Blogging is one of the best ways to make side income. I've been blogging for the last few years, and I now make a full-time income from my blogs. Here is my guide on how to start a blog in Australia and make money from it:
Bloggers can earn thousands of dollars per month
Running your own blog can be extremely profitable. In general, the longer you've been running a blog and the more time you're willing to put in the more you'll earn. When I first started blogging I didn't make any money, but over time I was able to grow it into a full-time income.
This travel blogger made over $7000 in a month. This financial blog made over $3000 in one month and this food blog made over $2000. These sites were started by people just like you. If you're passionate about a topic and willing to put in a couple of hours work each week you can do it too.
Here is why blogging is a great way to earn some extra income:
- Flexible Hours – you can spend as little or as much time on it as you want. It's a great way to grow your income while still working a full or part time job
- Work from Anywhere – you can work from home and anywhere in the world.
- Leads to opportunities – blogging can often lead to more employment opportunities and is a great way to build your brand.
Choosing what to Blog About
You can literally create a blog about anything. This blog, for example is themed around personal finance for young people. Some topics work better than others. In my experience writing about the following tends to make the most money, however don't be afraid to try different things:
- Personal Development and Productivity
- Health and Fitness
- Cooking
- Home and Lifestyle tips
- Personal Finance
Most importantly you should choose something that you can write about. If you're passionate about a subject then you'll more likely stick with it and have success. Here are some more ideas on blogs you could start:
- Start a Book Review Blog – review the books that you read
- Create a Travel Blog – share your tips on travel/backpacking and document your journey
- Share your Savings Journey – share your journey on how you're getting out of debt and saving money
- Review beauty products – write about what works and what doesn't
How to Start a Blog in Australia
Starting a blog is actually really easy and requires no technical skills. (but if you do run into any problems following this guide, just get in touch).
To run a blog you'll need a web host. Hosting is pretty cheap these days.
I recommend hosting your blog with Siteground. They make it super easy, offer great support and have a really good product. I use Siteground to host many of my money making blogs and have been super happy with them.
Here is how to get started:
- Sign-up to Siteground Here
- Follow this super simple tutorial on how to get a WordPress Blog on Siteground
- Start blogging!
Even if you're not tech savvy you can still start a blog. Siteground has definitely been setup for beginners in mind.
Once you've got WordPress installed you'll be ready to start blogging.
Making Money with your blog
So how do you actually make money from a blog? Well there are a number of different methods. These are my favourites:
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is when someone clicks through to an online shop from your website and makes a purchase. You'll earn a small commission. Most online retailers have an affiliate program. Amazon for example runs one of the worlds largest affiliate programs. You can recommend products in your blog posts, and when people click through and buy something you'll earn some money.
Most of the top blogs earn money from affiliate marketing. The key is to write honest reviews and be genuine in your writing. Don't just write about a product because you can earn some money.
Sponsored Posts
Just like on instagram where brands pay to be featured by influencers, brands also want to be written about on blogs. Sponsored posts are very popular on beauty and fashion blogs. For example a brand like The Ordinary might launch a new beauty product and promote it on beauty blogs.
Ads
You can make money by placing ads on your blog. The most popular way to do this is through Google Adsense – which is Google's advertising network. You'll earn money when people view the ads and even more when the click on them. Advertising works best on blogs with a lot of traffic. So for new blogs, it's probably best to stick with affiliate marketing until you grow.
Land yourself a Job
Did you know that many bloggers have gone on to work for larger companies? Blogging is a great way to get yourself noticed. And it'll look great on a resume. Blogging can be a great way to build your profile and personal brand.
