How I Make Money With Simple Blog Posts (Without Going Viral)
Steal my $10,000/month writing playbook
Listen to the deep dive:
Monetizing your writing is stupidly simple.
You can write blog posts that pull in thousands of dollars each month without having to morph into a copywriting badass.
That's what I’ve been doing for 10 years. And it's given me the lifestyle and freedom Uncle Ferriss promised in the 4-hour workweek.
The formula is easy to copy. Here’s how I do it.
Blog articles don’t die
I like to do things once and reap the rewards for years to come.
Social media posts are like a can of tuna. They stink after a few days, and you have to throw them away. Blog articles are like a good book. The best ones are timeless. You can read them at any point in history, and they’re still relevant.
They drive traffic with SEO. They are a library of content people can binge when they first discover you. And turn them into die-hards.
Some of my blog articles have made me money years after I wrote them. And they still bring in email subscribers.
The size doesn't count
The key to making money with blog posts is to build an email list. (More on that later.)
99% of creators compete on subscriber count. They pound their chest on social media, screenshotting big numbers.
What most people don’t understand is that the secret is not in the subscriber count but in the quality of those subscribers.
I sometimes swap with other creators. Their lists might be the same size (or even twice as big). But the conclusion is always the same: I send better traffic. Why? My email list is more engaged.
One secret is that I built my email list from long-form content and send daily emails.
The more attention you hold, the stronger the relationship.
Who do you think is going to be a better subscriber? The one who signed up after listening to a 50-minute interview or the one who opted in because of a social media giveaway?
Do the math.
My simple plan to get paid
Most people get this wrong.
They want to monetize their articles with low-hanging peanuts like:
Ads that pay 43¢
$12 newsletter subscriptions
or the Medium Partner Program.
It's nice pocket money. But that's not how you build your online empire.
My sole purpose for writing articles is to get people on my email list.
Then, I sell my own products to the list. That way, I keep 95% of the margins, and I'm in full control.
Don't write for peanuts.
Where to publish your blog articles
I post my blogs on 3 platforms.
Medium
Substack
My good ol' WordPress blog
Medium and Substack both have built-in audiences. They don't require tedious keyword research. So you can talk about anything your audience is interested in and get traffic. The kind of writing there is about emotional and personal stories.
A blog attracts SEO traffic. SEO still works. It starts with what people are searching for.
If you get this right, it can send you free traffic for 5+ years.
Here's what I recommend
There's no perfect platform.
Medium has been my personal favorite until recently. I’ve been writing on Medium since November 2022. The platform is free, easy to use, and it has built-in readers. You can also get paid to write on Medium if you join their Partner Program. (Remember, peanuts.)
The downside is that Medium's reach is throttled for specific niches and that you need to bribe publication nominators to get a chance to be seen by thousands.
Substack is my favorite platform as I'm writing this. It's like if an autoresponder and Twitter (err, X) had a baby.
You write short-form notes (which can be the bullet points of your long-form blog). Engage with others, and write your long-form posts.
The downside is Substack has a smaller audience than Medium (for now.)
SEO is a different ballgame because of keyword research.
When you're just starting out, finding keywords can be tricky. Everything seems saturated. But when you dig, you'll find keywords that you can rank for.
That's what you write about.
As an example, I started with articles about note-taking because a lot of note-takers are content creators. The niche was underserved. So I capitalized on that.
If you want some help to rank your blog on Google, check out my free SEO course at this link.
Complexity is a scam
If you're like me, your mind is buzzing with ideas.
The mistake is to stuff all your good ideas into one article. It constipates you (and the reader). It's confusing. It's overwhelming. Stop it.
Simple articles work better than complex ones.
One good idea is all you need to get started. The more complex your idea, the less likely people will read it. You don’t need to teach the reader everything. Start with a simple article that has one big idea or promise.
If you have 10 ideas, write 10 articles. Don't write a mammoth piece.
You just need to make them feel something and provoke them to take action.
Simple ideas do the best because they’re easier for people to understand.
If they want more, they'll subscribe to your newsletter (that's the trick.)
How (real) money is made
At the end of my articles, I recommend people join my email newsletter.
But I don’t call it a newsletter because it's bland and leaves people guessing what they’re signing up for. I call it a free course (because it's a free course they get via email.)
And the course is all about what they just read.
If they read an article about AI, it's a course about AI.
If they read an article about course creation, it's a course about creating courses.
If they read an article about email marketing, it's a course about… Guess what? Email marketing (you genius!)
That way, you convert 5 times more readers to sign up for your list.
Let's finish here
I make 99% of my income from my email list and selling digital courses and coaching.
And half of my email list comes from long-form blog posts like this one.
If you love writing but hate social media, blog posts are still a thing and can help you grow your income.
Now, go and damn do it.
The simplicity in the strategy is elegant. It's unfortunate that so many are unwilling to trust in the process and put the time into implementing it.
Medium is still my main platform and the earnings there are peanuts as you say Matt.
A writer keep churning content there and you easily feel worn out.
I've been postponing the idea of writing more here on Substack than on Medium but I haven't taken that step yet.
I won't stop writing on Medium since it will be a way to direct traffic to the newsletter here on Substack.