So, you’ve started a website, maybe as a life-long passion project, a resource, or something just for fun. Now that you’ve got things off the ground, you’re looking to monetize your content.
Ad monetization is one of the easiest ways to earn revenue by displaying ads across your website. By enabling ads on your site, advertisers pay you to get their ads in front of your audience.
A great way to streamline this process is to partner with an ad network. Ad networks connect you to advertising buyers who want to reach specific audiences. Ad networks handle the heavy lifting — ad placements, financial transactions, and technical support — so you can focus on creating content for your site.
If you’re just starting out, you’ll want to ensure you have enough traffic to your site coming from a variety of sources. Most reputable ad networks require a minimum amount of traffic before they can place ads on your site. Advertisers that partner with ad networks pay based on ad impressions, a metric known as eCPMs (Cost Per Mille).
With Journey by Mediavine, we handle the relationship between your site and advertisers, so you can continue creating content without juggling ad logistics too.
Additionally, where your audience is located and data points like demographic information may affect whether advertisers want to place ads on your site.
For example, say a company like P&G wants to target men between the ages of 30-40 years old located in the United States. If your site’s primary audience falls into that category, the traffic on your site would match exactly what that advertiser is looking for.
The amount of traffic, the source of your traffic, and your audience demographics play significant roles in your journey to ad monetization.
Diversifying content is one way to gain more eyes on your site. Instead of only writing for your website, try testing out other ways to repurpose your content. Audiences who connect with your content on one platform are more likely to check out other places where you produce content.
YouTube
Try turning an older post into a new YouTube video, linking back to the original post in the caption. For instance, if someone watches and follows your how-to videos about lawn care on YouTube, they’re more likely to be interested in your blog articles on gardening if you promote them through a link in the caption.
Pinterest is a great place to expand your audience. You’re likely already creating photographs for your blog post. Use the best ones on Pinterest and link them back to your site. (Don’t know where to start with Pinterest? Seek the help of our Pinterest Partner, Kate Ahl of Simple Pin Media.)
Gain traffic by promoting your website on Instagram. For example, if you shared a photo of Grandma’s Lemon Bar recipe on Instagram, link the recipe from your website alongside the image in your Instagram story. Those interested in your baking content will want to engage with your site’s recipes.
Followers already in your fan club are easier to convert into consistent website readers, so definitely self-promote across platforms.
Additionally, Offer a Solution.
Another way to grow your website is to solve a problem by offering a solution. Most people browsing the Internet are looking to find an answer or solve a problem. Create content that will draw individuals to your site, looking for a resolution.
One way to do this is by offering courses, workshops, or downloadable print-offs.
For example, if you run a parenting website and know back-to-school season is coming up, offer readers something like a downloadable checklist to take with them when shopping for school supplies. Or maybe you write how-to content about crocheting. Offer a workshop to those who want to dive deeper into the topic.
By providing value through these offerings, not only will readers learn more, they’ll also associate your site as a source of knowledge.
Enticing, helpful content is a definite way to turn readers into engaged fans.
As you direct traffic to your site through social media, your accounts may grow to attract the attention of brands that advertise directly with content creators.
Even accounts with just a few thousand followers can be considered by brands as mirco-influencers, or micro-creators, and are still valuable to the advertising world.
Sponsored posts are exactly what they sound like: brands partner with creators to make a post on behalf of their product or offering across your social platforms.
For instance, if you’re a travel blogger and consistently post on social media about your travels, a company like Allbirds may reach out to you to create content for them on why their shoes are the most comfortable to travel in. Or say you’re writing content about fishing gear and post videos from your fishing trips, Columbia may want to collaborate with you about why their clothing is the best for outdoor getaways.
Most of the time, brands will actually contact you first, so be sure to include your email address in your bio preemptively. You can also try reaching out to brands you already know and love. If you’re a baker always using Oatly in vegan recipes, it’s worth a shot to pitch a sponsored post directly to them!
Speaking of email, you should work on building up your email list too– that way any promotions or newsletters you create are shared with an audience who is likely already a fan of you and your content. A previous subscriber is more likely to engage with emailed content and click through any links provided, driving up overall site traffic and increasing the time spent on your site, just from email alone.
One way to easily gain more subscribers is to utilize Grow by Mediavine’s Print Pass. In addition to Grow’s entire suite of reader engagement tools, Print Pass is a feature that easily converts engaged readers into email subscribers– by locking a how-to, or recipe card behind a subscribe form pop-up. Readers who are interested in downloading this content are prompted to enter their email address, which unlocks the content. Through this feature, you’re creating an established email list without lifting a finger!
Eager to start monetizing your site? Get started with the easiest option first. Apply to Journey by Mediavine and start placing ads on your site. It’s the perfect solution for publishers with growing sites who are ready to start earning.
From travel bloggers to craft sites, recipe writers to DIYers, Journey is a great fit for any publisher in any niche.
Backed by our proven ad technology and buyer relationships from Mediavine, you can rest assured that user experience won’t be compromised.
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