Do you want to make money blogging? Are you passionate about writing reviews and sharing your opinions with the world? If so, you need to start a review blog.
It’s a good way to make some extra cash. But how do you get started?
The process can seem difficult, but it doesn’t have to be! In this guide, I’ll show you exactly how to start a review blog in 10 easy steps. I’ll also explain how you can use this blog as a source of income in 2023 and beyond.
So let’s get started!
Step 1. Choose The Focus of Your Review Blog
The first step in starting a review blog is to decide what you are going to focus on, and I’m not talking about your niche.
The focus is on the connection between the products you’ll review. Are they single or comparison products?
A single product review is like writing an entire review blog post on a travel backpack. You are not necessarily comparing it to other backpacks; all you do here is talk about this product. In the end, your review will help someone decide if it’s the best product for them.
You can also focus on comparisons. Instead of a guide on one travel backpack alone, you could compare two products, their features, prices, shops, etc.
This is a popular writing style because the reader can decide to buy any of the products, and you’ll still make money.
But can I write reviews on single products and write comparisons on my blog?
Yes, you can combine both methods. You can write one article where you review a standing desk and another article where you compare two cooking tools.
Step 2. Choose a Niche With Products People Search For and Want to Buy
The next step is to decide on a niche. You want to focus on products that people search for and want to buy.
One mistake you can make with a review blog is to focus only on a niche ‘you like.’ For example, you may want to review products in the project management niche only.
Don’t get me wrong! Focusing on one niche is good, very good. In fact, I’ve always recommended focusing on one niche, not more.
But this advice hardly works with review blogs. The reason is simple: your niche may be too competitive or may not have enough affiliate programs.
Affiliate Marketing: The Primary Way to Monetize a Review Blog
Affiliate marketing is the primary way of making money from a review blog. If your niche doesn’t have enough affiliate programs, you will have a hard time making money. More about this later.
Think about this too. Things will get even more complicated if most of the products in your niche offer a lifetime freemium account. You know, those tools where you can create a free account and upgrade when it’s necessary.
It will be hard to make money if most users who click your affiliate link create free accounts.
Now that you know why selecting multiple niches is crucial, it’s time to find them.
Here are some niche ideas to consider:
- Review products in one niche only (if you still want to stick with one), like Sales and Marketing
- Review software
- Review multiple products in 2 or more niches (select these niches in advance)
- Review products on Amazon, eBay, or ClickBank.
If you want to learn more about how to choose a profitable niche for your review blog, check out my guide on the 5 must-have points your niche must meet to be profitable.
Step 3. Choose Your Blogging Platform
Now that you have your niche and are ready to start, it’s time to choose a blogging platform.
I always recommend WordPress (WordPress.org) because it’s free, easy to use, offers plenty of features, and is secure. It also has thousands of plugins and themes for reviewing products.
For example, WP Review allows you to create review boxes, rating bars, and comparison tables.
Starting a review blog with WordPress is so easy, and this guide will help you set it up. It’s, without a doubt, one of the best blogging platforms.
Step 4. Find a Domain Name and Host Your Blog
The next step is to find a domain name and hosting provider.
A good domain name should be
- short
- descriptive
- and easy to remember.
It’s also important to use the ‘.com’ domain extension. It’s still the best option because it’s popular and has more credibility with customers.
You can use domain name generators like Business Name Generator to find a cool and catchy blog/domain name.
Read more: How to Start a Profitable Blog?
5. Host Your Blog and Install WordPress
Once you have your domain name, it’s time to choose a hosting provider. I recommend using Bluehost because they offer a free domain and SSL certificate along with their hosting plans.
They also provide good customer service and reliable hosting.
- Go to Bluehost and click WordPress Hosting.
- Choose your hosting plan. I recommend the Basic plan for beginners. You can always upgrade if it’s necessary.
- Next, enter your domain name under ‘Create a new domain’ and click Next. Make sure that .com is selected.
- Now, enter your account information.
- Scroll down and enter package information. I recommend selecting Domain Privacy Protection only. But if you want some of those features, you can still go ahead and check them.
- Finally, enter your payment information and press Submit.
And there you go! Bluehost will guide you and set up your account. You can also watch the first 3:40 of the video below for more WordPress installation details.
6. install a WordPress Theme and Create The Necessary Pages
Now that you have your domain name, hosting provider and WordPress installed, it’s time to choose a theme. There are plenty of free themes available on the WordPress Repository.
I can think about themes like Affiliate Review or Atlanta Blog.
But if you want to invest in a premium WordPress theme, consider Revieweb, DizzyMag, or Gauge.
Once you’ve chosen the theme, you can install it and start creating pages. Check out my guide on how to install a free and premium WordPress theme for step-by-step instructions.
So you’ve installed your theme. What’s next? You need to create the necessary pages.
I’ve noticed that many review blogs don’t have pages like Home, About, and Contact Us. These pages are important because they’ll give your blog a professional look. Moreover, it makes it easier for visitors to find the information they are looking for.
The point here is to have pages that create a connection. Readers often want to see how professional a blog is before even reading the review.
They won’t trust you if they don’t like your blog design or notice a lack of information and transparency.
7. Install Necessary WordPress Plugins
Next, you need to install essential WordPress plugins. A WordPress plugin is a tool that adds extra features and functionality to your WordPress site.
Here are at least 10 plugins to have when you start your review blog:
Elementor — a drag-and-drop page builder that allows you to create beautiful pages without any coding experience.
WP Social — a plugin that lets readers share your content with their friends on social media.
Rank Math SEO — This plugin helps you optimize each post for search engines and also provides helpful tips on how to improve it further.
WP Review — This plugin allows you to create review boxes, rating bars, and comparison tables on your blog posts.
Gravity Forms — Gravity Forms is a powerful contact form builder. You can use it to add a contact form to your blog.
Additional Plugins
Here are more plugins to consider:
BackupBuddy — Backup Buddy will back up your entire WordPress site. This is useful in case something goes wrong with your blog and you need to restore it.
WP Rocket — WP Rocket is a caching plugin that helps your blog load faster.
wpDiscuz — This plugin adds a comment system to your blog. It helps build an engaged community around your blog.
Akismet — Akismet is an anti-spam plugin that filters out spam comments before they get published on your blog.
Imagify — Imagify is an image optimization plugin that optimizes your images for faster loading times.
These are the essential plugins to have when you start a review blog. You can always add more plugins as you go along.
By installing these plugins, you can make sure that your blog looks professional and performs well. And this will help you get more traffic and earn more money from affiliate marketing.
I have a full guide on how to install a WordPress plugin. Check it out!
8. Start Writing Quality Reviews
Now it’s time to start writing reviews on your blog. But before you do, let me give you some quick tips:
- Research the topic thoroughly and make sure that your content is unbiased and honest.
- Always include a conclusion, pros, and cons in each review.
- Write in a conversational tone, and make sure it’s easy to read.
- Include product images, videos, and other media that support your review.
- Also, always include affiliate links to your posts. This is how you will monetize your blog.
Finally, make sure to optimize each post for SEO. This will help you rank higher in search engine results and get more organic traffic from Google.
9. Promote Your Review Blog
There are plenty of ways to promote your review, but here are some of the most effective ones:
Social media:
Leverage social media channels like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to share your content with a wider audience.
Guest posting:
Reach out to other blogs in your niche (or not) and offer to write guest posts. You get more exposure and build backlinks to your blog.
Email marketing:
Email is still one of the most effective ways to reach out to potential customers. Try building an email list with a tool like ConvertKit and start sending out newsletters regularly.
Search engine optimization (SEO):
Writing high-quality content and optimizing it for search engines is key if you want to get organic traffic from Google.
By using these traffic strategies, you can quickly grow your blog and start earning money with affiliate marketing.
10. Make Money From Your Review Blog
Now you’re ready to start making money from your review blog.
Affiliate marketing is the easiest and most effective way to monetize your blog.
By the way, Affiliate marketing means promoting the products you review. All you have to do is include an affiliate link in each post and receive a commission when someone buys something through your link.
Where can you find affiliate programs or products?
The easiest way is to join the affiliate program of the product you want to review. Product owners usually mention this program on their website footer.
If they don’t mention it, you can contact them and ask about their affiliate program.
You can also join popular affiliate networks like Amazon Associates, ClickBank, or ShareASale to find products that match your niche.
Aside from affiliate marketing, Google AdSense and Sponsored posts are two more ways to monetize your review blog.
Google AdSense is an advertising program that shows ads on your blog and pays you for every click. With sponsored posts, companies pay you to write a review about their product or service.
Conclusion
In this guide, you learned how to start a review blog. You found out that you need to combine blog niches, pick a blogging platform, find a blog name, host your blog, and more.
You also read how to promote and become profitable.
So, start a review blog today, and you can make money from it. All it takes is hard work and dedication, but you’ll be rewarded with a steady income. So what are you waiting for?
Now is your turn!
What niches did you choose for your review blog? Will you take technology, marketing, or project management? Or are you stuck because you can’t find a blog name?
Let me know your thoughts in the comment section below. I’ll happily chat with you to learn more about your projects.
