We’re back for the March 2018 blog income report. Otherwise known as my Blogress Reports. I started this blog at the beginning of July 2017 and have since committed to blogging and building a digital business. This is really for me to document my blog’s progress, set new goals, inspire others, and hold myself accountable. No turning back now, it’s on the internet.
***Please note I do not plan on sharing income received from services I provide as my other side hustles. This is strictly blogging income. There is a lot of supplementary income to be made these days, but this will only detail the money I see from my blog.***
Reports like these are exactly what built up my confidence before ditching the 9-to-5 and pursuing a life I love. Creating a passive income stream might not be easy, but neither is limiting your income to the time you spend in a chair. Amirite?
You might think I’m crazy (most people think I am), but if I can share a little optimism for struggling moms like me, then I’ll be happy! I want to reassure hardworking newcomers of blogging possibilities and how fast (or slow) things can grow.
But most importantly, I want to document my strategies and figure this whole game out. This is my way to keep track of what works, and what definitely doesn’t.
moving on…
Since my January Blogress Report was finished at the tail-end of February (it was a busy month – ha!), I totally skipped February’s. I didn’t mean to! But I made a big move on March 1st, and I’ve been doing a THOUSAND THINGS ever since. GOOD things.
Personally
I had moved to New York from Florida in order to be closer to my husband while he is going to school. Our baby had a tough time adjusting, and the benefit of being close to him ended up backfiring. (We were driving him crazy lol! And my time was in high demand as a nanny for our young cousins.) It was a great time and all, but it was a trial run and it didn’t work out in our best interests.
Being home with the dog and baby is exactly where I belong! Which I knew, but I’m hardly averse to change. I love a challenge! (That should be my motto. I guess it is now. #rebrand)
My husband came home for Spring Break the week of St. Patrick’s day, so we didn’t spend too long apart. I’m pretty good about making sure we don’t go longer than 3 weeks without seeing each other!
Professionally
I invested in Elite Blog Academy. (!!!)
It was a steep investment at $897, and I had been talking myself out of taking the plunge for a long time. After all, I quit my job to blog so money has been in short supply. The crazy part is, I upgraded my enrollment because I was already planning to go to the ACTIVATE Summit in Orlando. Since it’s practically in my backyard, and I’m like a serious blogger lol. Let me know if you’re going too! I don’t want to sit by myself hahaha.
But I figured – it’s not WHAT you know, it’s who you know. And I was in a sorority in college. ~It’s a common thread that binds you~ And I wanted to join the ranks of some of my favorite bloggers with a mutual affiliation. (and learn as much about blogging as I possibly could)
There was a secret sale last year, it was just not the right time for me. I couldn’t justify spending the money at that time. And I regretted it. I quit my job less than a month later! I wasn’t going to miss another opportunity, no matter how hard I tried to talk myself out of it.
Just so you know…
I have been very pleased with the course so far. It is definitely challenging, which is what I hoped for. It is unlike every other course I’ve invested in. It’s in a league of its own. I have been working hard to follow the steps and not skip a bit. It’s made my blogging efforts feel very disorganized since the unit I am currently working on doesn’t even touch promotion or email. I’m trying to stay consistent with my prior workflow, but I’m more determined to focus on EBA. Sooooo I’m pinning a little less and spending a lot less time creating graphics or opt-ins.
The Stats
Income: $207.12
Ad Income: $171.02
Affiliates: $36.10
Page Views: 21,384
Instagram: 1000 // 1270
Facebook: 78 // 83
Pinterest: 500 // 643
Yay! I definitely credit this growth to my Pinterest profile widget which I include at the end of my most trafficked posts.)
Twitter: I don’t even know where I was at (I’m going to try to get better at these). As of today I’m at 351!
I am happy with all of this since my marketing efforts have been minimal! It’s nothing like my 88k in January, but I can’t say I’m upset. That was just lucky!
Overall, that income was ENTIRELY PASSIVE. There was really no work from me, other than half-assed Pinteresting.
Goals
Keep on keepin’ on with EBA! I’d like to finish the unit I’m in and move on to the next one. I don’t even know how long to expect that one to take me.
My husband and I have a goal for him to become my slave. Once I reach a certain dollar amount in blog revenue, then he will start working for me. I’ll have my first employee and free labor haha! That alone is motivating me.
I’m making a goal to post at least once a week (and maybe throw in a bonus post each month
Improve my social media presence
I’d like to schedule posts on Facebook and Twitter just to say I’m active there lol. I’m using the manual pinning method from Carly’s book. It’s been awesome and I give it credit for getting me to 1.2 million Monthly Viewers (before the algorithm change and my love affair with EBA). If you want a cheap and easy Pinterest Hack, check out her book here.
Instagram – reaching for 2000
Facebook – not my top priority, but I’d like 100 “likers”
Pinterest – going to 750!
Twitter – let’s say 400 followers (fingers crossed I keep my phone away from the baby long enough!)
Takeaways & Tips
This past month has been very busy taking on EBA. I lost a week (#SB2018), but I’m happy to be working hard here on da blog! It feels good to love what you do!
My advice to new bloggers:
Invest in yourself. It pays to know what you’re doing. When I think about how much I spent on my college degree, it only makes sense that I would put some money into building my blog. Because let’s be real, they don’t teach this stuff in school.
It’s allllllll about the title. Maybe you noticed my Pinterest images aren’t just advertising my “income report”, they’re focused on the passive income aspect. Successful blogging is less of a web log than it is a resource for your audience. And my audience wants passive income and a chance to ditch the 9-5 for family (and other things that don’t suck).
Subscribe to stay in touch and watch how this game goes! Also – free stuff.
swaley says
HELLO I WOULD LIKE TO START MY OWN BUSINESS SO THA I CAN BECOME FINANCIAL AND TIME FREE, SP=OPLEASE IF YOU CAN HELP THANKS.