Over the last few years, social media platforms have emerged as powerful tools for creators to showcase their talents, reach a wide audience, and make money with their content. However, this can come with a steep cost: many platforms exert control over the content, impose substantial fees, and subject creators to the whims of ever-changing algorithms. These constraints not only limit creative freedom but also affect the potential revenue creators can earn.

By exploring alternative monetization methods such as advertising, affiliate marketing, subscriptions, and merchandising, creators can reclaim ownership of their content, reduce losses due to hefty platform fees, and make independent decisions. More importantly, these methods enable creators to build and engage with their audience on their own platforms, free from the restrictive policies and unpredictable nature of traditional social media algorithms.

Ways to Make Money Outside of Social Media

  1. Display Advertising
  2. Affiliate Marketing
  3. Merchandising
  4. Subscriptions

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1. Display Advertising

What It Is: Display advertising involves placing visual ads (like banners, sidebars, and video ads) on a creator's website or blog.

Utilizing Ad Networks

      • Google AdSense: A popular platform where ad buyers bid for slots, offering CPMs (Cost Per Thousand Impressions) typically between $0.25 and $0.50.
      • Basic Revenue: Creators earn based on the number of views per thousand or clicks these ads receive on their site.

Leveraging Programmatic Ad Stacks

      • Functionality: Programmatic ad stacks automate the bidding, sale, and placement of ads, allowing buyers from multiple networks like Google, Amazon, Facebook, and many more to bid for ad space on your site.
      • Enhanced Revenue: This competitive bidding can escalate CPMs to $1 or more, significantly boosting ad revenue.

Boosting with Direct Ad Sales

      • Targeted Strategy: Directly reaching out to highly relevant advertisers, such as instrument manufacturers, record labels, or tour promoters.
      • Superior Revenue: Direct negotiations can secure much higher CPMs, often in the range of $10 to $20.

Page RPM Go Vroom

      • Page Revenue Per Thousand Impressions (Page RPM): This represents the estimated earnings for every thousand page views. This takes the ads viewed on your page, and adds them all up, letting you know how much each page on your site is making.
      • High Earning Potential: A strategic combination of ad networks competing to by programmatic ad slots, and guaranteed direct ad sales on top of that can lead to Page RPMs soaring to $25-$40.

This is the bread and butter of how a company like LG Media makes money. Our online news publications show ads to visitors and in return, advertisers bid for those eyeballs. It's as simple as that.

2. Affiliate Marketing

What It Is: Affiliate marketing involves promoting a product or service and earning a commission for each sale made through your referral. Amazon is one of the most popular sources of affiliate revenue, but many companies you already support may offer affiliate programs with better returns, just ask.

Choosing Products

      • Select products that align with your content and audience interests.
      • Partner with reputable companies to maintain trust with your audience.

Promotion Strategies

      • Use affiliate links in blog posts, videos, or social media.
      • Offer honest reviews or tutorials about the affiliate products.
      • Always disclose affiliate relationships to your audience for transparency.

Benefits

      • Can be a significant source of income if done correctly.
      • Helps build relationships with brands and other creators.

3. Merchandising

What It Is: Merchandising involves creating and selling branded products related to your content. This can range from apparel and accessories to digital products like ebooks or courses.

Creating Your Merchandise

      • Product Selection: Choose products that resonate with your brand and audience. Apparel, mugs, stickers, or digital products like ebooks are popular choices.
      • Quality Control: Ensure the products are of high quality to maintain your reputation and encourage repeat purchases.
      • Branding: Design merchandise that reflects your brand’s aesthetics and values.

Marketing Your Merchandise

      • Integrate into Content: Showcase your merchandise in your content subtly and creatively.
      • Use Social Media: Leverage social media platforms for promotions and announcements.
      • Engage Your Community: Involve your audience in the design process or hold contests and giveaways.

Benefits

      • Direct Revenue: Sales from merchandise provide a direct and often substantial income stream.
      • Brand Expansion: Merchandise extends your brand's presence into the physical world.
      • Audience Connection: Physical products create a deeper connection with your audience.

4. Subscriptions

What It Is: This approach not only ensures a consistent revenue stream but also cultivates a strong sense of community among followers. While platforms like Patreon and YouTube are popular choices for implementing this model, LG Media's The Platform takes it a step further. By integrating a subscription service directly into your personal website, you can offer exclusive, subscriber-only content right where your store and blog live. This unique setup allows for a seamless experience for your fans, combining the benefits of popular subscription services with the autonomy and brand consistency of having it all on your own site.

Content Ideas:

      • Exclusive videos, articles, or podcasts.
      • Early access to content or special events.
      • Members-only forums or chat groups.

Balancing Content

      • Offer a mix of free and premium content to attract a broad audience.
      • Ensure the premium content offers real value to justify the subscription cost.

Advantages

      • Provides predictable, recurring revenue.
      • Strengthens the relationship with your most dedicated audience.

The World Is Your Oyster

Exploring diverse monetization methods, including ads, affiliate marketing, subscriptions, and merchandising, empowers creators to build a robust financial foundation. Each method offers unique advantages and can be tailored to suit different types of content and audiences. By embracing these strategies, creators can not only ensure their financial stability but also enhance their connection with their audience and broaden their brand's reach.

LG Media are expert operators in each of these areas, giving creators turn-key access to powerful, yet underutilized money-making methods like these that most creators simply don't have access to. Partners selected to work with us are given all the tools they need to succeed, including courses, technical support, and access to our vast network of partners and opportunities. Doing something cool? Contact us and let's talk.