There are two basic ways you can make money from your blog. Direct Monetization and Indirect Monetization. Direct Monetization includes Advertising, Sponsorship, Affiliate Programs , Paid Reviews. Indirect Monetization includes Consulting, Freelance writing, Book Deals, Basically by being the subject matter expert in that field or topic, you can charge money for your services or to share your knowledge.

Most blogs out there use direct monetization. Examples of Direct Monetization would be advertising by using something like Google Adsense or Text Link Ads. Affiliate Programs can also be a huge stream of steady income when using affiliates like Commision Junction, ClickBank, Linkshare, Pepperjam Network or even being a Amazon Affiliate. Another way to generate more income would be by doing Paid Reviews with sites like Reviewme or ReviewStream. You could also make direct money from good old fashion Sponsorship.

If a blog can offer value to its readers, which makes them keep coming back to read great content and also refer it to others, another way to get some extra coin is to ask for Donations. They can pay you via PayPal or they can mail you a check. For people who enjoy reading your blog and would like to keep reading it, making a donation for them is nothing. Most people average donations are $5 – $10, with some generous people giving up to $100.

Remember with Direct Monetization your making money directly from your blog which is also Passive Income. This is income that is being earned when your not actively working. So basically you can write a couple of blog posts and then go away on vacation for a couple of days, but your advertisements are earning you money while your away on vacation. People could be clicking on some of your sponsored ads or purchasing a product from one of your affiliate programs generating income for you while your actually sleeping. Pretty good ha…