Websites are everywhere for the simple reason that they are the essential way any business or individual communicates with the outside world. Blogs, either as standlone platforms or a component page of a site, are equally important. From a business point of view, they allow immediate updates to be disseminated, as well as keeping customers engaged on an ongoing basis. For individuals, they maintain the vital flow of web traffic. Whatever your reasons for operating a blog, many bloggers will also have dreamt of the possibilities of combining its traditional function as an online diary with the more business-orientated aspects of a commercial website. The good news is that it is possible to monetize a blog. Here are straightforward ways of transforming your blog into something that will generate some income for you.
Google Adsense
When it comes to monetizing, Google AdSense is one of the most straightforward methods for any beginner. The concept is simple. By using this function you can enable your own website to display Google advertisements. Every time one of your visitors clicks on any of these adverts, you will qualify for a percentage of the costs.
Google manages AdSense according to contex: it all depends in what the background of your blog happens to be. For instance, if you are engaged in sporting activities, it would be appropriate for these to target sportswear or gym equipment and so on. Applying this software is a very straightforward procedure. Google supply the necessary code and all you have to do is copy this and paste it into prominent positions on your webpages. If you do some research on your own web traffic you can get a good idea of which pages visitors are likely to target the most.
Is the code is in place Google will ensure advertisements tie-in with your site content. You don’t have to worry unduly if you think your blog deals in a niche area. Google AdSense is covering a vast network, with global coverage; regardless of how much of a minority appeal you might think you have, you are guaranteed to received at least a modicum of viable traffic hitting your ad links.
Because these adverts will integrate with your pages seamlessly, they will also enhance your users experience, adding a layer of professionalism to your content. It is that latter point that is all important. Whatever the tropical background of your website, it is of paramount importance that the content is of the highest quality. You could lace your site with any number of Google adverts, but if the actual text is inferior no one is going to be hanging around looking at your pages, let alone clicking on any ads.
Affiliate programs
The way affiliate programs work is that retail organisations allow sole traders to sign-up to programs where they become a third party selling products. Commission is then generated according to click-throughs to a purchase page. The scheme is popular because there are virtually no restrictions on the types of product that can be affiliated to. Obviously it is in the blog or website manager’s best interests to sign-up to schemes involving popular products.
One of the best and long established of these programs is Amazon Associates. When you consider that Amazon is the largest online retailer on the planets, that are obviously huge opportunities for bloggers to grab a share of the available commissions. As with AdSense the incentive is to entice visitors to click through to Amazon.com from your own blog.
With Amazon Associates the blogger is supplied with a tracking link unique to any Amazon products, that will link directly to the page enabling the customer to make a purchase. In order to make the most out of this facility you can promote various Amazon products throughout your website, including a product catalogue obtainable from Amazon.com. It is up to you to encourage visitors to click-through by writing product reviews, or providing links to 5-star reviews that have already been posted by customers on the Amazon website. Here is where you can get imaginative with your promotion. Why not have a recommended resources page on your blog or suggest a top 10 of popular items? Engage with your own social media platform in order to try and encourage customers to follow the crucial links.
This program works by providing all sorts of promotional gadgets such as banners or widgets, involving slideshows or 'my favorite lists'. These can then be integrated into your blog.
Of course, there are many types of cpa affiliate offers but from an entrepreneurial blogger’s point of view, this works particularly well because when someone clicks on an Amazon link and buys multiple products, you get credit for the entire sale.