Meet Ashli:
lifestyle blogger, 2 years in, making $5000+/month
Q: First, tell us a little about you and your blog income journey –
when did you start, what do you blog about, how much time do you put into it etc. I understand that you’re not blogging about blogging, so talking about your income in specific numbers is something you might not do – but IF you’re willing to share how much you earn on average in a month, we’d LOVE to know.
A: I’m Ashli. I’m a mommy of a sweet little boy, wife of a soldier, and full-time blogger (among many other things.) I started my first blog, The Million Dollar Mama, in August 2016. For the first 6 months, I spent every single spare moment I had working on my blog. I’m talking around 50 hours a week, which included staying up until all hours of the night, waking up super early, every nap time, etc. I no longer share my online income reports, but I make a full-time income from my blog (if you’re interested in my old online income reports, you can read them here.)
Q: Why do you think your blog is able to make money when so many others aren’t? What have you done differently?
- Contrary to what a lot of people recommend, I started my blog specifically with the intent to make money online. So from the very beginning, I had that mindset, and viewed my blog as a business.
- This meant that I immediately got a self-hosted blog, a premium theme and invested in blogging education.
- I set myself a goal that I would work my ass off for one year, and if I wasn’t making $1000/month from my blog, I would reconsider if blogging was for me.
- I not only took online courses, I implemented what I learned from them.
- I was willing to constantly change things up, without having my heart set on certain things. I’ve changed my blog design many times, I’ve created tons of different opt-ins, changed my pin designs, writing style, etc. If something’s not working, I’ll switch things up.
- I don’t waste hours in blogging groups on Facebook. While there are definitely some valuable ones (like yours!) I think it can be very easy to spend too much time talking about blogging without actually blogging!
Q: What was your biggest hurdle to earning an income with your blog… and how did you overcome it?
A: My biggest hurdle was probably figuring out how people actually make money. I knew that people did, and I’d heard of things like “affiliate marketing” but I didn’t know how it all worked. I overcame this by investing in my education.
Q: Can you share you best advice for how to make money with a blog?
A: My best advice for how to make money with a blog would be:
- Always write your posts with monetization in mind. Of course, you can write journal/diary style posts if you want, but you can make money from a post if it’s not monetized. So that means, always have a relevant affiliate product/your own product you can recommend to readers, or use the post as a way to funnel people to your email list.
- Don’t be afraid of ads. It’s fine if you don’t want them, but honestly, most people don’t even notice ads anymore because they’re just so used to them. Ads are a very easy way to monetize, because they’re just there, you don’t have to do anything. You can start with places like Adsense or Sovrn, then apply to Mediavine or AdThrive once you reach the threshold.
- Don’t just focus on Pinterest – search engine traffic is much more valuable when it comes to both ads and affiliate conversions.
(Note from Carly: Ashli makes most of her income on Amazon, up to 10k per month! Learn her Amazon affiliate strategy here!)
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Thank you so much for letting me share my story!
Hi Carly!
Thank you so much for this massive post! I’ve read (and re-read) many of the pages.
One thing real quick. I tried to pin from one of the pages (Paul’s page particularly) but an error occurred. It said it couldn’t find any pinnable images whatever that means. Would you like me to create pins for each page for you. I could use pins that already match your brand or you could check out my pin template designs (for free) and tell me if you like any of them.
I’ll ask again on the facebook group just to make sure. 🙂
ah, yes, i haven’t made images for all the pages yet… lol.
Time is a bear. (pinnable images are SUPER IMPORTANT, do as I say, not as I do 😛 )
This is such an encouraging post! I am an interiors blogger and have been at it for two years, and have made peanuts. I was beginning to think there is no way to monetize this blog niche, but I just need to tweak some things and keep looking for the right formula. Thanks!!!
There are LOADS of ways to monetize interior design!! It’s huge – don’t quit!
Yes! It always seems like those who make money blogging are blogging about blogging. It’s one of the reasons I really enjoy reading your income reports based off your mommy niche. You’re definitely a huge inspiration, and I can tell you’re extremely sincere and honest!
<3 Thank you!!! I REALLY do try to keep it real ;) lol
Hi there,
I really enjoyed and appreciated that you share your story in this article. There nothing like hearing people who are succeeding in there business venture.
So again thank you so much for sharing and all the best.
So glad you enjoyed it!!
This is just what I needed to read today. I honestly come back to your blog anytime I am going through a challenging task or having low page views. It’s so inspiring to see what a little creativity and tenacity is doing for other people’s lives. I hope one day I could be one someone’s list as a success story too. Thank you for writing this detailed post! It made a huge impact on me and is helping through a slower summer blogging month.
SO GLAD you enjoyed it Olivia!
Hi Carly, awesome to hear we can actually make a living from NOT blogging about blogging. Hoping to prove you right with my parenting blog. Thanks for sharing!
I hope you prove me right too – it absolutely IS possible girl!
Hello Carly, as always I love reading your posts. Its so true if you stay focused and dedicated making money in any niche is possible.
I am about to start blogging for profit. I have seen Bluehost and Siteground mentioned in a few blogs including yours. In your opinion which is a better host and why?
Hi Carly! I’m a new mom blogger and I have to tell you, your posts and resources have really given me the confidence (and more importantly the knowledge) to be a blogger. I have zero traffic yet, But I’m working hard on implementing, and I just wanted to say thank you for everything you do. <3
If you have a second to peek at my blog, I'd love your feedback, good or bad 🙂