Work isn’t what it used to be, and you may have dreams of renting an RV and traveling the country or jumping on a flight to Europe at a moment’s notice. Unless you’re independently wealthy, you’re going to need to work while you make your life and travel dreams come true, so for a lot of people who want flexibility and freedom, the natural choice is to set up a blog.
Unfortunately, more often than not people abandon their blog thinking it’s just not a viable way for them to make a full-time income. It can be, but you have to know what you’re doing, and you have to put the work in, as you would when starting any other business. Sites like Outdoorsy that rent RVs in a peer-to-peer marketplace often highlight stories and guides to working while you travel, but what about specifically becoming a successful blogger?
The following are some strategic tips to help you move in the direction of being not just a blogger, but a successful full-time blogger.
Drive Traffic
We won’t focus here on setting up your blog or getting a domain name, but instead what happens after that point. There’s really nothing more satisfying than finally setting up your blog or website, and then you’re shortly let down following that feeling when you realize you have no clue how to get traffic. If you can’t drive traffic, you can’t make a full-time income from your site.
There are so many different ways to drive traffic, but first and foremost, provide value. If you can start with a lot of really informative, unique, in-depth and valuable content, you’re going to drive more organic traffic. You can also make an infographic, which is surprisingly easy with options like Canva, that you can then circulate on social media.
You may also have to invest some money in ads or using something like Taboola campaigns.
Ad Networks
One of the most basic ways to start monetizing your site is through ad networks, which if you like to write are an excellent stream of passive income. With an ad network, you sign up for the programs and get a code that you copy and paste onto your blog.
You need to have some traffic, otherwise, you won’t’ be getting the clicks to generate income, but once you have steady traffic, they are one of the easiest ways to earn money from blogging.
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing lets you essentially sell other people’s products and services through your site, and if you can get the reader to trust you and build relationships with them and your brand, affiliate marketing can be very lucrative. One of the most popular affiliate marketing marketplaces is Clickbank, and you can choose from almost every product imaginable to promote.
These are just some of the first things to consider when you’re working toward being a full-time blogger. Once you get the point where you’re earning some income, the options become a lot more expansive. You can create your own products, work as a consultant, sell space o your site for various reasons, and even create courses.