How to monetize your blog with ConvertKit Tip Jar

I may get paid commission for purchases made after clicking a link in this post.

ConvertKit Tip Jar is a really simple way to monetize your free blog content and gives your readers and fans a tangible way to say ‘thank you’. Better still, it takes just 5 minutes to set up! Here’s how…

Do you create lots of free content on your blog? Do you wish there was an easy way to monetize that content? Perhaps your blog is not yet at the level needed to get high paying ads on your site and you don’t feel quite ready to create your own products…  Why not try out ConvertKit Tip Jar?

ConvertKit’s Tip Jar feature is really simple to set up and it could provide you with a lovely extra stream of income for your blog. It’s a great way to monetize your free blog content and gives your readers and fans a tangible way to say ‘thank you’ for all you do. (And it takes just 5 minutes to set up!)

Better still, you don’t even have to use ConvertKit for your email marketing… and there’s no monthly subscription. ConvertKit just take a very small percentage (just 0.6%!) of the tips you earn… a much lower commission than most other companies charge for offering a tip jar / ‘buy me a coffee’ feature (some charge 30%!) – and ConvertKit’s Tip Jar looks a lot more visually attractive than most too!

Here’s how to set it up…

How to set up ConvertKit Tip Jar

STEP 1: Sign up for a free account

If you do not currently use ConvertKit, then the first step is to sign up for a free ConvertKit account*.

If you already use ConvertKit, then simply log in to your ConvertKit account.

(For more on setting up ConvertKit, head to my beginner’s guide to ConvertKit)

STEP 2: Navigate to Tip Jars

Once you are signed in, head to EARN >>> TIP JARS

STEP 3: Set up payments

ConvertKit gives you the option to CREATE A TIP JAR or SET UP PAYMENTS. I recommend setting up payments first. This is very quick and simple to do…

First select SET UP PAYMENTS

Then choose whether to set up payments as an individual or as a company. If you are a sole trader / sole proprietor, select INDIVIDUAL. Otherwise select COMPANY.

Next, you will be prompted to enter your country, mobile number and email.

Depending on whether you already have a Stripe account, you will either be prompted to set up a new account or log in to your existing Stripe account.

If it is a new account, you will need to enter some basic details about you and your business.

And finally, once you’ve successfully completed the process, you will land up on the Stripe dashboard. It’s a good idea to bookmark this page to come back to at a later date.

STEP 4: Create your tip jar

Head back to EARN >>> TIP JARS and this time select CREATE A TIP JAR

You will be prompted to name your tip jar and choose a slug for the URL.

STEP 5: Design your tip jar

Now comes the fun part – designing your tip jar! If you already use ConvertKit for your email marketing, this will be very familiar – it’s just like designing an opt-in box. But if not, don’t worry – it’s super intuitive… and ConvertKit make it really easy to design something gorgeous… even if you have no design skills!

Start by choosing an image. Simply click on the image area and select REPLACE in the right hand menu.

You can either upload something from your computer or click on UNSPLASH to use something from ConvertKit’s built in Unsplash integration. I found this super cute tip jar image, just by searching ‘tip jar’ in the Unsplash integration! If necessary, you can also edit the image here.

Next click on the heading to edit it. I edited mine to say… ‘Want to say thank you?’

Next click on the main body text and edit it to say whatever you want. Here’s what I wrote…

Next click on the button to edit it. You can change the text of the button and edit the button colour too.

Step 6: Edit the checkout page

Next select CHECKOUT PAGE from the options immediately above your tip jar. This is the page your readers will see after they click on the SEND A TIP button in your tip jar. This is where they will add their email address and payment information. Use the options on the right to edit this page if you wish.

Step 7: Edit the payment confirmation page

Next select CONFIRMATION from the options immediately above your tip jar. This is the page your reader will see once they have entered their payment details and hit the PAY button. Again, you can edit this if you wish. I just changed the colour on mine to match my colours everywhere else.

Step 8: Edit the receipt email

Next select RECEIPT EMAIL from the options immediately above your tip jar. This is the email your reader will receive once they have entered their payment details and hit the PAY button. You can edit this as you wish. I added a super cute photo, again using the Unsplash integration feature.

Step 9: Save and publish your tip jar

Next hit SAVE, to make sure your tip jar is saved. To publish your tip jar, hit PUBLISH. This will bring up two options…

A link to share. You can share this anywhere you like!

Or an embed code for a ‘buy me a coffee’ button. The embed code can be embedded anywhere on your website – your footer, your sidebar, your homepage, in any blog post… Just use a custom HTML block or widget.

And if ever you want to change the name of your tip jar or the URL, just head to SETTINGS…

How to use ConvertKit Tip Jar

Add a tip jar to your side bar / footer

The first and most obvious way to start earning money from your tip jar is to place a button in your sidebar and/or footer.

Simply copy the embed code and paste it into the appropriate place, using a custom HTML widget or block.

Like this…

And this is what it looks like on the front end…

(By default the button says ‘buy me a coffee’, but you can change what the button says by editing the HTML.)

Add your tip jar to a blog post

You can also add your tip jar to any blog post, either by adding a link to your tip jar or adding the button code.

Here’s an example of a link to my tip jar.

You could even create a reusable Gutenberg block to easily add your tip jar to every post!

Mention your tip jar in your emails

Your email subscribers are your most loyal fans and the most likely to want to say ‘thank you’ with a little donation, so it makes sense to highlight your tip jar to your subscribers.

Good places to put your tip jar would be in your email signature or as a ‘P.S.’ You could also mention it in the main body of your email occasionally and include it in your welcome sequence.

Beyond Tip Jar

The beauty of ConvertKit tip jar is that it gives you an opportunity to try out ConvertKit Commerce before you’ve even created a product.

(ConvertKit Commerce is the bit of ConvertKit that allows you to sell ebooks, printables, other digital downloads, services, paid-for subscriptions, memberships etc.)

Having set up a tip jar, you will have seen just how quick and easy it is to sell a product on ConvertKit Commerce (because setting up and selling a product on ConvertKit is pretty much the same process!) All you need to do then is dream up and create a simple digital product and you can be set up and selling your first digital product on ConvertKit in no time. (And creating a simple digital product is really no harder than creating an opt-in offer!)

Better still, just like with tip jar, there is no need to use ConvertKit for your email marketing (Though obviously if your emails and products are in the same place that will make your life easier!) And there is no monthly subscription required to sell products and services via ConvertKit Commerce either (ConvertKit just take a small % commission off the price of each product you sell) – so it’s all very low risk… and very low effort too!

Find out more here >>> ConvertKit Commerce*

Or, if you want to learn more about using ConvertKit to build and grow your email list, head here >>> A beginner’s guide to ConvertKit for bloggers

(Still a bit unsure? Check out these 26 reasons why ConvertKit is the BEST email service provider for bloggers!)

Want to say thank you?

It would be a bit crazy for me to write a whole blog post about ConvertKit Tip Jar and not mention my own tip jar! If my free content has helped you in any way and you would like to say ‘thank you’, I would hugely appreciate a small donation towards my work and the running costs of this blog. Any contribution is greatly appreciated!

Buy me a coffee

Over to you…

Have you used this tutorial to create a tip jar on your website? I’d love to hear about it! Let me know in the comments below…

Still got questions? Ask away!

More on this topic…

• 26 reasons why ConvertKit is the best email marketing service for bloggers
• A beginner’s guide to ConvertKit
• ConvertKit vs MailChimp – which is best for your blog?
• A beginner’s guide to email marketing for bloggers + free challenge
• 31 Email Marketing Mistakes to avoid (and how to fix them!)

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*This blog post contains affiliate links, this means if you click on a link and go on to buy the product I recommend, I will get a small commission, but you will not be charged a penny more – thanks in advance!