Ok, today’s post will deal with the basics of monetizing your site. So what do we mean by monetizing?  Simply put, it is the method of generating revenue from visitors to your website – whether they purchase your services or not.

As I discussed in my last post, the opportunity for forward thinking business owners to leverage local search is huge. The first step is to have a search engine friendly blog with fresh relevant content updates regularly, optimized for local search that points back to your website (this is your own lead generation system). Note:  blog creation, setup, installation, content creation and local search optimization can all be outsourced and this is an area where we can help a small business.

It is not enough to throw up a static website and post variations of the same ad 25 times on craigslist (go back and watch the video - notice that there are no craigslist ads appearing on local search for plumbers).

There are literally thousands of people searching online every day for what your small business service offers so if you are relying on craigslist or free ads services but not properly optimizing for local search, you are leaving lots of money on the table. In fact, you may be capturing only a fraction of a percent of the available business out there.

So if you have a small business website now, what happens when they visit you?  Well, if they do not give you their information or inquire about your services, you probably make nothing from them. This is where a search engine friendly blog with fresh regularly updated content can bridge that gap and put more revenue in your pocket.

3 Quick Ways To Monetize Your Blog

AdSense – This is Google’s free advertising system that allows you to create a campaign and put the ads on your website.  Ads are rotated and delivered based on the content of your website.  Traffic from people clicking on these ads makes you money.

Here is an example:

Affiliate Advertising/Sponsored Ads – There are tons of products relevant to every business niche out there that you can promote on your site with banners. When visitors to your website or blog click the banners, they visit the product sale site.  If they buy, you earn a commission.

Here is an example of a sponsored ad:

Information Products – This is one of the best ways to monetize the website traffic because you can make all of the money if the information product is one you created. If you have expertise in an area, creating a simple eBook or info product that would be of value to consumers is a great way to add revenue to your business. The good news is it is simple to do but if you do not have the time or desire, this too can be outsourced and we can help here too.

The bottom line is in today’s tough economy, as a small business owner you need to expand beyond what you have been doing. Just go back and look at the video - there is so much opportunity right now (In my next article I will post another video for the local travel niche in my area to show the volume and potential for a forward thinking local business).

For some examples of monetized blogs, click the links below and look for the monetized areas (usually at the top or right side of the site).  And, notice that these do not look like what you probably think of as blogs.  In fact, if you do not have a website you can use your blog as your website. We provide a selection of over 20 templates that can be easily customized in a variety of ways.

For more information or a free consultation, fill out our contact form and we will get back to you asap.

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