How To Become A Full-Time Blogger & Earn Money From Your Blog

Becoming a full-time blogger, that's the new dream right? For all of us that have never really fitted into the typical work force and went down the creative path at Uni, there is suddenly a place for us. One that we know and feel comfortable in, one that we can control in and have it just how we like it.

But how do we get there? How do we take the plunge from the normal route of school, uni, job to one where people have no idea what it's about, one where people will ask how much money can you make from that? Because of course, "it's all about the money" *rolls eyes*

For many people, blogging is just a hobby, which is fine! But for those who do want to make it their full-time job we have put together some tips and advice based on our own personal experiences trying to make it in this new and exciting industry. 

REGISTER AS SELF-EMPLOYED

If you're earning money from your blog you will need to clear this up with the tax office. You can be registered as self-employed AND employed so you can get this all cleared before you make any big decisions on becoming a blogger full-time.

AFFILIATE

A great way to see the pennies rolling in is by using affiliate programs such as affiliate window and shopsense. Affiliate window gives you commission when someone makes a purchase through one of your links and shopsense pays per click! There are tonnes of other similar programs out there so get googling! 

FIND SPONSORS

Next up you can try and find some sponsors, or let them find you! If you're going to be charging for a sidebar ad, the sponsors will want to know how many pageviews you have and the most accurate way of finding this out is by using google analytics. You can also start charging for sponsored posts but make sure they are relevant to your content and that you have a disclaimed the post somewhere on your blog.

In this area it's important not to undersell yourself! Don't just accept any offer that comes along, try to barter your way to a better deal. Think of the hours you've put into your blog, calculate your blog's worth and don't settle for anything less than you deserve.

It can be hard to get a good idea of what you should charge for a post but we have a simple sum you can try, you can start off by taking the amount of unique visitors per month and dividing by 100, then times by 2 and you should work between that bracket.  

EXAMPLE
unique visitors per month = 5000
5000 / 100 = 50
x 2 = 100
so charge between £50 - £100 per sponsored post

However when your domain authorship (which can be up to 100) goes up, you will want to increase your price. Ultimately what you charge is up to you.

WORK TOGETHER NOT AGAINST EACH OTHER

With blogging becoming a more and more popular pass time, the competition can seem pretty fierce! But remember, it's much better to be working together as a community rather than trying to compete against each other. Focus on building your own community of followers, and this doesn't have to be a large number - it can actually work more in your favour if you have a smaller group of followers but more personal relationships with them, this way they keep coming back! So reply to their comments, visit their blogs and follow them on twitter! 

FREELANCE

So you might be seeing some money coming in right about now, but you know it's not enough to support you full time and this is where you start looking for blogging work outside your blog. You can start off by guest posting on online magazines or other peoples/companies blogs. Then when you show that you can write articles from a different angle than your usual OOTD you can start contacting people looking for paid work. A lot of full-time bloggers have blogging work outside of their own personal blog.

DO THE MATH

Now it's time to set yourself some goals. Look at how your pageviews are increasing and how the money coming in is increasing and try to predict what you could be earning in the future. How much is the minimum you need to earn to get by and see when/if it's possible for you to survive solely by blogging.

RAISE THE FUNDS

It's always best to try and raise a good rainy day fund! When you do take the plunge you will want a few months rent at least so you know you can get by.

IS IT REALLY WHAT YOU WANT?

Could you work by yourself all day? With the possibility that your friends will be shattered after a long working day and you'll also be spending the evening by yourself too?

Can you cope with the stress of not knowing where your next pay check is coming from? If you have no dependents or have a partner willing to help you out when you need it then it can be a real possibility for you! But if you have dependents relying on you then you might want to keep hold of your job at least part-time anyway. 

Are you starting a blog to make money, or do you really have a passion for it? If there is little passion for it you will probably end up getting very bored of it and wanting to move onto something else. Blogging full-time is hard work and a passion for it will not only attract people to you, but will also help you in times where you're wondering whether it's worth it! 

Can you deal with the "non-believers"? And yes you will meet them. They won't think your job is "real" or that you work hard or that you earn any money. They'll think you do nothing but sit in your pajamas all day and sometimes no matter what you say, you won't change their mind. If you are a people-pleaser you might find this all too hard to cope with.

TAKE THE PLUNGE

If it's your dream, then you have to give it a try right? If all fails you can put them time working as a full-time blogger on your CV as a freelance writer and pick your favourites out of the people you work with for your references and use the experience to bump up your CV a bit. "You missed working in a team but you showed how you can be organised and set yourself deadlines" -- there are lots of angles you can work from to make your time blogging appeal to any future employers.

Remember that life is short and that you can either make money for some other entrepreneur or become an entrepreneur yourself!

IT'LL TAKE TIME
Think of your blog as a start up business, and most businesses make a loss in their first few years mainly due to start up costs but with blogging the start up costs are minimal meaning that you'll be investing time not money. If you make yourself accept that you'll earn nothing meaningful in the first few years of blogging then you're more likely to succeed if you keep working hard regardless of what the £££ looks like. Focus on getting your stats better and see the value in that and then the money will come after.

STAY REAL TO YOURSELF, TRY TO THINK OF NEW AND DIFFERENT IDEAS
Don't think, hey such-and-such is doing well, I'll copy what they're doing - yes you can take some inspiration from them of course, but becoming a carbon copy won't do you any favours! Try and brainstorm new and different ideas so that people will be attracted to your individuality.

& DON'T FORGET THE REST...
It's not only your blog that you can monetize, but your instagram, twitter and pinterest too! So it's important to spend time working on these platforms as well.

Blogging full-time is much more than blogging. It's working on your search engine optimization, it's social media management, it's building relationships with brands, companies and the general public, it's knowing how to build an audience, it's learning html, how to edit photos and how to create graphics, it's marketing and it's networking too! The skills you build through blogging are priceless and when someone asks you what "blogging" is, then don't hold back on all the things you can do!

Do you have any tips on how to make it as a full-time blogger?

Must Read: 5 Ways To Improve Your Blog