Can Blogging be a career?

Earn Money through Blogging

Whenever people think about starting a new blog, they have many questions in their minds; How much do bloggers actually make? This is a question that generally gets asked around many times. And no matter how successful a blogger is, he came across the same things at some point or another. 

The fact of the matter is, there’s no simple or easy answer to this question, as there is no generalization in this industry. Some bloggers earn more than a regular 9 to 5 job would get them, while others just look on! 

So is blogging worth it?

In this post, I will (hopefully) discuss whether it is or not. But for me, it depends. There are really so many factors that it is hard to anticipate anything clearly. 

Blogging for money?

For most blogs, especially those that have started up recently, money is the primary motive or goal behind them. I know you will find numerous resources on the internet telling you how profitable blogging is. Indeed, blogging seems very promising.

First of all, blogging is easy self-employment. You don’t need to apply anywhere or no need to appear for interviews, and you don’t have to answer anyone. You are your own boss in blogging. 

Those with a 9 to 5 will understand this better than anyone else. Secondly, there are no ‘eligibility criteria for starting a blog because it's easy. You don’t need to have a professional degree or experience. Just find your area of interest, and you’re ready to go. We all know that almost every new business needs initial investment. 

Blogging is a business, but the fact is that the investment part is minimal.  So why not start a blog of your own and experiment with it? It seems convincing, right? But, hold on; some factors determine earnings. There are some things you should consider, though, before opting for a blogging career. 

Following are the factors that will ultimately decide how much money you will earn from your blog.

Your niche – Your niche or category will determine the future prospects of your blog. It will also decide how far your blog can reach; hence effectively choosing a suitable category is equal to your earning limit. The broader the niche, the farther you can go. But if too broad, and you’re stranded in a vast ocean, unable to go anywhere. You all know that in blogging, you earn through ad display. So, Ad income is dependent upon the ‘quality of your niche. For example, if your website is about cars or automobiles, then ads from large automobile manufacturers, such as Mercedes or Ferrari, can be very profitable – $3 per click or similar. Something about pet animals or food won’t get you as much.

The quality of your content – Yes, content is paramount. People sometimes think that SEO is more important, but I beg to differ here. 

SEO will only take you so far in the ranking. But, if your content isn’t capable enough, then what good can the SEO do? Remember, SEO is always applied on content and not the other way round! The better the content would be, the more chances you will have of getting approved by advertising companies.

Effective socialization – This is a significant factor in choosing your blog as a career. For many bloggers, their fate suddenly changed forever when they socialized and met with famous bloggers. If you are fortunate enough to be recognized and linked by them, then you’re ready to go!

How much effort you need to put in – Blogging requires a lot of effort to put in. It might just not be worth the effort for some people because they take it as a burden. If you possess inspiration and will power, and the energy to invest a lot of effort daily, you should seriously consider blogging as a career path.

How much time should you invest? – Blogging takes up time; this is a fact. Even if you are a pro, you will still need at least a couple of hours each day for your blog. As a general rule of thumb, the more time you put in, your income will grow. Blogging isn’t just about writing your stuff. It’s about socializing, networking, SEO, and marketing via social platforms. The more time you put in, the better your blog will be, and the more you will learn it, the more you will earn from it.

How long does it take to earn from your Blog?

If you are looking to earn some instant money, then look for something else! Starting a blog does not pay instant. There’s a lot of time and hard work required, as mentioned earlier. And it’ll be based on how much time and effort you put in daily. 

It can take months and, in some cases, years before you have a stable income. So wait at least 2 months before thinking about monetizing your blog.

Somehow it depends upon your know-how about blogging. That comes with time and patience only. Compare the 2 years’ time of build a blog with the three-month time for a new blog. Hence, blogging is a business with a lot of patience.

Hidden Costs of running a blog

As I said at the beginning, that a blog is a business. Well, as a business, there must be some investments involved, right? At first, it seems that there is very little investment required. 

But as it turns out, there’s a lot more money needed to keep a blog running. Also, there are ‘hidden’ costs that appear while you are in the process of building your blog.  

Some of these costs include;

• Web hosting
• Web storage/access fees
• Templates & Themes
• Advertising (optional)
• Software (If it’s related to shopping )
• Email software for newsletters (Optional)
• Salaries for staff maintenance 
• Outsourcing
• Forums/ Hardware or equipment (if any)
• And more

Hence, the point is, you need to make a careful analysis of all the costs you are likely to incur and then deduct that amount from the total income you have to get the estimated profit. If there is no profit, then it’s really no use at all to run a blog because you are at a loss. Even if you are getting a profit, but if it’s too little, then all the time you put in, so it might not be worth it.

On a final note, blogging requires continuous effort with time. If you plan on quitting your regular job for blogging, then be prepared to work regularly, but don’t do it at the start. My advice is to start it as a part-time business or job. 

An ordinary business relies on the products/content you sell. Even if you stop working on it for some time, it won’t make much difference, although a blog is a different story. As soon as you stop working on your blog, it starts to fade away in search engines. Hence, it totally relies upon you rather than the services you offer.

In the end, I would like you to share your blogging experience with us by simply answering a few questions in the comments section so that our readers might get a clear idea of how much do bloggers actually make.

Simply copy and paste the following questions in the comment box, and answer your replies next to them!

1. Your Blog Niche?
2. Page-views per month?
3. Monthly Income by Blogging?
4. How much time do you spend per day on your blog?

You can keep your privacy by not disclosing your name or website URL! Just post an ‘Anonymous’ would do. All I ask is, please be honest about your answers.  🙂