5 Ways to Give Back as a Blogger

Blogging has given me so much, both personally and professionally.

It’s given me a stable career writing about topics I’m passionate about, as well as learning opportunities for topics I’m not entirely familiar with. It’s allowed me to be a stay-at-home mom, giving me the chance to witness all of my child’s small and major milestones. It’s challenged me in ways I’ll be forever thankful for.

With everything that blogging has provided for my family, it got me thinking about ways to give back as a blogger.

Here’s what I came up with for ways to give back as a blogger, regardless of what you blog about.

Use Your Blogging Income to Donate directly to a Cause

Choose a nonprofit organization or a local initiative and directly donate a portion of your blogging income.

You can make a one-time donation or decide to make monthly, quarterly, or annual donations. Your gift can be based on a percentage of your blogging revenue or on a specific number.

We’ve chosen to tie our donations to the number 13 to honor our son who had Trisomy 13. Rather than donate regularly to one organization, we switch up the cause as we see fit.

For example, we recently covered the cost of 13 teddy bears that were sent to grieving families who lost their children. In other years, we’ve donated 13% of my blogging income to various organizations that support Trisomy research or provide outdoor adventures for families with living Trisomy children.

Find a cause that resonates with you, and then figure out a donation strategy that’ll bring additional meaning to your blogging work.

Mentor Youth with a Passion for Writing

I’ve always loved writing but growing up, I didn’t have any writers or bloggers to look up to in my community. I didn’t have a firm grasp on the idea that I could make real money writing online about personal or professional topics until my late 20s.

As bloggers, we have a unique opportunity to lend our writing and business experience to youth in our own communities. Sure, they can read about success stories online. But nothing compares to having that person physically stand in front of you and say, “I’ve been where you are, and you can eventually get to where I am…. Here’s how.”

Youth organizations are always looking for volunteers to serve as mentors or provide short learning workshops to their kiddos. Even if you have no idea what you’d say, reach out to them anyway. They can let you know what type of opportunities their youth will benefit from or provide you with other ways you can support them.

Give Away a Scholarship

Are you a blogger with an established course? Consider giving away a scholarship (or several) to a member of your audience.

Don’t have a course? You can still craft a small mentorship program that shares your knowledge and experience directly with select individuals. Your insight might be the boost someone else needs to build a successful blogging career.

Volunteer to Write Blogs for a Local Nonprofit Organization

Volunteer to write blogs or develop other digital or print content for a nonprofit of your choosing.

Many nonprofit organizations operate on a shoestring budget. Even those with larger budgets usually focus their funds on direct services, rather than adequately funding support roles. Therefore, your talents as a blogger can easily be used to tell compelling stories or provide educational resources for their audience.

As a business bonus, these types of roles can serve as additional portfolio builders. They can also allow you to test the waters with niche topics you aren’t currently in.

Sponsor an Event Attendee

Sponsoring is a great way to give back to the professional blogging community.

Know of an upcoming professional development event that someone new to blogging could benefit from? Is there a business retreat that changed the course of your career?

Consider sponsoring an attendee to cover the cost of their ticket or other related expenses.

Other Ways to Give Back as a Blogger

Here are some other free ways to give back as a blogger.

• Answer questions and share learned lessons with other bloggers in social media groups. Your goal is to help others, not boost your own standing.
• Sign up to be a speaker at a blogger summit or niche-specific workshop. Remember to focus on providing true value, not plugging your services or products.
• Regularly share other blogger’s content with your own audience. Look for bloggers or social media accounts that are churning out awesome content, but don’t necessarily have a large following.
• Continue to provide free informative content to your audience. This creates trust and builds community. But it can also change lives without you ever being aware of how far or deep your content has reached.

I’d love to hear in the comments about any additional ways to give back as a blogger!