Launch a Money-Making Blog with these 7 FREE Resources

Making a living as a blogger is a dream job for many (myself included!). But getting to the point where you earn a full-time income isn’t an easy road. Although some bloggers find near instant success, many more work for years before they’re seeing numbers large enough to live on.

Since I launched Work From Home Happiness at the end of April 2015, I’ve researched and gotten my hands on as many free resources as I could to help build the site the right way. And while I’m still learning something new every day and am, by no means, an expert, I wanted to share some free resources that may be valuable to anyone who wants to launch a money-making blog.

For the purpose of this article, I’m going to assume you already have a blog name, niche, and concept in mind (you may even have a blog up and running but are beginning to stall out and need a little push to get back on track).

If you haven’t thought of a blog niche or name, head on over to Niche Hacks for some ideas and inspiration. You’ll find tons of advice and practical tips for picking a profitable blog niche.

After you’ve got your blog niche and name picked out, it’s time to turn it into a fine-tuned money-making machine!

3, 2, 1 Launch Time!

The undisputed preferred blogging platform is WordPress. If you’ve never used WordPress before, it can be a little tricky until you get a feel for it. Once you do, it’s super-simple and you’ll be customizing, creating, posting, and updating like a pro.

Freebie Resource 1:

WordPress- Blogging on the Web

This is an online course offered through ALISON (a free global network of high-quality courses and educational programs to help you improve your personal skillsets!)

In this course, you’ll learn all the basics of WordPress and how to set up your blog. This really is a true beginner’s course that not only shows you how to get started, but helps you build your confidence so that you actually follow through and get your blog launched.

Create A-MA-ZING Content

Content really is everything. If you don’t fill your blog with some of the best content around, you will find it difficult to secure traffic or gain a loyal following of readers (and without traffic, you’ll never reach your dream of blogging for a living).

While you could outsource content writing to Fiverr or one of the other freelance marketplaces, you really should roll up your sleeves and take the DIY approach. After all, your blog should be a reflection of you (not someone pretending to be you!).

Freebie Resource 2:

Intentional Blogging – Become a Better Blogger in Only 12 Days

This is a 12-lesson course designed to help you create better content that actually gets read! Complete beginners and those already up and running looking for a little boost, will find tons of actionable ideas in this 12-day email course (one course emailed directly to you each day!)

With Intentional Blogging you’ll learn it all, from writing for search engines to formatting posts, and even discovering your blog’s unique voice, there’s tons of great information to help you create compelling content each time you update your blog!

Open the Traffic Floodgates

When I launched Work From Home Happiness, I naively had the Field of Dreams mindset of, “If you build it, they will come.” But in the online world, just because you set up a blog, doesn’t mean anyone will bother to stop by. The sad truth is, when you’re just starting out, much of what you write won’t get seen at all (so, thank you to those of you reading this!).

And that’s okay, as long as you use your passion to push through and keep going, knowing that with time and the right strategies, you will get the targeted traffic you’re looking for.

Freebie Resource 3:

How to Start a Profitable Blog and Get More Traffic

The Kindle Edition of this guide is free. Don’t have a Kindle? No problem! Amazon.com – Read eBooks using the FREE Kindle Reading App on Most Devices

And while this eBook covers much more than driving traffic (bonus!) there is a lot of advice on how to get more traffic and use your numbers to make your blog profitable. So whether you’re new to blogging or looking to take your blog to the next level, you’ll find helpful strategies to get you there with this eBook.

Monetize in Ways that Makes Sense (or Cents!)

The right monetization strategy for your blog is key! The ways you monetize will largely depend on your preferences, niche, and audience. Affiliate marketing and advertising networks are two popular ways to start earning money even if your traffic numbers aren’t quite where you want them to be.

Freebie Resource 4:

Become an Affiliate Marketing Expert

This is a 3-hour Udemy course created by Jeremy Schoemaker (aka ShoeMoney). He has a pretty impressive backstory and has turned into a millionaire thanks to his affiliate marketing efforts. In this course he shares all he’s learned and provides real-world strategies to help you do affiliate marketing the right way.

Freebie Resource 5:

AdSense Optimization for Your Blog

Another amazing Udemy course providing a step-by-step guide on how to best optimize your blog for maximum AdSense earnings. The video tutorials were created by Jeff Conkey, an AdSense expert with over eight years of experience helping others get the most out of ad networks. By the end of this video course, you will be armed and ready with the right strategies to start earning money with the ads you serve on your blog!

Keep Going and Growing

While you may have laid the foundation for what will be a profitable blog with amazing content, traffic coming in, and monetization strategies in place, there’s still the need to constantly market your efforts and bring it to new heights.

Running a blog is very much running a business. If you’re not exactly business savvy (don’t worry, neither am I) you can feel like you’re constantly spinning your wheels trying to take your blog to the next level. Having marketing strategies and plans in place makes sure your blog is always poised to grow while also giving you the opportunity to measure how well your strategies are working.

Freebie Resource 6:

Web Business Development Marketing

This is an ALISON course that reiterates all the things you’ve learned up to this point while also introducing marketing strategies to help you grow. This is much more of a broad overview of marketing best practices and all the different things you may want to implement to develop your blog as a business.

Freebie Resource 7:

Social Media Marketing

Another amazing ALISON course, this will take a more in-depth look at all things internet marketing with an emphasis on social media. You’ll learn about creating a booming Facebook business page and also how to connect with readers online. You’ll walk away from this course with a well-rounded understanding of social media marketing and be able to use those strategies to attract a greater audience.

Keep on keeping on…

They say blogging is a marathon and not a sprint. So, remember, be patient! Most bloggers don’t find overnight success. But with commitment and passion you can (slowly!) begin to grow your loyal following and watch your earnings grow every month. Although I’m new to the blogging world too, I’ve found that the best way to keep building my traffic each month is to learn, learn, and then learn some more.

There’s no secret method or trick that will help you reach your blogging goals. It’s up to you to learn the best practices and strategies that will turn your blog into a money-making business!

What do you think? Have you tried any of these strategies with success? Do you have any advice you’d like to share? Leave them in the comments below!