My second blog income report – I have been blogging for 7 months.
SO. It’s been a month since I received my first real “paycheck” (as in, deposited money into my bank account) that was earned through my blog (read my August blog income report here).
I haven’t even been able to bring myself to transfer the money into the checking account, because I am so certain it can’t possibly be real. (Also since I’m still at my day job for another month and a half we aren’t desperate for the money yet. So better to save it until we are. Because I feel certain that the blog can’t possibly continue to earn money… that would be… just. I can’t even imagine it.)
This is what it feels like to earn money doing something you love. FROM HOME.
It feels pretty good.
I started my last blog income report by saying I had no qualms sharing my income, and that was true then. But the 483 bucks in August felt a little like coffee money. I was proud of it, but the way that you might be proud of “side hustle” (I HATE that word) pocket money. A lot can change in a short time, apparently. I am definitely hesitant to share this income report. Because this time, I haven’t made pocket money. I have made real money.
(THIS POST PROBABLY CONTAINS AFFILIATE LINKS. OUR FULL DISCLOSURE POLICY IS REALLY BORING, BUT YOU CAN FIND IT HERE.)
And it feels weird to write your real income down for everyone to see.
UPDATE: This is still true, so I have decided that I will no longer share new income reports for 2017. Because I understand the value of income reports as a learning tool, I am still sending these reports out to my blogging email list. Get access here:
But the truth is, if it wasn’t for income reports like this one, I would not have started this blog. Flat out not. I am the most skeptical of the skeptics and I don’t believe anything worth having comes easy. I don’t believe in get rich quick schemes and I don’t believe everyone has what it takes to make a living by blogging.
But there were things in other blogger’s income reports that I read that showed me that I could make a living at blogging. That made me think “why NOT me?”
I want to share this information with you because maybe you will read something here that makes you think “why NOT me?”. (Or if you’re already blogging, but wondering why it’s not going the way you hoped it would, hopefully this will steer you in the right direction!)
I don’t know right now if blog income reports will be something that I’ll be doing in the future. (To be honest, I’m still struggling to believe I will earn blog income like this in the future. It’s unfathomable.) But for this month, here’s September’s income and traffic report. I’m reporting differently this month. This is the income I EARNED in September, not the income I received. (I’ve decided It makes more sense to report income + traffic for the month it happened, as I do think income is directly related to traffic.)
September 2016 Blog Income Report (& Traffic)
(I am reporting in Canadian dollars at the exchange rate for today of 1.3297 USD to 1 CND. Some of the money comes to me in CND and some comes in USD, but it all ends up as CND dollars in my account.)
Total September Income: $3365.39
Adthrive Ads – $2203.31
Travel Hacking book affiliate program – $0 (Maybe no one plans holidays in September?)
BestMark affiliate program – $6.65
cj.com affiliate program – $448.78
Shareasale.com affiliate program– $21.26
Elegant Themes affiliate program– $205.44
Ultimate Bundle affiliate program- $271.05
Amazon affiliate program- $208.90
September Traffic: 150,250 users & 194,574 page views
If there had just been ONE more day in September, I could have had 200k page views! (Not that I’m complaining. Just saying. It would have been pretty awesome.) I’d say 200k can be my goal for October, but I’ve never been a goal setter and I don’t mean that in a lazy way. I mean, I choose to live each day as though doing my freaking best is my goal. If page views fall by 50% in October, it will not have been for lack of having a goal or for lack of trying really hard. It also won’t mean I’ve failed.
So what happened for me that made this the month that I made real money from my blog?
I think it was a combination of things. (The most important being that I pray constantly for God’s blessing on this venture, and He seems to have been answering those prayers with a “yes”.)
I think blogging income is something that just takes time. Your posts need to be out there circulating, you need to be learning constantly and you need to give it time. I think if you put in the effort and wait for the time to pass, it will come. The time has finally passed.
Secondly, I had great page views which resulted in great ad income. There is no doubt in my mind that this is due to much prayer and to my (totally unique) pinterest strategy. I don’t use a scheduler to pin. I haven’t ever seen my exact strategy described anywhere online, and I am currently writing it up as an ebook. This strategy took me from 0-194k page views in 5 months (and 9.1k pinterest followers as of today!) The ebook will be available by the end of the month is now available for a limited time! Check out Pinteresting Strategies here!
(Or if you feel like you already have a solid grasp on Pinterest but need help getting traffic from OTHER sources, Lena Gott’s Traffic Transformation Guide is hands down my favorite blogging book ever and goes over TWENTY-ONE strategies she uses to get over 400k page view per month! This book is pure BLOGGING GOLD.)
Third, I implemented the techniques I learned in Michelle Schroeder’s Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing course. $1160.00 earned this month was earned through affiliate sales. Michelle breaks affiliate marketing down into practical and actionable steps, and it would be difficult to fail at affiliate marketing if you take this course. (Learn more about Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing here.)
What has to happen for YOU to earn real money blogging?
(Well, for starters, you need a blog. A properly hosted blog. I have a simple to follow tutorial complete with pictures. It’s right here – How to start a blog.)
Once you have a blog, I firmly believe that it takes these things to make money blogging:
Time and Effort. With a capitol T and a capitol E. I have put in at least 40 hours per week for months, on top of my day job. (Probably far more most weeks. I am able to do less hours now.) I don’t watch TV, I don’t go on Facebook, I don’t clean my house as often as I used to. I have stared at my computer screen at a total loss for what to do next, and then decided that I would not stop today until I figured it out. It has been totally, completely worth it.
Perseverance and Patience. It is hard. You might want to quit. People will make you feel bad, because some people are mean. Your family and friends might not understand what you’re doing. But keep going.
USEFUL content. This has to be said. If you are writing an online journal (or primarily about your feelings / hopes / ideas), without providing content that solves a problem or addresses an issue, it will be hard for you to make money. Even inspirational content, while it CAN be monetized, is harder to make money from than content that readers find useful.
Willingness to invest in your blogging education. This might be the number one this you can do, and it is ESPECIALLY TRUE if you’ve been blogging for a while and not getting anywhere. I have spent hundreds of dollars on courses and books that have taught me how to make money blogging. (I have made all my money back and much more.) The internet is full of free information, but if you have to spend the time picking through what’s good information and what’s not, what’s current and what’s outdated, it will take you YEARS to get ahead. The reason that people want to be paid for the information available in courses is because the information is valuable.
Find all my recommendations here – THE BEST BLOGGING COURSES for 2023.
That’s about it for this month’s blog income report. Maybe it will be my last report? I don’t know. I’d love your feedback – are blog income reports something you find useful / interesting / inspirational and would continue to read? Is it tacky or weird to share my blog income this way? Either way, thanks for reading – I wouldn’t have a blog without you ♥
(PS if you want to work from home, but not sure if blogging is for you, check out 3 real work from home options for people who are serious about escaping 9-5.)
You are incredibly inspiring! My jaw dropped when you showed your income for this month. I haven’t even started trying to make any money with my blog. I’m not sure this is the blog to do it with. I currently use Blogger and I am unsure if that is the way to go or not. Thank you for sharing your great information!
Jenn, I REALLY appreciate your feedback!! Thank you! And I have never used blogger, but the general word in the blogosphere is that wordpress is the way to go to earn money. I know you can migrate from one to the other, so if earning money with your blog is a dream you have… I say GO FOR IT!
Carly,
Please, don’t ever be afraid to put this out there! I have been blogging for about three years now, and I have still never seen numbers like yours! I graduated from college in May and ever since have been giving my all to my blog. I definitely enjoyed reading your honest, transparent thoughts! You’re an inspiration to me and I will be definitely getting your ebook when released!
Xx Taylor (just commented on your post in Melissa’s FB group!)
http://lightscameracatwalk.com/
Hi Taylor!! I REALLY appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts with me! Thank you for your kind words 🙂 Now that you are able to commit more time to your blog, you WILL be able to see success – blogs take time (lots and lots and lots of time… haha). (And congrats on finishing college… that’s something I can’t say I did but it bet it feels amazing.)
Thank you for the inspiration! And the tip about the affiliate class, I was considering it but waiting until I heard someone say it was worth it.
Stopping by from Monday Madness 🙂
Hey Dara! Thanks for reading 🙂 I was really torn on the class for a lonnnng time to be honest. I wanted it, but I hate spending that kinda money and there were so few reviews when I bought it. It’s definitely a good one (and the FB group you get to join is small and active, and I think that ALSO is good value for money, because there are lots of really established bloggers there too – Michelle takes time to answer the questions – it’s awesome.)
Carly! I’ve been thinking about you and your blog. I’ve been waiting to see how God was going to bless you in this endeavor and I DEFINITELY see it now. I’m so happy for you.
I can’t wait to see your eBook about Pinterest scheduling! I’m totally going to buy that book! I could definitely use that! I’m getting about 182 page views a day. Granted I just started my blog like 2 weeks ago but there can always be improvement!
Also, if you need anything in terms of Virtual Assistance I’ll be more than glad to help you out! I’ve learned a lot these past couple of weeks! 🙂
I’m taking EBA now and it’s awesome but with a 4 year old blog, I have a lot of posts to go through and improve. I wish I had taken it when I first started my blog but of course, I didn’t know how much I’d love it! Congrats on the success with your blog, I’m hoping for that someday!
Thanks for sharing with Small Victories Sunday Linkup and I hope you linked up with our Pretty Pinterest Party too. Pinning to our linkup board and hope you found some great posts to visit this week!
As a blogger, I always find these reports encouraging. Thank you for this! #smallvictoriessundaylinkup
HI Kristine! Thank you for letting me know!! I still have mixed feelings, lol, but the feedback I’ve gotten has been positive so I will continue to think about doing income reports 🙂
Carly, I was so inspired when I read your blog and income report. You are very relatable and honest which I’m sure has contributed to your success.
I’m in the very early stages of starting a blog (still working on the design and layout) so not sure if this is the way to go but I dream of the day that I can finally leave my 9-5 and work from my home! I’m also taking Michelle’s course but only half way through (life got in the way, lol) but I plan to finish it soon and get going on this blog thing. Will definitely get on your email list to get a copy of your e-book. On top of knowing nothing about blogging, I know even less about Pinterest … uggghh!
So glad you hung in there and hopefully I will learn a thing or two from your blog!
Hi Bri! Thank you so much 🙂 I was TOTALLY clueless about all things blogging (pinterest included!) less than a year ago. It’s a crazy learning curve but totally worth it. Please feel free to get in touch if there’s anything I can help you with… blogging is hard at first lol.
I fell in love with your blog a few weeks ago. You are honest and delightful 🙂
So when I read that you had started making a profit in 6months and you are still working, I knew it was legit. I often wonder if I should be “wasting my time” on my blog when I could just increase my hours in my office job, but as you say if I’m prepared to work for it -why not me?
I love your take on life.
PS: good luck with the bub! Be sure to keep us posted 🙂
AW Thank you Bee, this made me smile 🙂 I TOTALLY think that blogging can be worth it – I understand what you’re saying tho – I also get panicky sometime that I might be “wasting my time” – and we are talking about ALOT of time. I still have so far to go, and if pinterest were to suddenly disappear or something I’d have NO blog LOL. BUT I’m enjoying it and it seems to be going well, so I’m gonna keep going, and I absolutely think that you should too!!
Congrats this is amazing! This is my 3rd month blogging, and I too hope to start making consistent money in the future. I have implanted a fee affiliate programs, but so far I have only made $10. Which I say only as an understatement because I was so happy about that $10. But, I don’t know if that is the first and last. I am actively trying to write amazing content, grow my presence on social media, and hopefully one day it will all come together to generate income. Congrats again!
Thank you 🙂 and I totally get where you’re coming from when you say you don’t know if it’s the first and the last – I am constantly expecting every day to be the last day I make any income!! But lemme tell you, ten bucks in the first three months is AwESOME- and more than I made – just keep going and don’t forget what it felt like to earn the first 10 bucks!!
Wow, congrats! I can only imagine how much more has changed for you since you wrote this post 🙂
Posts like this are so encouraging to bloggers like me who are just starting out… Hours of work and little results still… Gotta keep pushing forward!
Would love to hear more tips for brand new bloggers, on how to gain that initial, steady audience.
God bless!
HI Miranda!! SO MUCH HAS CHANGED! It’s insane. I never could have imagined it… I promote mostly on Pinterest so I’m not sure have a STEADY audience, lol but pinterest is GREAT for AN audience!
Hi Carly,
I have been blogging for about 18 months. I am a stay at home mom so time has always been my issue. My blog is going well but I want to take it to the next level. I wanted to apply for AdThrive but need to increase my months page views a bit. I use a scheduler for Pinterest and honestly I am less than impressed. My traffic varies and its frustrating. I just purchased your e-book and hope to come back soon with some results. I am praying this is one of the keys of info I need to take my Pinterest to the next level. Take care and I will be back to update you (and your readers on how this works for me). Hoping to get over that magically 100K PV soon! Thanks- Heather
I REALLY HOPE you see great results from it Heather! Adthrive is awesome and I can’t wait until you can work with them!
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Thanks for this great post! I have a brand new blog and found this very inspiring. Since I’m new to blogging, I found it particularly encouraging to see that a lot of your income was actually through the ads, since I don’t have any of my own products (yet!) to bring in any income.
Ads are one of my FAVORITE ways to earn an income – they are the only 100% passive thing there is 🙂
Wow, I just can’t stop reading through your blog! I found it on Pinterest via post about a clutter. And now I am totally inspired from your income reports. I have a tiny personal blog and I was thinking about that, how people manage to earn money with blogs. Now I got the idea 😉 Thank you for sharing all the amazing information about blogging and other things (like how to conquer mess). Wising you all the best and sending my regards from Slovenia.
SO glad you’re enjoying the blog Irena!!
I wanna keep my blog ads, pop-ups, email magnets free!! Hopefully, people will appreciate that and just donate haha! AdThrive looks awesome but damn there are ads all over on your blog!
IT’s pretttttty unlikely people will just donate, but good luck!
This inspires me to work harder on my blog. I am currently struggling with traffic but I hope to be able to bring in this kind of income one day.
Nice Blog, I really enjoy reading your content
This is all so true. I especially appreciate where you outline how much time you spend on the blog. I only give mine currently twelve hours/week, and most weeks of the year I have done far less. Then I am disappointed when I have such low traffic. There are so many things I have not done yet that need to be done, and as my four boys are now getting older, the excuses are disappearing.. Congrats on all this!
Hi,
Your blog is awesome. I love to read your post. I appreciate you to continue your hard work. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.