Writing

How to monetise your website

 1024 683 Mandy Freeman
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Published on Xneelo, 2023

Did you know that if you currently have a website that gets a decent amount of traffic every month, it’s possible to generate a passive income from it? You might be asking, but why would I want to monetise my website? 

You may want to scale or pivot your business in the near future and want to use your website to generate enough funds to run itself until you do, or you simply may want to boost your website’s earning potential. Whatever your reason for doing so, there are options available to make this happen.

We’ve put together a few ways you can use your existing website to make money.

Google AdSense

Using Google AdSense is possibly one of the simplest ways to set up your website to make money. You allow Google to place ads on your website and each time someone clicks on an ad, you’ll get paid.

While there are different platforms available, Google AdSense is a popular one because it’s fairly straightforward to use. To get started, you’ll need:

  • A Google account
    If you’re using Gmail (or any other Google service), then this step is complete. If you don’t have one, then you’ll need to create an account.
  • A phone number and postal address
    These contact details must be associated with the bank account you’re going to link to your Google AdSense account for payments.
  • A unique code
    You’ll get a code to add to your website that lets Google track click-throughs.

Once your account is active, Google AdSense does all the heavy lifting in the background, matching ads to your site based on the content you publish and the visitors you get. The ads that will be placed on your website are created and paid for by advertisers. If, however, you notice an ad that you don’t like, you can remove it from the Brand Safety page on your account.

Display ads

A second option is to sell space for ads on your website directly to advertisers, giving you more control over the selling price. Display ads – or banner ads – are placed in high-traffic locations on web pages, such as across the top or down the sides of a webpage. They’re typically put in places where your eyes are likely to look when you’re browsing.

Generating leads doesn’t need to be difficult – you can create an “Advertise here” page that directs potential advertisers to a form where they can submit their details or to your contact page.

If this sounds like an option that will work for you, make sure you keep the user experience top of mind. A good rule of thumb is that less is always more. Running too many ads can slow down your page loading speed, which in turn can affect your SEO. The quicker your website loads, the better the experience for your visitors. In addition, search engines favour fast-loading sites.

You’ll also need to optimise the ads for web and mobile, as your visitors are likely to access your site from different devices. Optimising how the ads display is important, too and you’ll need to consider their size, location and type (static vs animated).

Affiliate marketing

If you’ve got a blog section on your website, you could explore affiliate marketing – basically, you promote a brand or product to your audience. Think of it as a performance-based marketing strategy where you’ll get paid for each successful sale.

When you sign up as an affiliate, you’ll receive a link or tracking code that needs to be embedded on your site. Every successful sale or lead generated through this affiliate link means you’ll earn a commission.

SME South Africa does caution against pushing brands and products too heavily. They say, “The key thing is that you should only promote affiliate products that add value to your audience. If you come across as too salesy, your audience could lose interest.”

Locally, there are a number of brands that offer affiliate programmes, such as:

Globally, Amazon and Etsy are quite popular options for affiliate marketing.

Ideas for content creators

If you have a blog or vlog on your website, chances are you are passionate about a certain subject or industry. If you have knowledge that can benefit someone else, you can monetise this. Consider creating an ebook, audiobook or even an e-course to sell from your website.

Many popular bloggers and streamers sell merchandise from their websites. This is a great way to build loyalty among fans who want to support you.

If your blog is popular enough you can even sell reviews or sponsored posts. Alternatively, you can gate premium content behind a paywall or offer this content to readers who support your content with donations. There are plugins that can help you with this. PayPal also offers this functionality.

Monetising your WordPress website

The beauty of WordPress is the ease with which websites can be customised. Adding a paywall to your content, automating your affiliate marketing or hosting ads is as simple as adding the right plugin.

When adding a plugin, always look at the number of active downloads, and its user review rating, and check whether it’s compatible with your version of WordPress and your Starter Site or theme.

Another way to monetise your WordPress website is to add an online store. Our e-commerce Starter Site, Athletic, available as part of our Managed WordPress Hosting product, has everything you need to easily set up your online store. If you’re already a Managed WordPress Hosting customer making use of one of our other Starter Sites, you simply swap out your Starter Site for Athletic. You can find the steps for switching to Athletic here.

Whatever option you consider, remember that it will take time before your website starts to make money. While there’s no timeframe on how long this will take, factors like how many visitors you get and the quality of your content will play a role.

‘I Googled how to kill myself’

 1024 683 Mandy Freeman
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Published on Health24, 17 November 2017

My story didn’t end in a hospital bed having my stomach pumped, my wrists stitched or someone grabbing my waist before I jumped. But still I have survived a suicide attempt.

I found myself on Google.

I typed: “How to kill myself and make it look like an accident.”

Google pulled up a large number of results, and quickly.

Today, I just typed in those same words – Google spat out 937 000 results in 0.75 seconds.

On the first page I read – “Making suicide look like an accident”; “what’s the best way to kill yourself but make it look like an accident”; “making a suicide like some random accident”; “top 20 suicide methods: fastest and painless suicide methods…”
My hands are sweaty and my stomach is twisted in knots. I have to close the browser now.

But back in 2014 I didn’t. I started down a very dark rabbit hole. For hours I searched for the perfect solution. I wanted to take my life, to end the pain, to release those who loved me from the torment I presented them with every time I had a depressive mood.
But it had to look like an accident so that they would mourn for me and remember me for who I was rather than the way I had ended it.

That they would never know that I had decided to take my own life.

That they wouldn’t see me as the failure I was convinced I was.

That I wouldn’t be remembered as a coward.

Life didn’t make sense. I was tired. I was angry. I was frustrated. I felt worthless. I was a failure. I was in pain and ending my life would take away that pain. But most importantly, I was depressed.

Still I kept searching for the answer I was so desperate to find. Slitting my wrists would be messy. An overdose of pills doesn’t always work and I couldn’t find any mention of exactly what to take and how many. Hanging would be a logistical nightmare.

But a car accident would be easy. I could drive off Chapman’s Peak and into the ocean… “She lost control around a bend,” they’d say.

It was convenient too as I could do it at any time.

Then something snapped. Why was I choosing this way out when I had so much to live for? I quickly shut down the 20 browsers I had open. The next day I found a psychiatrist and booked my first session.

Today marks International Survivors of Suicide Day and I find myself remembering that awful night in February 2014. I am one of so many people who have come close to suicide.

Once again, I turn to Google but this time to find stories of survival. I find many. And what surprises me most is how similar they all are to mine.

Surviving life

In September 2016 The Mighty, a digital health community created to empower and connect people facing health challenges and disabilities, asked suicide attempt survivors what they wished people knew about their experiences.

Here are some of the responses that resonated with me:

“For me, it’s less about death and more about ceasing the pain. It’s difficult to explain how death would make you feel more alive than ever. I wasn’t running from my problems. I was desperately searching for a way to conquer them.” – Kacie S.

“It wasn’t really about dying. It was about escaping unbearable pain when I couldn’t see any other option. And I was convinced everyone would be happier if I was gone, that I was doing them a favor by unburdening them. This is why guilt trips like ‘think of what you’re doing to your loved ones’ don’t work for me… I’m so grateful to still be alive today. The pain did fade. I found other options. And I want to stick around, to see how this life of mine will play out.” – Erin L.

“My attempt had nothing to do with how ‘good’ or ‘bad’ my life is. It came from being tired. Tired of being me, tired of pretending, tired of being depressed.” – Valerie S.

“I shouldn’t be made to feel ashamed for what I did. I tried the pills, exercise, getting out more, I worked through the lists of the ‘acceptable’ courses of action. It felt like my last resort.” – Lindsey G.

“I wish people knew that it didn’t mean I didn’t love them. At the time, I honestly believed I was doing everyone a favor. I wish people knew the thoughts will always be there for some, and we deal with it day by day. It can be a lifelong process, almost like a recovering addict. I don’t think I’ll ever fully heal. I wish people would stop calling it selfish. Stop acting like it is something we’re doing to smite you. It’s. Not. About. You.” – Moranda J.

“Some people ask, “how could you ever give up on life?” They don’t understand the fact that the will of a suicide is more than just a simple desire. Even though you try not to think about it, even though you don’t want to do it, there is this strong and hopeless feeling of just… doing it.” – Daniel S.

(You can read all 41 experiences here.)

‘I am not a coward’

Suicide is not a cowardly act. It’s also not an easy decision to make.

Coming back from that dark place was a difficult journey. And there are still days when I think back on it – it brings me to tears to look at how great the last three years of my life have been. How much I actually did have to live for. What I would have given up.

Am I worthless? No.

Am I a coward? No.

Am I crazy? No.

Am I depressed. Yes.

I still battle my Black Dog every day but I know how to manage him.

Today, I choose to fight those dark thoughts but that’s all they are – thoughts. I choose life.

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