This is the absolute best time in existence to start a blog and make money from that blog. You can make money blogging even if you have a small audience, a tight budget, and lots of little babies (or fur-babies) running around the house.
And if you do things right, you can make A LOT of money from your blog this year. It won’t always be easy, but it will be worth it…
Speaking of it “not being easy”…. when I first started blogging, the support from my friends was scarce. Some of my so-called friends unfollowed me on social media when I started my business (and never spoke to me again). Others laughed at me and said I could never turn this into a “real job.”
But my husband.
That guy stood by me. He encouraged me and pushed me and reminded me that I am talented, and strong, and capable of amazing things. Not gonna lie: he had no idea what the heck he was talking about or how to possibly turn this blog thing into a profitable business. But at least he had my back!
And now I’m here to tell you: I’ve got your back too. You absolutely CAN do this, and I’m going to help you.
Today, I’m going to tell you exactly how I make my money from my blog. And how I managed to earn exactly $2,285.15 from my blog in just one three-day weekend… No fluff. No click bait. No catch…
All my money-making strategies, with no strings attached.
Let’s get to it!
HOW DO BLOGGERS MAKE MONEY?
As a quick summary, this is how bloggers make money: creating and selling their own products/services or promoting and selling products/services for other businesses.
This includes things like selling your own t-shirts (physical products) or stock photos (digital products). It also includes things like affiliate marketing, sponsored posts, and advertising. You’ll be doing all of this creating, promoting, and selling via your blog….
That’s why people call you a blogger. Because you educate, influence, and earn from your blog 😉
And I’m sharing this article with you because I want to show you how much money you can actually make from your blog if you focus on strategic action.
HOW I MADE $2,285.15 IN ONE WEEKEND
In October of 2018, I surpassed my monthly income goal by A LOT. In fact, I more than tripled my goal…And I’m going to tell you exactly how I did it.
Simply put, I made this money the same way that every other blogger makes their money: I promoted/sold my own products, and I promoted/sold products for another business I am associated with.
In fact, I made over $2,000 in just one weekend using these two money-making strategies, and that definitely contributed to surpassing my monthly income goal!
Here are the deets…
During that awesome three-day weekend in October, I made $463.45 from selling my own online course. Here is a snapshot from my sales page:
It took me two months to create and launch that course and it’s been a huge hit with my audience. It might not seem like a lot to some people, but making (7) sales in one weekend is just such a GOOD FEELING when you’re a baby in the blogging world. Validation that my hard work is actually paying off!
I create and sell my courses using the Teachable platform. It’s free to start and they provide all the tools you need to earn a full-time income from selling your own course.
>> SET UP YOUR FREE TEACHABLE ACCOUNT HERE
During that same weekend, I also made $1821.70 from promoting and selling a blogging product for a company called Ultimate Bundles. Here is a snapshot from my sales page:
These are the only two things that I promoted during that weekend. My own comprehensive blogging course and an amazing digital product bundle curated for bloggers that want to grow and make money….
Side note: these specific products are beneficial to MY AUDIENCE but they might not be beneficial to yours. It’s important to make sure that you know who YOUR audience is and how you can serve them. Then you can find products, services, and programs that they can enjoy and benefit from… That’s how you build a money-making blog.
With that said, you can definitely create and sell your own online course in any niche, so be sure to join Teachable and start working on your first course!
MAKING MONEY BY FOCUSING ON STRATEGIC ACTION
Even though the idea of making $2,285.15 in one weekend sounds uhhh-mazing, it wasn’t as easy-breezy as it sounds on paper. And it didn’t happen by mistake.
Everything that I earned that weekend was the result of strategic action. I’m a business owner, after all. And all business owners need a business strategy if they want to keep their head above water.
Every email that I sent, every blog post that I wrote, every pin that I pinned… it was all designed with intention. To lead people to these two specific products that I was recommending: my own blogging course using the Teachable platform and the Genius Bloggers Toolkit from Ultimate Bundles.
Before you can make anything like this happen, you have to know WHO your audience is and WHAT they want from you.
Then, you have to build up a trusting relationship with them by providing valuable free content on a regular basis…via your blog, social media, or email list.
Once you have a specific audience that trusts you to serve them and fulfill their needs, you can start recommending products and services that require some investment… like the courses and products I recommended over the weekend!
You’ll need a strategy in place though, because throwing sales pitches and affiliate links around all willy-nilly is just going to annoy your readers and followers.
My best tip: always come from a place of SERVICE.
How are these products and services that you are recommending going to benefit your audience? If you can show them the benefit and offer them the value, you can make money.
Pssst: this is how EVERY business makes money. Electricians, lawyers, plumbers, grocery store owners, mechanics, bloggers. Find a need, fill a need, get paid. Period.
THE TWO FREE BLOGGING PROGRAMS YOU NEED TO JOIN
If you want to make money from these two revenue streams like me, you’ll need to join the programs that make that possible. These aren’t your only options, but they are a great start!
Teachable:
If you want to create and sell your own course, you can sign up for the FREE Teachable plan and start building your course right now. The platform is super user-friendly and it doesn’t cost you anything to launch a course.
Ultimate Bundles:
If you want to join an amazing company that sells great products and pays high commissions, join Ultimate Bundles. Their product bundles are heavily discounted and insanely valuable, and they sell products in nearly every popular blogging niche.
PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER
As a quick recap: bloggers make money from creating/selling their own stuff or promoting/selling other people’s stuff. If you know who your audience is and you’re recommending great products that can genuinely help them, you can monetize your blog within a few short months.
{ Actionable Tip }:
Find a few affiliate programs in your niche and apply to join them. When you get approved, come up with a strategic plan for creating and promoting content around those specific affiliate products.
As an example, if your audience is interested in family travel, you can join affiliate programs for hotel chains and recommend them as a place for your audience to stay when they are on vacation. If you are a travel blogger and you need a list of high-paying affiliate programs, check out this article!
And for specific examples that walk you through making your first $1,000 from your blog, check out this article.
I hope this post was helpful! If you enjoyed these tips, please take a moment to pin this baby on Pinterest!
This is fantastic! Thank you so much for sharing this. I am a blogger beginner and I am grateful for every tip and motivation. Congratulations on your success and keep your great work up. Your blog is truly in
This is a really informative article. I love how you are so open to sharing what you have learned. I have greatly benefited by your articles and facebook group. Thanks a bunch!
I’m so glad to hear that! Thank you for reading 🙂
Thank you so much, I’m happy to share any insight I can that will help new bloggers reach their goals. Thanks for reading!
Clicked through your post from Enstine’s roundup. Fabulous results Cate and I can see why.
Serving people first always always works. I recently interviewed Ryan Biddulph from Blogging From Paradise and was surprised to find that he built his entire blogging empire through service. I mean this is a guy who’s been featured by Forbes, Virgin Atlantic, lots of other power sites and his “strategy” for success is simple – service.
Great connecting with you Cate and reading your fabulous post.
This is very informative! Thank you so much for sharing!
I just started my blog not too long ago, so I’m v. grateful for these tips.
And, congratulations on your success! Can’t wait to be reading more content from you this year!
Love,
Tasheeni | https://www.instagram.com/tasheeniv/
Great article! I wanted to ask: How do you make money through Teachable? By creating your own courses & promoting it on your blog?
Pinned! So much helpful information here! 🙂
Yes, I create and sell my own courses on the Teachable platform and market them through my blog and social media 🙂
I love hearing what led people to my blog, thank you for sharing that! Serving your audience is truly the only way to be successful, thank you for reading and commenting!
Cate you’re awesome and thanks for sharing such helpful tips!
Thank you for reading!
Such an inspiring post showing tips on how you achieved your success and sharing it with others! I will admit creating an ecourse or a product definitely makes me nervous but after reading this post, I feel motivated to create one! Definitely took note of some tips and will be working on implementing this to my blogging strategy. Thank you so much!
Thank you! I was so scared to create my first product, but now I have completed two and will publish my third in two weeks. It’s a wild snowball effect, and so much fun!
This was so helpful! I am an ultimate bundles affiliate as well but am struggling to make any sales. Any advice? I don’t want to spam the group boards I currently belong with links to ultimate bundles products and get kicked out. I would love any advice! Thank you!
What is your niche and which bundles are you promoting? The most important part is knowing the product lineup well and making sure it matches with your audience. Then share the product with your audience with emphasis on the solution they will get from making a purchase. I make all of my Ultimate Bundles income from sharing products directly with my own audience on Facebook and my email list, I don’t bother with promoting on group boards or anywhere else. I focus on the audience that I already have and filling a need for them. I hope that helps!
You are so inspiring! I’m new to blogging and am obsessed with it! I have a similar story and can’t wait to launch my blog!! Congrats on your success! Cheers to more!
Xoxo
Ashley