‘I work just 10 hours a week’

Making Sense began as a hobby, but about six months into writing, my friend connected me with a company that wanted me to write a sponsored post for them. They paid me $100 to reach my 50,000 monthly site visitors.

After that, I started studying other bloggers who made money off their blogs. I posted more frequently and set up display advertisements on my website. I also continued writing sponsored posts by reaching out to brands that I saw other bloggers working with.

In just two years, I was earning around $5,000 to $10,000 per month — more than what I was making at my day job. Once I fully paid off my student loans in 2013, I decided to quit my job and blog full-time.

For the first few years, I focused on the blogging element of my business and published new posts almost every day. I posted guest articles on my friends’ blogs, too.

Making passive income from a blog doesn’t mean that you never have to work. You are always going to have to manage the accounting side of your business, maintain your website, and create fresh content. But you can do a lot of work upfront and earn money for years with little maintenance.

I have three main passive income drivers: affiliate marketing, course sales and display advertising.

Affiliate marketing commissions make up about 50% of my revenue. I’m paid when I direct traffic or sales to partner brands through links on my blog — including on posts that were created months or years ago and are still discoverable via Google, my social media channels, and my blog.

Here are my top tips for creating content that can help you earn passive income:

1. Write like you talk.

On Making Sense, I discuss financial topics using language that’s easy to read and understand. People walk away feeling like they’ve learned something instead of feeling patronized or confused. This makes them more likely to return or to share my blog with their friends.

Make sure your social media language is engaging and personable, too. A good trick is to write as if you’re casually talking to a friend over coffee.

2. Diversify your income streams.

Affiliate marketing, display advertising and digital product sales are some of your best bets for making passive income.

Diversifying your income streams allows you to not be reliant on just one way of making money or just one of your traffic sources. Instead, you will have balanced income streams to mitigate risk.

3. Post consistently.

While your old blogs can earn you income for years down the line, it’s still a good idea to keep generating fresh content. This helps you attract new readers or followers while also maintaining your loyal ones (who don’t want to see the same stuff over and over).

4. Be as helpful as possible.

The goal is to make people want to come back to your blog. You want them to trust you enough to buy a course or affiliated product that you recommended.

Ask readers what they want to read more of or what questions they have. Conduct your own research on what’s trending for fresh ideas. Include actionable tips that they can use right away. And lastly, only promote and sell products that you personally believe in.