HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY MONETIZE YOUR CONTENT

No matter what kind of content you create, it takes significant time and energy to put together. So why not earn a few dollars from all of that hard work?

Whether your goal is to earn a living as a content creator, or you’re using your online presence to drive traffic towards a new product or service, there are plenty of different options for you to monetize your content and make the most out of every post.

What kinds of content can you monetize?

Simply put, if it’s content, you can make money from it. It really doesn't matter what form it comes in–written blog posts and ebooks, photos on Instagram, videos on TikTok or YouTube, podcasts…they all have value and there’s an audience out there willing to pay for them.

Some monetization routes are quick and easy to set up, like enabling AdSense on your YouTube videos. Others require a bit more creativity and planning, but often come with a higher return-on-investment and greater visibility within your industry. 

Ultimately, what you choose to do comes down to the time that you have for content creation and the direction that you want your brand to go in. So let’s take a look at some of the options that you have when it comes to monetizing your content.

Whitelisted Instagram content

Influencer partnerships are the bread and butter of social media these days. Brands and content creators have several options available to them for collaborations, from account takeovers to whitelisted posts.

Whitelisting is slightly different from the “paid partnership with” posts that you may have seen from influencers on your feed. Instead of promoting content using their own brand account, companies will post on an influencer’s feed using that handle instead. 

The brand will target a specific audience using the influencer’s handle, but without actually posting anything on their organic feed. These “dark postings” look like normal sponsored posts by the influencer to any user that sees them, but they’re actually ads being driven by the brand itself to a carefully targeted audience.

There are a number of advantages for brands who work with content creators in this way–they have control over who sees the post and can make any changes that they’d like to the creative in the ad. For content creators, the investment in a targeted audience by the brand allows their handle (and profile, if the user clicks through) to be seen by a much wider audience, even beyond their own followers. 

As whitelisting has so many advantages for both parties, it’s certainly something to consider as a content creator. Brands understand that having access to your account and followers is a privileged position to be in, so will likely pay more for this type of work than a traditional partnership or sponsored post.

There are a few cons to consider as a content creator, though. Sharing access to your account does come with risks, so it’s important to discuss this at length and put any requirements in writing before signing a contract. You’ll also be giving up creative control over something being put out under your name. Check with the brand if they’re willing to share the creative with you and are open to feedback before the post goes live.

Spark ads on TikTok

Think of Spark ads like boosted Facebook posts on TikTok. They turn your organic, native content into ads with a few quick clicks. It means that you keep all of those features that your audience knows and loves you for, but you’re also adding the ability to make some money from that content.

For your followers, they’ll still be able to comment on, like, and share your video ads, just as they would with an organic post. You can keep interactive elements too, so your followers can duet and stitch your content in their own TikTok videos. The only difference is that you can add a call-to-action (CTA) button to your video that links to whichever landing page you decide to use, just like you would with any other type of TikTok ads.

Spark ads are a good way to monetize your content if you’re already seeing positive growth on your TikTok channel. Keep in mind all of the reasons that your followers choose to support you and what they like about your content, then translate this into your ad content. Be entertaining and authentic, stay on top of the latest trends for the platform, and be proactive about engaging with your commenters. 

Promoted or sponsored blog posts

If you choose to work directly with a brand, you’ll likely be given an affiliate link back to their website that you can add to your blog post copy. Affiliate links that are naturally integrated into your blog posts are one of the best ways to add subtle monetization to your content and build relationships with brands to set up future work opportunities.

You may get links directly from a brand that you’re actively partnering with (sponsored content), or you could have your own affiliate link activated in tools that you use yourself. Many software providers like email marketing products or CRM systems will set you up with an affiliate link in your account settings to encourage you to spread the word about how much you love their product.

Remember to be selective about the brands you choose to work with. It’s good practice to only include links to products or services that you actually use and enjoy, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to seamlessly work discussion of these products into your copy. 

Yes, you may get some cash back if a user makes a purchase, but your primary goal should always be to offer valuable information to your reader. No tricks or gimmicks are going to help you in the long run and you want to be sure that your authority and reputation aren’t damaged by promoting a questionable brand in your content.

Remember, if you include any kind of affiliate links in your content, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requires that you disclose that you could receive money if users click on them. You also need to disclose any products or services that were gifted to you by a brand, or traded in exchange for promotional content.

Gated premium or newsletter content

If your content typically falls under one medium, looking for additional ways to monetize can be a challenge. But there are several ways that you can do this by creating premium, gated content on alternative platforms for your most loyal audience members.

Membership sites are becoming increasingly more common among influencers and content creators, where users can sign into their account on the platform and have access to current content and a library of previously uploaded posts. 

Patreon is a great example of this. As the content creator, you have free rein over how much you want to charge your subscribers (Patreon offers a tiered subscription system), what perks you want to give your subscribers, and how often you post new updates.

This same approach can work equally as well if you’re already running a successful newsletter. You have an interested audience who wants to hear what you have to say, so adding more in-depth or specialized content behind a paywall is a good way to entice your most dedicated subscribers to get some added value from your expertise.

Substack is one platform that works well for email-based subscriptions. You can choose to send free or paid-for newsletters to your audience as often as you’d like. All of your content is owned entirely by you and you can even enable commenting to add an extra level of follower interaction. 

As with anything, there are some downsides to creating gated content. If you still have a small number of followers, encouraging them to pay for content that they could find elsewhere for free is always going to be a difficult sell. Your visibility will undoubtedly be smaller when you add a paywall.

But this is also an opportunity to show your value and expertise in the content that you are creating. Make sure that your free content clearly demonstrates your knowledge and skills to help win over followers who are still on the fence about subscribing to your newsletter.

Find New Revenue Sources For Your Content

Monetizing your content is one of the best ways for freelancers, influencers, and content creators to diversify their income streams and build a sustainable pipeline of recurring revenue.

Looking for help to get started? Get in touch with our team today to build a custom strategy for monetizing your work.