3 Essential Articles Every Website Needs to Make Money Online

3 Essential Articles Every Website Needs to Make Money Online

To make money online, there are 3 articles you should have on your website.

Are you making the most of your writer website or your blog? Do you even have your own site?

For many writers and bloggers, setting up a website is crucial. It allows you to brand your business, display your portfolio, and gives you a place to write that is all your own.

However, unlike social media pages (which help with the above), websites incur costs. The natural thing to do is attempt to generate revenue through your website. After all, if you can break even or (preferably) turn a profit, your website truly becomes an asset rather than a liability.

However, to many, this can cause a conflict. After all, you want to offer genuine value to your audience, but you need revenue.  So, how do you not only provide great content for your readers but also turn some revenue without losing credibility?

Today, I’ve invited Dave Chesson to share with you three types of posts which have been proven to generate revenue for writer websites while also providing genuine value to audiences. He will even include examples so you can put these to work on your own site.

Although I actually have multiple income streams, Dave says the three types of posts you should have on your site to make money online are:

1: Product Review Posts

2: Product Comparison Posts

3: Resource Master Lists

Take it away, Dave!

1: Product Reviews

One of the keys to successful revenue-generating blog posts is getting the right mixture of enthusiasm and likeability. One of the best ways to achieve this mix is by taking the time to review and share the products you truly use and care about.

When you review a product you genuinely use and love, your enthusiasm will be tangible. It will be clear from the level of knowledge you provide that you are a genuine fan of the product.

Product Review Posts – Best Practices

Some of the best practice tips to keep in mind when putting together a product review post include:

– Be sure to take pictures and even videos of you using the product. This not only shows that you genuinely own and use the product, but it also conveys your personality more than simply writing about it.

– Make sure that the products and services you review have an affiliate program available. Be sure to register for this in advance of putting your review together.

– Check out the other reviews that are ranking on Google for the same product you are looking at. Make sure your own review offers something extra.

– Be honest about the product. Highlight its flaws as well as its advantages. This adds credibility to your review and shows it’s a genuine analysis rather than a fluff piece.

Now that you know some of the best practice tips for putting together a review for your website, let’s consider some of the types of products you might wish to review.

– Software relevant to your audience. As a writer, this could include writing software, editing software, or anything else you think your audience might enjoy and find useful. Examples could include notebooks, pens, or anything else writers need to get by.

– Off-topic products. These might not relate directly to writing, but might be useful for writers, such as a special brand of coffee.

Basically, anything that you love, and that you think your audience might as well, is the perfect choice for a review post.

Product Review Posts – Examples & Lessons

Now that you know how to go about creating a review post, and the type of products you might review, let’s check out some examples from real websites for the final piece of the inspiration puzzle.

1: Wording Well’s Review of Meaning, Self, and the Human Potential

Wording Well posted a review of Meaning, Self, and the Human Potential. Some of the tips to take away from this review include:

Provide context. The relationship between the reviewer and the product being reviewed is clearly discussed and talked about.

Explain the implications of the product. Rather than just talking about what the book is, this review also explains why it matters.

Clear suggestion of who the book is for. Rather than just saying what’s good or bad in your review, suggest the right type of person for it.

Grammarly feature comparison table

2: Kindlepreneur’s Review of Grammarly

In the above link, you can see my review of Grammarly. Some of the actionable tips you can take away from this when putting together your own review post include:

Include video content. This will capture your readers’ attention, cause them to spend more time on your page, and boost your Google rankings as a result.

Include graphic content. A large wall of text is unappealing and is likely to bore your audience. Mix things up with lists, bullet points, graphics, and tables.

Give a ‘good fit’ recommendation. Rather than include an overall verdict, suggest who the product is and isn’t right for. This makes it more likely that you will convert suitable traffic.

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The Essence of Blogging (+ How to Earn Money Online)

The Essence of Blogging (+ How to Earn Money Online)

Someone on Facebook messaged me the other day, asking “What is blogging?”

I was a bit speechless. I didn’t know how to answer, because really, how can you explain what blogging is to someone who doesn’t really know?

So I directed him to my post 5 Things New Bloggers Need to Know, and said, “This will help you.”

Yet… just four years ago, I had the same question. 

I was a newbie blogger back then.

I was clueless.

And I still remember the struggles I’ve endured over the years as I’ve journeyed from “newbie” to “pro.”

It wasn’t easy. It was time-consuming. I was constantly learning. (I still am!)

To help speed up my learning process, I followed these 8 Action Tips For Guppy-Bloggers In An Ocean Of Sharks.

I also followed these 30+ Blogger-Sharks Spouting Oceans of Knowledge… and still follow some.

I’ve come quite far in my blogging journey. I’ve practiced the 10 Effective Strategies to Becoming a Successful Blogger.

I’ve also built a solid business from it.

The thing that really amazes me it that most people think blogging is a quick way to earn money.

But blogging is NOT a quick way to earn money… not at first.

In today’s post, I am going to share a few things I’ve learned about blogging and earning money online. I will reveal how I earn money through blogging, explain what blogging really is (the essence of blogging), and hopefully give you some ideas about how you can increase your blogging strategy and income streams.

By the end of the post, you should have most of your questions answered! Of course, chances are, you will likely have a bunch of new ones! LOL

But at least you will know more about how to earn money online!

WTF is Blogging?

Blogging is more than just writing articles (also called blog posts) and publishing them online.

If you’re a blogger, you likely already know that blogging involves:

  • creating and then running your own website  — read Blogging Resources + How To Start a Blog (if you don’t already have one)
  • learning how to install and update plugins
  • moderating and replying to comments
  • figuring out how to be noticed by search engines (hint: make sure you submit a sitemap to the search engines! You can use this free sitemap plugin to help you with this.)
  • learning how to create images for your posts (hint: use Canva or PicMonkey to help you — they are both FREE to use!)
  • learning how to take and then use screenshots in your blog posts
  • learning how to use Click-to-Tweet links in your blog posts (hint: read How to Use “Click-to-Tweet” Links In Your Blog Posts (for FREE))
  • figuring out who to link to within your posts (promote your friends, but also link to top posts in Google that provide good information or complement your message)
  • determining how to promote your posts on social media (hint: you have to have accounts everywhere!)
  • learning why networking with other bloggers is important (especially “blogger-sharks” — the big bloggers who you constantly learn from — such as the ones in
  • doing guest posting (and following proper guest posting etiquette)
  • providing value to your audience
  • growing your audience (usually by offering them an incentive to sign up to your mailing list, such as a freebie or a content upgrade)
  • determining which email marketing platform to use (Mailchimp, GetResponse, Aweber, MadMimi, Constant Contact, etc.)
  • figuring out how to monetize your site (hint: you can start by using AdSense)
  • creating content on a regular basis (remember, you can always hire someone to help you do this… such as me!)
  • AND SO MUCH MORE!
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