WordPress is an expansive platform that offers plentiful tools for users to build, manage, and monetize their website.
Due to a constant growth in popularity, more and more users have been trying to turn their own WordPress website into a source of profit (and since you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you are too).
The good news is, WordPress is an excellent content management system (CMS) to make money by building a lucrative Ecommerce website. However, since WordPress is a blogging platform by default, you’ll need to find plugins that enable methods for monetization first.
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What are WordPress Monetizing Plugins?
Simply put, plugins are the bread and butter of WordPress website management. They provide countless features to customize and improve the operations of your website, and largely contribute to WordPress’ celebrated reputation.
From improving your website’s performance speed, to bolstering its security measures, there’s a plugin for nearly everything. Better yet, since WordPress is an open-source software that’s accessible by third-party developers, more plugins are being created all the time.
It’s these plugins that allow WordPress users to turn their websites into profitable Ecommerce businesses. The wide range of plugin choices on the WordPress marketplace means there are many profitable methods out there.
Check out the list below to help you decide which monetization method is best to make your own WordPress website into a profitable enterprise.
4 Effective Plugins to Monetize WordPress Websites
1. Sell Physical and Digital Products
Out of the ways to monetize WordPress websites, creating and selling products is certainly one of the most common methods.
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Whether you want to trade in physical goods that you ship to customers, or sell digital software like premium plugins, WordPress plugins can readily transform your website into a fully functional Webstore.
Product Directory Plugin for WordPress
This plugin from CreativeMinds allows you to evolve your website into a viable Ecommerce operation.
Essentially, the product directory plugin enables you to build a listing through a series of product pages that can be readily updated as needed. Product descriptions, screenshots, and video explanations are all supported as well to allow you to further market your product listings.
2. Integrate a Membership Service or Website Subscription
Another fantastic way to monetize WordPress websites is to include a subscription or membership service to access your content.
Of course, your website will need to offer valuable content to entice visiting customers. Anything from educational materials, to high-quality articles in a niche subject, will do so long as there’s an audience interested enough to pay.
Pay per Post Plugin for WordPress
This handy plugin allows you to setup and define a subscription service that’s fine-tuned to your website.
It restricts your webpages and posts from general view and allows you to charge access per post, or per a set duration of time. Multiple pricing plans can also be created to offer your visitors a range of payment options modified to their needs.
3. Host Advertising on your Website
This is usually one of the first methods that come to mind when people imagine how to monetize WordPress websites. The strategy has great potential, but also its assortment of challenges.
Supporting external advertisements from ad networks such as Google, Facebook, and the like, works best for webmasters that have heavy traffic across multiple websites. That’s the true hurdle, though: managing and tracking these campaigns.
Ad Changer is a plugin designed to simplify the use and management of advertising campaigns on multiple WordPress websites. It’s especially useful for companies that have several advertisement platforms on WordPress and therefore require a banner server that manages and rotates banners from numerous advertising campaigns.
It supports rotating and responsive banners, advanced statistics, content restriction, campaign grouping, Adsense ads, and more.
Such features allow the admin to have a live view of the results and extensive control over the campaigns. That’s a great first step towards increasing revenue.
4. Create Educational Video Courses
Educational materials are widely shared on the internet, and they’re a great way to make some money from your website.
If you have knowledge that’s of value to others, spin that information into a comprehensive series of videos to educate and profit as you do. Video courses of this kind are becoming more and more common on the internet, and with the right plugin, WordPress can be great CMS to support your own.
Video Lessons Manager Plugin for WordPress
This plugin allows you to import Vimeo and Wistia videos directly into your WordPress site. Once uploaded, you can freely manage your video courses and tutorials from your website’s dashboard, along with their accessibility.
Use the plugin to host free lessons that draw users into your website’s subscription service, or set up a purchase-per-video system that allows students to select and pay for the specific lessons they desire.
Video Lessons Manager also lets you monitor the performance of your videos so you can see which are performing well, and which need to be adjusted. On top of that, it also supports the option for commenting so you can receive useful feedback and create a dialogue with your learning audience.
Choosing a Customer Payment Method (Direct vs Micropayment)
One last, and very important, thing to consider when getting ready to monetize WordPress websites is how customers will make their purchases.
Direct Payments
Most Ecommerce plugins that enable users to monetize WordPress websites are made to support direct payments by default.
Direct Payments mean customer purchases are completed directly through payment gateways, such as credit cards, PayPal accounts, and so on.
These payment gateways must be set up before customers can make purchases, but as mentioned, many plugins that monetize WordPress are conveniently built to accept these kinds of payment methods alongside the Ecommerce features they offer.
Micropayments
Unlike direct payments, micropayments involve a virtual currency for in-site transactions that differ from website to website. These digital wallets can be filled through purchases with real currency, allowing users to uniquely monetize WordPress websites by matching payment methods to their specific services.
For example, micropayments are well-used in WordPress websites that want to:
• Drive community engagement by rewarding virtual currency for website activity
• Limit the downloading, uploading, and posting of visiting users with a virtual allowance
• Create and manage a point system for the selling of general products and services
• Enable speedier purchasing processes that eliminate the need for repeated external payments
MicroPayment Platform Plugin for WordPress
This plugin, developed by CreativeMinds, brings in-site micropayment support to your WordPress website. It empowers you to do everything described above by adding a virtual currency system that you can customize as needed.
Registered users on your website will each have their own digital wallet, and you choose which actions generate virtual points. Whether currency is doled out in timed intervals, earned through activity, or purchased with real currency, you have full control.
The plugin can also be paired with other Ecommerce plugins (including each CreativeMinds plugin listed above) to further enhance your WordPress website’s micropayment capabilities.