I’ll never forget this one time when I first started blogging. I was standing waiting for an Uber and this bro-type guy came up to me and wanted to chat me up. I’m really bad at giving hints that I just don’t want to talk to someone and he got out of me that I had a blog. As soon as he found that out, he asked me what I made blogging.
First of all- nunya biznaz. Second of all- it’s not really that much and it certainly wasn’t back then. But I do make a little extra cash with my blog and I’d like to share how. I’ve touched on it in prior posts but I don’t think I’ve done a full monetization post before. If I have, it hasn’t been in quite a while and needs to be updated anyway. My originally plan was to combine all of my monetization methods into one big post but I have a lot to say on each so I’m breaking them up.
So without further ado…
ShareASale was the first affiliate marketing program I signed up with. It works as an intermediate between the merchants (like Lulus.com for example) and the affiliates (like me!). There are more than 2500+ merchants offering tons of products and services. My focus is on style merchants, but they also have merchants representing travel, gifts, home, and more!
ShareASale is a CPA (cost per action) affiliate program, meaning that I get paid if someone actually makes a purchase clicking through my links. If they just click without making a purchase, it doesn’t mean much for m other than the fact, depending on the individual merchant terms, I may make a commission if they go back to that site later and make a purchase.
I utilize both my blog and social media (mostly Facebook) to share my ShareASale links. They have a custom link maker so that you can create a direct link to any product as long as you’re affiliated with that merchant. Let’s look at Lulus.com as an example again. Say I want to share a specific dress- I can create a link right to the Awaken My Love Burgundy Long Sleeve Lace Maxi Dress. Voilà! There’s also a nifty plugin that you can add to your internet server to pick up a product without leaving the page you’re on and toggling back to ShareASale to create a custom link!
I generally like ShareASale. I get paid by direct deposit once my threshold hits $50 which usually takes me a couple of months. I’ve had issues with only two of my merchants as far as earning my commission- SheIn and Zazzle. I’m not sure why I haven’t made my SheIn earnings when I KNOW people have made purchases though my links (my SIL told me she did and sent me her order number!). I’ll get back to Zazzle in a later post.
I would suggest ShareASale especially for new bloggers looking to monetize. The connections you make with brands will be legit and you’ll often get newsletters from merchants telling you about their sales, specials, and tips to help maximise your earnings with them. They want you to succeed because when you succeed, they’re also making money.
I’ve even made a extra money with bonus opportunities from merchants, like with this post. The contact between the merchants and affiliates is key. I had a question for one of my merchants today and it was answered via email in less than an hour!
I’d be happy to answer any questions you have about ShareASale. Have you ever used it? What has your experience been?
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