How To Make Money With Sponsored Posts On Your Blog

Blogging has evolved from a simple hobby to a powerful platform for content creators to share their thoughts and expertise with a global audience. However, many bloggers are now realizing that their blogs can be more than just a passion project; they can be a source of income. One popular avenue for monetizing your blog is through sponsored posts.

If you are a blogger who wants to monetize your website, you might have considered using sponsored posts as a source of income. Sponsored posts are a type of advertisement that you create and publish on your blog on behalf of a brand or a company. They can help you earn money while providing value to your readers and promoting products or services that are relevant to your niche.

But how do you find and work with sponsors? How do you write sponsored posts that are engaging and authentic? And how do you determine how much to charge for a sponsored post?

In this blog post, we will answer all these questions and more. We will share with you the best practices, tips, and resources for creating and selling sponsored posts on your blog. By the end of this post, you will be ready to start making money with sponsored posts.

Let’s dive in!

Benefits of Sponsored Posts For Bloggers

Sponsored posts can be a great way to monetize your blog and diversify your income streams. Here are some of the benefits of sponsored posts for bloggers:

They can help you earn a consistent and predictable income. Unlike other methods of monetization, such as ads or affiliate marketing, sponsored posts can guarantee you a fixed amount of money for each post you publish. You don’t have to worry about traffic fluctuations or conversions rates affecting your earnings.
They can help you build relationships with brands and influencers. Sponsored posts can help you connect with brands and influencers in your industry and establish yourself as an authority and a trusted source of information. You can also leverage these relationships to get access to exclusive products, events, or opportunities.
They can help you grow your audience and engagement. Sponsored posts can help you reach new audiences that are interested in the topic or the product that you are promoting. They can also help you increase your engagement with your existing audience by providing them with valuable content and solutions to their problems.

How To Find Sponsors For Your Blog?

One of the biggest challenges of doing sponsored posts is finding sponsors who are willing to pay you for your content. There are different ways to find sponsorship opportunities for your blog, such as:

Joining influencer networks or platforms:

These are online platforms that connect bloggers and influencers with brands and agencies that are looking for sponsored content. Some examples of influencer networks are AspireIQ, Linqia, IZEA, and TapInfluence. You can sign up for these platforms for free and browse through the available campaigns that match your niche, audience, and rates.

Pitching directly to brands or agencies:

This is a more proactive approach that involves reaching out to brands or agencies that you want to work with and proposing a sponsored post idea. You can find potential sponsors by searching on Google, social media, or online directories for brands that are relevant to your niche. You can also look at other blogs in your niche and see what brands they are working with. To pitch effectively, you need to have a professional media kit that showcases your blog statistics, audience demographics, previous work samples, and rates. You also need to craft a personalized email that explains why you want to work with the brand, what value you can offer them, and what your sponsored post idea is.

Waiting for brands or agencies to contact you:

This is a more passive approach that involves waiting for brands or agencies to find you and reach out to you with sponsorship offers. To increase your chances of getting contacted by sponsors, you need to optimize your blog and social media profiles for visibility and credibility. You can do this by using relevant keywords, hashtags, and tags; displaying your contact information and media kit; creating high-quality content; and engaging with your audience and other influencers.

How To Write sponsored Posts

Once you have found a sponsor for your blog, the next step is to write a sponsored post that is engaging and authentic. Here are some tips on how to write sponsored posts that are effective and ethical:

Follow the sponsor’s guidelines and expectations:

Before you start writing, make sure you understand what the sponsor wants from you in terms of the content format, length, tone, style, keywords, links, images, disclosures, deadlines, etc. You should also communicate with the sponsor throughout the process and get their feedback and approval before publishing the post.

Do your research on the product or service:

To write a credible and informative sponsored post, you need to do your research on the product or service that you are promoting. You should try the product or service yourself if possible, or at least read reviews, testimonials, case studies, or other sources of information about it. You should also learn about the features, benefits, drawbacks, competitors, pricing, etc., of the product or service.

Provide value to your readers:

To write an engaging sponsored post, you need to provide value to your readers by addressing their needs, problems, questions, or interests. You should not just write a sales pitch or a product review, but rather a story, a tutorial, a comparison, a list, or any other type of content that is relevant and useful to your audience. You should also highlight how the product or service can help your readers solve their problems or achieve their goals.

Be honest and transparent:

To write an authentic sponsored post, you need to be honest and transparent with your readers and the sponsor. You should not make false or exaggerated claims, hide any drawbacks or risks, or endorse something that you don’t believe in or use yourself. You should also disclose that the post is sponsored and follow the FTC guidelines and the platform’s policies on sponsored content.

How Much To Charge For a Sponsored Post?

One of the most common questions that bloggers have about sponsored posts is how much to charge for them. There is no definitive answer to this question, as different factors can affect the rates of sponsored posts, such as:

Your blog niche, audience size, engagement rate, traffic, domain authority, etc.
The sponsor’s budget, goals, expectations, industry, etc.
The type, format, length, quality, and exclusivity of the sponsored post
The amount of work, time, and resources involved in creating and promoting the sponsored post
The supply and demand of sponsored posts in your niche

However, as a general rule of thumb, you can use the following formula to calculate your base rate for a sponsored post:

Base rate = (Monthly pageviews / 10) + (Monthly unique visitors / 10) + (Domain authority x 5)

For example, if your blog has 50,000 monthly pageviews, 20,000 monthly unique visitors, and a domain authority of 30, your base rate would be:

Base rate = (50,000 / 10) + (20,000 / 10) + (30 x 5) = $5,000 + $2,000 + $150 = $7,150

This means that you should charge at least $7,150 for a sponsored post on your blog. Of course, you can adjust this rate depending on the factors mentioned above and your own preferences.

How To Measure The Success of Your Sponsored Post?

The last step in doing sponsored posts is to measure the success of your sponsored post. This is important for both you and the sponsor to evaluate the performance and the return on investment of the sponsored post. To measure the success of your sponsored post, you need to track and analyze the following metrics:

Impressions: The number of times your sponsored post was seen by your audience
Clicks: The number of times your audience clicked on the links in your sponsored post
Conversions: The number of times your audience took the desired action after clicking on the links in your sponsored post
Engagement: The number of likes, comments, shares, saves, etc., that your sponsored post received from your audience
Reach: The number of unique users who saw your sponsored post
Traffic: The number of visitors who came to your blog from your sponsored post
Revenue: The amount of money you earned from your sponsored post

You can use various tools and platforms to track and analyze these metrics, such as Google Analytics , Facebook Insights , Instagram Insights , Hootsuite , etc. You should also create a report that summarizes these metrics and share it with the sponsor to show them the results and the value of your sponsored post.

Conclusion

As a blogger, sponsored posts offer a fantastic opportunity to monetize your passion and dedication while maintaining the authenticity and value you provide to your readers. By understanding the intricacies of this monetization strategy and following best practices, you can create a win-win situation for both you and your sponsors.

Remember that successful sponsored posts are not just about earning money but also about building long-lasting relationships with brands. Your blog can be a powerful marketing platform for these brands, and by consistently delivering high-quality, engaging content, you can become a sought-after influencer in your niche.

So, whether you’re just starting your blogging journey or looking to enhance your current monetization strategies, sponsored posts can be a valuable addition to your income streams. Keep in mind the importance of maintaining your blog’s integrity, aligning with the right sponsors, and always putting your readers’ interests first.

With these insights and a commitment to excellence, you can unlock the full potential of sponsored posts and enjoy a successful and rewarding blogging career.