How Websites Make Money (And How You Can Too!)
Ever wondered how websites make money? And how you could be tapping into that? Imagine being able to supplement your full-time income or even replacing it with revenue generated from websites.
Although the idea may seem far-fetched, you may be surprised to learn that making money from websites isn’t a myth. In fact, turning a part-time website or blog into an income-generating asset is fairly common with a bit of luck and some hard work.
Before we dive into the ways you can start making money, keep in mind that the most important part of any website monetization strategy is traffic. Without traffic, your website could have the best content in the world that nobody knows about.
If you’d like to learn how to drive traffic to your website, be sure to get in touch with our team to develop a strategy that works for you.
9 Most Common Ways to Make Money with Websites
The strategies listed below range from easy and passive to ones which require a ton of ongoing work (so make sure you pick something that suits your site and lifestyle preferences).
1. AFFILIATE MARKETING
One of the quickest and most popular methods of making money with your blog or website, is by joining an affiliate program.
Affiliate marketing is when you advertise specific products or services on your website and receive a commission each time they sell.
Start by finding a product you like and would recommend. Then, on your website, endorse the product and promote it to your website visitors and email subscribers. If the product or service resonates with these people, they’ll click on your affiliate link, purchasing the product (while you get a split of the sale price!).
Popular affiliate programs:
2. GOOGLE ADSENSE
As the biggest name in search engines, Google is a great place to start earning money from your website.
AdSense allows publishers to tap into Google’s immense advertising network so that other advertisers can run ads on their website. The best part is how simple the process is!
Once you sign up, Google will place a simple code on your website that will identify the content of your site and start displaying relevant advertisements. Each time someone clicks on the ad, you get paid. (Yes, it’s really that easy!)
Apply for Google AdSense:
- Apply for AdSense – Google has strict rules to get and stay approved
3. SELL AD SPACE
Google AdSense is one way of making money from online advertisements.
Another is to simply sell your own ad space directly to companies looking to sponsor different blogs or products. You can get paid depending on how many visitors you get.
Sell ad space on your website:
- BuySellAds – The most popular environment to let everybody know you’re selling ad space
4. SELL DIGITAL PRODUCTS
You may realize that you have built a strong reader base who is genuinely interested in what you have to offer. If so, consider creating your own digital product.
E-books and online courses are a great way to generate income from your website and can represent a sizable portion of your monthly revenue.
Of course, creating your own products that are well made and polished does require a ton of time and additional resources; but, this method offers the potential to make the most money on a per-sale basis when you can sell your own directly because there’s no middle-man.
5. BUILD AN EMAIL LIST
Building an email list is one of the best long term strategies to profitably growing your blog into a full-fledged, money making business.
Your email list comprises of your most loyal readers. The objective is to convert as many first time visitors to you site into passionate followers who want to stay up-to-date with your latest content. Offering great information or free help is a perfect way to start.
Build an email list:
- How to build an email list – A step-by-step guide to building your own list
6. CREATE A MEMBERSHIP SITE
A membership site is much like a gym membership which requires a monthly fee to be paid to access the facilities – it’s a site where people can join to get whatever it is you offer – like articles, reports, tutorials, webinars, apps or even software.
This type of website can be very profitable – but only if people join, so marketing is a big part of your success. Once you figure out your ideal customers and where to find them, you’ll need to spend a lot time finding ways to entice them to your membership site.
Create a membership site:
- How to make money at home with a membership site – A comprehensive guide to choosing a topic and setting up your site
7. CREATE A JOB BOARD
With more people than ever out there looking for jobs, it’s a no brainer that the internet will be the place they turn to, to find their next remote gig or full time employment.
An online job board is a place where employers can post job offers and applicants can respond to them. Many job boards charge employers for each application they post. On the flip side, applicants can pay a subscription fee to get full access to the jobs posted on your site.
Job boards are an excellent way to draw new visitors (especially professionals!) to your site; making it another great strategy to increase traffic and generate income from your website.
Create a job board:
- How to Create a WordPress Job Board – A beginner’s guide to creating your own job board
8. SET UP AN E-COMMERCE SITE
A website doesn’t just have to be about content. It can also be centered around tools or products on an online store.
Building an e-commerce site requires a lot of hard work and with thousands of online stores out there, you need to ensure that yours is filling a unique niche, with a detailed strategy and the latest marketing techniques to stand out from the crowd.
Set up an online store:
- eCommerce Set up – Quick, easy and affordable online store set up
9. SELL YOUR WEBSITE
Yes, you read correctly.
Believe it or not, you can actually make money by selling your own website. If you’ve built up a following (or possibly even sold a few products or included advertising on your site), you might be able to sell it to someone else.
There’s always a market out there for ready-made sites. All you need to do is create a great website, find a buyer and then enjoy your well earned income.
There are hundreds of other ways to make money from your website. Millions of websites generate revenue every day using the techniques described above as well as a variety of others. Remember that the key to successfully monetizing your website is traffic.
If you’re ready to launch your own website or blog and join the millions of other people making a living from home, get in touch with us today!
Appifiny Solutions is a digital and media solutions company offering custom, affordable and effective website packages. Our team of experts are sure to find the right solution for your need.