as a blogger, hands down, the question i get asked most frequently is if i actually make money..followed by, ‘ok, but how much?’ i always want to ask how much that person’s salary is, but i typically answer with an awkward laugh and say ‘oh, you know..’ and promptly change the subject. i’ll never forget my sister saying i could call it ‘work’ when i had to file taxes. welp friends, i officially have a business because the short answer is:
yes, i make money.

if you’re new here, we’re in the middle of a blog series, per reader request, and i’m answering the 4 main questions i get asked about blogging as if we were sitting having coffee or wine…

1. i want to start blogging….how and where do i start?!
2. can you really make money and how do i do that..and how much are we talking here?! {you’re here!}
3. how do you work with brands and do you actually like the products/clothes/brand you write about? {coming soon!}
4. how do you manage blogging, family and life…how do you do it ALL?! {coming soon!}

i hope to answer your questions and give you the information you’re looking for without a whole bunch of useless information…that being said, if you have questions i’m not answering, feel free to leave them in the comments or shoot me a message and i’ll update! a quick google or pinterest search will bring literally thousands of posts and there are blogs that are specifically dedicated to how to blog…this is not one of them, but i also try to be as transparent as possible around here and i’m happy to help and always answer questions…so hopefully this will be what you’re looking for!
let’s get this party started!

can you make money as a blogger?
short answer: yes.
when i very first decided to blog, i never thought i would earn a penny… i did it to raise awareness for infertility and vasa previa and as a creative outlet as a new stay at home mama to twin babies.
i will also say there are people who use their blog to make a full salary….that is not me. nor do i intend to do that… blogging is work. like a lot of work.. i quit my job to stay home with my kids and while the extra cash is really nice, i still only do it because i truly love where blogging has taken me. the day i care more about the money or i don’t enjoy it…i’ll shut it down. there are bloggers who are making 6 digits… again, not me.

when did you first start making money?
it took me a full year before my first bit of cash came in…and before that, i was getting ‘paid’ in product. so i’ve been making actual cash for a year now in the blogging world and i officially considered this little corner of webspace my ‘business’ in january.
i probably could have started charging before i did, but wasn’t confident until my friend + mentor {thanks, foodhussy!} really encouraged me to believe in myself and charge… what’s the worst they say, no?! but let’s be honest. it takes hours to get posts going…the pics, the time, content, editing, etc.. it’s work!

how much money do you make?
this is totally dependent on what you do and how you make your money. every blogger is different, but here’s where i’m at.
i’ve been averaging $700-$900 per month from affiliate links {primarily amazon + stitch fix} and sponsored posts.
a couple of notes: i do not have ads on here.. i’ve been told multiple times that i should and i just haven’t had the time to invest in figuring it out. it’s on my list.
building a blog + a following takes work. like, a lot of work. brands want to work with influencers who have influence…which takes time. for me, it’s always been about authenticity. i learned very early on that i wanted this to be an honest space. like if we were sitting down having some coffee or wine. i’m not here to make everything seem pretty..i’m here to let you know you’re not alone. of course no one wants to come to read a bunch of depressing stuff so i do keep it lighthearted because that’s genuinely how i live my life… BUT. i’m honest…that’s the number one feedback i get from working with brands is that they like working with someone who tells it how it is. i won’t work with a brand i don’t love because it’s my brand on the line too…if you don’t trust me, i will then have zero influence.
*stepping off my soap box.*

where does your income come from?
i touched on this a bit above…there are a bunch of ways to make money.
affiliate links: i primarily use amazon + stitch fix but am starting to dabble in various networks. there’s RewardsStyle, PepperJam, Commission Junction… i haven’t taken a ton of time to do more research, but it’s out there.
sponsored posts: this is my main source of income. working with brands i love to introduce you {the reader} to the products. i did start out working with brands solely in exchange for product but those days are pretty much long gone. there are companies that i will shout their praise to the end of the earth because i believe in their mission and you see them pop up here on a regular basis
ads: i don’t love ads. i think they are distracting and somewhat annoying…and even if i click on a post i was curious in, if i get pop-ups or am distracted by the ads, i’ll click away. they bother me, so i’m not really keen on throwing them up here. if you are interested, i know google adsense is a good one to start out with and then the blogher network and adthrive will manage the ads for you when you have a minimum of 100k page views per month.
tv appearances: this, quite honestly, makes me laugh because never in my wildest dreams would i have thought i would have made money being on tv…but here we are! the girls donut birthday post went viral on pinterest so i’ve done a couple of tv appearances for that as well as local businesses that i have worked with! it’s actually WAY more fun than i thought it would be and i love being able to support local shops in that way!

ok, i have a blog, when can i start charging?
 i think i was getting around 2k page views the first time i made money because i still had an influence. a following that cared about what i said. the products i use. here’s the thing about your following. you can get 100k page views, but if only 2% gives two poops about the yogurt your promoting, you don’t have that great of an influence….and they’ll probably charge that brand a lot. the same company works with a small blog who only gets 2k page views…but has a 10% engagement, they’re going to be more worthwhile and drive better results…all while having to pay less. it’s a better bang for your buck. i’ve really started to notice more brands

how do you know how much to charge?
SO much debate on this topic… there are sites like social blue book that give you a good starting point on what you should charge…but, it’s just that. a starting point. big brands that are well established have a much higher budget than your small mama shop on etsy working her tail off to run her business. i support them all and quite frankly, i would rather work with the smaller brands and watch them grow…but i make more money from the larger brands, so it’s a trade off. 

yep, it takes work. and patience. and perserverence. and if you want to get into the blogging business as a “get rich quick” scheme… i strongly suggest you rethink it. above all else, remain true to your values and vision for your blog and remember to always put your readers first… forever and always, community over competition!

question for all the bloggers: how long had you been blogging before you made money?!

as always, this is meant to be helpful so if you still have questions, leave a comment or shoot me a message! 🙂