It has been a year since I have decided to blog and within a year I have learned allot about the blogging world and yet there is still much more that I need to learn. The beginning of my blogging journey has not been easy and has mainly centered on my desire to hone exactly the kind of content that I wanted to produce and publish. Now, I have reached the point in my journey where I have been seeking out avenues of growth through social media as well as marketing strategies and funnels that can provide value to my readers and followers as well as monetize my content. If you find yourself sympathizing with this feeling then you probably have the same question running through your mind and that is WHAT’S NEXT?

I am always growing and researching different ways that I can grow in order to help other people so I have done the work and created a list of Affiliate programs that can get you on the right track towards providing value and making money. Making money online is not a 1-step process but it will take time, strategy and patience to eventually see a good end result. Joining an affiliate program shouldn’t just be as simple as joining and waiting for the money to roll in. Bloggers and entrepreneurs everywhere should always begin with a business plan. What marketing strategies will you utilize to create leads which in turn will result in repeat readers or customers who are interested in your content or product. A few marketing strategies that a blogger can add to their arsenal include a lead magnet, an opt in, a newsletter, online courses, webinars, or even building an online community.

A lead magnet can be anything that you know that will provide value to your reader for free. At the end of the post, at the top or on the sidebar of your page you can then provide your reader with the opportunity to opt into your newsletter to receive the freebie associated with the lead magnet. Next, in the newsletter you can continually send post updates, send them notifications for online courses, webinars or even invite them to join an online community. Essentially, it is important to have several different lead magnets or sales pages in which you can use to funnel leads into specific sales opportunities that can provide value as well as monetize your content. Affiliate programs come in as the icing on the cake. If you are a going to throw a link into a post then why not make some money off of referrals.

There are a few things to consider before selecting an affiliate program which include the following:

• How well the program fits into your niche
• The payout schedule which may be weekly, bi-weekly or monthly
• If the program offers banners or images that can be used with the affiliate link.
• The length of cookies which associates with the length of time an affiliate link will register with a retailer in the case that a buyer takes time before making a purchase.
• Whether the link provided is a deep link to the product versus the company page
• Lastly, whether there is customer support or account manager available

Here is a list of 5 affiliate programs that you can add to your business plan:

• Share -A-Sale: Offers a variety of a large market place affiliate programs in several niches that offers payout in pay-per-sale, pay-per-lead, and pay-per-click programs. A few notable affiliate programs through share -a- sale include WP Engine which provides WordPress hosting with a referral payout of $200, Warby Parker which provides quality sunglasses at an affordable price point and Stella & Dot which provides fashion, jewelry and accessories that can be sold through social media.
• Ebates- Ebates is a great affiliate program to begin with as a blogger and they offer cash back for thousands of stores as well as $5 for every referral as well as bonuses. Ebates also pays out their affiliates at a minimum of $5.01 quarterly. Ebates also provides an image for placement on your site as an acknowledgment of your association as an affiliate.
• CJ Affiliate- One of the largest affiliate marketplaces with a variety of options for specific ads if you do not want to solely rely on Google Adsense. Affiliates are also offered support with resources such as a deep link generator, deep link automation,  CJ Affiliate pays out their affiliates monthly via direct deposit. Also, CJ Affiliate will close out accounts if no revenue is made within 6 months.
• Amazon Affiliate- Amazon also offers a large variety of options for affiliates as affiliates can promote any product available on the site. Affiliates earn commission on anything that is bought within the 24 hours in which the link has been clicked. Amazon pays out affiliates once a $100 threshold is reached.
• Rakuten Affiliate- Rakuten Affiliate holds major retailers such as Macy’s, AT&T, and PetsMart and more. Affiliates can easily join Rakuten but then need to apply to each brand through Rakuten. Affiliates are also paid out in thresholds of $50. Other benefits of the program include account support, access to analysts for helpful insights.

Comment down below if you have used any of these affiliate programs or have crafted a business plan that has catapulted the growth of your business.

There are several different ways that are available to make money blogging. The first part of my blogging journey has been to focus on discovering my voice and figuring out the content that I wanted to produce. Now, it’s been about strategizing, coming up with a plan and executing. There is no sure fire way to make money and it in fact takes time to see the results that you may desire. I am slowly moving into this phase of my journey and have discovered that there are many different ways to achieve the favorable outcome of producing income but it will really be about trial and error and figuring out what aligns with my brand and my goals.

Here are 5 different ways that I have discovered to make money blogging:

Advertising

Advertising can be display ads that you place on the top, bottom, or sidebar of your website page or it could be something more dynamic like native or sponsored content that can relate more specifically to the add being shown. Advertising can also be placed within newsletters, high reaching video or even podcasts. A major key to growth as a blogger is building a subscriber list and that growth can attract advertisers who want to reach a specific niche audience.

Digital Products

As an online business, there are several ways that bloggers can offer digital products that are beneficial to their target audience and readers. Digital products are a great way to provide value and make a positive impact that can lead to creating a community.

• Ecourses
• Online Classes
• Ebooks
• Premium Content- users/readers pay to continue reading
• Membership Sites
• Photos
• Audio/Video
• Apps/Plugins/Themes

Physical Products

Physical products are also a great way of translating your brand into a physical reminder to your readers or followers. A physical product should fit into your mission, values, and ideals represented in your brand.

• Books
• Handmade Products
• Manufactured Products
• Flipping Vintage/Unique Pieces to sell online
• In person conferences/classes or special events

Events/Panels

Speaking at events and hosting events are a great way that you can meet new people who can be introduced to your content and brand in an intimate environment and it is also a great way to connect with your readers and people who follow your content.

Offer Consulting or Coaching Services

Consulting and coaching is a great way to offer 1:1, personalized guidance that can really influence someone’s life in a positive direction.

Comment down below if you have utilized any of these ways to offer more value to your readers or followers!

Millennials today face insurmountable student loan debt as well as an ignorance of personal finances or known tools to handle this debt. I am amongst this number as I am in my twenties and I am facing 81k worth of student loan debt. The number alone is scary to witness but it has also put a fire under my soles to educate myself and really come up with a game plan on how I can reduce my debt and eventually create wealth for my future generations and myself. In order to be able to pay off this kind of debt I simply have to be dedicated and disciplined. Unfortunately, there is much information that they don’t teach you in school and sometimes members of your family may not be sources of advice when they too are struggling with debt. I am not an expert but I have created a game plan based on gathered information and tools to reach my personal finance goals. There are so many little bits of information that I was simply unaware of that can go a long way in understanding the full picture of budgeting.

Budgeting

The first step of this journey towards financial freedom is to understand your net worth. Networth is the value of all assets minus the total of all liabilities or simply what is owned minus what is owed. I quickly discovered from calculating this number that I don’t have a networth and my goal is to have my assets surpass my liabilities. Next, I took a full look into my monthly income and expenses and decided an easy smaller attainable goal that I can complete by the end of the year. My goal is to completely pay off 1 of the 3 loans I took out to pay for college. Tools that can help you keep track of your budget; expenses and savings include Mint, YNAB (You Need A Budget), and Mvelopes.

One major tip that has really helped me tremendously in reaching my savings goals has been to simply open bank accounts for particular aspects of my budget. I have a separate checking account for my bills, a separate savings account for my loans, and another savings account for my life that can be a trip, a car, an apartment etc. It is important for me to save to get out of debt but also to save to live. This method has been extremely helpful because the money I see in my main account is strictly the money I am able to spend for the month and I have essentially made it much harder and less visible to access other parts of my money for frivolous reasons.

Comment down below if you have gone through the same thing or used any of these methods!

 

Instagram is my favorite social media platform. It brings together a combination of elements I love which include photography, video, engagement, branding and visibility. Instagram has 800 million monthly users and high user engagement levels and if tapped into correctly it can be an amazing tool for building the reach of businesses and influencers. Over the course of a year, I have built a format for myself that has increased my following to over 1k in a short period of time and a huge part of my success is due to my hashtag strategy.

The most important part about hashtag strategy on Instagram is understanding your audience and your niche. It takes a bit of trial and error but the first thing I did to understand my niche is to research different hashtags and see if the content that I post fit into what is posted in a particular hashtags. My particular niches are fashion, beauty and motivation. I also note what type of content makes it as a top result for a particular hashtag. Simply searching a hashtag on Instagram will provide the reach for a particular hashtag and also the related hashtags that may apply to your niche. Peruse each suggestion and test out each hashtag to see which combination of hashtags will provide the highest reach for a post.

Instagram allows a max of 30 hashtags and I am actually of the mindset to use all 30 hashtags. It has helped me grow my Instagram and I have three different hashtag groupings that I use based on the type of content I post. The type of hashtags I use is also a combination of high reach hashtags and low reach hashtags. The reason I mix hashtags that have a 10k reach with a 1k reach is because I increase my chances of a post of mine showing up as a top result in a hashtag with a 1k reach versus 10k reach.

The following groupings are the hashtags I have used to grow my Instagram:

Lookbook + Outfit Hashtag Grouping

#cnkstylebook #fashion #fashionlife #nigerianfashionblogger #nigerianblogger #fashionblogger #fashionista #fashion #fashionbloggers #style #styleblog #styleguide #styleblogger #stylebloggers #blackstyleblogger #blackblooggersunited #blackgirlbloggers #blackgirlblogger #naturalbeauty #melaningoals #blackgirlmagic #blackbloggers #blackgirlswhoblog #blooggerstyles #bloggersstyle #bloggerlook #bloggersofig #bloggerpost #bloggerfashion #blackgirlswhowrite

Motivation Hashtag Grouping

#cnkstylebook #bossmotivation #motivationalquotes #motivation #motivationalquote #motivateyourself #motivationdaily #wednesdaywisdom #inspirationalquotes #blackbloggersunited #inspired #motivationalwords #motivationwednesday #motivationiskey #inspirational #inspirationalwords #inspirationalpost #lifestyle #lifestyleguide #lifestylequotes #lifequotes #life #motivated #motivator #motivatedlife #motivatedbehavior #motivatedtowin #motivatedandmoved #mondaymotivation #blackgirlboss

Beauty Hashtag Grouping

#cnkstylebook #fashion #fashionlife #nigerianfashionblogger #nigerianblogger #fashionblogger #fashionista #fashion #fashionbloggers #style #styleblog #styleguide #styleblogger #stylebloggers #beautygram #beauty #beautyblogger #beautytrends #naturalbeauty #melaningoals #melaninpoppin #melaninqueen #melaningoal #melanin #beautygirl #beautyguru #browngirlsblog #makeuptutorial #makeupblog #blackbloggersunited

Comment down below if you try out these hashtags and if they help you grow your Instagram!