The Business Of Being Mom: 5 Tips For Monetizing Your Blog

Lots of parents blog about their families, but there’s a big difference between a personal blog and a professional “mommy blog.” So which one is yours? The simple answer is, if you’re making any money from your family blog, then it’s a business, and it’s time to get serious. From forming an LLC to seeking sponsorships, these 5 steps can help turn your fun family stories into a lucrative business venture.

The Affiliate Model

One of the easiest ways to make money as a mommy blogger is by sharing affiliate links. This works well for this particular blog genre because most parenting blogs share a lot of product-specific tips – top toys for toddlers, items that make meals less messy, products for parents of twins – and when readers shop through these links, you earn a commission. It does take time to establish yourself as an affiliate with different sites, but if you’ve built a readership and can promise companies an audience, you should have no problem getting your foot in the door.

Grab Some Ads

Similar to attracting affiliate links, you can monetize your blog by attracting advertisers. It won’t be much at first, but over time, basic tools like Google AdWords will bring in added funds. If you can grab wider attention and build your audience, though, that advertising revenue will grow. You may also need to wait to qualify for certain advertising programs until your blog has an audience of a certain size.

Formalize Your Status

Blogs are, generally speaking, informal, but that doesn’t mean you should maintain your blog as a hobby. In fact, if you’re earning an income from your site, you should consider incorporating your blog as a Limited Liability Company (LLC). This process will allow you to get any necessary licenses, such as a sales permit, if you’re going to sell services or products on your site and will also keep you on the right side of the law regarding income. You need to pay taxes on what you earn from your blog, but if you formalize it as a business, you’ll also be able to deduct business expenses, such as the cost of hosting your site or licensing images.

Get Sponsored

Mommy blogs are more than a great way to work from home with kids – they’re also a hotbed for sponsorships, something that’s easy to see if you look at some of the top parenting blogs. Even non-parents, for example, are now familiar with Mila (and some with her twin sister Emma), the hilarious toddler whose videos are an outshoot of her mother’s blog, Over Our Wall. But Over Our Wall isn’t all humor content; it also includes sponsored content from brands like The Honest Company. Blog sponsorship provides companies with creative, individualized press, while as the supporting blog, you’ll typically receive payment and even free products.

Keep Writing

Ultimately, people come to your blog to read what you have to say about your family, get advice, find product recommendations, and see cute pictures of your kids, so if you want to succeed, you need to keep writing. Be persistent and don’t let life keep you from sitting down at your desk. It’s hard maintaining a blog with kids, especially when they’re young, but if you get them involved and use your platform to connect with other parents, you’ll have more than enough motivation to stick with it.