Monday, May 12, 2014

how to monetise your blog

When I decided to open my blog to sponsorship I did so without guilt or apprehension. I had been blogging for five years at the time and had established a good relationship with a number of brands (through giveaways and unpaid reviews) who wanted to work with me on a regular basis. Of course, I had a few niggling doubts, but I also believed that my words and photos and the space I had created was worthy of income. I believed that my writing was of value and so I took the leap.

As a sole trader I wholeheartedly understand the rocky road that is freelance writing - I embrace the lifestyle it offers but there is always the daunting prospect of no work just around the corner (you never know). My blog is my online publication; a creative outlet where I'm at the helm - it makes sense to earn a living from it. And I do, gratefully so. 

A few fellow bloggers have emailed me recently, asking if I'd share some advice on making money from blogging. Of course! Here's what I've learned over the past two years...

  • own your decision to monetise your blog and be proud of it - I don't think earning money from writing/blogging is controversial. Whilst it's not to everyone's liking I think it's really important to make a considered decision that you wholeheartedly believe in. If it feels good and right for you and your blog then you're on the right track. 

  • create an intention and adhere to it - you've created a niche blog and attracted a readership; best to keep both these things in mind when it comes to sponsors. My priority? Integrity. I work with creatives and small businesses who make products that I love - for their beauty, simplicity, practicality, timelessness and quality; products that I unashamedly promote because I believe in them. On the flip-side this means saying no to a lot of potential work - with big supermarkets, chain stores and pharmaceutical/beauty brands that often dangle the $1000+ metaphorical carrot in my face. When in doubt (and you will have doubts) come back to your intention. 

  • not everyone will like your decision and that's ok - I think it's really important to accept that not all your readers will like your decision to work with sponsors and that's absolutely fine. They're entitled to an opinion just as you are entitled to make money from your blog. I've been really conscious of seamlessly blending sponsorship; I don't accept flashing ads, ad artwork needs to fit my criteria and my aesthetic and I only feature one clearly-labelled sponsored post a week (often it's one a month). 

  • approach brands that you already use/love/buy - if you like them chances are your readers will, too - when I was starting to accept sponsorship the hardest thing was knowing how to approach brands. I made a list of all the brands that I raved about to friends and yoga students in my first few years of motherhood (mostly baby brands) and then contacted the brands directly. Some were well-known and established, others were small etsy stores that I genuinely believed in. Sometimes a conversation would begin and other times I wouldn't get a response. It's all trial and error. My advice? Be polite, don't hound and don't have lofty expectations. 

  • create a detailed media kitlet it be known that many brands are inundated with emails from media types hoping to collaborate in one way or another. Introduce yourself in a personal and succinct email (an essay isn't necessary) and attach your media kit for the reader to peruse if they so wish. Kate created my media kit using my words and photos - it aptly conveys my blog's aesthetic and my creative intentions. It includes a detailed description (blurb) of my blog, testimonials from readers and past/current sponsors, statistics including monthly pageviews, unique visitors, Facebook likes, Instagram followers, sidebar costs and my contact details. 

  • brands will want to pay you in product but products do not pay bills - I think the best lesson I've learned since monetising my blog is that I'm no longer just the creative - I'm dipping my toes into the business side of things. If my blog was a magazine I'm playing the role of writer, photographer, editor and advertising manager. In the first six months of accepting sponsors I was inundated with packages in the mail; the postman knew me by name and we'd have this awkward conversation at the door about the fact that he was delivering a package - again. It was around this time that I really started exploring the concept of simplicity and the conflict was evident. And besides, I wanted my earnings to pay bills and build savings, I didn't want to fill my home with stuff. So I very quickly declined offers for product reviews and product payment and stood my ground. There are times when I will negotiate a product/cash payment if there is something I particularly need but in the majority of cases it's cash only. I send the brand an invoice with my ABN number and bank details and payment is made one week before the ad begins. 

  • be open to discussion - committing to sponsorship is, for some brands, a significant investment - they will appreciate an open discussion where you are happy to answer their questions, listen to their concerns and offer them suggestions. I'm always happy to discuss sponsorship options with the brands I work with and will always offer discounts for three or six month bookings. Because I don't work with many big brands I don't often deal with PR companies - instead I'm working directly with the designer/creative and so our discussions are personalised and to the point. 

Hopefully you'll find this information helpful, in one way or another. I'm more than happy to answer your questions in the comments... 


19 COMMENTS


  1. This was really interesting, thanks Jodi! Although (in my case) not because I want to monetise my blog, but because I really appreciated reading about your intentions behind monetising, and how you approach it. I love your blog and am often interested in the businesses/products you talk about. It's so good to hear how you focus on smaller, more artistic producers, as it were, and things you genuinely find interesting. It rings true with the rest of what you write. Thanks for sharing. X

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  2. Lovely write-up, Jodi! Appreciate your honesty and generosity with sharing your wisdom...
    Ronnie xo

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  3. I have never had an issue with your sponsored posts or ads, in fact, i have bought quite afew products that i love from brands that i would have otherwise never known about. I found this post a very interesting read.

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  4. Really great post, Jodi. It can be such a touchy subject so I thank you for your honesty! x

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  5. Thanks so much for sharing your insights. I'm new to blogging, so it's great to learn from your experience, you have a really beautiful blog and I love your ethos of 'practicing simplicity'. x

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  6. Great post. You really cleared up a few things for me. I've been sitting here feeling guilty about the fact that I think my time is worth more than a review copy of a magazine. Thank you for claryfying that for me. I'm bookmarking this, I'm sure I'll need to refer to it again as time goes by. xx

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  7. As a quite new blogger this is on my radar for the future. Thanks for such an insightful post.

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  8. Thanks Jodi! I have no issue at all with bloggers being paid to create their blog, in fact I find it a bit weird when people get all up in arms and righteous about it, fair enough if the ads don't fit the content but if it is all a happy marriage like it is on your blog then great! It has been my intention to monetise my blog right from the start because I see my blog as an extension of my freelance writing work and I am paid to write in other forms of media so why not social media I say. Your post was helpful in affirming all that I have been thinking and am beginning to do. I would though also like your opinion on the numbers game, ie. do you think there is a magic or minimum number of followers/pageviews to reach before approaching sponsors or do you think just start testing the water and see what they think? Thankyou x

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  9. Thank you Jodi, so so much, such a helpful post! I really appreciate your sharing your experience with us.

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  10. Wise words, thank you Jodi. I'm still baffled by those readers who might be offended by bloggers making money through advertising. Perhaps they don't really understand the commitment of time that's involved, but I personally feel that is someone is providing me with content that I value, they should absolutely be compensated for their time, energy, and talent. My blog is only 2 years old, but I offer giveaways and product reviews at times. I made the mistake of accepting a product that I wasn't 1000% in love with, and that giveaway kind of flopped. I'll never make that mistake again.I really appreciate your thoughtful post on the topic, and would love to see more posts like this!

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  11. Wonderful advice! Thank you. One question: how did you figure out what to charge for sponsorship? Is there a standard price range for blog sponsorship?

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    1. Good question! And yes, it was a little tricky. Ultimately I wanted to create a range of prices so a variety of businesses could take it up if they wished (I started off with a range between $40-$90/month). At the moment my large ads are priced according to their position on the sidebar (ranging from $145 - $250/month) and the small ads are all the same price ($120/month) x

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  12. This is so nice and beautifully written. I love how open and honest you are. Very inspiring and helpful. Thank you so much

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  13. Very interesting indeed to see how it works on the side of the web page! Thanks for this article.

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  14. Thanks, Jodi. I love reading about making money from blogging. It's inspiring and helps keep me going with my little blog. Making money from something we love to do is pretty cool. I can't understand why others find it controversial or offensive. Perhaps writers f books had the same sorts of issues back in the day. Time passes and people move on...thankfully. Keep doing what you're doing!

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  15. So far I haven't approached brands as they have approached me. This is a really great read as it gives an insight into the decision making process of choosing which brands to work with.

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  16. This is a brilliant post, Jodi. I particularly love your line "own your decision to monetise your blog and be proud of it" - it's your own personal blog and your own personal decision to choose to do so (or not).

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  17. excellent tips! I have been wanting to monetise my blog for a while. I have done few product reviews but I am looking for something more than that and something more relevant to my niche, art but I hadnt got opportunities to review art products or something like that. I might start thinking about approaching brands!

    Katrina Sophia Blog

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  18. I’m actually inspired by your honesty. I want to monetise my blog. It takes so much time that it’s not fair to be not compensated. I have a question on magic numbers too! Do you have to hit a certain benchmark to demand compensation? Pageviews, unique visitors, Social media numbers? TIA

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