Hi everyone, sorry for the hiatus. I've been busy the last few days writing up assignments for various clients. Classes take up some time too.
When we last left off, I talked about how Google AdSense helps provide an essential source source of income for blogs and other web content. It is, as already mentioned, the primary source by which bloggers and webmasters monetize their content and earn income from their online sites.
However, apart from AdSense there are other, lesser known (and used) alternative sources of earning income from your online content. I will now explain some of them in greater detail below:
1. Sponsorship
Businesses are increasingly relying on advertising their brands by investing in greater social media engagement. Advertising on Facebook, Google +, Twitter or any other social website is no longer trendy but necessary. Blogs too, are now riding the wave as more and more companies are finding value and opportunity in advertising in general and specialist blogs. Depending on the nature of your blog, whether you are into photography or enjoy roller skating, niche companies will pay generously to have their ads placed on your blog if you can show them that you have a sufficient audience and that you are a dedicated and regular blogger.A more nuanced version of sponsorship is when companies pay you to discreetly mention their brands or products within your posts or as embedded links.
2. Affiliate programs
If you are already member of a commercial website with a user-affiliate program, whether it be Freelancer, Elance, Amazon, Linkshare, etc, then you can cash in on their specific referral-based payment schemes whereby you get paid for each new qualified referral referencing your account. If you already have a sizable network or audience, then this is definitely an attractive option.
3. Proprietary content
Apart from cooking up new and unique blog posts, bloggers can also create other online content or digital assets ranging from newsletters, e-books or videos. It's also possible to link up your blog with your own personal website to both increase your audience base and cross-sell your products seamlessly.
4. Merchandising
Similar to proprietary content, except that here you are partnering with a designer/manufacturer to produce physical products like T-shirts, mugs, bags, etc. The more popular or distinct your blog is, the greater the potential reception.
5. Online communities
By joining one of the many blogging forums or general freelance writing forums/groups on the web, you can take advantage of new job recommendations, offers or tips that can lead to making some extra cash.
6. Donations
Who doesn't mind receiving some charitable contributions for their hard work? Although traditional and unreliable, donations remain a decent way to receive some cash for your blog or website.
So as we can see, your options of making money through blogging are not limited at all. Although AdSense dominates the internet landscape in terms of coverage and usage, you can still rely on secondary sources of income to further capitalize on your digital content.
On the next article, I begin a series of articles related to digital copywriting and freelancing.
Until then, bon voyage!
(Red Rahman is a business student by day and a frenetic digital copywriter and freelancer by night. He can be reached by Twitter@ReduanRahman)
