Can you make money from blogging? I get asked this question a lot. Even by members of my family that know I make a living from blogging.
Thankfully my Mum just asks “How’s your job going?” now instead of “What is it you do, again?”
I get it. Someone tells you that you can get on your computer, start writing about a subject and earn money from it almost straight away. It’s not very believable. But I’m here to show you that blogging to make money is real.
It just might not look like what you are expecting it to look like.
But it’s still a totally accessible way to make a living right now.
How Do You Earn Money From A Blog In 2020?
Let’s cut straight to the chase. How do you earn money from a blog? In particular, right now in 2020 and beyond.
The basics of making money from blogging haven’t changed, you still need to do the following:
- Choose a subject you are an expert on or can become an expert on.
- Set up a website and start writing/creating videos about that subject.
- Promote your blog in the most appropriate way for your subject.
- Monetise your blog in the most appropriate way.
What has changed are the little details involved in each step. You used to be able to literally do the steps above and make money, but there is a bit more thinking to be done nowadays.
You need to be a bit more strategic. But, as I said, it’s still totally accessible to anyone.
For example, take the ‘Set up a website and start writing/creating videos about that subject.’ part. Who are you creating your content for? It’s no good shot-gunning your content out there and hoping to hit the mark 0.01% of the time. That’s a big waste of your efforts.
Nowadays you need to think about your target audience. I call them your prospect, because they are someone who is likely to become a customer.
This person is very important to you, you want them to see what you do and like it. You want them to stick around and let you contact them with more of your great stuff. You want them to eventually trust you enough to hand over money for the great offer you have that will help them solve a problem.
And they will love you even more for it. Perhaps enough to recommend you to their friends that have a similar problem.
Then you’re in business!
Yes, your blog is a business. Unless you’re just doing it as a hobby, in which case why are you reading about making money from your blog right now?
You want to make money from blogging, so you need to think of it as a business. That’s why I call it a blog business all over my site.
Anyway, let’s take a look at the methods that actually make you money.
Forget About Ads, But Don’t Completely Forget About Ads
I’ll explain my confusing logic behind this. Ads had always been the biggest, easiest, most reliable way to make money with blogging in the past. You created a blog, you built up some traffic and you displayed some ads on your pages. It seemed simple.
But there is a problem with ads nowadays.
People are switching off from ads. People are using ad-blocking software. People are savvier about what they click on when they are on a web page.
There is also the fact that the amount you earn from ads is dependant on the amount of traffic you get. You are always chasing more traffic to supply enough eyes on the ads to get a decent number of people clicking on them.
Once you reach your traffic plateau (either your niche can’t support more traffic, your competition has raised their game or you’ve just had enough of chasing that damn traffic!) you can’t really increase your income.
Let’s not even go into how bad they make your website look. Remember, you don’t have a lot of control over what ads appear on your site. This is supposed to be your online home, have some decency!
That being said, they have their place. They are useful as a supplement to other revenue streams that I will talk about shortly. If you choose the right ad company and place your ads in the right places (don’t worry, the right ad company will help you with this) then you can feel good about them being there quietly earning you some income.
If Not Ads, Then What?
Hopefully, I’ve put a dampener on the whole ads thing. I don’t want to throw a bucket of water over it, but just turn down the gas a little bit.
So, what are the alternatives?
I don’t want to go into more money-making ‘tactics’. Ads are a tactic, affiliate market is a tactic, sponsorships are a tactic. They are all useful in moderation, but I want you to think bigger.
A lot bigger.
Think about your blog business being the authority on a subject. I mean THE authority.
If you can’t do that just yet, think of someone else you see as THE authority on a subject. Perhaps someone like James Clear who makes his living being THE authority on developing good habits. James is a human being with the same amount of time in his day as you. Admittedly he is an expert in using that time, maybe a bad example to choose, but still, he’s a human being.
He started from scratch with his blog business, working a full-time job at the same time. He built his authority and following up gradually to a point where he is THE authority now. There is no reason you can’t do the same. Just don’t expect it straight away.
When you are THE authority you can probably make money in any way you choose. People just trust you left, right and centre. How would you make money in this situation? Would you plaster ads all over your site? Would you be selling other people’s products?
I’m hoping you might choose something a bit more sophisticated. Something that you have created. Something high value that would be beneficial for both your prospect and for you. They will get an incredible product that transforms them in some way, you get a decent payment for your efforts and a sense of fulfilment from helping them.
I’m talking about online courses, coaching services, books, podcasts, newsletters, communities.
These are all things that you create based on your subject and your unique knowledge, point of view and personality. These are all things you have control over. These are the kind of things that will make you money with your blog business from now on.
Strangely enough, none of these things require a degree or certification to be able to do. They are all within the capabilities of anyone who is willing to spend the time learning about their chosen subject and then sharing their knowledge with the world.
Information Products Are The Future (And Actually The Present)
What I was describing just now are what we call ‘Information Products’. They provide your prospect with information or education on your chosen subject that they didn’t previously have.
Yes, people are ready and willing and desperate to pay for this information.
You just have to position yourself as the person that gives it to them. You don’t have to be THE authority straight away to do this. You just have to have more information than your prospect. If you can help them overcome a problem with your information product then they will be grateful to you.
Great, so you need to spend ages building up a following and churning out content to get to a point where you can offer information products with your blog business, right?
Wrong. You can start offering informational products straight away. In fact, you should be building your blog business around these offers.
Everything you create, every article you write, every social media post, every video should be funnelling your prospect towards your offer. You can’t do that very effectively without knowing what that offer is.
When I take someone through starting a blog business, I always get them thinking about their offer early on. In fact, it’s important to keep in mind whether you can create an offer when you choose your subject or niche in the first place. That’s how fundamental it is to your long-term success.
That’s the best way to think about your blog business. It should be “How can I build a ridiculously successful business?”, not “How can I make a bit of money on the side.”
How Long Does It Take To Make Money with Blogging?
I guess it’s important to talk about this because you might have this question in your mind as you read about everything above.
It depends. The end.
Joking. But it does depend on a lot of factors. Largely the time you have to spend on your blog business and the effort you put in. Of course, it helps to be putting that time and effort to best use and that is where learning from someone that has been there and done it and learned all the right things to do (because they did the wrong things) really helps.
Just to make some money, any amount of money, from blogging can be pretty quick. Create your offer and have it up and running, then build everything around that to bring people in. I’ve seen people make some money within a month. But I think you might be more interested in making ‘jack the day job in’ money.
If you worked on your blog business full time, with some direction of what to do and when to do it, then it’s entirely possible to be earning a good living within 6 months. I would like to say earlier because I know from experience it can be done a lot sooner, but even with all the help in the world, everyone is coming from very different mindsets and situations.
Most people will be doing this in their spare time though so I have to be realistic. It can take 1-2 years to build up to a point where you can jack the old job in and follow your dream of running your own blog business if you’re only able to spend a few hours a week on it.
If that sounds like a long time then you might need to work on your expectations before starting a blog business. There is no make-money-quick scheme here, nor anywhere. It’s a real business with real work to be done.
The difference is that you can make it what you want. You can make it something you enjoy. It can be something that makes you jump out of bed in the morning and get stuck into rather than having to drag your ass to work.
Summary – Can You Make Money Blogging in 2020?
I think we can say it’s a resounding ‘Yes!’, but with a bit of a change in the way it’s done.
I can appreciate this might be a bit of a mind-shift from what you’ve already seen from blogging, but the question is what do you truly want to get out of starting a blog?
If you want something that is a sustainable, authentic and fulfilling way to make money then don’t get stuck on the idea of trying to bring in tons of traffic and slapping ads on your site.
Instead, think bigger and think about what you can offer your prospect (your ideal audience) that will really help them out. If you can help them solve problems with an information product then you can make money with your blog in 2020 and way beyond.
Doing it this way, you don’t have to wait for traffic to build up, you just have to bring the right people, your prospects, to your site to see what you can offer. It’s actually the faster way to make money from your blog!