How to Monetize a Web Site

Now I'm not as good at how to monetize as I am at how to drive traffic to a web site. Nonetheless, I do know what works because I've seen it work, and I have done some monetization at Christian History for Everyman.

SBI! provides a list of the various methods of monetizing a web site. I've emboldened the ones that can apply to most web sites.

  • Google AdSense
  • Affiliate Marketing
  • Referrals
  • Lead Generation/Finder's Fees
  • Multi-Level Marketing
  • Hard Goods (Your Own; this is great IF you're already a brick and mortar store)
  • Hard Goods (Dropshipping)—but this will work for almost no one
  • Egoods (audio, video, ebook)
  • CafePress
  • DVD Sales
  • Service Selling
  • Local Business
  • Webmaster Services (If you do this, offer it!)
  • Ebay/Net Auction
  • Membership
  • Donations (but you have to have some skill at asking)
  • Rental Agency
  • Joint Venture
  • Sell Ad Space (if your traffic is huge)
  • Presell SBI! (if you end up agreeing with me!)

SBI! has an action guide so that your site is properly built to succeed. They practically force you to review the methods of monetization to see if any will work for your site. If none will monetize, they don't let you begin building. Instead, they direct you to a more monetizable niche.

I ignored that step for Christian History for Everyman because I was concerned about ministry, not money.

If you're trying to monetize, I would recommend not skipping that step smiley.

I'm not going to describe most of those because if you're going to build your site on your own, apart from my recommendation, which is SBI!, then you're going to have to research. You might as well start by looking at the most promising of the ones above. I've giving you a good head start by telling you all those things!

But I will describe a couple:

Google AdSense

Google AdSense is context-based ads for your site. I'm sure you've seen them. A box is inserted on your site, and Google, using the keywords from your page, fills that box with ads pertinent to your content.

One more reason to build a properly keyword-focused content page.

SBI! walks you through the likelihood of Google AdSense working for your site, though it works for a lot of them. Since Google is providing links based on your keywords, it is likely that your visitors will be interested in those ads.

If you got your visitors through search by following my advice on how to drive traffic to a web site, then they are all the more likely to be interested in those ads.

Google AdSense is a pay-per-click monetization method. That means that you get paid every time someone clicks an ad on your page.

But don't click on your own ads! That will get you banned!

AdSense ads vary in what they're worth. I know a lady who averages about $20/click because her site is on debt. Financial planners and mortgage brokers pay well to get their ads run by Google. On the other hand, my Christian history ads, many of which I don't approve of anyway, pay about 20 cents per click.

But Google won't mess with you. They make money per click as well, so they want your visitors to click ads on your site as much as you do.

Affiliate Programs

Another great way to monetize is through affiliate programs. Companies with things to sell want to advertise on your site if they only have to pay when they get results. Some pay per click, but most pay only when a sale is made.

The way it works is that when a visitor clicks on an ad on your site, the link they follow contains your affiliate ID. If they make a purchase, you get a commission.

One Nice Thing About Affiliate Programs

One nice thing about affiliate programs: They work for people with a conscience. If you want to help your visitors, not just make money off them, then you can approach companies that have helped you.

I asked Julie Donnely (julstro.com) if I could be an affiliate.

I've been studying joint pain relief methods for nearly ten years so that I could keep running after 40. Because I live in a Christian community, I get to test those pain relief methods on my friends … and also on their children who formed a dance troupe and give me plenty of practice.

I used to mention Lose the Back Pain here because they used similar methods (though I learned them from Julie Donnelly). The problem is that while their stretch and massage advice is superb, I hate their sales techniques, and their supplements are ludicrously priced.

If I may suggest it, however, to this day I use their inversion table, which my wife's surgeon—whose surgery method is patented and used across the US—told me "just works." To quote, when I asked about it, he said, "I use one every day; what does that tell you?"

Many affiliate ads also put a cookie on your visitor's computer so that if they return later to make a purchase, you still get the commission. Great way to monetize!

There are web sites like Commission Junction that exist only to put affiliates and advertisers together. You can join them for free, then peruse their list of advertisers for the companies that will fit best with your site.

Commission Junction has been a miserable monetization method for me, but it works for some.

I've had much better success with individual affiliates. LoseTheBackPain.com worked pretty well for me, but I finally decided I couldn't bear their sales methods. I don't like my readers being high-pressured. If I wanted to do that, I'd be running one of those get-rich-quick web sites trying to get you to buy a lot of advice that won't work.

So now I'm back to testing out various products. You'll probably see them around this site. In the end, I'm just trying to find products that my visitors are glad to find out about.

E-Products

One of my better monetization successes has been publishing an ebook. I offered it for an optional donation, and it did quite well. (I didn't keep the donations; they went to a great cause instead. I'm selling the book now because this allows other web site owners to sell it as well through ClickBank.)

The internet has allowed everyone to self-publish … for free.

In fact, any web site with information on it is a self-published e-product. Few web sites charge for their main content, though.

Instead, most people put some content into an e-product, whether it's a video, an ebook, or—if you're computer-savvy—a computer program.

E-products are a great monetization method. Videos are often just to drive traffic from youtube, but I did meet one fellow who sold videos on how to play famous songs. His web site is down now; I'm not sure why. He told me he was making a couple thousand dollars a month selling the videos.

Clickbank helps make monetizing e-products a viable option. You just have to create it, and clickbank will market it for you, charge your customer's card, and keep a small fee.

Clickbank

One great thing about clickbank is that it will help put your ebook or video on other people's sites. Everyone knows about clickbank, so they go there to find e-products to sell—including yours if it's there.

When you load your e-product to clickbank, you specify a commission you're willing to pay, and when webmasters find your product, they advertise it for you on their site.

Don't worry! No work involved! Clickbank handles the sale, the commission, everything; they monetize for you! You just make a product sales page, a download page, and then sit back and collect the checks.

Other Ways to Monetize

There are many other ways to monetize. Some people have their own products to sell. There are a lot of other context-based ads besides AdSense.

All monetization methods, though, require you to drive traffic to your site. I think that's best done with SiteBuildIt! because they do so much for you.

Monetization Success Stories

When I went to my Stores Online seminar, they were careful to tell me that their examples of successful web sites weren't necessarily hosted by StoresOnline.com. Hmm. $5,998, and they don't show examples of success?

Not SBI! Follow this link and go down to number 3. There they have hundreds of success stories, Alexa rankings, and if you go to number 2 on that page, you'll see major universities teach SBI! as a course!!!

I told you earlier what SiteBuildIt! costs. If you pay monthly, it's $29.95 per month, less per year, and all the tools are free!

The question is, do you want to succeed for a reasonable web hosting fee, or do you want to languish like most web sites? Isn't it time to join those who are winning?

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