It’s funny how often this topic comes up because if you think about it, when’s the last time you asked your friend who’s an accountant how they make their money? Or your friend that works at a boutique, a law firm, a hospital, a magazine?
But I get it – “blogging” as it’s come to be today is an industry that feels new, mysterious, and unchartered.
It seems as if there are no rules to anyone who is outside of the industry, and for whatever reason, people get mad when they realize that we do in fact make money for our work. A perfect example of this is when any photo with #ad tends to do worse than non-sponsored content.
It’s quite a funny concept, because when’s the last time you had to convince your boss to pay you for the work you did every day at your job? I’m sitting at a desk behind a computer too (that is when I’m not out shooting 5-6 outfits at a time, driving hours a day across town from event to event to network with a potential brand I’d like to (hopefully) work with if they decide I’m a good fit, spending my own money to visit hotels to create content for them, styling outfits, shipping out clothes I sell on Poshmark to make sure I can pay my bills, going through hundreds of photos to edit 8-10 for social media, writing blog posts, keeping up with Instastories, Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, responding to the hundreds of emails I get weekly, reshooting content that didn’t get approved, being present and not a slave to my phone, maintaining a social life and my relationship…shall I go on?) – no, we’re not in the same industry…but my hours are 24/7/365, and yet still, I find myself defending my job title and giving at least 3 substantial reasons on why I deserve to make money for the work I do.
This blog post is actually meant to be a resource for other bloggers who are unsure of how to start making an income with their blog, but I couldn’t resist a little vent session because the taboo surrounding money in the blogging industry is a tired topic. I have bills to pay too, unfortunately, and I worked for 6 years to get to the point that I could quit my 9-5, soul-sucking day job to pursue my dream job. The beauty in all of this is that * anyone * can do the exact same thing. It doesn’t happen overnight, but it IS possible.
SO if you’re someone that hates on the blogging industry/the fact that bloggers are #sponsored and are making a living by devoting every hour of their day and night to do a job that they love, just take a second to understand that instead of hating on it, you can try it for yourself! Win-win.
NOW – if you’re a blogger and you’re here to learn how to make income through your blog, WELCOME. I’m going to outline how I personally make my income, but feel free to ask for more details if I didn’t touch on something you’re curious about.
10 Ways to Make Money as a Blogger
1. DIRECT BRAND COLLABORATIONS – my #1 source of income is with direct brand collaborations. I’ve been fortunate enough to have worked with a handful of incredible brands that have approached me for collaborations, but this is not always the case (I have a lot of friends that do an amazing job pitching themselves to brands they want to work with as well). Either way, direct brand collaborations are a great way to make a lasting relationship with the brand so that you can create an ongoing relationship (monthly paid collaborations), and sometimes get the most out of the budget allocated. Don’t be afraid to negotiate, but also be mindful that brands are often working with a number of other influencers as well. Make sure your rates are in line with your following, engagement rate, content quality, and the Scope of Work involved.
2. AFFILIATE MARKETING – rewardStyle is my platform of choice (Pay Per Conversion) but ShopStyle is a great one too if you have a high number of clicks but a low number of sales (Pay Per Click) – this is ideal if you typically post products that are more expensive and your followers are interested in checking it out online but not ready to buy. They may click the link to see how much the handbag costs, but wait to purchase at a later date – you’d still get rewarded for the click you drove to the website. rewardStyle is ideal for high sales traffic. You are paid a different commission rate for every retailer, and the platform has many different resources to generate sales. Through liketoknow.it and rewardStyle’s blog applications such as Money Spot, Lookbook, Shop the Post etc, there’s multiple ways to generate clickable links for various platforms. They also work directly through their platform to facilitate brand collaborations, so it’s a great resource to make money that way as well.
3. MODELING – Boutiques that find me on instagram sometimes reach out and ask me to model for their own IG account or store at their upcoming photoshoots which is a really great way to earn an income. Especially when they’re looking for a relatable look (I’m 5’4” and have a very average body type) as opposed to a fashion model look. They’re typically only half day shoots, but it’s a great way to get comfortable establishing a set hourly rate and owning up to how much your time is worth (which is a lot – price yourself accordingly!).
4. LOOKBOOK CREATION – This is one of my favorite ways to make money! A brand will ship a box of new arrivals to shoot and I will have some creative freedom to put together a lookbook on their behalf. Brennan and I did this for Bella Dahl on our road trip last January and it was SO much fun.
5. POSHMARK – I used to sell my clothes on IG, but it just go to be too hard to handle with the competitive nature of the commenting deadlines to claim the item. Selling my clothes on Poshmark removes my feelings from the equation – if you buy the item before someone else does, there’s nothing I can do. It’s great! I’ve made a substantial amount of money using Poshmark because it’s such a widely used app, so there’s never a lack of eyes on your available items. People from all over the country have bough my clothes, and its so fun to see where everyone’s coming from!
6. PR AGENCY BRAND COLLABORATIONS – This is similar to direct brand collaborations, but instead of negotiating for yourself, you are working with a PR agency who is communicating on your behalf. It’s great because you don’t have to feel awkward saying you’d like to try and get more money, or negotiate down the ‘asks’ to be more in-line with the budget they’re working with. Sometimes it does take longer to get paid when you’re working with an agency (Net30, Net 60, or even Net90) but it’s still a great way to make relationships with people in the industry who may call on you on the future when they’re at a new agency working with new brands. This is also a great way to make sure you don’t miss anything in a contract. Agencies are able to act as your Power of Attorney, and make sure jargon like “in perpetuity,” and usage rights are closely examined / removed. It’s nice to have someone go to bat for you and protect your likeness.
7. BLOG ADVERTISEMENTS – Your online real-estate is just as marketable as your likeness. Explore the option of running banner ads for brands you really love, or sign up for Google Ads so that you can create your own ad on the side of your website. There are numerous ways to go about this, and can generate a good amount of income if your site has a lot of traffic.
8. CONTENT CREATION – This is similar to lookbook creation, but it’s typically more product focussed. I’ve created content for a few brands in the past that didn’t require I post anything to my personal account, they just wanted the imagery to look like UGC (user generated content) so that it looked more organic on their page (as opposed to a styled photoshoot done by the brand).
9. PRODUCT PARTNERSHIP – this isn’t something I’ve done myself yet, but it is a HUGE goal of mine! Bloggers have started partnering with brands to develop their own lines, and they split the revenue with the brand they partner with so it is mutually beneficial.
10. WHITELISTING / USAGE RIGHTS – Do you ever see those ads pop up on IG or FB of a photo you’ve seen before, but it says “sponsored” on it? Well, that’s what happens when a brand pays extra to use your original content for online ads. Sometimes they look like they’re coming directly from an influencer’s page (whitelisting – when a brand sponsors a paid ad with a photo you’ve already posted, and it looks like you’re posting it again to whoever is targeted by the ad) and sometimes brands use them for their own paid ads on their platforms. Either way, it’s VITAL that you let it be known that this COSTS EXTRA! Usage rights are such a huge thing in the modeling industry – it can add thousands of dollars onto a model’s daily rate if the usage rights are asking for extensive usage (1-3 years, any exclusivity for any amount of time, website vs ad usage, etc), so make sure to negotiate a higher rate if the brand is asking to use your content for more than just organic social!
BONUS: 11. Consulting – After working in the industry for a few years, you start to get the basics (& not so basics) down to a science for the most part. One of my biggest passions is to discuss social media with other influencers and brands. Consulting is a great way to earn extra income for the knowledge you’ve gained in your field, especially in an industry that is so new and always looking for new teachers and new POVs!
So there ya have it – all of my money making ways, EXPOSED 😉
If you’re a blogger, is there anything else you do that I may have missed? Would love to hear how you’re creating an income in this crazy industry!
