Do You Make Money Blogging?

I have two mostly separate lives.  In one I interact with people face to face; in the other, I use the written word.  I have met very few people with whom I interact on the internet, and for the most part, most of the people I know in real life don't know I'm a blogger.  However, I do mention it so some people and one question I get is "Do you make money with that?  I've heard people can get rich blogging".  So, just in case anyone is wondering, no, I'm not getting rich blogging; rather blogging has turned into a hobby that supports another hobby, reading.

How do bloggers make money from their blogs?  Selling advertising space is one obvious way.  Of course the more readers you have the more advertisers are interested.  There are affiliate programs like the one from Amazon which pay you a commission when someone clicks on your link and then buys something (I've made about $30.00 in three years).  Ad Sense, which puts the ads on this blog pays based on how many eyes see the ads and how many click on them.  In a year I've earned about $25.00.  Clearly I'm not getting rich.

However, one perk of blogging is free samples for review.  I've managed to keep myself in books and then some.  Recently I've gotten to opportunity to review non-book related things, as you have noticed if you read this blog regularly.  Today for example, I was contacted by CSN Stores LLC,  a fast-growing, privately-held company which claims to offer customers the best online shopping available for home and office goods. A $200 million company, CSN is made up of more than 200 online niche shops offering a huge selection of products ranging from barstools and bedroom sets to grills, greenhouses and gaming equipment. They claim to have items for budget-minded shoppers, luxury seekers and everyone in between.  Their products range from recessed lighting to braided rugs, from barbecue grills to bakeware and from pet carriers to living room sets.  In return for a post introducing them to you, I was offered the opportunity to obtain a free product for review and one to give away.  Should I pick something for the kitchen, or perhaps recessed lighting for the bathroom? Maybe my six  year old would like some craft supplies or my teen daughter a purse.  My son might like a frisbee.

So, do I make money blogging?  No, not much, but from what I can tell, blogging is kind of like selling things on the party plan or for those cosmetic companies--you can make big money at it if you work at it hard enough, and are better than most people, but just as most of those sales people do it for fun and a little extra, I think that's how most bloggers are. I enjoy writing, and I enjoy having an audience reading my writing, and the review products, whether books or recessed lighting, are lagniappe.

Are you a blogger?  Why do you blog?  What do you get from it?