Blogging: Starting and Monetizing My Blog |ad|

This is a sponsored post. All opinions expressed are our own.

Let’s talk about something that we don’t discuss very often. You wouldn’t believe the number of times I have been asked about my blogging career. Most people don’t really understand exactly what I do or how I can make money blogging. I thought I would take a little time today to talk about the other side of blogging. The monetizing and working with PR firms (like Nancy Behrman) to help big brand companies get their name out (and smaller brands as well).

It all started in my living room over 9 years ago. I have always loved to write and decided that I would start a blog. My hope was that someone would find my writings interesting and it would lead to something like a journal. It wasn’t until I received an email from a company asking me to review a product of theirs that I really started to see my blog as anything other than an online journal- an outlet for me.

After receiving that email about reviewing a product for a small company I began to look more into monetizing and product promotions. It really intrigued me and gave me a whole new outlook on blogging. I started to pitch companies that had products that interested me. In the beginning many of the companies were confused at the concept of sending a “Mom Blogger” free products in exchange for a write-up on their blog/website. After taking the time to explain how things worked and sharing my blog and social media stats with the companies, I found myself receiving more and products in the mail.

Eventually, I started to be put on media lists and I would receive emails every week from companies wanting me to promote a product or write about an event. It was really exciting, but also overwhelming. It got to the point that I had to make a decision and would turn some companies away because there was only one of me and I simply couldn’t find the time to take on every job.

Now, it sounds like a lot of fun and very little work, however I must admit that there is more to it than simply receiving a free product or going to a free event. I have spent a lot of time testing products, staging and photographing products, making videos, editing photos and videos, writing articles and so forth. While it is time consuming, it has became a great means for my family to bring in extra cash and products over the years.

Are you looking for ways to make a little extra cash? Do you love to write?

Blogging might be the right choice for you. We do recommend you do your research because there are some costs involved to get started, however it can be very lucrative, if done right.

Check out this interview from the President of Behrman Communications: Nancy Behrman.

How about tips to save money? Check out this post we wrote: 10 Ways to Save Money Into The New Year.

Last, but not least, you will want to make sure you are using your time wisely. You can read our post on Time Management.