Are you trying to grow your blog on a budget? It’s definitely possible! And you don’t have to sacrifice quality. In fact, many of the best blogging tools are inexpensive.
Some of my personal favorites are less than $15/month. So when you’re ready to invest some income to help your blog along, take a look at these awesome blogging tools. They will help you grow without emptying your wallet.
Note: These tools are all designed for people who already have a blog up and running. If you don’t yet have a blog, check out this post for how to get started.
1.Tailwind
Pinterest is hands down an incredible traffic source for bloggers. But, you have to be consistent.
If you don’t have time for manual pinning, you should definitely check out Tailwind. This tool will help you save time and grow your blog.
If you pay on a month-month basis, the pro subscription costs $15/month. If you pay for a year at a time, you save quite a bit and pay only $9.99/month.
Want to know more about using Pinterest (and Tailwind) to grow your blog? Check out this post:
35 Quick Tips to Using Pinterest for Blog Traffic
2. Great Images
If you want traffic from social media, you are going to need great images.
It’s NOT OKAY to just download any ol’ image you find on the internet. You have to have permission or it’s called copyright infringement and it can be very costly.
I source images for my blog from several places, but Ivory Mix is my favorite. She has images for a wide variety of niches and adds 100+ every month.
You can access 550 of her images for free, or upgrade to a paid membership to access all 3,000+ for under $15 per month.
3. A Media Kit
Are you ready to start partnering with brands or other companies? You definitely need a media kit!
A media kit is simply a visual way to show some key metrics from your blog. They help the company you are partnering with to see who your target audience is, how many people regularly visit your blog, and how engaged your social media audience is.
You can create your own media kit in Canva. But, if graphic design isn’t your specialty, you may struggle to make it look appealing. Remember that people buy with their eyes, so you want to approach the negotiating table with a professional media kit.
I personally use Etsy for my media kit needs. There are so many options available, and many of them are under $15. Check them out here.
4. SendOwl
Is it time to add digital products to your blog? These printables, eBooks, and other digital goodies are a great way to diversify your blogging income.
For $15/month, you can use SendOwl to take the hassle out of the selling process. After you sign up for an account, you can begin selling very quickly.
You simply upload your product and set your information (like the price). Then, you can use their code to embed a “Buy Now” button on your sales page.
When someone clicks from your blog to there, they are able to purchase it. Then SendOwl automatically sends them the product and you a receipt for your records.
Digital products are an easy way to add more passive income to you blog. To learn more about them, read this post:
How to Build an Information Products Empire
5. Buffer
You don’t want to be on Facebook or Twitter all day long, or you’ll never get anything done. But, if you don’t post consistently, you lose traction.
Buffer to the rescue! You can get started with the free version, and when you’re ready to upgrade, the lowest paid plan is $15/month. This tool allows you to curate content to share with your audience and write posts of your own. Then you can quickly fill up your queue with content to be shared.
You can pick one day a week (or on another schedule) to take care of your social media content. It’s a great way to practice batching and save time.
6. Canva for Work
The free version of Canva allows you to do some amazing thing! If you need to take things up a notch, Canva for Work can save you some serious time.
It comes out to $12.95/month per team member, so if you’re a solo blogger you’d only need one account.
Here are some of the key features that can help you create blog graphics more quickly:
- Save more brand colors (the free version is limited to three)
- Upload your own fonts
- Resize images
- Access to loads of graphic elements and photos
If you’ve been looking for something a little more robust for your graphic creations, give Canva for Work a try.
7. AWeber
Getting email subscribers early is imperative for the long-term success of your blog. This one is going to cost you a little more than $15/month – $19 to be exact – but I highly recommend AWeber as a beginner-friendly email provider service.
AWeber is where I got my start and I still use it for one of my sites to this day. It costs $19 per month for up to 500 subscribers. Check it out here.
And for a complete guide to help you with that, here’s a must-read post:
Ultimate Guide to Email Marketing: Your Blog Won’t Survive Without It
8. A PO Box
If you’re sending out emails to your subscribers, you’re required to list a valid mailing address. But not everyone wants to give out their home address.
A PO Box at the local post office is one solution. Your price will depend on your location.
Another option is a mailbox at you local UPS store. That one will provide you with a physical address and you can sign up for email or text notifications should you ever receive mail in that box. This UPS option will likely cost you more than $15 per month depending on the length of your contract. I think I pay around $25/month for mine.
9. MiloTree
Are you trying to actively grow your social media following? (What blogger isn’t?)
MiloTree can help. It’s a customizable popup that appears on your blog, allowing people to connect with you socially.
For $9/month, you’ll have access to all of the pop-up options. When a visitor comes to your site, they’ll see a pop-up prompting them to follow you on one site (like Pinterest.) The next time that same visitor comes, the pop up will be for another platform (like Instagram).
This way your visitors aren’t bombarded with several different pop-ups, but you are still able to grow all of your accounts.
As a bonus, there’s a 30-day free trial. Go ahead and sign up and see how your audience grows.
10. Linktree
Do you use Instagram to connect with your audience? If you do, Linktree can help get visitors back to your site.
Unless you have a huge following, you’re only allowed one clickable link – in your bio. This means you can be constantly changing the link to get to your latest post.
It’s much simpler to use a service like Linktree. There’s a free version that works for many bloggers. And for those who are ready to invest a bit, Linktree Pro is $6/month. This price allows you to get rid of the Linktree branding, completely customize your colors, use different themes, and more. (You can see mine here.)
It can definitely help you get your Instagram traffic to where they want to go.
There you have it. Ten amazing blogging tools that don’t cost an arm and a leg.
But, don’t feel like you need to purchase all of these right now. Explore the free trials (when available.) See what works for you. Then make the investment.
As you make more money blogging, add another tool. Just like everything else, this is something that can grow with time.