INSIDE: You can make money with a blog without ads! Meet Katie from Dashing Dish who shares how she got started blogging and how to make money on a blog without ads.
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Do you ever look at your favorite websites or blogs and wonder how they’re making money?
Income streams are varied. A blogging monetization strategy can include display ads, including banner ads, or a sponsored post. Other options are affiliate marketing, membership features or digital product sales.
Today, I’m excited to introduce you to blogger Katie Farrell of Dashing Dish. She has been encouraging women – body and soul – for six years.
One of the things that stands out to me about Dashing Dish is Katie’s authenticity to address real struggles through her social media platforms and her blog. Not to mention that the recipes Katie prepares are really good!
Lead by example: how to make money on a blog without ads
Here’s how Katie got started, how she’s making money blogging without ad revenue, and her plans to grow her freelance bloggingcareer!
What was your inspiration behind Dashing Dish?
Dashing Dish is a place where I share wholesome and simple recipes, as well as encouragement, inspiration and motivation to get fit for life.
At Dashing Dish, it is truly my greatest heart’s desire to help others find encouragement and fulfillment through a balance of healthy living principles and God’s Word. I make it my goal to teach others how to prepare easy healthy meals and to provide practical encouragement to nourish both your body and soul.
What is your background (education/career)? How have you used that to create Dashing Dish?
I used to work full time as a registered nurse, including two years as a labor and delivery nurse. I’ve used my knowledge of the human body and nutrition, plus what I’ve learned working so closely with women, to develop a website where women can be nourished body and soul!
How did you get started? How long have you been running Dashing Dish?
I started Dashing Dish about six years ago. I started it as a side hobby while working as a nurse full time. My husband suggested I share my recipes on a basic WordPress website, and it grew from there!
What has allowed you to grow from a small blog to a business that creates a profit?
My husband is a graphic designer, and he designed and developed the website as you currently see it over the course of about one year. He started developing the new website after the blog took off in popularity, and I quit my full-time nursing job.
How did you decide on your blog monetization strategy?
We knew we had to find a way to make money, but we didn’t want to run ads on our site. So my husband created a membership feature, which allows us to generate income without running advertisem*nts.
I also have a cookbook and a devotional book that bring in some money, although it probably isn’t as much as people might think because I worked with a publisher versus self-publishing.
How does the membership work?
The Dashing Dish membership includes all the tools you need to maintain a healthy lifestyle for just $7 a month or $60 a year for the basic plan, or $10 a month or $84 a year for the Meal Plan Pro.
Dashing Dish members receive access to more than 1,000 premium clean-eating recipes, a custom meal plan maker and a grocery list builder that all sync to your phone! The membership also comes with workouts, videos and helpful tips for living a healthy lifestyle, as well as access to a community forum for support!
What strategy has caused the most growth for you in your business?
I think it’s being consistent, producing quality content and being real! 🙂
You’re preparing to be a first-time mom! This is so exciting! How do you think this sweet baby will change your business? What are you most looking forward to as a mom?
Thank you! 🙂 My husband and I are so excited! We expect that having a baby will change things, for sure! 😉
I think as far as Dashing Dish goes, I’ll add a lot more articles on ways to navigate health with a family, and maybe I’ll even share baby/toddler-approved recipes!
What are your plans for your business in the future?
I’m currently writing my third book! It will be released in December 2018, so with that will come more speaking and travel engagements.
I’m looking forward to this because it is truly my favorite thing to get out and meet in person the beautiful faces in the audience that I interact with over the web! 🙂
What are your favorite resources for growing your blog/business?
Social media, without a doubt! I use Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest.
What’s your most valuable piece of advice for Smart Cents Mom readers?
Although I’m still awaiting the arrival of my daughter, I know from watching my mom, who raised three girls while running a full-time day-care business in our home, that being a mom is the most challenging job there is!
So I want to take a moment and just encourage all the moms out there! I want to encourage you that your constant giving is making a lasting impact on your family and those around you.
You might feel some days like you have nothing left to give, but I can promise you that every ounce of love, encouragement, compassion and comfort is never wasted.
Whether you know it or not, every time you give of yourself, you are shining love to your family in a tangible way, which I can guarantee stands out in this world today!
Authenticity is what really makes Dashing Dish stand out in a sea of recipe sites! Katie’s encouragement and support can be found on her social media sites as well as the blog:
- Dashing Dish
- Dashing Dish on Pinterest
- Dashing Dish on Instagram
- Also check out the Dashing Dish app.
What are you passionate about? Could you make money with a membership site?
If you’re interested in creating a blog, check out my How to Start a Blog. I set up my blog using Bluehost in less than 15 minutes.
The next steps are choosing a name for your blog, joining WordPress, picking a theme, making great content, and using blog SEO to come up with powerful blog post titles that will be found by search engines.
You can also use Pinterest to increase your page views, and sign up for Google AdSense and Amazon Affiliate marketing, which are probably your best bet to quickly monetize a blog. Participate in Facebook Groups to drive blog traffic, and use Google Analytics to see which posts are successful.
For more information about ways to start a successful membership site, see the following.
7 Tips for Creating and Running Your First Membership Site, from Copyblogger. This blog monetization strategy uses a private website with exclusive content that members pay for.
Blogger tips include interacting and engaging with your member audience through live seminars or webinars, and perhaps forums where you post regularly and a text chat room where you hold “office hours.” Other advice includes giving out free places to valuable audience members and running regular group events and challenges.
Membership Site Examples: Inspiration for Your Members Area, from Accessally. Learn three types of membership websites you should consider, why to offer a mix of paid and free content, how to choose a membership site blogging platform, and why a blogger should build in continuous content marketing to attract new members.
Revenue generation posts you might find interesting
Smart Success Stories: Interview with Michelle Schroeder
Michelle, of Making Sense of Cents.com, uses affiliate marketing to make passive income of more than $50,000 per month from her blog. She offers a course on “Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing,” which explains the ins and outs of an affiliate marketing strategy.
The course includes information on how to pick the right affiliate products to promote and the one major tool you need for affiliate marketing.
How to Turn a Coupon Hobby Into Recurring Revenue That Makes Money
Blogger Erin Chase of $5 Dinners has turned her blogging hobby into a five-figure-per-month business.
To monetize her blog, she says, “social media and email marketing is 90% of what drives our business – from Facebook ads to our amazing Facebook groups, to the email campaigns and challenges that we run every month.”
Secret Tips to Boost Your Blog
I made more money blogging when I became active on social media, including Facebook groups that let me share content through Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, etc. This increased my Google AdSense and Amazon affiliates earnings.
In addition to tips for using Facebook and Pinterest more effectively, advice I’ve picked up includes a non-annoying way to remind an email list to open their mail and ways to increase Amazon sales on a blog.
Other tips: Why you should include your blog title in your name when commenting on a post, how to make your Pinterest pins go viral, and why you should spend 30% of your time on your content and 70% on promotion.
