Car enthusiasts are avid readers of content about cars, just as they are passionate about driving and learning about them, hence the number of magazines and blogs dedicated to the topic. This means there is money to be made from writing about the industry. Here are a few tips on how to make money as a car blogger.
Choose a Niche
Your best route is to choose a niche and then write extensively about that. It could be Japanese cars, minivans, racing cars, or restoration of old vehicles. The main issue is to find a niche you can write well and in depth about that doesn’t have a lot of competition. An excellent example of this is the blacksmokemedia.com site on diesel trucks. It is big enough of a niche that they can come up with hundreds of unique articles while not being generic.
Offer Solutions
People regularly seek advice about car problems they’re having. An easy type of content to write, if you know what you’re doing, is instructions on how to diagnose and fix various problems. This is a good place to put affiliate links to sites that sell the tools and parts, so you get a commission from any sales. If you sell these items, you can mention that in the blog and earn money from the sales. An excellent opportunity is assembling everything people need in a kit and selling the all-in-one kit. Just be clear about how someone can buy the item from you, ideally via a shopping cart process on your blog.
Write Reviews No One Else Is Writing
We already said to avoid the generic content major magazines do, such as reviews of new cars. What you could write and rank well with is reviews of what others want advice on but don’t find very often.
Who are the best mechanics in your area for Japanese sports cars? Which oils are best (and worst) for the type of car you blog about? Which tools would work best for someone maintaining a vehicle like yours and theirs? Which carburetor cleaners and windshield wipers do the best job? You can put links to the tools and other products you recommend on your website, again using the affiliate model unless you sell them yourself.
You could offer to do reviews for suppliers in exchange for free samples. However, if you do a review for the product or service in exchange for money, you’re legally obligated to tell your readers this.
Create a Paywall
A paywall has several advantages over general blog posts. First, you get money from the paywall as long as people find value from your content. Second, no one can scrape the content and put it on their blog.
You can use the paywall site to protect premium value-added services. You could make yourself available to answer user questions on a forum, providing content they cannot get anywhere else. You could let them have sheltered discussion groups that won’t be subject to generic online ads or trolls.
Conclusion
Making money with an automotive blog is possible if you’re ready to do the legwork. Always make sure that you choose an underserved niche and find a great way to monetize your site.