WordPress is the world’s most popular site builder and content management system. Designed for publishing but used for sites ranging from small blogs to large corporations, this free and open source software allows anyone to establish an online presence – and make money. Depending on your goals and interests, you can create one, or many, different income streams with a little time and minimal expense with your WordPress skills and the tools of your self-hosted Word Press site.
How Can You Make Money With WordPress?
WordPress was created to help all kinds of users create a basic website, and from that core code it’s possible to design sites for many different purposes with the many theme options, plugins, and extensions that are available from WordPress itself and third-party developers around the world.
WordPress itself is free to download and install with the web hosting provider of your choice, so it’s possible to create a WordPress site or blog that can make money for the price of a domain name and a web hosting package, using only free WordPress themes and plugins. Depending on the nature of your site and your goals, you can also choose from a variety of premium themes and plugins, as well as other tools and services for setting up and monetizing specific kinds of WordPress sites, such as membership or eCommerce websites.
Your self-hosted WordPress site is your “home base” online, and you’re free to use it to develop a number of different avenues for earning money; but just as you would need to investigate local laws and regulations before setting up a physical business or service, it’s important to consider the legalities of online commerce, too.
For example, if you’re planning to sell products or conduct business that involves collecting personal information from users, it’s important to be sure that your site follows national and international regulations regarding collecting and using that information. You might also need to investigate issues like taxes, shipping charges or local laws pertaining to your physical place of business. If you’re freelancing, you might need to look into the legalities of writing contracts and negotiating with clients.
Your WordPress site can be used to earn income from the things you create like from a blog, the services you provide, or the space you offer to others. Your site can become a business in itself, or it can become another tool to support a business you already own. While it may be hard work at first, monetizing your website is a great way to earn an extra income or it can even turn into a full-time job. For example, a local small business might find that a website provides another tool for maintaining an existing customer base.
Whatever your goals might be, your WordPress site can open doors to a global marketplace of possibilities for making money with WordPress with these 7 tips.
1.) Sell Your WordPress Skills
Whether you’re a seasoned WordPress user with development skills or a relative newcomer to the platform, you can leverage your WordPress skills to earn money. Opportunities include:
Building WordPress themes and plugins
Designing WordPress sites
Teaching others how to set up a WordPress site
Setting up blogs or other kinds of sites for new users
Creating tutorials or “how to” articles and videos on WordPress
2.) Sell Products on Your WordPress Site
Your WordPress site can become an online storefront for selling just about any kind of physical or digital goods. Products ranging from e-books and digital images to T-shirts, apparel, and electronics can be marketed from your site using free eCommerce plugins, such as WooCommerce and Easy Digital Downloads. Integrate with third-party print-on-demand and shipping services to fulfill orders for physical products, or connect your site with online marketplaces and shopping sites. Once you’ve built a strong WordPress website, you’ll be able to start selling and earn money in no time at all.
3.) Create a Freelance Business
The Internet is made for freelancing and creative entrepreneurship, and your WordPress site can help. Photographers, designers, freelance writers, and other creatives can set up portfolio sites, build professional profiles and offer a variety of goods and services with the tools of WordPress themes and plugins. Your WordPress site can showcase your services and rates and establish you as an authority in your niche. Free and premium plugins can provide tools for creating landing pages, email and newsletter campaigns, and building forums and social networks on your site.
4.) Become an Affiliate Marketer
You don’t have to offer your own goods and services to make money with WordPress. Affiliate marketing is a way of earning money by promoting other people’s products on your site. Whenever someone clicks on a link you provide in a post or page, or buys a product you recommend, you receive a commission from the sponsoring company. Affiliate networks provide extensive lists of companies with affiliate programs you can join, but to be approved, you’ll most likely have to provide a link to your site. Make sure it’s ready for visitors before you sign up.
5.) Offer Memberships and Subscriptions
Although many sites are accessible to everyone, “members only” sites are growing fast. A membership site makes the content available only to paid members, or through a variety of subscription plans. If you can provide valuable content not found anywhere else, such as exclusive news stories or a niche-specific magazine, putting it behind a paywall or creating a members-only section with a variety of WordPress plugins can be a way to generate income.
6.) Host Content from Others
Another way to make money with WordPress is to make space available for others to post content. Host advertising from affiliate sponsors (or through services like Google AdSense), or create a directory or classified advertising site that charges users to post listings. Create a forum or niche-specific social network using WordPress plugins like BuddyPress, and charge membership fees to join and comment.
7.) Offer Courses
If you have skills to share, consider creating online courses or tutorials and posting them to your WordPress site. Courses can be sold as downloadable products or offered through subscriptions and memberships to your site. Some WordPress themes are designed with e-learning in mind, and premium plugins like LearnDash and WPCourseware have all the tools you need to turn your WordPress site into a classroom.
Whether you make money blogging, offer online courses, or start your own eCommerce website, there are many ways to make a living through WordPress. One reason WordPress is so popular is that it allows users to create virtually any kind of site; and with thousands of themes and plugins to help you get started, you can make money with your WordPress website in just about any way you can imagine.