Best Tweets from #SEMrushchat: Website Monetization Tactics
We had a very informative SEMrushchat last week with guest Robbie Richards and our community about website monetization. Every site is focused on revenue streams, but those streams obviously differ based on the type of website you have. So we asked our community ways they have utilized monetization, common fails to avoid, strategies for planning, and their opinions on privately-owned advertising and affiliate networks vs. Google AdSense.
Robbie and our community shared insights based on experience that every website owner should consider. Keep reading to find out how to get started and what to avoid. We hope the tweets we chose will give you a variety of insights and tips you can use.
You can retweet any of the tips below by clicking on the Twitter logo next to the quote.
Robbie Richards
Reverse engineer how top competitors monetize. This usually involves a bit of manual digging around the site. AdSense? Amazon? D2C sales? Private affiliate partnerships? A general sense will tell me where to start digging more.
Webeo Global
Personalization! Give a great experience and share a happy experience with your customers/ clients and they will keep coming back 🙂
Fistbump Media
I’ve seen paid memberships for premium content working pretty well (for me and some clients). It’s about giving premium access to expertise. Also, e-courses continue to be a bigger part of my plans for the same reason.
Itamar Blauer
Being an affiliate is very simple if you have a network that trust you. You can earn passive income from others signing up with your referral link. As long as you’re offering useful products, it’s perfectly fine!
Moni Oloyede
from a B2B perspective trust over time is key. Tactically, referral programs have been the most effective in my experience.
Ryan Bennion
Depends on your audience size, but if you have a large audience, look for ways to build long term income with affiliate links and influencer relationships. Think long term and think of the products you truly believe in. It benefits both brands to do so.
Alizée Baudez
Affiliation can work quite well, and providing value through coaching and online courses works well too.
Express Writers
I think a lot of people expect results too soon. You really need to focus on building the Know, Like, and Trust Factor and establishing a relationship with your audience before you can expect them to buy from you.
Itamar Blauer
Putting a bunch of ads on your site If you’re a user and see a website filled with ads, it’s an automatic assumption that it’s spammy. Monetise your content in a natural way, such as adding affiliate links if you’re actually reviewing a certain product.
Ben Austin
Common fails of online enthusiasts trying to monetize their online content include: Limiting yourself to one monetisation mode, defining yourself as an influencer when you’re not, and producing media kits that fail to provide all the relevant details.
Ryan Bennion
Making it complicated or going off-brand to get a quick $1. Stay loyal to who you are, promote things that will drive you revenue, & be patient w/ your website. Some people think when you turn on a website, money just trickles in. Stay on brand and provide value.
Mike Kennedy
Another common fail I’ve experienced firsthand is automation overkill. If I don’t buy right away because I am weighing cost-benefits, their relentless drip campaign takes the wrong tone and ultimately drives me away, making my decision easier.
Kahill Insights
Making your website too promotional. People come to your website for content, not to consume adverts.
Mark Gustafson
So many people focus on the short term and don’t invest in building a LONGTERM strategy. Build a brand and build something gradually that will LAST! Too many Gurus and Wizards selling fidget spinners for a month and then left trying to hop on the latest trend.
Before you build it. At any point after launch you make that decision then you are compromising your site.
Robbie Richards
You should map out your monetization strategy right from day one, before you create any content. This insight will dictate how you build the content marketing strategy. Way too many people get it the other way around, and end up wasting a LOT of resources.
Alizée Baudez
I don’t think you need a large audience to start monetizing your website. You need an audience that is loyal and really benefits from what you provide. So I think the right time is now (but please don’t go crazy on pop-ups and browser notifications.
Itamar Blauer
When you’ve got consistent traffic and have built a network of people who trust in you and your brand. Trust is essential as without it, people may think you’re only in it for the money and don’t really care about your audience. Give before you get.
Amy Hampton
Your product is NOT your website. It’s the content on your website. Focus on making your product the best it can be and then showcase it in the best possible way.
Brian Kato
Depends on the niche; If you’re an e-comm site, monetize out of the gate. If you’re a blog or local industry, wait until you have a decent following or community.
I’d go for your own deals on advertising. Any scheme, Google Ads etc., means you have very little control over what adverts appear on your site. You might not mind but you would not be happy with competitor ads appearing – and you will not know that they do.
Kahill Insights
Privately Owned and Affiliate Marketing are more viable. The fact that Google AdSense is pay per click, it’s very hard to convert.
Dan Willis
Why would you invest in building digital property you own only to hand it back over to Google. OWN YOUR PROPERTY!
Robbie Richards
It depends on the monetization strategy you mapped out at the start. AdSense can be a good strategy if you’re confident of driving a ton of traffic that will drive a lot of eyeballs to ads. Otherwise, I’d go with the private affiliate play.
Kolapo Imam
Privately-owned Affiliate networks will forever remain the best. It is less intrusive, often times natural, flows with the publisher’s offer and super flexible. You don’t need 100k fake website visits to launch any of those.
Sarah Marks
That highly depends on your target audience… Niche is probably better served with less mainstream networks…
Brian Kato
Like most things, it depends on a few things: niche, product(s), and your audience. AdSense is great for top-of funnel reach. However, once you have a community, I’d much rather build an email list and work off a private (personalized) network.
Amy Hampton
My preference is for affiliate marketing. Making ‘commission’ off of products/services you recommend speaks to me. Personally, I’m huge a proponent of old-school advertising and not a fan of this tracker-based ad revenue.
Do You Have Website Monetization Tips?
If so, please share them in the comments below. We also want to thank all that participated in the chat. We will be looking for your expert insights next week. It starts at 11 am ET/4 pm BST on Wednesday, September, 11th.
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