Blogging had ultimately changed my life for the better. I am so thankful and blessed that I discovered this early. Having a blog allowed me to get my creative juices flowing. It made me learn a lot of new things about myself. It opened opportunities for me to meet people and work with others who have the same passion. It also gave me an idea that earning extra income online is attainable. If you haven't thought of blogging for the money then maybe this article will enlighten you.
My Story as a Blogger
It was year 2013 when I first entered the blogger arena. I got inspired by a lot of blogs I read since I was a college freshman like Ms. Aisa Ipac of Drowning Equilibrium (I even interviewed her for a project in college), Ms. Ana Gonzales of The Fashion Commuter, Ms. Nikki Tiu of AskMeWhats, etc. My blog focus on makeup and ukay finds - two things I am totally in love with.
Since then this blog has been in a ton of makeover. From new topics I introduce to posts I have deleted because they're not that good. My photos and how I edit them also changed dramatically. I also spent way more time blogging than what I once did. Blogging became a big part of me trying to be an adult. It had been my creative outlet, a part of myself I can be proud of --- my identity.
I have never been this serious over something in my life. My blogs, IzzaGlino - A beauty and lifestyle blog for frugal Pinays and SavingsPinay - A financial journey of a common Pinay, are both my babies. I am happy when I see them, when I feed them with posts, when I spend time with them and of course when they achieve a milestone. Both sites have consumed almost half my life this past three to four years. And I have zero regrets at all.
How To Start a Blog (for when you have no idea at all!)
Starting a blog is way easier than one could imagine. All it takes is following below simple steps:
Step 1. Choose your niche/topic
Blogs come in different niche depending on a blogger's interest. I started a Fashion and Beauty Blog, IzzaGlino because that's where my interest was. Then came my love for financial education that led to the arrival of SavingsPinay.
Below are the complete list of blog categories/ topic/ niche you can choose from.
- Arts & Craft
- Books & Literature
- Business & Finance
- Community & Groups
- Corporate & Official
- Education
- Entertainment
- Lifestyle
- Fashion & Beauty
- Food & Drink
- Health & Medicine
- Home & Living
- Humor
- Legal
- Marketing & SEO
- Music
- News & Journalism
- Personal
- Photoblogs
- Pictures & Models
- Politics & Government
- Productivity & Career
- Real Estate
- Religion
- Sports & Recreation
- Technology & Computers
- Travel & Leisure
- Video Games
- Web Development & Design
Step 2. Choose Your Blog Name
After you've decided on the central theme of your blog, your task now is to come up with the perfect name that your audience can easily remember. It is also ideal to name your blog out of your real name to create branding and to not limit you in what you could post in your blog. You can also be very specific and base your name on the blog theme you chose. What matters is that you strategically choose the name of your blog.
Step 3. Choose Your Blog Platform
Blog platforms are available as an easy way to build a blog. All you have to do is sign-up, enter your specific details of your blog and choose your blog template. The most common blog platforms are Blogger, WordPress and Tumblr. You can also build your own website provided that you pay for hosting and domain name.
Blogger is a perfect platforms for beginners who need a user-friendly blog platform. You can create multiple blogs in one account. Since Blogger is owned by Google it is also way easier to top the Google ranking. You can easily connect Google Adsense to start monetizing your space and you have a pool of widgets to make your blog look even better.
Wordpress is ideal for those who aim to have their blog more professional. The templates that Wordpress have are more classy-looking rather than Blogger Templates. You have a lot of control over how your blog post will be published on the web. Wordpress also offers functional widgets that go hand in hand in your goal to maximize the potential of your blog.
Tumblr is more for personal blogging. It is very easy to set up and more on a social media type of blog because people can retweet the blog posts and follow your blog.
The platform also offers a lot of beautiful theme you can choose from. This is also a great platform for photo blogs that involve fashion and travel.
Step 4. Design Your Blog
Depending on the platform you choose for your blog, you might need to spend time designing how you want your blog to be seen by the public. Designing a Blogger, Wordpress and Tumblr will soon be up on my blog. There are Free Themes and Premium (Paid) Themes to choose from.
Step 5. Start Blogging
Once you are happy with how your blog looks you can now start with the actual blogging. You undergo a series of blog writing, producing image for the blog and editing. As a beginner you may or may not opt for an editorial calendar and just use an old notebook to plan your content. The beginning phase of the blog is the most crucial part of a blogger's journey but if you will just strive hard everything will be seamless in the end.
How to Blog for the Money
Bloggers rely most of their income through the pageviews they get. The more traffic your blog gets, the better it would perform as an income stream. There are five important things you need to be able to blog for the money.
1. Reader-friendly blog design
If you want to more visitors to your blog that can turn to loyal readers then it is a must for you to actually about your blog design. Make sure that the color palette of your layout match the branding you want to build for your audience. Do not put too much unnecessary advertisements for the sake of money because it will never work. Readers love beautiful blog and when I say beautiful I mean blog designs that's easy on the eyes and easy to understand.
2. Valuable Content
You may have heard this a thousand times already but yes, content is the king when it comes to blogging. Without a valuable and relatable posts then nobody will notice your blog at all. Make your post excellent as always so that your visitors will keep on returning to your site.
3. Social Media Marketing
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4. Consistency
Through the years of blogging here and on my personal blog, IzzaGlino, I learned how valuable being consistent is. Your readers will thank you for updating your blog often and for sticking to a schedule they can remember. There's also something about consistency in the writing style and the way you deliver every post that will make you grow more.
5. Income Streams that Match Your Blog
There are many ways you can earn money through blogging and these are called income streams collectively. Below are the ways a blogger generate extra income through their platform:
Pay Per Click Ads
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate Marketing is the most common income streams for bloggers specially those who have established their authority online. You partner with a brand/company and either display an image or link with your unique code to your site or your post. You'll receive commissions for every successful sale through your unique link. There are also plenty of benefits being an affiliate offer like discount to their products and services or discount codes your readers can use.
Example of Sites that offer Affiliate Marketing: Lazada Affiliate, Zalora Affiliate, Amazon's Affiliate, and VOffice
Sponsored Ads
Own Service
Become a Speaker
You can create a "Invite Me As Speaker" page in your blog for people to contact you in case they need a speaker for their event. Others invite speakers too for seminar or company activities.
Pay Per Click Ads are the ads you primarily see in a blog's sidebar, header or footer. Once a reader clicks on the ads displayed you will earn money. The clicks earn between .15-.50 cents per click.
Example of Sites that offer Pay Per Click Advertising: Google Adsense, Chitika and Infolinks.
How Does PPC Ads work? Based on the nature of your blog and the type of banner you chose from your registered account, relevant ads will display. With great location and relevance to your post you'll surely earn from PPC Ads.
Affiliate Marketing is the most common income streams for bloggers specially those who have established their authority online. You partner with a brand/company and either display an image or link with your unique code to your site or your post. You'll receive commissions for every successful sale through your unique link. There are also plenty of benefits being an affiliate offer like discount to their products and services or discount codes your readers can use.
Example of Sites that offer Affiliate Marketing: Lazada Affiliate, Zalora Affiliate, Amazon's Affiliate, and VOffice
How Affiliate Marketing Works? Again based on the nature of your blog you can either apply or be invited as an affiliate. You have access to a number of banners/ads you can choose to display anywhere in your website. You'll also have a quick link that you can write as a hyperlink every time you mention the brand.
Did you know?
Last August I won a blog contest that allowed me to travel to Caramoan Island for free!!! Thanks to TravelBook Affiliate Program which I am a part of. If you are a travel or lifestyle blogger this could be a good affiliate program to you. I did a full post on How To Earn with TravelBook Affiliate Program to get help you get started. You can also read the posts I did related to TravelBook Affiliate Blogger Getaway below:
This is most common income generating tool for those who have a beauty and lifestyle blog. Businesses want to widen their reach especially to the online community so bloggers may be asked to try out a product and blog about it. Sometime not just a product but the whole business itself.
Getting Sponsorship Opportunity though is hard or rare if you are a new bloggers. Thus, Network Sites such asNuffnang and Blogapalooza are established. They help connect bloggers to businesses and brands easily. Complete honesty will be needed though so you won't lose your readers trust. Also this will work if you really use a certain service or product.
Own Product
Bloggers can also start selling their own product through their blog. These products come in two types, Digital and Physical. Digital Products include eBook, Online Course, Printable workbooks and other materials which can be accessed and used digitally. Other bloggers sell their own physical product like an online shop linked to their blog.
Another great way bloggers earn money is by offering their service to the public. You can do a Coaching/Mentoring service or do Paid Webinar Series or live workshop where your audience will have to pay. You will be paid based on your time and worth.
You can create a "Invite Me As Speaker" page in your blog for people to contact you in case they need a speaker for their event. Others invite speakers too for seminar or company activities.
Can You Really Earn Money with a Blog
Whenever I tell to people that I am a blogger the first thing they ask is whether I earn money with it. I completely understand the curiosity but I do feel a little uncomfortable sharing my answer.
You see for someone whose been blogging for four years and counting I never earned that much compared to others. I've always considered my blogs as mediocre to be honest because its still unknown to the publics' attention.
But the biggest chunk of the reason why my blogs can't seem to grow is because of me, myself and I. I have all these ideas lined up but I can't find the will, the time and the effort to start. I've been wanting soooo hard to transition the blog into a business portal and I'm taking each and every step as slowly but surely.
If you are starting a blog just for the money then I'll be the first to warn you that its not going to be an easy task. You have to work extra hard and be extra strategic on everything. Below are the truths about blogging for the money:
You won't make money overnight. It takes a considerable amount of time to reach an earning potential as a blogger. But it is possible and you may have seen or read thousands of success stories of people having the blog as a part-time job or even a full-time job.
You have to find your niche. This seals the deal if you want to blog for the money. You need to find your blogging niche or what sets your blog apart from other online websites. The more specific you blog topic is the better it would be in the long run. This blog is an example of a niche blog. It talks only on money matters specifically set for Pinay audience. And did you know that SavingsPinay stayed to be way much profitable than my personal beauty and lifestyle blog, IzzaGlino.
You have to treat your blog as a business. If your serious in making your blog profitable then you need to start thinking of it as a business and not just an ordinary hobby. You need to work like your own employee creating a solid audience, a solid brand and solid reputation in the blogsphere.
Final Notes from SavingsPinay:
It all started as a hobby for me. An interest that grew bigger in time. I didn't even realize that there's an audience for a financial blog not to mention that I'm a woman and I'm still young. I didn't believe that there will be people who will entrust their financial decision to someone like me {No I am not a professional financial consultant but I do offer my service as a financial coach at the moment} It all started with just simple blog. I attended events, received proposals from companies and met people whom I idolize in the blogsphere --- with just a simple blog.
My point maybe is this. We all just need the courage to start something. No matter how many people tell you there's no point in pursuing that passion, no matter how many people tell you it's time to stop --- keep going. SavingsPinay started with zero pageviews and today I receive 10,000++ monthly views and almost near my 200,000 pageviews.
One day you'll get noticed and you'll inspire others to build their own mark as wel and a BLOG is the cheapest and the most effective tool to get you there.
Final Notes from SavingsPinay:
It all started as a hobby for me. An interest that grew bigger in time. I didn't even realize that there's an audience for a financial blog not to mention that I'm a woman and I'm still young. I didn't believe that there will be people who will entrust their financial decision to someone like me {No I am not a professional financial consultant but I do offer my service as a financial coach at the moment} It all started with just simple blog. I attended events, received proposals from companies and met people whom I idolize in the blogsphere --- with just a simple blog.
My point maybe is this. We all just need the courage to start something. No matter how many people tell you there's no point in pursuing that passion, no matter how many people tell you it's time to stop --- keep going. SavingsPinay started with zero pageviews and today I receive 10,000++ monthly views and almost near my 200,000 pageviews.
One day you'll get noticed and you'll inspire others to build their own mark as wel and a BLOG is the cheapest and the most effective tool to get you there.
Are you ready to start your blogging journey too?
Email me at izzaglinofull@gmail.com if you have personal questions about blogging or still have no idea how to start.
- Follow the SavingsPinay FB Group and join the conversation at : SavingsPinay
- Follow my official Facebook page at : IzzaGlinoFull
- Stalk some behind the scenes in my Instragram: @izzaglino
- Follow me too in my Twitter account: Izza Glino
- Subscribe to my Youtube channel: IzzaInTheUkayCloset
- Email me any question or topic suggestion at izzaglinofull@gmail.com
- Or leave a comment below!!!
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