April 2016 Online Income Report – $5,920.53
It’s time to review my online income report from last month. This report only includes income I received from the month of April.
If the money isn’t in my bank account, I don’t put it in this income report. This is the best way for me to track how much money I am making on a monthly basis.
While this isn’t my favorite way to report things, it’s the most accurate.
It’s getting harder to do this because I have been having some great months lately where I’m making more money, but just waiting on the payment.
Some payments take up to 90 days, so it stinks having to wait that long to report how well things are going.
So even though this income report is for April, this income dates back to February.
April was my sixth month freelancing full time. I still can’t believe I quit my job, moved across the country and now work for myself. It’s a great feeling!
Sometimes I feel like I have been freelancing for a lifetime, and other times I am just like, holy crap, am I really doing this?!
A year ago, my goal was to get 5,000 monthly pageviews and had my first blog income report of $61.83.
It’s INSANE how much has changed!
Today I get over 200,000 page views a month and my income is the best it’s ever been. That’s crazy!
The number one question I get each week is how I get so many pageviews.
I tell everyone that it’s 90-95% traffic from Pinterest – which is true.
I’ve figured out how to master Pinterest for my blog and have been helping clients for several months with my Pinterest management company.
I only spend an hour a week planning my Pinterest strategy.
If you want to grow your traffic or start utilizing Pinterest, my Positively Pinterest course details EXACTLY how to grow on Pinterest.
Here’s a recap of some of my online income reports:
- June 2015 online income report $66.10
- July 2015 online income report $515
- September 2015 online income report $1530.94
- October 2015 online income report $3634.28
- December 2015 online income report $4238.99
- March 2016 online income report $5041.85
Here is a breakdown of my online income from April
- $406.05 Ad revenue
- $775 Partnerships/Sponsorships
- $925 Affiliate Income
- $449.48 Side Hustle Book
- $3,365 Freelancing
Grand Total: $5,920.53
This amount is the grand total before I deduct taxes. Right now I am putting away 30% of each paycheck I receive. If I break this down:
- 57% freelance income
- 43% passive income
I think it’s really important to mention that I could be making a lot more when it comes to freelancing. I turn down more work than I’d like to admit. I’ve even added a waiting list for some of my services.
I’ve worked really hard on my passive income just as much as my freelance income.
My goal is to work less and have more passive income in the long run, so I spend a near equal amount of time on my own brand as I do for my freelancing services.
I also turn down sponsored posts because I panic about brands not being a good fit with my brand.
Ironically, when I started blogging my goal was to do more sponsored posts as I thought it would be an easy way to make money.
This is an area I should be making more money, right?! Now I stress every decision I make to make sure it’s best for my company and my readers.
If you’d asked me a year ago if I would be turning down businesses and people wanting to give me money, I would have laughed and said yeah, right!
If you want to keep track of your online income (which I highly recommend) check out Quickbooks! It’s what I’ve used to track business income, expenses, invoice clients, and more.
Random thoughts
One of the best things I have done for myself is reduce my blogging time.
When I first started blogging, I felt this pressure to write a new blog post three times a week.
I succeeded in this for over a year, and wrote around 160 blog posts last year.
This year I changed my strategy.
Now I write one blog post (if that) once a week.
I’m focusing on writing really great content, narrowing in more on my niche and providing better value for readers.
I really stressed this would hurt my page views and guess what – it did the exact opposite.
My pageviews are higher than ever. Instead of relying on a high reader following every time I publish a post, I rely on traffic from Pinterest to get traffic.
This was the best decision I have made for my blog. I’ve reduced my stress level of feeling like I have to publish a post all the time or worry about what to write about.
There is much less pressure now and I’ve freed up several hours a week to pursue projects that make me money.
I’ve said it before – I’m not a writer – so writing blog posts takes me longer than most other people. Limiting myself to one really helpful blog post a week has been the way to go!
Ad revenue
This is my last full month of using Google AdSense and Media.
I switched over to AdThrive, so I expect this number to go down for a month as I transition into a new payment system (which generally means I won’t have an ad payment for a month until I get on the new payment cycle)
Partnerships/sponsorships
I chose not to do any sponsorships my first year of blogging. I wanted to focus on writing good content and establishing myself.
This year I have opened the door to this area of revenue. What’s most surprising is that I have found it much easier to reach out to brands directly than use a third party platform.
Looking back, I probably could have accepted more sponsored posts instead of turning everything down. But I am ok with this decision!
Affiliate income
This is one of the most rewarding areas, but most frustrating, ha! I’ve been working so hard on this area of income.
I went through older blog posts, have worked on updating them with affiliate links, etc. I’m still not anywhere where I need to be and this is something I’m going to be working on the following month.
Affiliate income continues to increase from multiple streams, but it can take anywhere from 30-90 days to get paid.
This income is from February and March. I “made” a lot more in April but since I choose not to report it until it’s in my bank account, I just have to wait to write about it 🙂
Side Hustle Book
At the end of January, I launched my book about side hustling. I’m really excited about this! Aside from the first week of February, I have done very little promotion of this book and still got sales.
This is truly passive income and makes me so happy! Sales were up from the previous month and I love having a helpful product that brings in income.
Freelancing
I provide Pinterest management and image services to clients. This niche is keeping me busy and it’s been really growing the past couple of months.
I recently stopped taking on new clients and had to put up a waiting list. Surprisingly, this has brought me in even more inquiries for help.
I’m still in the process of training my Pinterest VA to help me with more tasks so I can take on additional work.
I’ve definitely struggled with how much control to give up, but right now I’m holding myself back because I just don’t have time to do more. I can’t grow unless I get help.
Fortunately, I spend zero on advertising and rely on word of mouth. I’m really grateful other bloggers and businesses recommend me and that makes me so happy!
It’s hard to complain when I get to spend my days on Pinterest or creating images for blogs and businesses.
At the end of April, I launched my Pinterest Presence course. I share exactly how I run my Pinterest management services, but allows students to go at their own pace.
Editor’s note: This course has transitioned to Positively Pinterest.
The main reason I created the course was because I’m not able to assist every client that wants to hire me and this is the next best thing.
Today I get over 200,000 page views, and my traffic continues to climb!
Consulting
This income report does NOT include any consulting income that I make that is related to my career niche outside of this blog.
Even though this income is made online, it’s not really related to the blog, so I don’t share the income.
I love being able to continue to work in my field of work outside of the blog and Pinterest management company, and it’s a great balance.
I’ve been in the same field of work for around 12 years (eek!) and love it.
Monthly expenses
These are my April expenses:
- $5 Google Apps
- $85 VA work
- $35 PO Box renewal (6 months)
- $73.07 PayPal fees (this sucks!)
- $111 LeadPages
- $29 Teachable
- $79 ConvertKit > Editor’s note: We recommend FloDesk for only $19 per month instead!
Total expenses: $417.07
My expenses were around 8% of my budget. I’m still a DIY blogger for the most part, so I’m pretty budget conscious with my expenses. This was an expensive month for me since I invested in LeadPages and Teachable.
*Please note, I don’t include Tailwind or Bluehost in these expenses as I have prepaid for the year. Tailwind is the scheduler I use when I do all my pinning on Pinterest.
If you are thinking about starting a blog, this tutorial will help you start a blog today. You’ll also get a FREE domain name for a year!
I was able to quit my job and blog full time, all within my first year of blogging. I am really glad I took a chance and started a blog! I invested around $100 to start my blog using Bluehost, and I made $13,000 in 6 months of blogging. That’s the best return of investment ever!
Pinterest course
I am most excited about my brand new DIY Pinterest course.
It’s geared towards bloggers, brands and businesses that are interested in learning how to create better images, effectively use Pinterest and learning how to schedule pins in under an hour a week.
I’ve already been getting feedback from students that are starting to see results and that makes me so happy!
I want everyone to rock Pinterest and drive traffic to their blog, and Pinterest is one of the best ways to do that.
I’ll be going into more details on this in the May income report and can’t wait to share what I learned, how it went, etc.
Are you blogging? Have you started your own website or thought about it? Do you use Pinterest?
Wow!
Thanks for sharing this wonderful story!
It really makes me feel positive as I am also running a Pinterest account and managing a blog from last one and half years. Trying hard to get traffic on it and waiting to see when can I make a few dollars.
Do check my blog and let me know if any changes needed.
Your suggestions are welcome
Thanks
Hi Kristin! This is a very inspiring and insightful read. I’ve been hard at work blogging myself but I’ve only managed to earn a few dollars so far. I would like to start working towards a full-time income so I’m out here doing a lot of reading and researching, hoping to learn a thing or two from people who have made it big in the blogging world. And this post has given me more than one or two insights. Thank you.
Yay, glad to help! Good luck with your blog.
Loved the post. Thank you for sharing
It motivates me to hear success stories like yours. I had a slow start with my blog and I still have a long way to go. Reading posts like these keep me going!
Great job – stick with it!
damn I need to start my passive income thingy soon.. I’m currently growing my pinterest day by day with 1.8k views monthly lol
You should!!
Wow ?
Thanks!
Super proud of you Kristin, Your blog growth and earnings are phenomenal. It’s important to point out that you stick to your game plan even though you only made $66.10 in June. A lot of persons would quit and say it’s not worth it. But look at you today 🙂
Thanks!! It’s been so helpful tracking income reports since the beginning. I think it helps show anything is possible 🙂
This is amazing. I hope to one day get to this level! I started my blog one month ago and am having difficulties getting many views. Thank you for all of this information and all of the information on your other posts as well
Thanks!
This is quite interesting to see that you turned a hobby into a full-time living and helping others along the way. If I can ask, how long did it take you to start seeing serious income from the time you started? I’m asking because I’m trying to get a rough estimate in my mind how long it would take for any content creator to get their site off of the ground with content alone with the consistent mindset of posting daily with Evergreen content. Any and all feedback and suggestions pertaining to content marketing would gladly be appreciated in advance. Thanks! 🙂
Very well written article. It will be beneficial to anybody who employs it, including me. thanks for sharing it.
Thanks!
Thank you for sharing this. I’m just beginning in the world of personal branding and professional blogging despite running a not for profit wellness blog and being a freelance writer for quite some time. Information and inspiration like this are always helpful. ☺
So proud of you, Kristin. All you have to do is keep blogging and inspiring us with your positive blogging energy. How long have you been blogging for exactly?
Great work my dear! I found you via Pinterest and I love what you are writing about. This income report was so helpful! Thanks again for sharing the info!
Oh awesome! Thanks so much for stopping by 🙂
I want to thank you for sharing your report with us. It has really inspired me. I signed up for your free course. I am super excited about it. I am a new fan and now following your blog.
Thanks for sharing such great tips. Its a great help for new bloggers looking for ways to monetize their blog.I am one of them 🙂 Really appreciate your success journey.This is indeed a great inspiration for many in the blogging world.
Thanks so much! Good luck!
Wow. Congratulations Kristin, I hope someday I would reach my goals too. You know, 8 years ago I used to blog just about anything and then I lost my passion for writing. So I stopped. But lately, I’ve been thinking of sharing things I did as a work at home mom. I always have some doubts of starting a new blog, Thanks for making me feel I made a right decision to start blogging again. And thank you for letting me know that there’s more to life than Adsense hahaha!
Thank you for a true honest view of your blog’s growth. So many bloggers just show once they start making a big profit. It is so inspiring to see how the growth is possible and continues to increase each month. I have only recently changed from a free blog into a “hopefully” income producing blog. Still trying to work out the kinks and grow. This post helped me to keep my motivation up and not lose hope as days pass with no interaction. I know it will happen, I just need to keep putting in the effort.
Hey Susan! I totally get what you are saying. I know for me, it was much more helpful to read income reports when bloggers shared their very first small income report instead of a large one. That was a big inspiration for me to stick with it and keep trying! Don’t worry, it takes some time, but if you stick with it, the hard work pays off!
Amazing job! It’s crazy to see how much your online income has increased in one years time.
Thanks Tyler! I know, it’s crazy and super exciting!
Thanks heaps for sharing! I find income reports SO interesting – I’ve just started blogging seriously so yet to make any money, although within the first two weeks of launching our site we’ve had over 2000 page views which is a total personal victory – it doesn’t matter about money! But always good to hear how others are doing it, and what I can aspire to!
Oh wow, congrats! That’s fantastic!!
Thank u so mch dear to inspire me , nd u showed new path for my thoughts.
Thanks Shifanee!
That’s certainly a lot of growth or person who only been blogging less than two years. Kudos to you for staying on course and doing the transformation business work and never giving up in the awesome process of building your business blog from scratch-humble beginnings. Your struggle is felt over on this and because I know what it’s like to create content from scratch using creative thinking and having the determined mindset forge ahead when things look uncertain. Thank you for keeping everyone inspired with your blog success story. Keep doing what you do and keep us posted on your monthly income reports. 🙂
Thanks so much! It’s been a lot of work haha but I knew if I worked hard things would have to work out! Plus I read a lot of other blog income reports and love how diverse everyone’s income is, so I like that there are so many ways to make money online. I would totally recommend for everyone who has been on the fence about starting a blog or website to go for it!
I just started my blog a few weeks ago. I have been wanting to start one for a long time! I am wanting to learn more about pinterest and gaining blog views through it. Thanks for this post it helped a lot! Best of luck
Thanks Morgan! You can sign up for my free Pinterest mini course if you want….it’s a ton of tips 🙂
Your post is inspiring! I am still in the process of mastering Pinterest. I am not getting enough traffic from it yet but hopefully that will change as I learn new tricks each day. Thank you!
Hey Vinma! You have come to the right place for Pinterest, since that’s now what I specialize in 🙂 I have a free training session coming up on 6/25 – you can sign up here to watch! Otherwise do a search on my site for Pinterest and you’ll get some good tips!!
Hello Kristin!
Congratulations on your accomplishments! You’ve grown your blog so much in so little time, which is amazing. I’m a new blogger (barely a month in the business 😉 ), so at this time it may not be a good idea to cut back on my posts just yet, but I’m glad to hear that as time goes you can really zero in on your niche and create dedicated pieces.
Thank you so much for sharing this valuable info. Your income reports are amazing!
Hi Nayeli! Congrats on starting a blog! The first few (several?) months of blogging, I focused on what I wanted to write about, my writing style, and most importantly (for me) was keeping a schedule to commit to blogging each week. It’s a great learning period to figure out what you want to do. You totally got this!!
Kristen!
This is awesome! And a waiting list too! Ha! Nice 🙂
It’s amazing how much Pinterest can help a new blog out. I’m working hard on my new blog to bring in more traffic and it’s working, but slowly. Not sure what I’m doing wrong since I’m using Tailwind, pinning like 100 times a day and promoting the heck out my blog 🙂 (I’m not seeing huge leaps in growth yet).
Oh well, it isn’t a race. Thanks for your inspiring reports.
Thanks Elna 🙂 Are you in my Pinterest course or catch my Pinterest webinar with Allison? I am doing another one on June 25th (details to come) because so many people had more questions about Pinterest. I’ve been getting a ton of feedback from students who are getting growth the first week or two, so try to attend if you can and ask questions 🙂
Congrats, that’s an amazing amount! Thanks for all of the tips too. And I feel your pain with Paypal fees!
Thanks Francesca! There’s gotta be something better than PayPal, right?! I just signed up with Freshbooks, which is supposed to really help cut down on PayPal fees. I’ll be sharing my results in the next income report for sure!
Congrats on the income girl! You’ve been working so hard and it’s truly paying off. I’ve been finding a benefit in writing less on my blog too. I used to post 3 times per week when I started then when I cut it down to twice a week when I started freelancing. Even now, I don’t feel the pressure to put up my pre-planned posts twice a week if my schedule gets crazy and it really doesn’t seem possible. I like to post consistently so as not to confuse my readers but your right, quality does matter more.
Yes, it makes such a difference to cut down on blog posts! I think we all started off blogging a ton to build our site, get a voice, etc., and now we are able to streamline it. It definitely makes things easier with our time!
Thank you for inspiring me! I just started blogging as it is a passion of mine to help others as much as I can. I love stumbling across helpful bloggers that inspire me to get better and to never give up. If you ever visit new blogs and provide feedback I would love it as I really enjoy your posts. Thanks again for the inspiration! http://www.thefrugalbranch.com
Thanks Raynee! Congrats on starting a blog – you are going to do great!
Thank you very much:)
Thx Raynee!