“Content is king, but distribution is queen and she wears the pants.” Of all the memes out there about blogging (and there are lots) that has to be one of my favourites, because it’s so true.

This month I celebrate my eighth year blogging and when I first hit publish on Confessions of a Crummy Mummy in January 2013 it’s fair to say I had no idea where my blog would take me.

Like many bloggers I’ve managed to turn what started out as a hobby into a job. And it’s a job I love because every post is different and you never know what’s going to happen next.

I’ve also met some amazing people along the way and become part of an online community of like minded mums and dads – and I don’t know about you but I need all the help I can get when it comes to parenting!

If you’re toying with the idea of starting a blog too and want to know how to make money blogging, in this collaborative post here are 5 simple ways I turned my blog into a business.

5 simple ways I turned my blog into a business

1. Be consistent

Whether you plan to post every day, every other day, once a week or once a month, make a plan and stick to it. As you grow your blog readers will expect fresh new content updated on a regular basis, and they’ll soon start clicking away if they’re met with content that clearly hasn’t been updated in a while.

2. Quality not quantity

Or, to put it another way, less is more. There’s absolutely no point posting every single day on your blog unless you’ve got something to say. Not only will people soon see through it, but you’ll soon tire of it too. Focus on quality content with a key purpose or message. Check your spelling, punctuation and grammar, and illustrate your post with lots of lovely images.

3. Create a media kit

If you’re serious about turning your blog into a business and haven’t got a media kit now’s the time to get one. A media kit acts as an at-a-glance one stop shop telling a PR or potential client all about you, your blog and your readers in a nutshell. You can use it when pitching ideas to clients, you can attach it to emails when you receive inquiries and it will save you time bashing out the same information over and over again. Above all it shows you’re professional and serious about your business (here’s mine if you’re interested).

4. Reach out to outreach

Once your blog is up and running and you’re posting content consistently you can reach out to influencer outreach companies like Intellifluence, which is an influencer marketing platform enabling brands and influencers to connect. Once you’re signed up they do all the thinking for you by matching your blog with campaigns. They send you a pitch they think will be a good fit for your blog, you choose whether to accept it or not, you write the content and publish it and then you get paid. Easy peasy!

5. Share & share alike

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: there’s absolutely no point spending hours crafting and editing the perfect blog post if you’re not going to tell anyone it’s there. You need to shout about your content from the rooftops of all your social media platforms – and encourage others to shout about it too. Sharing content you like by bloggers in your niche will also encourage them to do the same, and as we established at the start of this post, distribution is queen and she wears the pants!

Have you turned a blog from a hobby into a business? Do you have any top tips? I’d love to know what they are!

This is a collaborative post.

If you liked this you may also enjoy reading:

5 top tips for managing your accounts as a blogger

7 ways blogging has shaped me as a parent

6 life lessons I’ve learnt in 6 years blogging