How To Make Money On Tumblr
What is Tumblr?
Tumblr is a social networking site much like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, but one thing that differentiates it from these three social media giants is its lax nature. Tumblr integrates several elements from these three sites, as well as from publishing sites such as WordPress and Blogger, to form a uniquely flexible microblogging site where users can post and engage on just about everything.
Tumblr’s definition of itself is a site “where your interests connect you with your people.”
Almost all types of content are permissible in Tumblr, which is the reason why business owners are attracted to it, especially e-commerce store owners. Tumblr allows these owners to establish their brands in very specific details, with a guarantee that their content will be engaged and will be easily followed by interested Tumblr users.
Tumblr Blogs
Tumblr was initially a microblogging site before it turned into a full-scale social media website. Tumblr allows users to easily create blogs and put whatever they want on it. Tumblr currently hosts approximately 467 million different blogs, filled with literally everything. Tumblr’s blog features can be accessed by users as soon as after registration and logging-in to Tumblr.
What is Tumblr used for?
Tumblr is used for a multitude of purpose including, but not limited to: Blogging, Web Hosting, E-Commerce, and other types of business. You can choose to use Tumblr casually or monetize your account and establish your own business.
When was Tumblr created?
David Karp founded Tumblr in February 2007 and have owned the social media site until May 2013, when Yahoo and Tumblr reached an agreement for Yahoo! Inc. to acquire Tumblr for US$1.1 billion in cash. Yahoo was then bought by Verizon Communications in June 2017, placing it together with Tumblr under its Oath subsidiary.
How many people use Tumblr?
According to reports, there are currently 23 million active Tumblr users in the United States. While there isn’t an accurate figure on worldwide users, Tumblr’s global traffic peaked at 700 million visitors in July 2018.
How to use Tumblr
Using Tumblr is pretty straightforward. First, you need to sign up for an account. Once you’re done signing up, you will need to log-in to your account, after which, you would be prompted to follow some of the countless influences on Tumblr. It takes about 10 to 15 minutes to finish setting up your profile. Once you’re done setting up your profile, you can post content, engage with other people’s content, and connect with other people on Tumblr.
How does Tumblr work?
Tumblr is easy to understand. Much like other social media sites, it allows you to post content, and content posting is subdivided into six categories: Text, Photo, Quote, Link, Chat, Audio, and Video. Tumblr will provide you with a unique template depending on your post’s category, but Tumblr isn’t limited to posting. You can follow other people to broaden your network, and engage with other people that have the same interests as you. Tumblr has thousands of different communities for just about any interests.
How does Tumblr make money?
Like with most social media sites, Tumblr makes money through paid advertisements. It is where the large percentage of Tumblr’s revenue comes from. Tumblr also make money by providing paid templates either made by them, or by paying Tumblr users commissions when they sell their templates on Tumblr.
Going back to the main topic, there are several ways that you can make money on Tumblr. We’re going to tell you how exactly you can profit from Tumblr so make sure to read on.
Select A Niche
Finding your niche in Tumblr only takes a few minutes. This can actually be done after you sign up, and Tumblr will ask you for the things you’re interested in. Based on this interests, Tumblr will narrow down content you can see on your feed.
Here are a few examples of the awesome communities you can be part of on Tumblr:
- Money Tumblr – This is a money-focused community dedicated in money-making activities.
- Books Tumblr – Whether you’re a bibliophile or an e-book lover, this community provides you with the latest information on just about every book.
- Fashion Tumblr – A community where style matters, this is where you can find useful information on latest fashion trends, or anything about fashion.
- Vids Tumblr – Simply put, this is a community that caters to audiences that have a voracious appetite for watching videos.
- Writing Tumblr – Channel your inner Tolkien or Tolstoy on this fantastic community of writers and writing fans.
- Tumblr Models – This community features both professional and amateur models, and if you’re an aspiring one, this is definitely something you shouldn’t miss.
- Pictures Tumblr – Pictures Tumblr is a community where millions of images are shared on a daily basis. (Not to be confused with Photography Tumblr)
Navigate existing content
You can navigate existing content and check for under-represented niches that you can be part of. This way, you’ll only be pitting against fewer competitors compared with niches that already have Unicorns, these are content creators that dominate their particular niches.
Establish a unique niche
If you’re bold enough, you can start your own community featuring an unheard of niche or something that the likes of which no one has ever seen or heard before. Do this, and you’re almost guaranteed to be the ultimate unicorn for that niche. This isn’t a bad idea especially if you’re a very creative person, and pioneers of particular niches make the most money out of Tumblr.
Posting Content
Needless to say, you have to make sure that you post content, and not just any content. You have to provide your followers with engaging content that can potentially go viral and reach even the darkest pits of Tumblr (more into this later).
The beginning’s always the hardest, and this is where you’ll have to exert the most effort, and once you’re past this stage, you’ll most likely be getting a consistent stream of followers and of course, MONEY.
Post regularly
In Tumblr, consistency is key. Make sure you post engaging content regularly. You will have to devise a particular strategy in doing this, but we understand that this can be pretty laborious so we’ll provide you with possible solutions in a short bit. Just remember this and take it as the rule of thumb when it comes to amassing followers making money on Tumblr.
Look for automation
Yes, you can automate content posting not only on Tumblr but for almost all other social media sites. One such good provider of content posting automation tools is Queue+. Content posting automation tools let you manage your social media posts and even cross-post with your other social media accounts. Schedulers are one of the greatest features of content posting automation. They let you schedule content posting and they will automatically post content (with your permission of course) on your behalf, at any given time.
Other good content posting automation tools are:
Each of these content posting automation tools provide you with different useful features. It’s up to you to decide what tool to use.
Create engaging content
In Tumblr, you’re not limited to posting only text, images, and videos. You can take advantage of the other post sub-categories to provide your followers with engaging content. Make sure to create content relevant to your niche, and be strategic about it.
Even the simplest things matter, especially if you want to reach the pinnacle of Tumblr success. If you want to sell something for example, you want to create content that not only promotes your product but urge users to buy it. To do this, you’ll have to utilize actionable language so that your potential customers will want to buy your product.
You can also make infographics, video and audio presentations, and texts. Just make sure you’re one hell of a writer if you want to present only plain text.
Follow internet trends
Sometimes, you can follow general internet trends and post it on your Tumblr even if it’s not relevant to your niche. This way, you’re presenting your followers with something fresh that they might not have been aware of before you posted it, and they might even thank you for it.
This is something that you can only do once in a while. For better engagements, make sure to follow internet trends that are relevant to your niche. Stay up to date, and always be on top of the latest news about your niche.
Growing Your Audience
This is the critical factor that will determine how much you can make out of your Tumblr account. The monetary benefits you can get vary depending on the size of your audience. If you’re a relatively new Tumblr user, you can’t expect to earn money right away. Most advertisers work with Tumblr personalities with a huge follower base.
Growing your audience can be gruesome in the beginning, as for most other things, but once you get past the initial stage, expect advertisers to swarm over your page and offer you advertising deals, or better yet, sponsorships.
How to get popular on Tumblr
There are a myriad of ways on how you can get popular on Tumblr. Just remember to be original. No one wants to follow someone that grabs credit for something that is not his or hers. Start by following the guidelines we’ve listed above, from there, it is totally up to you on how you will attract potential followers to your Tumblr page.
A good thing to remember is that people often engage in content with interesting visuals and narratives. These people follow Tumblr personalities that can turn even the most boring subject into an interesting story. It’s also good to note that there’s a science to persuasion, so make sure to be aware of it.
Get Tumblr followers
You can amass Tumblr followers with the help of third-party providers. One good example of such third-party providers is TumblrJazz. It is a Tumblr bot that has almost similar functions with content posting tools, but with much more features and broader purpose.
TumblrJazz aims to drive traffic to your Tumblr page by automating basic Tumblr interactions such as following, liking, reblogging, and posting. It’s also similar to web crawlers, in the sense that it collects data from all over the internet and see what can potentially be driven into your Tumblr page.
Another way you can get Tumblr followers is to enlist the help of a Virtual Assistant. This is a person who works remotely and manages your Tumblr account on your behalf. This allows you to focus in other aspects of your life while potentially earning money with Tumblr.
Buy Tumblr followers
If you’re serious about making money on Tumblr and are willing to invest for future profits, one thing you can do is to buy Tumblr followers. There are many sites (which we will not be mentioning here so you have to search for yourself) where you can buy Tumblr and other social media followers.
This allows for a fast accumulation of followers to your Tumblr page, and the price greatly varies depending on the volume. The more followers you buy, the lower the price you will pay.
There’s a downside to this though, and you better make yourself aware of it. Most of these purchasable followers are dummy or bot accounts which will not be engaging with your posts. Only a low percentage of these followers may be real, and sometimes, once those people figure out they’ve been part of a scheme that lured them to your page, they’ll most likely to unfollow you, unless they’ve become an avid fan before that happens.
Gain Tumblr likes
This one is pretty self-explanatory, but we care to elaborate. Make sure that you’re consistent when it comes to posting engaging content. Keep in mind that you should take advantage of Tumblr and internet trends. This way, your followers will most like react and like your posts.
Tracking The Performance Of Your Tumblr Account
Tracking the performance of your Tumblr account is a good practice. It gives you insights about how your account is doing when it comes to follower engagements and impressions. This way, you can see what kind of posts your followers engage in the most, and you can increase the posting of such content and lessen the posting of content that doesn’t get that much engagements from your followers.
Google Analytics for Tumblr
Google Analytics is a web analytics service offered by Google that tracks and reports website traffic. It can be integrated to several social media platforms, including Tumblr of course, to track the performance of your social media account or page.
These are the five major features of Google Analytics that you can utilize:
- Traffic Quantification & Analysis – This lets you measure the campaigns that are sending traffic to your Tumblr page, as well as track them by adding parameters to your Tumblr URL.
- Goals Tracking – Google Analytics has a Goals feature that tracks your page’s conversion. For example, if you’re selling a product, this helps you track the number of people that visit your page and how many actually buy your product.
- Audience Reports – This is a useful feature that gives you an idea as to what kind of audience you have, including their interests, which is actually a goldmine for advertisers.
- Flow Visualization – This is a feature that reports every interactions your page visitors made on your Tumblr page.
- Custom Reports – If you have spare budget, you can get custom reports from Google Analytics, and they’ll be happy to provide you data and statistics about things that actually matter to you.
Here’s how you can set up Google Analytics to your Tumblr account
First, go to Google Analytics and sign in with your Google account. If you don’t have one, there’s a link beside the sign-in that will let you create an account.
Once you’re signed-in, you’ll get an account ID and a tracking code. All you have to do is copy this code and paste it in the Appearance section of the Customize menu on your Tumblr page. If your theme doesn’t have such a field, then you can follow these instructions:
- Copy your Google Analytics tracking code to your computer’s clipboard.
- Open your Dashboard in a new window.
- Access the Customize menu for the blog you’d like to track.
- Click “Edit HTML” and paste the code just before </head>.
- Click “Save.”
After this, Google Analytics will be integrated to your Tumblr page, and voila! You’re done!
How To Make Money On Tumblr
As promised, we’re going to show you how you can make money on Tumblr, but first, make sure that you’ve already followed all the things we’ve written above. If you’re done with all of them, read all the following information attentively:
Placing ads
This is one of the most straightforward ways of making money in Tumblr. The larger your follower base, the more advertisers will want to work for you, but if you’re not yet to the point where they approach you to advertise for them, there’s no need to worry since we got you covered.
There are several ad sites that you can utilize to get paid using your Tumblr account. The most popular being Google Adsense.
You simply have to sign-up for an account. Once you’re logged-in, Google Adsense will allow you to copy an HTML code that you can use to post ads on your blog. To do this, highlight the ad code then right-click and copy.
After that, log-in to your Tumblr account and click the name of your blog. Once you’re there, click “Customize Appearance” to open your blog’s template editor. Click “Info” from the top toolbar. A new text box should appear afterwards.
Right-click within the “Description” text and paste the ad code. Make sure to click “Save + Close” to apply the changes, and that’s it! Ads will now be displayed on your Tumblr blog.
Other useful ad sites that you can get paid by are:
Placing Inline text ads
Inline text ads are CPC (Cost Per Link Click, meaning advertisers pay partners when these links are clicked) links that appear in the text of your content. The links utilize targeted keywords in the Ad Networks’ database of advertisers to show relevant ads.
Here are a couple of useful ad sites that pay you using Inline text ads:
Placing Affiliate links
Affiliate links utilizes affiliate marketing to redirect users to e-commerce websites and online stores. It’s a specific URL that contains the affiliate’s ID or username. To get affiliate links, simply register at the provider’s website as a partner (business) and they will provide you with a specific link to their website. When your Tumblr followers visit the provider’s website through the affiliate link you provided, you will be able to get commissions if they purchase something from your provider’s website.
Here are some providers with great affiliate programs:
Getting Sponsorships
If your Tumblr blog already have a large following, chances are you’d be approached by several brands to offer you sponsorships in return for endorsing them and their products. Don’t lose hope if you have small follower base! You can still get sponsorships but you have to work for it.
One thing you can do is to look for brands related to your niche, and send them a proposal letter via email. You’ll most likely get rejected initially but there’s nothing that can’t be achieved with perseverance!
Link to E-Commerce platforms to purchase products
This one’s pretty similar with affiliate programs however, you’ll be working directly with wholesalers and retailers instead of the e-commerce platform providers. Once you’re partnered with certain wholesalers and retailers, they’ll give you a list of products with respective links for you to promote on your Tumblr account.
You will get commissions from sales made through the links provided to you. You can also partner with e-commerce sites themselves but competition is stiff so you’ll really have to work for it.
Here are the best e-commerce sites that you can utilize:
Sell your expertise
Depending on your niche, and of course your expertise, you can turn your Tumblr blog into your own personal website. You can design your Tumblr blog according to your expertise and showcase your portfolio.
This will increase your visibility and will increase your chances of connecting with prospective clients directly from your Tumblr followers or through referrals from them.
Upload files and get paid when downloaded
You can harness the potential of file hosting sites to make money out of your Tumblr account. These websites allow you to upload files on their website and pay you for each download of the file you uploaded.
Make sure you’re uploading original content. We can’t stress this enough, but grabbing credit for something you did not create is a big no-no.
Examples of such file hosting sites are:
Make money posting links
There are ad sites that pay you by using their link shortener softwares. When your Tumblr follower click short links, they’re temporarily redirected to a landing page set by the provider (the landing pages have advertisements in them) before they’re redirected to the target page.
This is a pay-per-visit setup so the amount of money you’ll make depends on how many clicks the shortlink got.
A couple of good shortlink providers are:
All that is left to do is the hardest and most important part of making money on Tumblr…Start.