Let’s be honest…
Many bloggers who publish monthly income reports are just tooting their horn.
They use those reports as a “hey look at how amazing I am! Here’s a bunch of affiliate links!!! Bluehoooosssttt!!”
(note the non-affiliate link. I only promote products I use or will stake my reputation on)
Am I right?
My goal: I’m publishing ALL my stats (not just income):
- Do You Even Blog is a business.
- I treat it like a business…and businesses publish monthly financial reports.
- I should know. I used to be an accountant 🙂
The purpose of DYEB is to be an open book for income-seeking bloggers…whether through my wins, revenues, or failures.
You need to see the process of growing a blog…not just large gross revenue numbers and affiliate links.
Did I reach my goals last month?
Get 360 email subscribers – Fail! (347, +6% from prior month)
I averaged a few subs per day (purely organic), but had 20-ish unsubscribes during the month. Honestly, I didn’t do anything for list growth during July.
No giveaways, no special promos, no big freebies, etc. Can’t really complain about the organic growth, as it’s only my 2nd month.
NEXT month, however, I need to focus more on this.
Make $250 in revenue – Fail! (sorta) ($104.50 cash, +107% from prior month)…$1,740 in free software(!)
- DYEB Sponsor Income – $95
- Affiliate Income – $10.40
- Tailwind – $1 (hey, if you’re not a user already, my affiliate link grants BOTH of us a $15 credit)
- Snappa – $4.50 (recurring!)
- Jooicer – $4.90
- Software Sponsorships – $1,740
- Mystery Sponsor 1 – $1,500
- Mystery Sponsor 2 – $240
Sponsor income – Believe it or not, I had 2 serious inbound leads, which just haven’t paid yet. Hopefully that’ll come through in early August, and I’ll have 1-2 slots left for people at $135 each.
I also pitched 3-5 people during the month, and 2 of them were “on the fence,” though I’m not going to push them 🙂
(side-note: I had 4 paragraphs where this sentence is…but deleted them. David at Zero Day Finance grilled me w/ questions about being a sponsor before saying “no thanks.” Would you like a glimpse at how I pitch sponsorships? I’ve been thinking about writing a post (or recording a 10-min podcast). Let me know in the comments?
Software sponsors – I’m super pumped about this, but I’m not supposed to share names yet 🙁 🙁
I reached out to 2 different companies in July (One I’ve used the free version for years, the other I just discovered), and bartered with them.
I can’t share details yet, but I was able to snag a free year of the product’s “pro” versions! It’s seriously awesome. I’m providing them a variety of exposure and introductions in return 🙂
So even though it wasn’t cash, I’m thrilled about having pro-level access to these two products.
Receive 1,100 page views – Yes! (2,253, +47% from prior month)
878 users!
My first blog took 9-12 months to see that many page views in a month (and it was only from a Rockstar Finance feature). I’m thrilled people seem to be getting some value out of the site/podcast.
AUGUST is traffic month, however. More of that below…
Other blog metrics
Podcast downloads – 1,219, +140% from prior month(!)
This is huge, and has taught me a very valuable lesson: The Do You Even Blog Podcast is my “one thing.”
Perhaps you enjoy my sarcastic (and possibly snarky) tone and writing style. Hopefully you learn something from the blog…
But…
The podcast is where I’m seeing extraordinary growth and positive feedback. I could not be happier.
Thank you all so, so much for listening. It melts my heart. <3
Facebook Group Growth – 16 (brand new!)
Here’s a question…
What do you honestly think about blogging Facebook groups?
MOST of the groups I’m in are slightly above average. I enjoy groups w/ honest discussions and controlled link spamming…but it feels like everyone is just lurking, ready to post their blog post URLs at the FIRST opportunity they get.
That said, I’ve started my own private Facebook group, with the intention of making it valuable and useful.
There’s just one huge problem…
I have no clue how to do that yet. Join me and let me know?
Pinterest Growth – Essentially none
Even after speaking with 3 Pinterest marketing gurus, I still find myself struggling to drive Pinterest traffic.
There’s no shame in admitting that.
- Things I’ve done: Overhauled my Pinterest profile and board organization, and took a huge leap with my images. Signed up for a pro Tailwind account as well, so maybe that’ll make things easier.
- Things I haven’t done well: Engaging on Pinterest. Before a few weeks ago, I was NOT a user at all. I’m starting from scratch as a complete newbie, so I suspect it will take time to generate solid growth. Also, my pin images still need a LOT of optimization and improvement.
June Monthly Blog Income Report
Money saved through software sponsors: $1,740
Note: I’m back on the ConvertKit bandwagon! Hence the expenses this month.
Next month’s goals and how I’m going to get there:
- Revenue: $100
- Traffic: 3,000 pageviews
- Email subs: 400
How I’m going to get revenue
I will not be focusing on revenue at all in August.
I’ve had a few inbound requests from sponsors, so maybe a few of those will pan out. I’m increasing the price to $135 for a “site of the week” sponsor slot….but revenue is not a goal for me in August.
Content is king.
How I’m going to get traffic
I have 3 guest posts slated for August, and my organic traffic has been increasing steadily. I expect 3k page views to come easily.
Pro Tip: Guest posting takes a long time. There’s a lot of going back-and-forth, pitching, editing, emailing, optimizing, and oh yeah, writing. Don’t be like me and say “oh yeah I’ll just churn out some guest posts this month!” It takes planning.
How I’m going to get email subscribers
2 ways:
1 – I’ve created my first email course, Podcasting for Bloggers.
It’s a quick and dirty email course designed to provide an easy and inexpensive way to get started podcasting. Like, in a day. There’s never been a better time to start a podcast, and it can be an incredible tool for your own blog.
This will generate some subs, converting from normal site traffic.
2 – I’ve created 2 massive content upgrades for my upcoming guest posts. They’re really good, if I do say so myself.
I spent a ton of time on them, and have no doubt the guest post readers will be inclined to check them out.
Those 2 strategies, combined with continued early growth, should allow me to hit the subscriber goals with ease.
Published this month:
- Blog
- Podcast
Final thoughts on what worked and what didn’t.
Things I’m proud of:
My podcast stats make me really happy. DYEB fans are responding, sharing on Twitter and Pinterest, etc. I really think this is my “one thing” right now.
Also, I got “enterprise” and “team” level access to 2 amazing products. For free. I’m proud I was able to barter those deals.
Things that didn’t really work:
I thought Pinterest traffic growth might occur a bit faster, given the improvements I’ve made. But it hasn’t. Gotta stick with it, keep optimizing images, and join more high-quality group boards.
The theme for August:
Publish interviews and drive traffic.
- Publish more deep-dive interviews (PT Money, John Lee Dumas, Brian Dean (hopefully), Sarah Peterson, and ESI Money should be in the queue!)
- Hustle for Pinterest traffic growth.
- Convert guest post traffic into email subscribers via awesome content upgrades.
Please, please leave a comment below! I’d love to hear…
- Do you publish your blog stats monthly? Drop a link!
- What do you feel about blogging Facebook groups?
- What can I teach you about? (seriously. What content do you need? What areas are you struggling with? Want to know more about my sponsorship pitches?)
<3
Pete
