy to use and a great choice if you want to start blogging casually at first. However, free blogging platforms are very limiting.
There won't be many customisation options, and the storage limit will be minimal, making it harder to upload videos or images. Another drawback is that your blog URL will be something like 'www.yourblog.wordpress.com' with the platform branding.
Most free blogging platforms also don't allow you to place banner adverts or affiliate links on your site, which are key revenue streams for most bloggers. If you do want to earn money from your blog, it's better to create your own website, as we explain in the next point.
Best for – Dedicated bloggers and those looking to make money from their blog
Pros – Complete control over design and customisation, your own custom URL and the ability to use adverts and affiliate links how you like
Cons – You'll have to pay for your domain name (URL) and for hosting, but we've got tips on cheap web hosting.
If you're not particularly tech-savvy, the thought of creating your own website might seem quite scary. But in reality, it's actually pretty easy to do, and you can create one in just 20 minutes.
Save the Student's founder, Owen Burek, has written an easy-to-follow, step-by-step guide to show you how to start a website.
With your own website, you'll be able to create unique personal branding (with your own URL), and there's no risk of your blog being deleted by the platform. You'll own the site and be in complete control.
WordPress has a huge number of templates or 'themes' for you to choose from. Take the time to pick one that suits your personality and the topic of your blog.
Opt for something clear and simple, with space for large images and easy-to-read fonts (Comic Sans and Courier fonts are generally no-nos
Clich here to creating your free website
Website Monetization platforms
How to make money from blogging
Here are the best ways to make money as a blogger:
Use affiliate marketing on your blog
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Affiliate marketing works by adding tracked affiliate links to the text of your blog. You can make a small commission every time a reader clicks through to a site you recommend and makes a purchase.
The links will lead readers to the website of a brand, and the money you receive is to say 'thanks' for sending some of your lovely readers to their site.
Almost all online eCommerce websites have an affiliate program of some sort, like Amazon, ASOS and Apple.
You can start by signing up to Awin. This is a huge affiliate network where you can promote thousands of well-known brands and services from around the world.
Money-saving blogger, Claire Roach, revealed:
We mainly use affiliate marketing as our main source of revenue, although there's also Google AdSense on there for an extra few pounds each month.
Affiliate marketing is a natural fit for many bloggers. Writer Ceri Jones suggested:
As a blogger, you're always recommending products and services to your readers. A lot of companies offer affiliate programs so it's really easy to find relevant programs to join and start earning commission.
The key is to be authentic and genuine with affiliate marketing. Write reviews and articles with your honest opinions and only encourage your readers to buy something if you think it's a good product or service for them.
Add banner adverts to your website
As a more visual way of advertising, you can sell banner advertising space on your blog to brands that relate to your readers. They're commonly placed inside articles or in the sidebar.
While you can sell ads individually to companies, it's often easier to do this through a network. The network takes care of the advertisements that are shown and picks the best and most profitable ones for your website.
When you've just launched your blog and you don't have a lot of views yet, Adsterra a good place to start. They don't have any minimum monthly view requirement to join.
However, once you start to grow your blog, you can look at companies that pay more. For these, you will need a minimum number of monthly readers. The best ones include Monumetric (10,000+ monthly views), Mediavine (50,000+ monthly sessions) and Raptive (100,000+ monthly views).
They will pay you every time a visitor clicks on an advert (CPC, cost per click), or per 1,000 impressions (CPM, cost per impression). The cost of these depends on what company is advertising, how often it is shown, what niche your site is in and where your readers are based.
Our former content editor, Nele van Hout, uses display ads to earn money from her travel blog:
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