Your Money-Making Blog Starts Here
In this guide “8 Steps to a Money-Making Blog in Just 2 Hours a Day”, I’ll walk you through the exact steps – in order – to create your own money-making blog. Be sure to schedule 2 hours a day into your calendar, and stick to just these tasks until you start getting consistent traffic & income.
Step #1:
Choose a Blog Niche
Choosing your blog niche is essential to do before you start creating content or trying to get readers. Everything else you do will be built on this, so be sure to give this step the time and attention it deserves. Think about things you love to talk about and people you want to “be a hero to”.
HOMEWORK
1. Read this article for help on choosing your blog niche, then choose one!
https://smartmomblogger.com/dont-start-a-blog/
Step #2:
Set Up Your Blog
If you want to make money with your blog, remember to go with a self-hosted WordPress blog. This will enable you to have complete control over your blog and monetize it in any way you want to without the fear of having it shut down (which can happen on a free blogging platform)
HOMEWORK
1. Set up your self-hosted blog (my recommended hosting):
https://smartmomblogger.com/siteground
2. Step-by-step setup instructions if you need assistance:
https://smartmomblogger.com/start-a-mom-blog/
3. Free blog vs. self-hosted comparison (read this to get a better idea of the limitations of a free blog):
https://smartmomblogger.com/blogging-platform/
Step #3:
Organize & Prepare
This is a step that a lot of new bloggers skip, or don’t realize they need until they’re months (or years!) into the process and their blog is a mess. Take the time now to organize your blog into 5-7 main categories plus brainstorm 52 post ideas (one per week = 1 years’ worth of content ideas). Blog post ideas should each have 1 central idea (the more granular, the better).
HOMEWORK
1. Download the free Blog Structure Blueprint and complete:
https://smartmomblogger.com/blueprint
Step #4:
Set Your 2-Hour Daily Schedule + Goals
Blogging willy-nilly is going to get frustrating really fast. Without specific goals for your blog and a detailed plan to get there, you’ll waste a ton of time and effort while you watch others pass you by. You need to create blogging goals, map out a plan to make those goals a reality, and schedule tasks into your calendar daily to make it a habit.
HOMEWORK
1. Download the free Goal Setting Workbook for Bloggers:
https://smartmomblogger.com/goalsetting
2. Learn how to create S.M.A.R.T. goals for your blog and map out your plan:
https://smartmomblogger.com/s-m-a-r-t-blog-profit-plan-2017/
3. Schedule tasks that feed your goals into your calendar (“If it’s not on your calendar, it doesn’t exist”). Schedule 2 hours each day using 30-minute, 60-minute, and/or 90-minute blocks of time, dedicating ONLY ONE task to each time block. MULTI-TASKING IS THE THIEF OF PRODUCTIVITY. Download this Done-For-You 2-hour daily schedule (this will download a Google calendar file to your computer). Then watch this video for instructions (it’s easy – I promise!).
Step #5:
Get Your Email List Started
A common question when starting your blog is: “How many posts should I have published on my blog before I launch it?” My answer? None! Before you write a single word, you should start growing your email list (this sets the foundation for sustainable long-term income). Create an “irresistible freebie” download or resource that helps your target audience solve a problem or reach a goal. Then use it as the “bait” to get people to sign up to your email list.
HOMEWORK
1. Set up your email list with MailerLite (free):
https://smartmomblogger.com/email
2. Create a freebie with Canva (free):
https://www.hustleandgroove.com/creating-lead-magnets
3. Learn Email Marketing Basics:
https://www.mailerlite.com/ultimate-guide-to-email-marketing/
Step #6:
Write Epic Posts Consistently
Remember the organization you learned in Step #3 and the willy-nilly blogging I warned against in Step #4? If you did your homework in those sections, this is where it’s going to pay off in a big way! If you’ve already created your main blog categories, post ideas, and action plan then this step will just be working the plan. Start creating epic, shareable blog posts at least once a week to start building trust with your readers.
HOMEWORK
1. Write & publish your 1st epic post! Repeat weekly and email your list every time you publish a new post. To truly be epic, every post must meet all these requirements before you publish:
- Magnetic title/headline – Get them to click!
- Opening paragraph with a hook that draws your reader in (story, question, impactful fact, etc.)
- 1 central idea/purpose
- Several illustrations/examples to drive your point home
- Scannable (interesting/helpful subheadings, bulletpoints and/or numbered lists, white space, large font)
- At least 1-3 high quality images (search Pixabay for beautiful, free images)
- Social share images for Facebook & Pinterest (Canva has free pre-sized image templates for free)
- 750+ words
- Strong conclusion with a Call-To-Action (eg. sign up to your email list, read more posts, share on social media, leave a comment, etc.) Choose just one CTA to avoid overwhelming your readers)
Step #7:
Grow Readers, Traffic and Pageviews
Blog Traffic Is Essential For Growth
You don’t need a TON of traffic to start making money with your blog, but you do need some! And typically, the more you get, the stronger your income potential will be. But getting traffic to a new blog can be hard, and if you’re spending hours of your time writing epic blog posts that no one reads, then you’re wasting your time. Using Pinterest effectively can be a great free way to start getting a good traffic flow to your blog.
HOMEWORK
1. Take the free Pinterest Primer course for bloggers to learn how to create a strategic action plan to grow your blog.
2. Pinterest can be a HUGE traffic driver. Sign up with Tailwind to automate your pinning and skyrocket your blog traffic.
Step #8:
Make Money With Your Blog!
If you’ve done all the homework up to this point, you should have a strong foundation for a thriving blog that has the potential to grow in impact and income. You’ve chosen your niche carefully, set up your self-hosted blog for full monetization control, created epic content for your readers and are growing your traffic and subscribers daily. This is a great time to start making some real money with your blog, and you deserve it! Since you’re a busy mom and new blogger, I recommend you start with affiliate marketing as your main source of income. It’s the easiest and quickest way to earn a decent amount of income right away. As you get comfortable, you can research and branch out to other areas of monetization such as sponsored posts, ads, or creating your own products and services.
HOMEWORK
1. Learn and implement affiliate marketing for your blog:
https://smartmomblogger.com/affiliate-marketing/
2. Download the free guide, “7 Surefire Ways to Boost Your Blog Income Overnight”:
https://smartmomblogger.com/boost
Next Steps
Congratulations! If you’ve followed the plan above, you should now be getting consistent readers, email subscribers, and even profit from your blog. Feels great, doesn’t it? You should be proud 🙂
My goal with this guide was to get you to a place where you can bring in steady profit so you can start to re-invest in your blog and scale it to the next level. So, what comes next? How do you scale your blog and grow it into a full on business that brings in big profits month after month?
The answer is this: targeted learning and strategic execution.
In order to skyrocket your blog growth, you need to continue to learn and execute in a strategic way. This doesn’t mean go read every blog post on the internet and Google your way into oblivion. Since you’re making profit now, your time is more valuable than saving a few bucks.
YOUR LAST HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT:
1. Set S.M.A.R.T. specific goals for your blog growth and profit. Read & implement this guide again to set blog goals and develop an action plan for your next 90 days.
2. Invest strategically in courses, tools, and resources to grow your blog impact & income to the next level. My personal recommendation for any blogger is Elite Blog Academy, the top training program for bloggers. But it’s only open once a year and next to impossible to get in unless you’re on the free waiting list. If you have any questions, please hit “reply” on any email I send you & I’ll do my best to answer and support you! Here’s to your blog success ❤