If you're like most Americans, chances are you already have a blog. But you probably haven't uploaded anything since you posted that scathing review of Zombieland back in 2009. Your mother didn't even comment on that one, so you gave up. I know all about it—I've been there. For most people, blogging is an exciting but self-indulgent exercise. Our anemic WordPress sites only see a few dozen hits and eventually we stop being able to justify the time commitment. One can only live on ramen noodles for so long. We have to make money somehow, so we go back to our day jobs and our blogs sit untended, gathering digital rust.
This story is typical—but it isn't inevitable. What if you could actually make money from your blog? Like, enough money to rival your day job? You'd probably invest the time to create and post regular, quality content, which would attract more readers, which in turn would generate even more income. It's possible. You just need to find the right monetization tool.
And I think I just did.
The most reliable way to make money with a blog is through advertising, and the best way to sell ad space is through Infolinks.
An Advertising Marketplace
Infolinks is a digital advertising marketplace, like Adsense or Chitika. Advertisers bid for space on your blog and they pay you a certain amount for every person that clicks through to their site. It's a convenient and easy way to earn money doing the thing you love. Some high-profile bloggers are able to support entire families using advertising they arranged through Infolinks.
The platform is remarkably simple. Bloggers sign up for free, using whichever publishing platform they like. Infolinks uses an algorithm to gather data about the content of your site, and the preferences of your readers. It then places targeted ads on your page in attractive, unobtrusive ways. You get a cut of everything.
Native Advertising
Most digital advertisers use pop-ups or garish banner ads to attract viewer's attention. However, these don't really work anymore. Consumers either erase them with ad blockers or simply ignore them. Infolinks sidesteps this problem by using clever and innovative advertising methods.
Infolinks places "native ads" on your page—ads that are topically relevant and blend seamlessly into your content. I think this is my favorite feature of the service. After decades of invasive digital ads slowing down my Internet experience, Infolinks feels like a breath of fresh air. To create an effective but non-irritating advertising experience, Infolinks uses several ad formats.
InText Link Ads
These are the flagship style on the platform. Once Infolinks' algorithm has scanned and analyzed your content, the service finds which keywords on your page are most relevant to the interests of specific viewers. It then takes those keywords and turns them into expandable text ads that look like hyperlinks. Infolinks is familiar with the habits of your readers. Every one of them will see different, targeted ads that are relevant to them personally.
The fantastic thing here is that InText ads are driven by intent—no one sees them except people who are already interested in the product. You have to be interested enough to hover in order to see the promotion. No distractions. No irritations. Just sales for advertisers and money for you.
InTag Ads
These are quite similar to InText, but the keywords are set in a separate box rather than being interwoven with the text of your posts. Visitors seeking certain products of services will see a set of clickable words that relate very closely to what they're looking for, all without becoming distracted from the content you've uploaded to your blog.
Like InText, these ads expand and become more interactive when visitors hover over them. The text boxes are extremely customizable and can be made to fit flawlessly with the overall design and look of your blog.
InFold Sliders
This option is a bit more traditional. An InFold ad consists of a slider bar running across the bottom of your page. Fortunately, they're tastefully done, and minimally intrusive. They also benefit from being perfectly targeted in real time, meaning that they provide useful information and options to your readers, no matter who they are or when they view your page. They'll find a different set of helpful ads every time.
InScreen Interstitials
Probably the most dramatic option available to you, InScreen ads are interstitials between pages on your website. Some bloggers call them an "advertising intermission." Basically, when a user clicks through to view another post or see another part of your blog, they'll be briefly redirected to a targeted ad before seeing your content.
This method is a bit more intrusive, but it does generate a lot of impressions for advertisers and a lot of money for you. Again, the secret is the powerful real-time targeting capability of the algorithm. A visitor who has been searching for garden tools will see an ad for rakes or shovels. It's a very efficient way to wring more cash out of your website.
InFrame Ads
These are a clever way to use the otherwise wasted space at the edges of your page. Almost all websites have these empty bars that run along the sides of their content, especially on wider screens. InFrame ads neatly fill the blank space with attractive, targeted advertisements.
These can actually help your blog feel more fleshed out and spatially satisfying. They enjoy a high click-through rate because they're obvious without being distracting.
Sponsored Content
Finally, Infolinks offers a sponsored content option, which is perhaps the least intrusive and most effective advertising method of the lot. By choosing it, you agree to publish promoted content pieces. Basically, you get a sponsored guest blogger every now and then who posts content that's relevant and interesting to your audience. And they pay you for the privilege.
Referral Program
With all these customizable options, there are dozens of ways to make money with Infolinks. If you want to flex your earning muscles even further, the service offers a fantastic referral program. It's been very popular with users and attracted a lot of favorable media attention. For every blogger or online publisher you bring on board, Infolinks will pay you 10 percent of their total earnings for 12 months. If you bring in a few quality publishers, the money begins to add up fast.
The referral program means that Infolinks offers long-term passive income. You can earn money from other people's blogs in addition to your own. Infolinks also offers all sorts of drawings, giveaways and other incentives for their publishers. You'll be well taken care of.
The service is completely free to publishers. If you're already using Google Adsense for your blog, you can use Infolinks in tandem to generate even more revenue. You don't need to have a very big blog to get started. In fact, because payment is based on commission, Infolinks usually approves blogs with very low traffic. There's nothing to lose.
The innovative advertisements mean that Infolinks is also significantly more effective than other ad platforms. Some of their ad designs generate 30 times more impressions than traditional banners and pop ups.
2009 was a long time ago. If you're ready to start blogging again seriously, but want to have food in your refrigerator, consider using Infolinks. I believe it's the best way to monetize your work.
Photo Credit: Ryan McGuire
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Source: Enjoy Blogging? Infolinks Can Save You From a Lifetime of Ramen
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