I started blogging not even realizing that I could earn a bit of extra money. My goal was completely different. I blogged for FREE…..for quite a while. It was only many many months into it, that I realized I could have been paid for some of the things I was already telling my readers about.
Some of you might have started blogging to make money. Some of you might be like me and started blogging for other reasons…..the love of writing, sharing your stories, or to help people save money. Either way, you can earn a bit of extra money while you blog……with affiliate income.
Last week I shared with you one of the affiliate networks I currently use on A Frugal Friend, Escalate Network. This week I want to share with you the very first affiliate networks I signed up with, LOGICAL MEDIA.
They pay you $25 for signing up.
They pay me by check (cash)!
They have many exclusive campaigns (yes, you’ve seen them here)
Signing Up:
It’s a bit intimidating applying the first time. You give them your information. You give them your stats…..if you don’t know how many visits you receive each month from readers, check out sites like sitemeter (which has a basic plan for FREE).
You also must supply them with a number….either a social security number or a tax id number (easy to get one). For this conservative girl, that made me a bit nervous until I understood why. Affiliate networks need this information for tax purposes since they are paying you income. They report your earnings to the Gov’t if you make over a certain amount of money. This is why it’s important to make sure you only work with affiliate programs that are reputable and legitimate. I can personally say that I am routinely paid (cash) when I meet the minimum payment and have had no issues with them for over a year now.
Do I get tax forms from affiliate companies…..yes. Working on organizing all that right now…..that’s why they need your information.
If you have any questions at all, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment or email me at afrugalfriend (at) gmail.com
Enjoy…….and I’ll keep bringing you more on affiliates and making a bit of extra money.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for posting this, I’ve never heard of escalate networks, I might check it out.
how do you get all the stuff you offer for giveaways and how do you promote your site to create traffic
Lori,
Wow…those are two HUGE questions…..and it’s taken me almost 2 years to get where I am now. I should do a big post on both when time allows as there is a ton of information.
Giveaways: There are a number of ways: I contact companies directly, I get contacted by companies, I have relationships with companies that lend itself to promotions like giveaways, and there are also great networks you can join to do reviews/giveaways. Some that I’m involved with are Book Sneeze, My Blog Spark, Team Mom, and Mom Select……links on my sidebar.
As for traffic and promoting my site…..there’s so much information there to leave in a comment. I’ll really consider doing a post, but if you google it you’ll find some helpful articles.
Hope that helps get you started. I can’t get your link to work….I’d love to come check out your site.
Are there any other affiliates that you use? I too am “conservative” and it always freaks me out when companies ask for personal numbers.
Oh, I know…..but since you will be earning money from them (while not an Employee) they need to have some sort of ID number for tax purposes.
A tax id number shouldn’t be that hard to get, but I’ve used SS# with no problems. All the companies I’ve used are quite reputable (thank goodness).
I’m starting to highlight some of the ones I use that are easier to qualify for. Many want a certain amount of traffic first. I know you’ve only been up for a few weeks…..make sure you become an amazon affiliate (and I see you have Google ads). That’s a great place to start. Then you can join some of the others…..I’ve highlighted a couple and you can always find them at the top of my site under “Earning $$).
I am SO glad I found this posting of yours! I had my application all filled out and ready to send in to Logical Media, but was so concerned about the SS#!!! You have eased my fears, and I will go ahead and give it a try. I was like you, and was blogging for FREE, for quite awhile…now I am looking for more and more ways to earn a little extra money to help out my family! Blessings on you!