Website Monetization

Website monetization is process of converting the traffic to your websites into revenue by using various strategies. These strategies helps you to convert your simple dreams or hobbies like blogging, developing online tool/services, games etc., into profitable activity.

Thinking about monetizing your site on basic level is useful., because, it will help you to auto-cover the basic expenses incurred for buying domain name and hosting your assets/content online.

There are multiple monetizing strategies that differs in implementation wise and also requires varying level of complexities. Following are few listed based on the complexity level simple to hard

1. Pay per click or Pay Per Impression:

There are different advertising networks that will pay you money, when you embed their ads in your blogs or website. The earning from ads will be based on

  1. Cost Per Click (CPC):
    You will earn money when visitors to your website clicks on the ads and visit the target website.

  2. Cost Per Impression (CPM):
    You will earn money when ads in your website/blog are viewed on the visitors browser (impression) - It doesn't require users to interact with the Ads.

Google Adsense is a popular ad network in this category that is easier to setup and start-up with earning if you've a decent number of visitors (traffic) to your website - Google Adsense., This is the easiest one that I recommend all, because you can get started with this method even if you have lesser traffic. All that matter for Adsense is the original and Quality content that has potential to attract visitors in future.

2. Affiliate Marketing:

You can find a product that invites publishers/bloggers to endorse their product on your site. Then you can start recommending the product on your website and directing the targeted visitors to make a transaction or purchase using a special affiliate link. Based on that unique link, the target product owner will identify the publisher who influenced the purchase.., split and pay a part of sale with you.

This is rather an easy way to start with monetizing by earning a decent cut on each purchase. If you are successful to drive more people to purchase, you can quickly earn lot of money when compared to the first method.

Commision Junction, Amazon Associates, ShareASale, eBay etc., 

3. Selling AD slots on your site:

Rather than depending on an Advertising network to deliver ADs on placeholders on your site/blog., you can directly sell your Ad space/slots in your website on per month basics e.g., you can lend top banner Ad slot to an advertiser for 10$ for entire month. This helps you to reduce the dependency on just CPM or CPC strategies and it also reduces the risk., by decreasing dependency on Adsense i.e., avoid keeping all eggs on a basket.  

This strategy is entirely dependent on the traffic to  your website, you won't make money if you have less traffic., as the advertisers will never tend to buy an Ad slot with lesser or feeble level of traffic.

4. Donations:

If you believe that you have a strong community that likes your work and supports your activity like opensource library, component development, online web tools. Then you can utilize this to raise earnings through donation or funding from dependent business partners. This strategy requires your hard-work and interest on Opensource contribution.

5. Sponsored posts or reviews:

Few product owners/advertisers will pay money for writing review of their product and hosting it on your blog recommending to the target visitors. This is a one time earning method and it mainly depends on the quality of the product that you recommend.

I will keep on adding/updating other strategies on this page, as I come across new strategies during exploring & development of this website.