How to monetize your blog

The Covid-19 pandemic has unleashed many people’s talents. From cooking to creating YouTube videos to writing blogs.

But did you know that you can convert your talent or hobby into an income-generating avenue?

Parents Magazine reached out to Tuko’s Managing Director Gibendi Ramenya who shed light on how one can monetize their blog.

According to Ramenya, just like any other business, it takes time before you can start making money from your blog. You have to put in the work and be patient.

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The process of building a successful blog        

The first step is to decide the subject that you want to write about.

“You need to pick a subject that you are passionate about. Make sure that it is something that you can endlessly write about. The biggest mistake people usually make is writing about what people would like to read. Just write about something you are passionate about and the right audience will come,” Ramenya told Parents on a Facebook live chat.

The second step is to find a one-word domain name that is simple and memorable. Have a good logo and look for a good site to host it. The most common one is WordPress. Let it look professional and then begin researching on the subject you have picked.

Then come up with a content plan.

“How many articles will you be writing? Is it two articles per week, three articles per week, or 10 articles per month? What’s the frequency rate? Twice a week, once a week, or over the weekend? Because blogging needs a lot of discipline. But once you have a content plan you know that on Tuesday I need to put up something. Your audience is waiting. So that at the end of the month you have like 10 well-written articles up,” says Tuko’s MD.

The poster of the Parents Magazine Monday Facebook live chat.
[Source: Parents Magazine]The only way you will get people to read your content is by creating unique, fresh, original and engaging content on a regular basis. Once you build a loyal audience, now you can start making money.

“Only after building an audience can you start making money. So you need good content that will bring in a reliable audience; people who are coming in every day or month. Maybe you can make 10,000 unique visitors who regularly come to your blog that month. At least now you can make money. But you see, that takes a lot of time,” says Ramenya.

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You can bring traffic to your website through social media or Google. Use Google Analytics to know where most of your traffic is coming from.

To get social media traffic, you have to engage your audience by alternating between videos, photo posts, statuses and links.

To increase your Google traffic, write about what most people are searching online. Google Keyword Planner will help you determine that after you type the subject you are interested in.

Another trick is to ensure your articles are brief and they contain multi-media embeds.

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How your blog will make money

Once you get a substantial audience, you can make money through these avenues.

Google Adsense.
Display ads.
Sponsored posts.
Affiliate marketing for brands like Amazon.
Subscription.

“But display ads and sponsored content are the best ways to make more money from any part of the world,” Ramenya affirms.