Are you ready to see a few more zeros in your bank account? Today we are sharing our top 9 passive income ideas for dietitians who blog. Extra revenue from your online business never comes at a bad time…especially as our economy continues to be a bit wacky.

Your food blog has the potential to earn you money round the clock. But: passive income– especially with a blog – is not a get-rich-quick scheme. Nor is this work as easy as you’d guess.

But, with the right strategy in place and consistent efforts, you have the ability to start a food blog and make some good money.

So grab a pen and paper and be prepared to take some notes! With this post, you’ll be able to decide which revenue stream is best for you.

What is passive income?

For this blog post, we are focusing on a passive income strategy that is not a direct trade of time for money, in contrast with seeing a client and billing per hour. Eventually, there is a cap on how much you can make when working hourly because there are only twenty-four of them in a day.

However, with passive income, an effective strategy can launch your income beyond your wildest dreams.

Having a nutrition business is not either/or: you can do private practice work and have passive income streams.

A food blog can leverage your passive income in multiple ways. This blog will show you different possibilities so that you can find the best match for your unique skills and interests.

What is a food blog?

Dietitians can offer their expertise in a multitude of ways online. Having a high-quality recipe blog is one popular option, but is far from the only one.

A dietitian blogger can offer help to their audience and earn revenue for sharing their expertise. It starts with having a blog that is valuable to your readers.

What is a blog? It is a section of a website that tends to be updated with fresh new content, or web posts, on a regular basis (1). This is in contrast to other web pages, which are static pages, such as your homepage, FAQ page, or your about page; those three pages tend to be updated far less frequently.

Who can create a food blog?

Anyone can make a food blog…but who can do it best? A registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN)!

Not only are we trained experts in food and nutrition, but Google also prioritizes information that comes from experts when it offers results for a search.

Understanding how Google prioritizes which web pages and blogs show up first in a search is called SEO. While SEO can seem intimidating, having a grasp of the fundamentals is part of the work to write your way to a successful blogging business. Google wants to provide a good user experience and so continues to adjust and fine-tune its algorithm (2).

Where to begin? Learning some of the skills that were probably not included in your dietitian education: copywriting and SEO.

If you want to quickly build a food blog, check out The Blogging Accelerator Course* (affiliate link)

Do your homework

Here’s the hard news: while the sky's the limit with what your blog can generate, many bloggers have big dreams…but don’t end up making any money at all.

What’s the difference between them and your future business?

A concrete skillset and a solution-oriented mindset. (I have tips for How to Beat the Impostor Syndrome – you’re not alone if imposter syndrome has come knocking on your door!)

Learn to write

Dietitians are adept at understanding complicated scientific studies…we tend to be less proficient at translating that information to our readers in a way that is approachable and interesting.

Enter: a basic copywriting course that is made by a dietitian for dietitians. Learn to take your writing from snoozefest to spectacular.

Holly Larson, MS, RDN is a dietitian and nutrition copywriter, and copywriting mentor. Her course, The Writing Course for Nutrition Professionals* (affiliate link) is a great beginner program for dietitians looking to cultivate their writing skills.

Learn SEO

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. SEO can seem pretty intimidating, but just like learning nutrition, you build on what you know. Little by little, it all begins to make sense.

The absolute best way to learn about SEO is via Erica Julson’s course*. Not only is it comprehensive and detailed, but Erica is also able to explain things in such an understandable way. Plus, her student support group is incredibly valuable. Come up against an issue you can’t quite untangle and post in the group; Erica and her fellow students will come to the rescue.

Join the course waitlist right here* (my affiliate link).

Network

It isn’t just what you know but who, right?

Networking is important to continue to build your connections. You never know when a new opportunity may pop up!

On Facebook, there are a few community groups that you may consider joining as you build your passive income streams.

• Build Your Blog - Grow Traffic + Make Money hosted by dietitian Chrissy Carroll. We’ve shone the spotlight on Chrissy here: Dietetic Career Spotlight on Chrissy Carroll, Blogger
• RDs Who Write hosted by Ana Reisdorf, MS, RD
• The Unconventional RD Community - by Erica Julson, RDN
• Media Mastery for Healthcare Professionals by Amy Gorin Spector, MS, RDN

I also highly recommend keeping your LinkedIn profile fresh and current. I will show you exactly how to make your profile work harder for you, right here.

Now that you’ve done your homework, let’s explore nine different ways to make passive income as a dietitian.

9 ways to make passive income

And while it is a great idea to build to have multiple streams of income, if you try to tackle too many things right off the bat, you may not be able to complete the projects as well. Instead, try doing one or two things first, get comfortable and confident with them, and expand from there.

1. Display ad revenue

Once you have a hefty traffic stream to your website each month, you can apply to partner with an advertising network. I partner with Google AdSense and get about $400 per month just from having ads on my websites. As your web traffic grows, so too does your ad revenue!

2. Recommend products

As your readership grows, they want to know more about the things that you recommend. As a trusted voice, you can refer your audience to any product or service you like.

For example, in this blog post, I recommended a few different courses that I know and trust and believe that you, as a dietitian, will find to be helpful. As an affiliate, I post a unique URL link that tracks who has made a purchase. The course creators are able to automatically track who purchases their product because of an affiliate link. The price for the buyer is the same, but the affiliate receives a portion of the sale.

You can add affiliate links to courses, tools, and products that you think your readers might be interested in.

You can also become an Amazon Affiliate. As an Amazon Associates affiliate, you earn a commission every time someone makes a purchase through an affiliate link in your content. You might recommend a specific type of juicer or food blender* that you use in a food blog post for your readers. This is helpful for both recipe posts and instruction posts to guide the reader while allowing you to make a small commission on your recommendation for the products you like to use. Or a cookbook for a style of cooking* you recommend.

3. Sell digital products

Have you created the perfect client handout? If so, not only can it streamline your nutrition counseling, but you can also sell your product. You can sell your product directly on your website, or partner with RD2RD to sell your product. While RD2RD does take a commission for each sale, they also do the hard work of attracting readers to your store.

You can become a vendor on RD2RD today!

4. Create online courses

Do you have a skill set that wasn’t taught in school, or taught in enough detail? You can take your knowledge and create a course that helps your fellow dietitians. Based on the questions that I get over and over again, I’ve created several courses that empower dietitians to create more effective resumes, interview more confidently, and level up their LinkedIn profiles. Basically, all things nutrition jobs!

If you’re interested in applying for approval for CEUs, visit the CDR website for more information.

Another route is to make a course for your nutrition counseling clients. A course can help your clients to make better progress on their goals with you. The course might save you time by not having to explain the same foundational concepts again and again and then your individual counseling sessions are more productive.

5. Create meal plans

While meal plans are offered for free online by plenty of people – expert or not – there is still an opportunity for registered dietitians to provide value to their audience.

However, as you well know, making meal plans from scratch can take a really long time. No matter your niche, I recommend using a program to create your meal plans more efficiently.

For example, That Clean Life and Living Plate* are two companies that allow dietitians to create their own custom meal plans easily to then provide to your audience.

6. Sell memberships

Memberships are another option to monetize working with your audience on a consistent basis. With a subscription to your expertise, you have a more predictable income each month, and they have more support and accountability.

There are different strategies you can try as you work to develop a business that works for you. You can target a lower-cost service and aim for a larger membership, or you can offer a higher-level service at a premium price and have a smaller group. Or: both!

Registered Dietitian Heather O’Neal of DietitianHQ has a mentorship program for dietitian entrepreneurs called The Society*.

Registered Dietitian Colleen Christensen of No Food Rules has a membership program for women learning Intuitive Eating called The SociEATy.

7. Host online cooking classes

It is amazing how a few basic cooking skills can boost a client's confidence in preparing meals and recipes at home. But you don’t have to invite strangers into your house or even rent a public space if you don’t want to: you can offer cooking lessons online!

Karman Meyer of The Nutrition Adventure offers virtual cooking classes to adults through her website.

8. Accept sponsored blog posts

Once you have an established audience, brands may wish to pay you a premium for a post that features their product or service. This is a great way to provide recommendations to your audience for things that you already like and use while boosting your income.

One example of a dietitian doing a great job with this business model is Andy Mathis of Beautiful Eats and Things. She has several recipe posts that feature ingredients and are sponsored by the food brands featured.

9. Recommend Supplements

If providing supplement recommendations is a part of your business model, you know how confusing things can get for your clients. What is the best brand? How do you even know if the brand is high quality?

Dietitians and other healthcare professionals have the opportunity to partner with high-quality supplement brands. This is a service where you’re doing the legwork for your clients to ensure that they’re getting the best quality supplements to meet their health and performance goals.

One way to do this is to have an account with Fullscript. You can provide specific recommendations to your clients and get a portion of the proceeds when they make a purchase.

How monthly revenue might look

There are many “right” ways to earn passive income; the great thing is that you can keep adding.

For Nutrition Jobs, my website earns passive income in a few different ways, including:

• Display Ads
• Affiliate sales for courses that I have reviewed and recommend
• Selling digital goods

The tricky thing is that we all have the same 24 hours in a day; as you continue to learn more and become more strategic, you’ll discover which efforts help your business to grow most effectively. It is 100% normal to try some things and have them not work out as well as you’d imagined. Keep trying and keep learning!

Expenses in running a monetized blog

While running an online business can be a relatively inexpensive business to run as compared to having a physical office, there are a few minimum expenses to keep in mind.

• Purchasing your website and domain – there are still costs associated with having a website even if you make your own
• Hiring a writer, recipe developer, or photographer if you choose to delegate some or all of your content needs
• Social media support to grow your channels more quickly
• Groceries and other supplies
• Photography and lighting equipment if applicable
• Legal support for establishing your LLC

Unexpected benefits

As your website grows and your brand continues to level up, the benefits may pop up in surprising ways! As a trusted dietitian in your niche, you may be able to generate occasional revenue in a few different ways.

Grow your email list

As a digital entrepreneur, it is important to have mechanisms in place to collect your reader’s email addresses.

As your email list grows, you get to stay on top of their mind each time you publish a new blog post and share it with your list, making announcements about your business and life. Then, when you have an offer, your audience is much more likely to make a purchase at your recommendation because they know you and trust you.

Media dietitian

As a dietitian who is well-known in your niche, your expertise is valuable to publications of all kinds. You can become a brand ambassador for companies you believe in and want to help succeed.

We recently interviewed Amy here: Dietetic Career Spotlight on Amy Gorin, Master The Media + Plant-Based with Amy.

If this speaks to you, check out Amy’s Course: Master the Media and learn how to leverage your credentials and experience to have a booming business.

Speaking engagement

As an expert in your niche, you can also become a paid public speaker. For example, you could speak at The RD Symposium and offer insider knowledge to RDs who admire the progress you’ve already made in your business. You now have the expertise to offer on blogging and alternative ways to make income outside of a traditional clinical dietitian position.

Cookbook deal

Dietitians can also add another credential to their name: cookbook author. A few examples are Anti-Inflammatory Diet 5-Ingredient Cookbook: Fast, Easy Recipes to Reduce Inflammation by Natalie Butler, RDN and Diabetes Create Your Plate Meal Prep Cookbook: 100 Delicious Plate-Method Recipes by Toby Amidor, MS RD CDN FAND.

Want to learn more? Check out our interview with Maggie Green, RDN, LD, cookbook author, and creator of the popular course, Get Paid to Get Published. She runs The Green Apron Company and works to get dietitians to publish cookbooks.

Level up

At the beginning of this article, I shared two courses that I recommend for setting the foundation of your blogging business. If you’re ready to dive in, I have one amazing course to help you to start making passive income, far more quickly. Introducing Katie Dodd, MS, RDN, CSG, LD, FAND Owner of Katie Dodd Nutrition LLC and Founder of the Blogging Accelerator Program.

Dietitians are incredibly smart and hard-working (you have to be, to make it through the rigorous degree and internship requirements). You can figure out just about anything with enough time. However, you can reach your goals far more quickly – and with fewer bumps in the road – when you have an expert guide.

If your goal is to start making passive income quickly, the Blogging Accelerator Program will rocket launch your progress.

Keep learning

As your mindset and business skills grow, so too will your income. Managing multiple deadlines can be a challenge, especially if you’re working from home. I can relate! I have 22 Work From Home Tips To Boost Your Productivity and stay on track.

As you fine tune your mission, niche and services, you’ll want to clearly communicate with your audience who you are and how you help. I have 6 Marketing Tips For Your Nutrition Business as an RDN to boost your marketing skills.

Blogging and business are similar to nutrition in that you’re never done learning! There are always new tips and tricks to learn and apply to your brand and business. Bookmark this blog post to keep your mental wheels turning about blogs: Nutrition Blogging To Earn More Money as a Dietitian.

Food blog ideas

Finding a niche, or a specific topic that your food or recipe blog focuses on, is an important first step. Here is a list of food blog ideas for students and dietitians. These are general topic ideas that you can further niche to build a unique community. The more traffic your blog receives, the more money your blog can generate. Check out this article on how more food blogging insights, how to build a blog, and tools I use to create blog posts.

• adult takes on kid favorites
• delicious recipes
• diet culture
• favorite recipes
• food allergies
• food photography
• fresh produce and nutrition
• gluten-free diet
• good food
• good health
• good nutrition
• green kitchen stories
• health benefits of nutrition
• healthy eating
• healthy food blog
• healthy lifestyle and nutrition
• healthy living and nutrition
• healthy recipes
• holiday season and nutrition
• holistic nutrition
• intuitive eating or weight at any size
• meal plans
• meal prep
• mental health and nutrition
• menu planning
• nutrition advice
• overall health and nutrition
• paleo diet
• product reviews and nutrition
• real food
• recipe book and ebooks
• seasonal produce recipes
• self care and nutrition
• sustainable nutrition
• vegan diet
• vegan recipes
• whole foods

Key takeaways

Passive income can seem like a dream: making money when you sleep. However, with the right strategy and consistent effort, you too can begin making an income while providing value to your audience.

How are you making passive income? Comment below and share your expertise!

About the Author

Stacey Dunn-Emke, MS, RDN, is the Founder Owner of NutritionJobs and an established dietetic career expert. She helps steer dietetic and nutrition professionals to a successful job search process with the top-ranked dietetic job board platform, NutritionJobs.com. Stacey is the author of The Dietetic Resume Guide and numerous dietetic career action-ables. She gives the tools to create a modern standout dietetic resume to land that job interview, help with job interview prep, and with creating Compelling LinkedIn profiles. Stacey has interviewed and hired many dietitians. Since running NutritionJobs in 2000, she has reviewed thousands of dietetic resumes. She works closely with dietetic hiring managers and recruiters to know the standout elements on a resume that land a job interview. Stacey frequently consults with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics at FNCEand co-created the webinar series, Dietetic Career Hack: The Complete Networking and Resume Guide and Dietetic Career Hack Part II: Interviewing Tips and Tricks. Her previous dietitian jobs have been in clinical, nutrition support, and research.

Affiliate Links

Please note: This page contains affiliate links. If you choose to purchase a product using my affiliate link, I will receive a small commission or bonus. This will in no way impact the price you pay. Affiliate links on this page are denoted with an asterisk (*).