How to Build a Niche Website – Your Complete Step-by-Step Guide for 2023

Ever dream of quitting your job, buying a camper, and going wherever you want whenever you want…

…while your bank account automatically fills with money?

Everyone does.

But for many people (like me), this sparkling dream seems like nothing but a flashy advertisement it’s best to ignore.

Unlike many people, however, this dream actually came true for me.

Back in 2011, I built a niche website (my first ever), sincerely wanting to help people like me get into trucking.

In June of that same year (six months after I started), I earned my first $7.

Flashforward to today, I’ve quit my job, bought a camper, and travel across the United States and Canada.

And I’m not a broke backpacker either.

I didn’t have to sell all my stuff and live like a hippie in the woods.

Nope!

Because as I travel and enjoy life, my bank account gets fatter by the month with my affiliate earnings.

Just look at what I’ve made in the past two months …

And that’s from JUST 1 of my 14 affiliate partners.

Now, I’m not telling you all this to brag.

That’s really not something I do.

I’m telling you all this to inspire you.

If an average guy like me, who repeated the first grade and got a mediocre 2.2 GPA in college, can achieve something like this. So can you.

In this blog, I’ll show you my method.

I’ll show you what I did in the start that really got the ball rolling for me: starting a niche website.

I’ll teach you:

• What a niche website is (and why it has the potential to make you rich)

• How to build a niche website from scratch

• My tips and tricks for writing content, monetizing your site, and more

• The tools and resources I use and love

• And much more

Ready?

Let’s dive right in.

What Is a Niche Website?

Ok, first things first.

You’re probably wondering what a niche website is.

Glad you asked.

Put simply, a niche website is a website that focuses on a small segment within a large market.

It caters to people with more common, specific interests.

Clear as mud?

Let’s look at an example.

Here’s Dog Food Advisor.

Source: dogfoodadvisor.com

As you can tell, Dog Food Advisor is a niche website all about helping people pick the right type of nutrition for their furry friends.

Sure, this site can be classified as a site on pets.

But it’s niched down to dogs…and further niched down to dog food.

So yes, it’s an excellent example of a niche site.

Let’s look at how others define the term “niche site.”

Here’s Adam Enfroy’s take on it.

Source: google.com

And here’s what Income Prodigy says about it.

Source: incomprodigy.com

In short, a niche website is any website that focuses on a smaller, more specific part of a larger market.

Why Should You Build a Niche Website?

“So if niche websites only target a small portion of a larger market,” you may be thinking, “then why build one for myself? Why not target the larger market, which has a bigger audience and more potential to make money?”

Great questions.

Here are two reasons to build a niche website.

1. You Won’t Be Going Head-On with Huge Sites

Let’s face it.

It’s no longer 2011.

Which means, you can no longer choose any topic you want, build a blog around it, and expect to earn a ton of money through ads and affiliate partners.

For instance, let’s say you’re a pet expert.

Do you go ahead and build a site targeting all types of pet owners?

Well, you can.

But trust me, you’ll have tough competitors slashing at your throat with their knives.

Like The Spruce Pets…

Source: thesprucepets.com

 …which has a domain rating of 80 and 8.3 million site visitors per month.

Source: ahrefs.com

So instead of going head-on with huge brands like this, you can go for smaller niches like Fish Laboratory.

Source: fishlaboratory.com

2. You Can Be Unique

Sure, almost anyone can write about travel and the best places to stay when abroad.

All you need to do is research, make a list, and publish your finds.

But writing about being a female solo traveller, based on experience?

That’s unique.

And it works.

Just check out Be My Travel Muse, where Kristin shares her tips, tricks, and secrets on how to travel the world as a sole female backpacker.

Source: bemytravelmuse.com

Interesting, huh?

It’s a unique, personal, intriguing spin on the regular travel stuff that honestly gets exhausting after a while.

That’s the magic of a niche website.

Question: If niche websites are the new best thing in making money online, should we never go for broader, authority websites?

Glad you asked.

The truth is, it depends on you.

You can stay small and continue running your niche website forever.

And that’s cool.

But once you start getting a ton of traffic and adding legions of people to your fan base, you can think about broadening your scope and becoming an authority site.

All I’m saying is that if you’re just starting out, building a niche website is the best way to go.

It helps you stand out in a digital world that’s simply packed with too many successful sites.

But from there, your journey depends on you.

How to Build a Niche Website: 4 Steps to Success

Now that you know what a niche website is and why starting one is a great idea, let’s get into the actual step-by-step process of building one from scratch.

You’re excited, I know!

And you should be.

This is going to be fun.

How to Build a Niche Website Step #1: Select Your Niche

I know, it sounds simplistic.

Also, it sounds easy.

You sit down for 10 minutes, ask yourself what you’d like to blog about, and voila!

You have your niche.

Sadly, it doesn’t work that way.

Because although you may be passionate about building a colony of ants in your home, you probably won’t find a ton of people who’d be interested in that.

Or you may love raising chickens in your backyard, but find that there aren’t many ways to monetize a blog built around your favorite bird.

In the end, picking your niche means striking a balance between your passion and what’s profitable.

Let’s start with your passion.

1. Avoid Starting a Blog on a Topic You Hate

Despise finances?

Have trouble with marketing?

Feel like you’re falling asleep when talking about business?

It’s a no-brainer.

Don’t start a blog on those topics.

Because the truth is, building a niche website isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme.

You’ll have to put in days, weeks, months, or even years of grueling work. (I often wrote my trucking blogs after an 11-hour workshift.)

You’ll have more than a few sleepless nights.

You’ll reach a point where you’re tired and want to give up.

And if you hate what you’re writing about?

That’s right.

Chances are, you won’t even make it to month #2.

This is why if you want the stamina to continue over a longer period of time (and have any hope at all of success), I suggest NOT going for a topic you hate, no matter how much money there is in that niche.

2. Make Sure There’s Money in the Niche

This is essential, as you don’t want to spend months or even years growing your site, only to realize one day that there aren’t a lot of ways to monetize it.

So before you pick your niche, spend time doing some research first.

Spy on the market and see if you have any competitors.

If you do, how are they faring?

Do they look successful, or just about to drop down dead?

How are they monetizing their websites?

I know, this can get a tad confusing.

So let’s break the niche research phase down into a couple of easy steps.

Step #1: Spy on your competitors.

The truth is, affiliate marketing is all about being a copycat.

I don’t mean plagiarizing other people’s work or any kind of criminal activity.

What I do mean is that it’s not a great idea to be a pioneer or explorer. (Nope, you’re not Christopher Columbos or Ferdinand Magellan.)

So instead of making headway and exploring a niche that’s never been tested before, you should follow in other bloggers’ footsteps.

This means spending an evening or two spying on your competitors.

Or more accurately, finding out if you have competitors at all.

One way you can do this is through using an SEO tool like Ahrefs.

Let’s imagine that you’re planning to start a website on turtles.

First, think of a keyword you’d like your site to rank for.

Let’s say that’s “turtle food.”

Type this keyword into Ahref’s Keyword Explorer.

Source: ahrefs.com

Then, scroll below to see which sites are ranking for this keyword.

Source: ahrefs.com

Ignore big sites like Petco and Amazon, and look for a site that’s similar to the one you’re thinking of starting.

To do this, you’ll need to click on each of the links and do some serious snooping.

All right!

Looks like you’ve got one.

Source: ahrefs.com

As you can see, this site is exactly like the one you’re thinking of building.

Source: turtleholic.com

It’s not an ecommerce store, nor is it a large site on pets in general.

Go through it, and you’ll see that it’s got articles on caring for turtles, where to buy turtle food, types of turtles, and so on.

Perfect!

You’re not alone in this niche.

Step #2: Find out if your site has a fighting chance against your competitors.

There’s not much point in starting a niche site if you have to go up against huge, authoritative sites.

So before you start, first check if there are any smaller sites ranking on page #1 of Google for your dream keywords.

As a good rule of thumb, a small site should be a site with a DR (domain rating) of less than 30.

So, do we have one for turtle food?

Sure we do.

TurtleHolics ranks on page #1 of Google for the term “turtle food,” and its DR is only 17.

Source: ahrefs.com

Step #3: Check if there are a lot of keywords you can write around and rank for.

Imagine this.

Your chosen niche is “dog hammock.”

(Yeah, that’s a real thing.)

Source: amazon.com

You search your competition, and things look pretty good.

So you build your site and start writing about dog hammocks.

But a few weeks later, you’ve run out of topics.

I mean, seriously.

How many articles can you write on dog hammocks?

If this is happening, you’ve probably niched down too far…

…or you’re simply in a bad niche.

So before you actually build your site, it’s important to know that you can write at least 100 articles on your topic.

Now, let’s go back to turtles.

Jump on Ahrefs’ Site Explorer and type in your competitor’s site.

In this case, it’s TurtleHolic.

Then, click “Organic Keywords” on the right side of your dashboard.

Source: ahrefs.com

Here’s what you’ll get.

Source: ahrefs.com

As you can see, TurtleHolic ranks for 21,479 keywords.

And if you ask me, these keywords look super attractive.

For example, “why are turtles slow” has a search volume of 1,200 and a keyword difficulty score of 0.

All this data tells you that building a turtle site is an excellent idea because:

• You’ll have a ton of topics to write about.

• The keywords your competitor is ranking for are high search volume, low difficulty, making it easy for you to get in there and start ranking yourself.

So, you can stop right here and go build your turtle site.

Right?

Not so fast.

Because there’s one more thing to look at.

Step #4: Research if there are any products you can recommend on your site.

The truth is, having a successful, high-traffic site isn’t the same as earning a cartload of money.

And if your goal is simply to inspire people with excellent turtle advice that’ll change their lives, even if you don’t earn a cent in the process…

…then you can jump off this blog and start building your turtle site.

But if I’m guessing correctly, you’re not starting your site just for kicks.

You want a decent side income (or maybe even a full-time income) from it as well.

Which is why you need to do research and find out if there are any products you can recommend on your site.

To start, check on your competitors and see how they’re monetizing their site.

Let’s look at TurtleHolic…

Source: turtleholic.com

Yup!

TurtleHolic recommends a ton of products from Amazon, meaning you can too.

Another thing you can do is hop on Amazon itself and search for products you can recommend.

Start with “turtle food.”

Source: amazon.com

As you can see, there are 475 results for turtle food.

To get more ideas, scroll below to the “related searches” section, and click one of the options there.

Source: amazon.com

Here are the results for “turtle tank accessories.”

Source: amazon.com

Yes, you saw that right.

4,000 results!

Lastly, you can sign up for affiliate networks like CJ Affiliate or Clickbank.

Once inside, check if there are any affiliate programs you could join that would fit your niche.

Bonus – Step #5: Ask yourself: do I see myself doing this for at least six months?

Ok, so far we’ve found out that getting into the pet turtle niche is like falling into a mine packed with gold coins.

It’s perfect.

Your competitors aren’t that mighty.

There are a ton of keywords you can easily rank for.

There are thousands of products you can recommend.

But…what if you detest turtles?

You can’t even think of a turtle without shrieking.

Your worst nightmares consist of turtles taking over the planet.

Ok, that’s too much.

But the point is, what if you don’t care much for turtles?

Do you still go ahead and pursue this niche?

My answer: it depends on you.

If you’re the type of person with an iron will, who can stick with something you don’t love (or even hate) for six months or more, then the answer is YES.

I mean, anything is better than your detestable nine to five, right? (If you’ve stuck with that for years, you can stick with this too.)

But if you feel that the whole blogging thing won’t work for you unless you’re super passionate about what you’re writing about, then the answer is NO.

To be honest, building and growing a site is hard work.

And life won’t pause to let you do it.

You’ll still show up at your day job, take care of your family, do the dishes, wash your car, and so on.

The question is, can you love your site enough to stick with it through the ups and downs of life?

Really, I can’t answer this for you.

It’s up to you to assess yourself and your life, and see where you can go from there.

Question: What if I can’t afford an SEO tool like Ahrefs?

Great question.

I mean, you’re just starting out, right?

Maybe $99/month doesn’t fit in your budget.

Don’t worry.

There are alternatives.

For example, there’s KWFinder.

Source: kwfinder.com

This awesome tool gives you all the data you need on keyword difficulty score, search volume, domain rating, and more.

Plus, it won’t cost you an arm and a leg to subscribe.

Check out its affordable pricing plans.

Source:Source: kwfinder.com

KWFinder also has a 10-day FREE trial, which you can use to do basic research on the niche you’re considering. (Go here to start your FREE trial.)

The catch?

Well, KWFinder is basically a keyword research tool.

It’s not a comprehensive SEO suite.

Which means, you can’t do complex site audits, content analysis, and all that techy stuff.

Still, if you’re just starting out, you don’t really need all that.

There are successful bloggers and affiliate marketers out there who use nothing but KWFinder, and it suits them just fine!

You can check out our video on Ahrefs vs KWFinder to help you decide which one is better for you!

Don’t have even $29.90 a month?

You can use the free method.

How to do it:

• Jump on Google.

• Type in your “dream keyword.”

• Check if you have competitors on the top 10 spots of Google’s SERPs. (A competitor would be a site that’s similar to the one you’re thinking of starting. For example, a turtle site instead of a pet ecommerce site.)

• Visit your competitors’ sites and snoop around a little to find out how they’re monetizing.

• If your competitors seem to be doing well, go ahead and start your own (better) site.

Warning: this method isn’t based on data, which means it involves guesswork. BUT, it’s better than nothing.

How to Build a Niche Website Step #2: Set Your Site Up in 4 Steps

Congratulations!

You’ve passed the hardest part of building a niche website, which is choosing your niche.

Now it’ll all be unicorns and rainbows ahead.

Just kidding.

But this next part is way easier than researching and selecting your niche.

It consists of four steps:

• Choosing your domain name

• Getting a hosting plan

• Selecting your CMS (content management system)

• Picking your plugins and themes

Let’s look at them one by one.

1. Choose and Buy Your Domain Name

Choosing your domain name is like naming a new business.

Yeah, it’s that big a deal.

So spend time on it.

Also, pay attention to these general rules for choosing a domain name:

• Keep it short and simple.

• Include your niche in it.

• Make it memorable.

• Make sure it’s easy to read and spell.

Let’s check out some examples.

Here’s our domain name:

Source: affiliatemarketertraining.com

Short and simple? ✔

Niche included? ✔

Memorable? ✔

Easy to read and spell? ✔

Here’s SmartBlogger’s domain name:

Source: https://smartblogger.com/

Short and simple? ✔

Niche included? ✔

Memorable? ✔

Easy to read and spell? ✔

Now, how about this one?

Source: tarheelblog.com

Short and simple?  ✔

Niche included? ✖

Memorable? ✖

Easy to read and spell?

Once you’ve come up with a domain name, head over to Namecheap to see if it’s available.

Simply type your idea into the search bar and click “search.”

When you do, you’ll see whether or not the name is available, and how much it costs.

Like this:

Source: namecheap.com

Note: always pick .com over .net, .ai, or other options.

Add the domain name to your cart and purchase it.

2. Get a Hosting Plan

A hosting provider is what makes your website accessible on the internet.

So you’ll need one (obviously).

Which web hosting provider should you choose?

It depends.

For us, BlueHost works perfectly fine.

Plus, it’s much cheaper than other options like WPEngine.

Check out BlueHost’s affordable pricing and plans:

Source: bluehost.com

Yup, you saw that right!

You can get a hosting plan for as little as $2.95 a month.

This plan offers a free domain, so you can skip the Namecheap part if you want to.

Remember, though, that experts don’t recommend you getting a domain name and hosting plan from the same provider.

If you’re just starting out and you’re on a tight budget, though, you can totally go ahead with that.

3. Get a Content Management System

A content management system makes posting content online easy.

I mean, you don’t want to go through all the trouble of coding, right?

(Didn’t think so.)

So, here’s the most popular content management system (CMS) around:

Source: wordpress.com

You guessed it!

It’s WordPress.

Of course, it’s not the only CMS out there.

There are other options like Wix and Drupal.

But if you ask me, WordPress is the best option because:

• It’s SEO-friendly.

• It’s reliable, with great support.

• It’s used by 43% of the web (which is saying something about how great it is)

Plus, it has great themes and plugins, which brings us to…

4. Select Your Themes and Plugins

This is the fun part!

Themes and plugins help you create a site that’s 100% your own.

Think of a theme like a template that you can use to decide what your site looks like.

With WordPress, there are tons of themes to choose from, giving you the freedom to be as creative as you like.

Then, there are plugins.

You can think of a plugin as something that gives your site special function.

For instance, there’s Yoast SEO.

Source: yoast.com

Yoast is a plugin that makes SEO easy.

It helps you optimize your content so it’s more attractive to both Google and humans.

Of course, Yoast SEO is only one of the whopping 50,000 plugins on WordPress.

As you can see, creating a site that looks and functions exactly as you want doesn’t have to be hard.

For a step-by-step guide on how to build your own website (including all the tiny details like which extras to choose, how to create pages and categories, and more) visit our tutorial here.

Or watch our video guide!

How to Build a Niche Website Step #3: Research Your Topics

Ok, now you have a brand-new website.

Congratulations!

So, now what?

How do you get people to visit your site, trust you, and ultimately buy your recommendations?

The first step: start writing content.

But what do you write about, exactly?

Obviously, it has to be something your audience cares about.

It has to be something that tells them, “Hey, this guy knows what he’s talking about. Maybe he’s the one who can help me solve my problems or achieve my dreams.”

Honestly, though, reading your audience’s brain is tough.

Even if you’re an expert in your niche, mind-reading is hard because you can’t know exactly what your audience is searching on Google.

Except you can.

Yup!

With a keyword research tool like Ahrefs or KWFinder, you can get the data on exactly which keywords your audience is using to search on Google.

Let’s look at an example.

Imagine that you want to know if your audience is interested in finding the best turtle food around.

All you have to do is type “best turtle food” into the search field of your chosen keyword research tool.

Here’s what that looks like on KWFinder.

Source: kwfinder.com

What you’re looking for here is the search volume.

If more than 300 people search for this term per month, that’s a sign it’s a profitable enough topic to write on.

Let’s see how it is for “best turtle food.”

Source: kwfinder.com

Not bad!

But remember, search volume isn’t the only metric that’ll help you determine if a topic is good to go for.

There’s also keyword difficulty.

Keyword difficulty shows you how hard it will be to rank well on Google for a certain keyword.

Let’s look at “best turtle food.”

Source: kwfinder.com

Looks good!

Determining whether to go for a certain keyword based on its keyword difficulty score can be tricky, but as a general rule (as a beginner blogger), try not to go for keywords with a KD score over 40.

Now, repeat this step for topics you’re thinking of writing about, so you can determine whether or not you’ll get an audience for your content.

Remember, it’s a good idea to plan ahead.

So if you can find topics to write about for the next six months, you’re playing the game the right way!

How to Build a Niche Website Step #6: Plan Your Content

I know, I know.

The last sentence in the previous section must have felt like a falling bomb to you.

“Six months?” you might be shouting, frantically scratching your head. “How the heck can I plan content for the next six months?”

Calm down.

You don’t have to be a genius to come up with hundreds of content ideas.

In fact, there’s a simple, systematic, no-guesswork way to do it.

The easiest way is to invest in a keyword research tool like Ahrefs.

Once inside Ahrefs, type your “dream keyword” into the Keywords Explorer tool.

Your dream keyword is the keyword that defines what you’re doing. (For example, if you’re a turtle expert, your dream keyword might be “pet turtle” or “turtle food.”)

Let’s say your dream keyword is “freediving.”

Type it into Ahrefs’ Keyword Explorer tool and see what you get.

Source: ahrefs.com

From there, all you have to do is scroll down and look at the keyword ideas below.

Like this:

Source: ahrefs.com

As you can see, there are thousands of keyword ideas for you to choose from.

You can then sort through them, choosing the keywords that are high search volume/low keyword difficulty score.

Another way you can use Ahrefs to find great keyword ideas is to spy on what your competitors are ranking for.

To do this, scroll further below to check which sites are ranking for your dream keyword.

Like this:

Source: ahrefs.com

Pick a site that’s similar to the one you’re thinking of building, then copy its URL into the Site Explorer tool on Ahrefs.

Source: ahrefs.com

Next, click “Organic keywords” to find out which keywords this site is ranking for.

Here’s what that’ll look like.

Source: ahrefs.com

You can then sort through your options, deciding which ones you’d like to write around.

Now, what if you can’t afford an SEO tool?

What if you want to wing it for now, keeping expenses to a bare minimum?

Is it impossible to fill your 6-month calendar with keyword ideas?

Of course not.

There is a free way to do it, and although it’s less systematic and more based on guesswork, it’s still a viable way to get awesome ideas for your content topics.

How to do it:

Hope on Google and type in your “dream keyword.”

Source: google.com

Pick a site that’s similar to the one you’re thinking of creating, then browse through their blogs.

Make sure to have a pen and paper (or your favorite note-taking app) beside you.

As you read, jot down ideas for your own content topics.

Here are some example blogs from The Deeper Blue.

Source: deeperblue.com

And these:

Source: deeperblue.com

Remember, don’t copy exactly what they’re doing.

Use their articles for inspiration, putting your own unique spin on their blogs.

Also, don’t stop with reading your competitors’ blog titles.

Go through each article and find holes and questions you can tackle and turn into separate blogs.

For instance, check out this list of pointers in one of Deep Blue’s blogs.

Source: deeperblue.com

What you could do is write three separate blogs on each of these pointers, with tips on how to do each one.

The more you spend time practicing this, the more your mind will open up creatively.

In no time, you’ll be spotting blog topic ideas from simply glancing at a competitor’s article.

Of course, like I said, this method is less systematic than using a premium SEO tool.

There is guesswork involved, and you may need bouts of trial and error before you start to see success.

However, if you really don’t have the cash to spare, do it.

It’s better to begin this way than to wait around forever, hoping money for an SEO tool will drop into your lap (it won’t).

Don’t have $99 to burn, but don’t want to go free either? Here’s a video on how you can find keyword ideas on KWFinder:

https://youtu.be/MBNxs5DMIk4

How to Build a Niche Website Step #7: Create Your Content

Now, for the fun part.

It’s time to actually start crafting content for your niche website.

Hold on a second, though.

Before you write a single word on your Google or Word doc, you need to define how you’ll stand out from other blogs.

I mean, you can’t just spew out content that’s identical with other sites out there, right?

Here are three steps to help guide you as you craft your content.

Step #1: Find Your Content Differentiation Factor

Find out what makes you unique.

For instance, let’s say you decide to start a site for turtle owners.

What makes you stand out is that you believe turtles should only eat food from their natural habitat.

With this belief, your blogs will take a whole new, unexpected turn.

Your blogs will stand out from the rest of the turtle blogs out there.

Of course, this is only an example.

Make sure to do extensive keyword and topic research first, to find out if people care about organic turtle food in the first place.

Let’s look at an example.

Take Ramit Sethi of I Will Teach You to Be Rich.

Source: iwillteachyoutoberich.com

Ramit believes that getting rich shouldn’t involve all the painful sacrifices most financial blogs suggest.

He believes you should go ahead and buy that $3 latte without guilt.

And naturally, his blog posts are angled differently.

Check this out, for instance.

Source: iwillteachyoutoberich.com

Of course, as an affiliate marketer, you’ll be writing reviews, comparisons, and list posts.

Still, coming up with a content differentiation factor will help you build trust with your readers.

It’ll give them a reason to pick you over other blogs out there.

(And trust me, considering the sheer number of blogs out there, you need this.)

Step #2: Define Your Voice

Your writing voice is the unique way you “speak” with the written word.

It includes your tone, your choice of words, and your style.

To give you an example, compare these two blogs and note the difference between their voices.

Source: contentmarketinginstitute.com

Source: brittanyberger.com

As you’ll notice, both blogs are about content marketing.

But while Content Marketing Institute’s voice is professional and serious…

…Brittany Berger’s is upbeat, fun, and casual.

So, how do you define your voice?

Here are three tips to help you:

• Make it similar to the way you speak in real life.

• Get to know your audience and find out how they like being spoken to.

• Spy on your competitors to gauge which type of voice is most successful in your industry.

Remember, nailing the right voice and using it for every single thing you write will take practice and patience.

But, you got this!

Step 3: Decide How Long Your Blogs Will Be

Or rather, find out how long they should be.

To do this, check out your competition.

• How long are their blogs?

• How are their blogs divided?

A good rule of thumb is to write blogs that are the average length of other blogs ranking for your keyword.

For example, let’s say your keyword is “best turtle food.”

Go on Google and look at the top 10 results for this keyword.

Then, count how many words each article has.

Don’t worry!

You don’t have to count the words manually.

You can get an extension like Word Counter Plus to help you.

Next, get the average word count of the top 10 articles ranking on Google for your keyword.

That average is the word count you’ll try to stick to when crafting your content.

In our example, the average word count of the top 10 articles ranking for “best turtle food” is 2,321.

That means 2,000-2,500 words is a good length to stick to when writing on this topic.

How to Build a Niche Website Step #8: Pick Your Monetization Strategy

Congratulations!

You now have a niche website, and you’re ready to start making a nice side income.

But how do you actually monetize your site?

Here are three ways you can do it.

1. Use Your Blog to Promote Your Affiliate Links

If you ask me, this is the most effective way to make money with your website.

So, how do you do it?

First, you’ll need to sign up with affiliate programs.

For example, if you’ve built a freediving site, you can target programs like ProShop Affiliate Program or Molchanovs Affiliate Program.

Once you’re accepted, you’ll receive special links that you can use to promote the companies’ products.

Plant these links within your blog, so your readers can click and buy the products you recommend.

When they buy using your links, you’ll get a share of the profits.

Remember, some affiliate programs require you to have a certain amount of traffic on your site before they’ll accept you as an affiliate.

Don’t worry, though.

If you build a trustworthy site and consistently post valuable content, it won’t be long until you have a decent flow of traffic to show off.

2. Use Email to Promote Your Affiliate Links

Another way to earn using your affiliate links is to promote them through email.

Yup!

Email isn’t dead.

In fact, 87% of marketers use email today.

Collecting email addresses isn’t as hard (or spammy) as you think, either.

All you have to do is to create a mouthwatering lead magnet.

This lead magnet can be a short course, a book, a PDF, a series of tips, or anything your audience is interested in.

Give away this freebie in exchange of your readers’ email addresses.

Check out this example from Optin Monster.

Source: optinmonster.com

Once you have a nice, fat email list, sign up for email marketing software like MailChimp.

Doing so will make it easy for you to segregate and send emails to your list.

Remember, don’t spam your email list!

Don’t stick to promoting your affiliate links.

Give your readers value with each email you send, so their mouths water each time they see a new one from you.

3. Use Social Media to Promote Your Affiliate Links

This one is a little tricky, as social sites can ban you if you become too promotional.

Also, some affiliate programs don’t allow you to promote on social media.

However, monetizing on social could be a nice side strategy to help you maximize your income.

Here are four tips to help you monetize through social media.

• Provide valuable content your audience will love.

• Use social media to drive traffic to your blog.

• Promote in niche-specific groups (but make sure to read the group’s guidelines first).

• Publish clear, attractive images to go with your content.

Remember, you don’t need to stick to one method of monetizing your niche website.

Create a strategy that includes using all three together, and you’ll go far with your goals of making a nice side income.

How to Build a Niche Website: The Basics

So, here you are.

Wondering how to build a niche website.

I mean, that’s what many affiliate marketers are talking about.

They go on and on about how they made millions through their niche websites.

And maybe you’re imagining something super complex.

Something you’ll never be able to do.

Not anymore, though.

Because after reading this blog, you’ve realized that you only need to follow eight basic steps to get your site up and running.

Yup!

It’s not rocket science.

It’s not a feat only accomplished by tech wizards or people born with a pen in their hands.

Take me, for instance.

I was once a truck driver, now earning $40,000 from my niche websites.

So go ahead.

Take that first step.

Then the next.

Then the next.

In no time, you’ll find yourself passing that resignation letter to your boss, ready to enjoy the freedom and joy of passive residual income that’s enough to cover your dream life.