Blog monetization is a hot topic in the blogging world, and it seems as though the overcrowded blog scene has created a stage for many internet entrepreneurs. A lot of new internet startups are trying to create new diverse ways for publishers to monetize their website. The new publishers that are sometimes categorized as blogging or online magazine startups are looking for unconventional ways in order to catch up with the more established competition.
The majority of bloggers and online publishers are running ads by Google. The Google AdSense network turned 10 this year, and many publishers have been thanking Google for a worthwhile relationship that has benefited them throughout the years. While many bloggers are satisfied running their blogs according to the 10 year old status quo, there is a large community of bloggers who are looking for a change. Google ads are still a very viable monetization strategy, but today Google is not the only service that is able to recognize your content and provide ads that relate to your audience.
Google AdSense Is A Safe Bet
While Google AdSense is still the most common method used to monetize a blog there are cons like in every product in the world, nothing is perfect. Selling your precious web page real estate could be profitable, but that doesn’t always make it the best solution. Banners are a popular way to monetize your pages if you are the owner of a successful blog. The banners may take up more valuable locations on your website, but they will earn you significantly higher profits. Acquiring banners are easy and you don’t need to sink too much money into finding a few good ones for your website. Although using banners to monetize your pages is simple, you never really know how effective the banners will be.
A lot of bloggers consult with me regarding sponsored reviews, and I always remind them that monetizing through sponsored reviews is not as easy as it seems. You need to be really interested in checking products, and you can’t charge too much upfront. In fact, until the post is published I often recommend not taking an initial fee. Once you become a pro then you will have the credibility to really start making a profit for the time you invest. Also keep in mind that the review must be favourable without being bias. Some people might tell you that focusing on reviews is a waste of time, I think it is really up to you and your strategy.
In Image Advertising
So aside from Google Ads, sponsored reviews and banners is there anything else? The answer can be found in a small number of innovative companies that have developed new techniques, some of which are actual web apps and others are new affiliation strategies. One example that I really like and I have advocated in the past is imonomy. This unique company specializes in in-image advertising. They offer a sophisticated monetization strategy in which their technology allows publishers to monetize images on their website. Along with the monetization technology, the imonomy tips widget that recommends more related content allows publishers to increase page views and improve bounce rates. In short, you make money and improve your overall website performance.
Another trend that has been around for some time is in-text advertising, one of the companies you might heard of is Infolinks. The company allows publishers to monetize the text from their website. If you are looking for a moderate monetization strategy I would recommend combining this tool with imonomy’s in-image advertising seeing as these two tools use a “hovering ad tactic”. This innovative strategy is sure to please the majority of your users, the ads don’t appear if you leave your computer mouse alone and this results in keeping your readers screen as clean as possible. Just remember that you are going to have to pay a hefty price with your readers if you overuse this strategy. People press text links in order to discover new information that will then constantly leading your visitors to advertisements against their will, which can hurt your chances of building a following.
If you know how to write useful content or if you are an expert in your field, I would suggest trying out eBooks. Most people would like to receive e-books for free but if you have proved yourself within your community it is safe to say that you may have another monetization strategy that is waiting to be tapped. All the monetizing tactics up until now require hard work. Picking ads, finding images, creating content and writing a book are all time consuming options. An easy monetization alternative is to simply ask users for donations.
No Magic, Sadly
To conclude, there is no magic setup in blog monetization that will work for you straight out of the gates. Some bloggers you might encounter will introduce you to different methods that I didn’t talk about here. One thing is for sure, in order to find success when trying to monetize your blog you must adapt your website to the preference of your audience, because without your audience any monetization strategy you choose becomes useless. My other tip is to use spreadsheets whenever you can. If you run a large network of blogs like I do, it quickly becomes very confusing keeping track of them all. The more spreadsheets you use, especially if they are well formatted, the more organised you are.
