Should I Monetize my Blog?

Photo by: Stream Images' via Flickr

 Many people who have a blog will monetize it in some way or other. However is monetizing right for you? When is the best time to start monetizing? Who should I monetize with? There are so many questions about this topic. Many which I have asked myself when i first started blogging. You will notice that at present (20th July, 2013) I am not monetizing via this blog. Whether you decide to monetize or not is very much a personal choice and there are lots of affiliates to choose from.





I will refrain from discussing the many different affiliates within this post and stick to the question "should I monetize my blog?" However look out for future blog posts will I exam some of the more popular affiliates.

Should I Monetize my Blog?

Photo by: Owen Brown

There isn't really a right or wrong answer to this question. However I would recommend that before monetizing your blog you focus on writing and publishing a significant number of high quality posts. My reasons for suggesting that you don't monetize your blog straight away are as follows:

• You usually need a large number of visitors before users click through to any adverts that may be present on your site.
• Therefore before monetizing you need to work on strategies to increase traffic and retain visitors.
• Retaining visitors is most effectively achieved through high quality content.
• A high level of adverts may be distracting and off putting to visitors. If you do monetize you may want to ensure you blog is not packed with ads.

The above is obviously only guidance. If you chose to you can monetize your blog as soon as you create and there are a significant number of ways to do this. However be aware that you need to set realistic goals regarding how much money you expect to make. May blog owners find it can take 6-12 months before they make a single cent or penny. I would hazard a guess that that this is because it takes a significant amount of time to build a big enough audience. Some experts state that with platforms such as Google AdSense there is only one click through per thousand visitors. This is further cemented when you consider how many adverts you click through to when on blogs or websites. Personally I can count on one hand how many times I have clicked through to a website based on an advert. Therefore it is advisable before monetizing your blog to consider whether it will add any value to your site. You should also note that if you do make any income via your blog this will likely be subject to tax. So ensure you adhere to all applicable legislation relating to this.


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