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Hello and welcome to my blog income report series!
Today, I’m going to show you how I made $22,343.23 last month, and $64,612.37 in the last 3 months with my small blog.
If you’re new to Finsavvy Panda blog, you may be wondering what this blog income is about and why I publish these reports.
I started this blog income report series to keep track of my blogging journey as a new beginner and to show you that making money online from home is possible.
It’s my way to have fun testing, experimenting, and sharing with you what worked and what didn’t work.
All my previous blog income reports are a true reflection of the journey and progress of a brand new blogger, me, who started with no experience with Pinterest, any social media platform, or blogging – you’ll know that I’m not lying or exaggerating when you read through my blogging archive. I’m a very emotional and highly sensitive person so I wrote things that truly reflect how I felt and what I did as a beginner.
I started this blog because I wanted to share with my readers how I went from living paycheck to paycheck in a low-income family to growing my income and saving my first $100,000.
I know personal finance and money is a struggle for many people, so I share my struggles and stories here on this personal blog to show how I made extra money on the side of my 9-5 job. This extra income allowed me to save more for vacations, experiences, retirement, and the things I value in life.
I also won’t hide the fact that I started a blog because I thought it would be nice to earn extra money doing something that’s fun, new, and exciting.
From earning extra money in my first year of blogging, this little blog of mine eventually allowed me to quit my job because of the full-time income it generates. I was quite surprised and never imagined this small blog to earn over $10,000 every month in less than 2 years.
Now, I am earning over $20,000 per month blogging from home, which I will talk more about below.
One of the greatest things about blogging is it becomes passive over time after putting in the upfront work.
Today, I spend only 1-2 hours a day maintaining this blog, which allows me to spend more time on things that are more important to me such as focusing on self-care and family – things that I wouldn’t have been able to do if I continued working at my 9-5 job!
Once your blog grows into a more passive mode, you can choose to cruise or continue to grow – it is your personal choice! I personally chose to relax more! 🙂
Start Your Blog and Make Money Online With No Experience!
In the very beginning, when I had absolutely no experience, I told myself that it’s SO cheap to start a blog, and if it doesn’t work out, then so be it. At least I know I tried it without investing a lot of money.
To be honest with you, I didn’t even know what “making money online” meant and the term “blogging” really caught me off guard because the last thing I thought I’d ever do was writing helpful content for my readers.
After I learned that you DON’T have to be a good writer and that you actually DON’T have to draft a blog post every day or week to earn a full-time living with a blog, I signed up on a whim!
I had absolutely NO experience in writing, marketing, tech (I’m still horrible at this stuff), and everything related to starting a blog. BUT I was willing to take initiative and invest my time in learning the strategies of what makes a blog profitable.
You can also learn more about how to start a money-making blog for beginners here in my easy step-by-step tutorial here!
I really surprised myself and didn’t think I’d quit my job after making progress with the blog you’re reading now.
I’m very happy with my blogging progress and I would love to help beginners like you!
How to start a profitable blog: Many readers e-mailed me and asked me what I did to get the results I get. To help you, I created this FREE 7-day e-mail course that teaches you how to start your blog without having to be an expert at what you blog about. There has been a lot of positive feedback from many readers so I highly encourage you to join my free course if you want to learn how to start a blog and make money.
November 2020 Blog Income Report
Wow, I can’t believe Finsavvy Panda is now 3 years old!
The last time I published a blog income report was at the beginning of last year February where I made $7,498.94 in one month from home with this small blog.
I also posted another blog post in the Spring of last year where I logged my progress and showed you how I became a full-time blogger earning over $10,000 per month in 18 months of starting this Finsavvy Panda blog.
During that time, I was a novice and new to the blogging world.
You can find my previous blog income reports here when I was still a complete beginner.
In my last blog income post, I said that I was stopping all my blog income reports because for one, I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to relate to beginners who just started their blogs or those of you who haven’t started yet.
Secondly, creating these blog income reports takes a long time since I am not the best nor fastest writer.
A lot has happened over this time frame and I was pretty darn sure that I wasn’t going to write another income report.
Well, if you know me by now, I am “on the whim” type of person, so I decided to have an update on my blog income.
This is due to the heavy requests and emails I receive all the time from my long-time fans and loyal readers asking to please write another blog income report because you find this very helpful and insightful when you read about my personal experience along with tips and recommendations for beginners.
For the longest time, I made a mistake and didn’t realize that I wasn’t listening to readers who have been following me for a while.
One valuable lesson I learned after 3 years of blogging (that I unknowingly neglected for a while) is that you actually have readers who are very loyal and follow you to the tee, and it’s VERY important to give them exactly what they want!
So, here you go – I am going out of my comfort zone and listening to my readers because I care about those of you who are following me.
Now, before we dive into my blog income and how I made $22,343.23 blogging last month (and overall, over $20,000 per month in the last three months totaling $64,612.37 in a quarter), I want to answer one question I often get from my readers about starting a blog, especially when the pandemic started.
Along with answering that question, I will be providing my top 3 blogging tips for beginners and for those of you who haven’t started a blog yet.
Is it still possible to make money blogging at this time and year (even during the health crisis)?
Yes, you can bet it is absolutely possible to make money blogging at this time and year!
This blog, along with my second blog, is generating a healthy income from home even during the Covid times!
If you followed me in my beginning journey, you may know that I lacked a lot of confidence and had a lot of self-doubts. But that has changed in the last couple of years and I have grown and developed so much as a person all because I started my first blog!
This first blog of mine, Finsavvy Panda, has taught me a lot about myself, along with the endless possibilities of earning an online income, which I wouldn’t have learned if I stayed at my 9-5 job.
The great thing about starting a blog is it’s super affordable and the potential to earn money online has NO limit.
I am SO confident with this blogging idea that I even went ahead to start a second blog in the last quarter of last year – which means my second blog is officially over 1 year old!
Starting another blog was a great way for me to diversify my income and to prove that it is STILL possible to earn an income with a new blog this year and beyond.
My second blog is a great additional source of passive income, which is focused on earning from Mediavine using display advertising along with partnering with affiliates. You can learn more about how to make money blogging for beginners in this post here.
If you are a total beginner, I highly recommend focusing on the basics first which is learning how to make money using display advertising on your blog before you jump into affiliate marketing or creating your own products to sell.
Having ads on your blog is one of the most passive ways to make money, and it is much easier for you, as a beginner, to earn your first income online compared to other monetizing methods like affiliates, sponsorships, and selling digital products.
With my second blog, I signed up for the 36-month basic Bluehost plan here, which works out to be only $2.95 a month.
If you are ready to sign up for a cheap web hosting plan, then you can check out this step-by-step tutorial on how to start a profitable and successful blog for total beginners.
I also documented my experience and all the steps I took to set up my second blog PROPERLY in this affordable ebook called The Treasure Map To Blogging Success in 30 Days. I admittingly made many costly mistakes starting this first blog, Finsavvy Panda, and these are all the tips that I wish were taught to me right off the bat when I first started!
This ebook is perfect for beginners who are brand new to the blogging world and have just started their blogs. It’s also the perfect guide for you if you have NO experience in blogging and not tech-savvy at all.
Despite earning over $20,000 blogging each month, there are things I realized and learned in my 3 years of blogging experience.
Here are the tips I want to share with you.
Blogging Tip 1: Learn and focus on ONE thing at a time.
It becomes OH-SO overwhelming with so many things going on and when different bloggers start talking about their different monetizing strategies.
You become paralyzed and unsure of what to do, or you try to go all-in doing all those different things at once. It’s like trying to chase all the shiny objects that you come across.
Let me tell you something.
It never works when you are bombarded with too much information!
I highly recommend taking it one step at a time and focusing on only ONE thing to avoid inefficiency or stretching yourself thin.
For example, if you’re a new blogger trying to learn how to make money with your blog, I recommend focusing on one monetization strategy at a time.
You can start off by learning how to monetize your blog with ads and stick to testing out that one strategy until you see results and understand how it really works.
Once you feel that you know enough, and you’ve actually earned your first income from ads, then go ahead and learn a different monetizing method like affiliate marketing for beginners.
Blogging Tip 2: Don’t neglect building a solid foundation for your blog
This is another important tip that ties in with the previous tip about focusing on one thing at a time.
Beginners who just started their blogs should really focus on setting up the blog, creating valuable content, and building a proper foundation.
I often see A LOT of beginners neglect this step because many newbies are too anxious to make money fast and they get way too ahead of themselves. Don’t make this mistake!
I know it’s tempting, and you are mesmerized by all the stories about how bloggers are making money immediately in a few weeks or months with their brand-new blogs. That won’t happen especially if you are new in the blogging space.
When you just started your blog and you have NO experience at all, I do NOT recommend skipping the important steps of learning how to set up your blog properly and building a solid foundation for success.
This is what I teach in The Treasure Map To Blogging Success in 30 Days and I highly recommend focusing on building a proper foundation BEFORE you dive deep into learning any traffic or monetization strategies. This is a 4-week program aimed to help you get started on the right foot for success!
The Treasure Map To Blogging Success in 30 Days!
Again, focus on ONE thing at a time. Take everything step by step!
If you are new to blogging, please go through this detailed tutorial on how to start your blog for beginners – these are the steps you should take once you’ve started and registered for a self-hosted blog. This tutorial guide will also show you step by step on how to register your blog.
Blogging Tip 3: Stop chasing for fast and big numbers!
This is something I always try to keep in mind, and it’s very important when it comes to creating a healthy mindset in your blogging journey.
As I’ve always said, I enjoy blog income reports because they motivate and inspire you to make a positive change in your life.
If it weren’t for blog income reports, or hearing stories about how bloggers are able to make money from home, I honestly wouldn’t have been able to quit my soul-sucking job and share my story here. So, I am very thankful and grateful for that!
However, blog income reports can become dangerous when you don’t feel like you’re making progress or generating as high of an income as another blogger. You might start to subconsciously form negative thoughts and think “Is there something wrong with me?” or “are these high-income bloggers hiding something from me?”
As the saying goes… “everything in moderation.”
It’s okay to enjoy reading blog income reports, but don’t be too consumed by it.
I, myself, used to think there was something wrong with me when it felt like I wasn’t making much progress with my blog in the first 6 months of starting it because of all the stories I heard of how bloggers made over several of thousands of dollars in their first or second month blogging.
But I fought my own battle by setting more realistic expectations for myself.
I kept a positive mindset by ignoring negative thoughts and truly believing in the idea that I was going to earn an income with my blog!
No matter what stage you are at in your blogging journey, whether you’re a complete beginner or someone who has been blogging for over a year, I encourage you to keep learning and growing at your pace. The key is to focus on yourself and your goals and not someone else’s.
Monthly Blogging Income Report:
Now is the moment you’ve been waiting for!
Here is my total blog income and expenses for my two blogs in September, October, and November 2020.
Before looking at the numbers…
If you are a beginner, or someone who hasn’t started a blog yet, I want to point out that my expenses were much lower when I started this very first blog of mine. It was even operating on a free theme up until my 2nd year of blogging, which was still generating over $7,000 per month.
This is how Finsavvy Blog used to look with a free and very basic theme and overall, I did not spend a lot at the very beginning.
As a newbie at that time, I invested in this basic Bluehost plan for just $2.95 a month along with a few affordable blogging resources and tools to help me get started.
It’s tremendously important to invest in resources that will help you grow if you want to make money with your blog, but the good thing is it doesn’t have to be expensive at the beginning.
During that time, I was focused on building a proper foundation and learning the basics first!
You can check out my older blog income reports in this achieve here, which is much more relatable for newcomers who want to start a blog.
Now that this blog is earning a steady income, and after learning a lot of new things in the blogging world, I have been re-investing the money I earn back into faster hosting, Virtual Assistant (VA) services, upgraded blogging services, and tools. These are things you don’t need until your blog starts generating more income.
Remember to start small and take your time to learn!
November 2020 Blog Income: $22,343.23
Display Advertising: $5,062.09
Affiliate income: $15,201.95
- Saving money and budgeting resources, survey sites, cash back apps, etc.
- Amazon Associates
- Blogging tools and resources
- Work from home job resources
Digital products: $2,079.19
- The Treasure Map To Blogging Success In 30 Days
- The Ultimate Power-Up Budget Binder
- The Ultimate Blog Booster Binder
Total Blog Expenses: $1,524.33
- Web hosting and paid plugins: $53.20
- VA services, Canva Pro, Tailwind, ConvertKit, advertising, digital products subscription, and transaction fees: $1,471.13
November Blog Net Income After Expenses: $20,818.90
October 2020 Blog Income: $21,258.96
Display Advertising: $4,580.84
Affiliate income: $15,012.77
- Saving money and budgeting resources, survey sites, cash back apps, etc.
- Amazon Associates
- Blogging tools and resources
- Work from home job resources
Digital products: $1,665.35
- The Treasure Map To Blogging Success In 30 Days
- The Ultimate Power-Up Budget Binder
- The Ultimate Blog Booster Binder
Total Blog Expenses: $1,465.33
- Web hosting and paid plugins: $53.20
- VA services, Canva Pro, Tailwind, ConvertKit, advertising, digital products subscription, and transaction fees: $1,412.13
October Blog Net Income After Expenses: $19,793.63
September 2020 Blog Income: $21,010.18
Display Advertising: $4,249.62
Affiliate income: $15,381.29
- Saving money and budgeting resources, survey sites, cash back apps, etc.
- Amazon Associates
- Blogging tools and resources
- Work from home job resources
Digital products: $1,379.27
- The Treasure Map To Blogging Success In 30 Days
- The Ultimate Power-Up Budget Binder
- The Ultimate Blog Booster Binder
Total Blog Expenses: $1,422.86
- Web hosting and paid plugins: $53.20
- VA services, Canva Pro, Tailwind, ConvertKit, advertising, digital products subscription, and transaction fees: $1,369.66
September Blog Net Income After Expenses: $19,587.32
In the last 3 months, I earned $64,612.37 blogging before expenses. $60,199.85 is net profit accounting for expenses.
As you can see, I didn’t earn this much right off the bat. It took time for me to learn and grow as a person, and starting a blog is something I always highly recommend people to do!
Final thoughts on blogging:
Starting a blog definitely allowed me to pay off debt, save more, and quit my day job. It also allowed me to buy things I appreciate and enjoy in life!
Blogging is also very therapeutic especially during the time of today’s health crisis. If it weren’t for blogging, I would have gone nuts because of Covid.
I knew absolutely nothing and even signed up for a blog on a whim and I’m so thankful that I didn’t spend time overthinking too much. If I had researched way too much or tried to prepare to make everything perfect at the beginning, I would have burned out and not taken action. I also wouldn’t have been here today inspiring you to start one too.
And due to my lack of knowledge at first, I truly understand the struggle of a beginner with NO experience. That is why I created and wrote this ebook, The Treasure Map To Blogging Success in 30 Days for complete beginners. It’s the resource I really wish I had when I first started my blog. It’s an inexpensive ebook for beginnings to get started on the right foot who don’t have a lot of money to spend.
Again, I don’t know any other business idea that allows you to start with such a low cost at this time and year other than blogging.
If you haven’t started your blog yet, then the best time to start is now!
If you don’t know where to start, I encourage you to enroll in my FREE 7-day e-mail course here that will teach you how to start your blog and make money.
I hope you found this blog income report helpful and inspiring!
Have a question or comment about blogging? Be sure to comment or ask away in the comment box below, and I’ll be happy to answer! 🙂
Dan
I know it’s probably going to be a long time till I see another income report from you but still, thanks so much for sharing.
Always interesting to get some insight into a bloggers returns through all monetisation streams 🙂
Ling
I’m glad you enjoyed this blog income report!
Thank you for stopping by and leaving a comment! 🙂
JR Fulcher
Hi I have a huge question about this method. As in can I start a different type of page instead of blogging? As of right now, I’m getting about 217k monthly views and it seems to be going up between 10k to 20k every other day. I’m an artist and I post my drawing videos (time-lapsed) and my artwork.
Ling
Hey JR – I’m not sure what you mean by start a different type of “page” instead of blogging? Would you be able to clarify? 🙂
Chris
Hi! I was wondering what affiliate programs you have found the most success with in the personal finance niche. Thank you!
Ling
Hey Chris
It’s not so much of the affiliate program itself. You can make any affiliate program successful on your blog/website or part of your business as long as you know the product very well and it’s something that will help your audience.
It’s different for everyone and each person has their own success with certain affiliate programs.
Personal finance niche is broad and there are sooo many programs out there. I recommend you looking for programs with products that you actually use and understand. It could be a credit card you always use, an investing related product, opening a high-interest savings account, an investment account, budgeting apps, etc. You can find many on places like Aragon premium, CJ, impact, shareasale, etc.
The more you know and understand the product as well as understanding your audiences’ needs and wants, the better your chances of converting them! You have to keep in mind that every blog (even though it’s the same niche) are likely to have different audiences. It’s not always exactly the same and that’s where I see people have this misconception thinking that just because one blog is able to promote and convert on a certain affiliate product, they think they’ll be able to do the same. I made that mistake before and learned that it’s not always the case so it’s best to choose the products you understand and stand by 100% to see great results.
I hope this helps! Feel free to let me know how it goes! 🙂
Laura
Hi there Ling,
I hope you are well 😊
I love your blog and how real and genuine it feels! I found it whilst scrolling on Pinterest and I felt like it truly depicted the type of blog I would like to have!
I have had mine for about 5 months and I am coming super close to the last month where I HAVE TO make a sale on Amazon, otherwise my associates account will close 😱
My questions are therefore about how to get that first Amazon sale?!?!
How did you do it before your 6 months were up??
Did you just review one product?
Did you focus on several??
I am really at a lost 😮 and would just absolutely love your expert advice and suggestions please!!
Many thanks, Ling!!
Really looking forward to your reply 🙂
Laura
Ling
Hi Laura!
I am very happy to hear that you enjoy my blog and that you find it genuine. Thank you so much for your kind and encouraging words! It’s always nice to hear from great people like you! <3
I understand how it feels to be close to that timeline where your affiliate program expires prior to making your first few sales.
When applying to affiliate programs, I recommend reviewing their terms to see whether or not they will kick you out if you don't generate a sale within X days or months. That way, you can hold back from applying until you feel more confident about your traffic. No, or barely any traffic with no strategy will likely result in no sales especially for bloggers who are new in this space.
In your case, I highly recommend you review a few of your top blog posts to see where you can fit in a genuine and helpful product from Amazon that will help your readers.
To be honest, worse comes to worst, you can reapply to Amazon and start all over again. It's not the end of the world! I know many people who have done that and that didn't stop them from becoming successful with affiliate marketing using Amazon.
When it comes to implementing affiliate marketing for beginners, I recommend focussing on a few products before moving on to more products. That way, you don't feel too overwhelmed and it allows you to learn more about your audience and the products you are promoting. Once you feel more comfortable, go ahead and add more to diversify your income stream.
Let me know if that helps! 🙂
Maria
Hi Ling,
I just came across your blog and am so inspired by your story. I am in the process of starting my own blog and noticed you have the foodie pro theme (which i love) which I believe costs $75. I have saved up some money to start my blog so the cost is not an issue. However, I am not super tech savvy. Would you recommend starting with the olsen them or the foodie pro theme? Thank you!
Ling
Hi Maria!
That’s awesome to hear that you’ll be starting your blog!
The Olsen theme is a basic and free theme with very limited customization. If you’re looking for more customization options and better support, you can invest in a more premium theme. Neither theme requires any coding knowledge, so you are good to go for no matter which one you choose. Just keep in mind that free themes provide just the basics. From my personal experience, most of my readers prefer investing in a paid theme because it allows them to make more changes and tweaks compared to a free one.
You’re right that the Foodie Pro theme is $75, however that is just the theme itself. When it’s your first time installing a theme, you’ll also need to purchase what they call a “framework” for your theme. Without this framework, your theme won’t function. You can think of the framework as the foundation for building your blog, and the theme is the cosmetic appearance where you can play around with the design such as colors, fonts, sidebars, etc. Think about a house with a support foundation (the framework), and the paint and decor are the cosmetic appearances (like a theme). You only need to buy the framework once, and when you have that, you can purchase as many different themes as you’d like in the future.
This is the page for the Genesis Framework + Foodie Pro theme package here which is $129 for the bundle. It’s the package I purchased for my blog you’re reading here. 🙂
I am not techy at all, but I was able to navigate with both themes because all I do is use the customization features they provide. If you don’t really mind how your blog appearance looks and you can go by with just the basic, you can stick with a free theme for now. However, if you want something that looks better than the basic, go for the framework + theme package.
Let me know if this helps! 🙂
Hannah
Hi!
I’m just starting my blog, and I of course am nervous. I don’t know that I’ll be able to make money off of it. I want this to be my full time job because I enjoy writing.
I launched my website but it is definitely still a work in progress. I also am working on my first post with affiliate marketing included. I’m just not exactly sure I did it correctly.
But, I guess a big question I have is- How do I get traffic to my blog/social media? I’m starting from scratch and don’t have followers.
I am confident I can do this, I’m just having a rocky start.
Thanks so much,
Hannah
P.S. If you would like to check out my blog, it’s secondchancew.blog
Ling
Hi Hannah
Congratulations on starting your blog; and it’s okay to feel nervous – everyone does when they are a beginner. 🙂
I took a look at your blog and your theme looks good and easy on the eye. I think you can use some more blog posts, so continue building content.
I don’t usually recommend beginners to look into affiliate marketing yet because without any traffic, there isn’t any point. Most beginners focus on learning how to drive traffic before they look into any monetization strategy.
Just like you, I started from scratch and had 0 followers but I was still able to learn and grow all because I got started on Pinterest. I recommend considering Pinterest as a traffic source because results tend to be quicker than other methods like Google SEO. This is especially true for those who are new to blogging.
I also have a post here that gives you an idea of how I use Pinterest to get traffic and make money with my blog:
https://www.finsavvypanda.com/how-to-make-money-on-pinterest-for-beginners/
You can also learn how to set up your Pinterest business account here if you haven’t already.
I hope this helps and I am really excited to see you build your blog into a full-time income! 🙂
Peterson
Hi Ling,
I am just getting started with affiliate marketing. What are some of your favorite companies to work with? I just started with ShareAsale, Flex Offer, Adbloom. I also signed up for Impact but really trying to figure that platform out.
I do understand that I should promote offers that I trust and put the link inside blog posts that are relevant.
What’s advice would you give a beginner affiliate marketer who is looking to earn at least $5k a month from affiliate marketing.
Ling
Hi Peterson!
Two of my favorite companies to work with are Impact Radius and Shareasale because of payment options and the ease of payment to your bank account. I find these two are more on time and I have a positive experience with the affiliate managers under these networks. Plus, in my own personal experience, less tracking error compared to others!
I recommend beginners to write content that is helpful to an audience before placing affiliate links. When you’re writing your content, don’t think about the affiliate first; instead, think of how you’re going to help the reader and then see where you can make natural recommendations. I made several mistakes as a beginner but by keeping this in mind, it was a total game changer! I also recommend starting out with a few affiliates and get comfortable with them before you add more.
I hope this advice helps and I’m excited to see you reach your goal of $5k per month with affiliates! Let me know how it goes! 🙂
Dalia
Hi Ling,
That is so inspiring!! Thank so much for sharing and for answering to so many comments.
I started blogging in your same niche last September. I still have a long way to go.!!!
I follow you on pinterest and love your pins. Usually they get a lot of impressions.
Thank you
Ling
Thank you, Dalia!
I just checked out your blog and it looks like you’re making really good progress with your content especially about your real estate story, so keep up the great work!
Glad to hear you love my pins! 🙂
Jane
OMG Ling!! This is AMAZINGGGGG!!!! Congratulations! Hey, it’s been a long time since we last talked! Happy New Year to you!!!!!!
Ling
Hi Jane!!! Thank you!
It’s so nice to hear from you! I hope you and your family are doing well! And Happy New Year to you too! Hope to talk to you soon. 🙂
Kari
Hey Ling! I’m so glad to read you’re doing so well with your blogs! I aspire to make even a fraction of this.
Ling
Hi Kari – thank you! It’s so nice to hear from you and I hope you and your family are doing well! I am very confident and know you can do this too! I am really looking forward to seeing your blog take off! Keep me posted. 🙂
Tun
Great info! Thanks for sharing your blog income report!
Sid
When I’m working on a post for my blog, I find myself doing other things like changing the fonts, trying to figure out how to add categories, or scouring the recommended sites for visual media.
All of these side actions sort of take me away from getting the content complete and ready for publishing. I fall into this rabbit hole A LOT.😒
I understand how important it is to get 5-10 posts written before anything can really happen with my blog. With that being said, I’ve come to realize that I may be nervous about my content in general.
I believe I have some anxiety about whether or not people will find the information I’m writing about helpful or if they will even like reading it at all. Therefore, I subconsciously fiddle with making the blog “look pretty and perfect” instead. 😔
I have all of the will, the want, and the desire in the world to do this. I faithfully work on it any time that I can spare.
I know getting the posts published is the first step of making the blog a success. However, I can admit that I’m getting nowhere fast like this. 😞
Any advice?
Ling
Hi Sid!
What you’re going through is totally normal! Many other new bloggers including myself when I first started felt the exact same thing.
I remember fiddling around WordPress and I was so confused and overwhelmed. No matter how easy or user friendly a platform is, it will still be foreign to any beginner. But the good thing is once you start navigating around and playing around with the functions, you’ll get used to it. For the most part, drafting a post and publishing is what you’ll most likely be using once you get the basic menu set up and install the few necessary plug-ins.
I totally understand that you want your website to look “pretty” and “perfect.” It’s what most beginners strive for when they first start their blogs! The truth is, your blog won’t look perfect like a professional unless you are tech savvy or hire a designer to do it for you. The pre-made templates are there for most beginners.
This is where a lot of new bloggers get confused because they visit another bloggers website and see that it looks all pretty and glamorous – so perfect!
I was caught up with that too… But I eventually gave up on that design part. I realize that what I needed to do was get my content ready, publish it, and learn how blogging really works. The most important part is getting your amazing and helpful content out to your readers.
That meant not dwelling too much over the look of my theme because for one, I am not technical.
I installed a functional still nice theme for a minimal and simple feel that looks clean. I set up my pages and created my posts and learn things that are NOT related to the design or theme. I told myself that once I start earning an income, I will hire somebody to re-create the theme for me because this is not my area of expertise.
And truthfully, most of the bloggers earning an income that you see has hired a professional or somebody to do it for them unless they are tech savvy themselves).
My first blog theme was very basic and I was running on a free one that was basic and still had great with traffic and generated a very healthy income. It still looks clean, modern and user-friendly despite it not being what I wanted exactly. People who are browsing on the mobile can’t even really tell the difference.
One big mistake I see beginners make is they spend too much time on the look of the blog, choosing a font color, trying to get some thing on the side and putting up a nice menu. This can lead to burn out and frustration. This is not necessary for total beginners.
As for the content part, nobody starts off writing the best or the perfect post. We all cringe at our first blog posts (I’m still embarrassed of my older ones but I’m like… eh… 🙈). It’s how we learn and develop! Yes, you can always go back and update them. Improve them, beef them up.
I also promise you that people aren’t going to notice anything wrong with your posts. It’s more of a personal and self-conscious thing. Take it from somebody who is one of the most sensitive people in this world – me haha. So don’t be embarrassed about it. I know you are going to do great and everything will be alright! 😊
Sid
Hi Ling,
Oh my gosh! Thanks for the support. Ever since I read your reply I’ve been able to write non-stop! My confidence in my content may not 100 percent, but it’s good enough to get me writing lol. Thanks a bunch 😃
Tend
Ling, thank you for this amazing blog post. It was really helpful. If you don’t mind, can you please answer my questions:
1) Is it totally safe to use Pixabay/Pexels/Unsplash images on the blog? I am asking this because I have read about several other bloggers who got copyright issues by using their images on Youtube videos. (This is the reason I am scared of using their images). Did you ever have any kind of issues when using their images?
2) Currently, do you use any paid image sources? If yes, then from where? — I would love to know because if I shift to any paid sources in the future, I would love your recommendation.
Ling
Hey Tend
I’m glad you find this blog income report helpful!
Before I answer your questions, I want to make it clear that I’m not a lawyer or legal expert. I also don’t provide legal advice, so I recommend you to do research or hire a legal professional.
So, generally, yes I would say it’s safe to use these free stock images. Many bloggers use them all the time for their blogs/websites, Pinterest along with their social medias but I would double-check a few things before you actually use them. You can read this article here for some tips.
For paid images, I recommend Depositphotos. For my pins, I am using Canva Pro (a subscription) which gives you access to them as well.
I hope this helps! 🙂
faryal
Hey Ling,
I wanted to ask you if that’s alright to promote a product or service which you haven’t personally used but have done the full research about it and that product/service is good
Ling
Hi Faryal
It’s definitely OK to promote a product or service that you don’t personally use as long as you know who your audience and readers are, and that it is something you truly believe will help them.
In my honest opinion, though you can research about a product or service and not use it, I personally find it much easier to recommend something that I personally use because when I talk about the product, I am confident about it since I have a direct personal experience with it.
At the end of the day, there is no right or wrong way of recommending a product or service. Both methods can work great. It really depends on your audience and how you personally feel about it.
I hope this helps! 🙂
faryal
Thank you so much Ling!
John
Hi Ling! I was stunned looking at your monthly report! Congrats!
As a beginner, we can’t apply the Mediavine to monetize our blog.
Do you recommend a small blogger like us to monetize our blog with Media.net instead? Can you pls shed some light?
Thanks!~
Ling
Hi John!
Thanks! 🙂
I definitely recommend beginners to apply for either Google Adsense or Media.net for the experience but read what I wrote in the below before actually applying. An alternative is you can wait until your blog reaches 10,000 monthly pageviews and apply for Monumetic.
One beginner asked me about applying for display advertising and this was my advice to her when I saw that her blog didn’t have a lot of content yet:
“If your site isn’t set up properly yet (e.g. no pages, no published content, no images, not optimized, just doesn’t look ready, etc.), then I don’t recommend applying for any display advertising on your blog yet. I often see a lot of beginning bloggers get very anxious and ahead of themselves. And when they blindly apply for Google Adsense or Media.net without focusing on building their blogs properly and writing quality content, they end up getting rejected from displaying ads on their site.
Also, you’ll want your domain (the blog) to age a few months before applying because your blog will be too new and they may reject you for that reason too.
The good thing is… as you let your domain sit and age, you can focus on building a strong foundation for your blog along with writing quality content for your readers. By the time you know it, you’ll have a good collection of blog posts, your pages will be set up and your blog will be ready to go!
Overall, your site should also look polished and user-friendly.
Advertisers will review your site and if it doesn’t meet up to their expectations, they won’t allow you to place ads.”
I hope this advice helps you too!
Lina
I hope you have been doing well and staying safe! I took your advice and just went for it. Today I decided to publish my website I don’t have much content on there yet but I hope that is all going to fall into place little by little. I am a bit nervous this can go one way or the other. If you don’t mind me listing some questions I’ve thought of you can answer whichever you believe you have an answer for me I’d love that!
Question 1: How do you keep up with publishing content?
Question 2: Is there at any point that you have reached that it feels like there is nothing more you can write about?
Question 3: What helped you run the most traffic to your website?
Thank you Ling!
Ling
Hey Lina
I hope you are well! It’s also great to hear that you’ve published your blog!
Here are my answers to your questions:
1. I always recommend beginners to publish consistently when they first start. It doesn’t have to be every day or every other few days as that would be overwhelming. You can publish as little as once a week (and this is what I did when I first started), but of course, the more content you have at the beginning, the more “free” time you’ll have later on. Think of putting the upfront work today to reap the benefits months and years down the road! Today, I publish a new post only once a month, but if I’m in the mood, I can create more. The great thing about starting a blog is you can work on it at your own pace and at whatever speed that makes you feel comfortable. I’d say once a week is a good goal to aim for when you’re new, so you can spend your other time learning!
2. I used to be afraid of running out of ideas of what to write about, but once you start writing a few blog posts, you’ll realize there are actually A LOT of things you can write about – you’d be surprised! To tackle this, you can write down 5-10 blog post ideas and check them off as you go. One blog post idea will lead to many other ideas! You can also think about things you want to learn and it will prompt you to read more about those ideas and write down what you learned.
3. Learning how to use platforms like Pinterest to bring in readers in addition to learning how to rank on Google searches. 🙂
Ankush Saurabh
Hey Ling!
What you’re flying as a blogger. And without any doubt, you’re one the reason why I started blogging. And yes you said it correct mainly blogs doesn’t fly due to issue in their basics. Thanks for your blog income report. And looking forward to reading your next report. Do post them regularly?
Thanks
Ling
Hey Saurabh!
Glad to hear that you started your blog! That’s exciting!
I am focusing more of my time on self-care and spending time with the family, so I may not have time to consistently publish blog income reports. On top of that, there are many new things I am still learning in the blogging space, so I enjoy spending that time exploring new things I haven’t tried yet. However, I am “on the fly” type of person, so when there is something I feel will add value to readers, I will definitely share it. I went out of my comfort zone to publish this one because I’ve been getting requests from many readers for a long time.
I hope you see great success in your blogging journey! Feel free to let me know how it goes! 🙂
Larry
Hi Ling, congrats on your great success! Looking forward to more growth
Was wondering when it comes to Pinterest for growing traffic do you recommend focusing on group boards or tailwind tribes?
My traffic has gotten stuck the past couple of months and was wondering where I need to focus more.
Thanks and congrats again!
Ling
Hey Larry
Thanks for your kind words! 🙂
If you’re brand new to Pinterest with a new business account and don’t have a lot of followers yet, it doesn’t hurt to get onto a few high-quality niched group boards and collaborate with a few members.
I know many bloggers will tell you that group boards are not effective in getting traffic but I think it can still be beneficial for bloggers who just started using Pinterest with less than 100 followers. From my experience, new Pinterest accounts may not get as much traction yet, so you can try leveraging off 2-3 group boards to see what result you’ll get (again, I only recommend this to new bloggers with new accounts).
HOWEVER, I HIGHLY recommend focusing on creating your own personal boards that are relevant to the topics you write about on your blog so you can pin them to those boards. Pinterest has prioritized personal boards over group boards.
As for Tailwind Communities, this may help increase your traffic if people in those communities share your pin, so make sure your pin design is nice and catchy. I still upload some of my pins in Tribes/Communities but I haven’t prioritized this task compared to focusing on my personal boards.
Another tip is to check your Pinterest analytics to see which boards and pins give you the most impressions and/or click-in rates and adjust your strategies based on your analysis.
I wish you success on your Pinterest strategy!
Let me know if this helps! 🙂
Larry
Thanks Ling!
I really appreciate the insight because it’s somewhat confusing as the older posts (I always look at the date since Pinterest seems to change quite a bit) keep saying group boards is “where it’s at”.
Then the more recent ones seem to say they LOVE tribes and get tons of traffic.
But then I keep hearing people say focus on your own boards (including TW and Pinterest reps).
Question #1
Am I right in assuming that by focusing on your own boards you’re trying to rank better in the search?
I read somewhere that most people find stuff on pinterest via search (#1) then homefeed (#2), the rest are quite smaller in terms of % breakdown.
Question #2
In pinterest analytics, am I correct in assuming that I’ll be pinning more on high impression & click rate boards?
What do I do with lower ones, should I “shore them up”, (not sure how) or just leave them by the wayside?
Thanks again! I’ll apply your suggestions out and tell you how it goes.
Ling
Hey Larry!
Yeah, in the past, Pinterest Group Boards helped bloggers get massive traffic back to their blogs. However, Pinterest now prioritizes the pins you save into your personal boards, which is why you should focus on them. It’s important to keep up to date with any Pinterest changes and follow what the Pinterest reps are saying. Nothing ever remains static, so it’s important to be alert with any updates no matter which platform you’re using. 🙂
To answer your questions:
There are many factors that increase the chances of your pin ranking on Pinterest searches that even a single blog post won’t be able to cover this topic. As a first step, if you haven’t yet, I recommend learning more about Pinterest Keywords, and how to use them, to help you create content to rank better.
I personally don’t delete boards just because they don’t perform as well as my stronger ones. You can still pin in them here and there so they remain active though not as active as your stronger boards. It’s always good to have a variety so you can rotate your content and have many relevant boards to pin to them.
I hope this helps! 🙂
MaryKate
Hi Ling, thanks for your positive and supportive posts. You’re a dedicated cheer leader.
I haven’t started a blog yet. I like the idea but I can’t figure out what to blog about.
How do you make money if you don’t have a product or service to promote.
Is it possible to make money blogging about advice; opinions or ideas; maybe making observations about trends?
Thanks,
MaryKate
Ling
Hi MaryKate!
Thank you for your words!
It’s totally normal for a beginner to not know what to blog about (I was in that same position once) and this worksheet here will help you get started. It will allow you to answer some questions and brainstorm ideas. I also include a sample of my own worksheet to give you examples on how to answer those questions.
In this step by step post on how to start a blog for beginners here, I also have the following sections, so definitely go through this too while answering your worksheet:
Step 1: Choose a profitable niche
Step 2: Deciding what to write about
I always recommend beginners to focus on writing and delivering valuable content that’s helpful to their readers first before promoting a product or service. You can still make a great income (including a full-time income) by using display advertising on your website and most beginners start off by doing this without having to promote a product. This will give you experience before you learn other different monetizing strategies. I also go through how beginners can make money blogging in this same blog post here under the section of “Step 10: Make Money Blogging”. I talk more about making money using display advertising in that post.
You can earn an income blogging by giving advice as long as it’s something that people are seeking after and it solves a problem (I give examples of this in the article I linked above). Your advice, opinions, and ideas all need to focus on the reader and how it can help them whether it’s a “how to” do something type of post or an inspirational/motivational post that motivates them to take action to solve a problem they have.
In regards to making observations and trends, I’m not sure which niche you’re speaking about, but if you decide to start a blog about fashion, nails, beauty, latest gadgets, and technology, etc. (things that are constantly changing every season, time, and year), then yes, this will matter and it’s important to know the latest trends.
On the other hand, if you decide to start a blog in spaces like crafting, personal finance, travel, recipes, etc., then you may not need to keep up with the trends as often as those that are constantly changing. HOWEVER, no matter what topic you decide to blog about, you’ll still need to make observations and know what’s current. It’s always important to keep up to date on any changing season or trend in that particular niche or industry you’re in.
Let me know if that helps and feel free to let me know if you have any additional or follow-up questions! 🙂
Yvonne C
Can I check which affiliate area gives you the majority of your income? I‘ve always wanted to start a travel blog, but with covid 19, I don’t know if this will bring any results.
Ling
Hi Yvonne!
You’ll see the affiliate section in this post where I broke down the income. I mentioned that my affiliate income is a mix and comes from saving money and budgeting resources, survey sites, cash back apps, Amazon Associates, blogging tools and resources, as well as work from home job resources. These will vary and may change due to traffic and seasons, so it’s important to diversify your affiliate income and not become too reliant on one. When one goes down, others go up, and vice versa.
You’ll also see a breakdown of my previous affiliate earnings from my archive of past income reports here when I first started my blog. These reports are much more relatable for beginners.
With covid, travel blogs are down in traffic but the good thing is you can use this opportunity to create content and get them ready once the health crisis recovers. It’s best to build on something that you anticipate will recover and do well in the coming years.
I hope this helps!
Dori
Hi Ling,
Congratulations on your continued success. Hard work does pay off! I’m so happy for you! Your posts have been quite inspirational to me and I thank you for that.
I started my blog last year this time, but I have had so many doubts about myself and where to start and what to do. I have signed up for different courses, watched tons of youtube videos, and to say I’ve been overwhelmed would be an understatement. I have found the tech aspect the hardest for me. It has been such a huge learning curve.
I have had a pinterest account for years for myself to save ideas on my different boards, but it wasn’t until last year when I started my blog that I switched to a business account and see analytics now on it. I still don’t understand how that works to be honest. I posted a few posts, three to be exact, which then I deleted, and went through some indentiy issues with the blog when I changed the domain name a few times, and bought different themes. I know I made mistakes for sure. Can you feel my desperation? Lol.
I am very hopeful and believe I will make it one day, especially having honest people like yourself who say it like it is, it gives me a lot of hope.
I put the blog idea on the side for a lot of this year, as I let my fears and doubt take over.
I started back again about a month ago, and have been determined to learn as much as I can to get things moving again and produce some content. My focus is a lifestyle blog with three main areas food, home decor, and wellness. My biggest holdup at this moment has been the picture situation when it comes to the recipes I post.
The pictures I have taken are inside my house in my gross old kitchen and the lighting horrible. It is so off and not professional looking since I use my iphone for the pictures, and whatever light I have in my kitchen. I also cook at night since that’s when I do most of the cooking for my family.
I am so self conscious about the pictures, and knowing that Pinterest is image driven, I feel like who will click on my amateur pictures I have from my recipes? I know and believe that what you say is true, that even though there are other bloggers out there who are pros and have been doing it for a long time, or their pictures and videos are just stunning, there will be people out there that want to hear my voice, my story. That alone has given me a confidence boost and belief that I can do it one day. Also our financial situation is dire since I am on unemployment and it ends next June, so I am petrified, but also determined to make it work fingers crossed.
Do you have any suggestions or advice for someone like me in regards to my lack of confidence when it comes to posting recipes that have pretty subpar images in comparion to the professional looking ones? Also where did you learn the tech side yourself? Did you follow any youtube channels that guided you through the tech aspect side of the blog?
I am so sorry for the long comment, I am just desperate and I need to make this work for my family.
Thank you so much in advance,
Dori
Ling
Hey Dori!
I’m glad you find my posts inspirational – thank you for your kind words! <3
I just took a quick look at your blog and overall, your theme and layout look great so far - I'm very surprised that you say the "tech" aspect has been the hardest part for you because it doesn't look like it at all! You should give yourself a little more credit for your work! 😉
I am personally not tech-savvy and I don't know a single thing about coding (even 'til this day), and you will never catch me watching any YouTube videos that explain technical stuff b/c I would fall asleep in 10 seconds lol!
I started my blog on a very basic pre-customized theme (it was a free theme too called Olsen Light) and played around with that theme on WordPress when I was a beginner. I only learned the minimal things like typing my content into WordPress, inserting images and captions, and interlinking my blog posts (just like how you would use MS Word or Google Docs). Once done, I hit publish, and WAH-LAH! Lol!
One mistake I often see is that many beginners get very caught up with trying to make their blog perfect especially with the theme - that's where things can get technical and overwhelming when you want to customize the look and want functions that go beyond the pre-made themes.
When I started off, I did not put much thought into the "aesthetics" or appearance of my blog because I know I would dwell and never be satisfied with the "look" unless I hire a professional to do it for me. Keep in mind that bloggers with a flawless and professional-lookinng website are either tech-savvy, or they hired someone to design it for them. That's where beginners get confused and think they need to create a blog that looks perfect right off the bat.
I told myself that once I understand the foundation of what makes a blog profitable and once I earn an income, I would upgrade my theme, or just re-invest the money I earn and hire a website designer to re-design my entire site. I also chose not to get involved with any coding because I know that would be a disaster for me! Those are "extras" that are optional and beginners don't need all of that.
What I recommend beginners to focus on is creating valuable blog posts for their readers in WordPress (again, imagine typing your blog posts on Google Docs), choosing images (from free resources like Unsplash.com), and interlinking their related blog posts. I go more in depth with building the foundation for beginners in this ebook here.
When you are familiar with navigating WordPress, then focus on learning traffic strategies by using Google or Pinterest. Once you build that foundation and get the hang of things, you’ll find yourself learning other aspects of blogging more easily.
As for the recipe images, I recommend moving your dishes closer to the window where more natural lighting comes in and try taking the picture from different angles to see how it looks. That lighting from the sun can make a huge difference! I also recommend staging your table and dish to make it look pretty for the picture. 🙂 You can also learn how to use a photo editor to enhance and photoshop those pictures.
I can feel that you are very determined at starting your blog and making it work out and I have no doubt that you will start seeing great results once you implement and learn the strategies that make a blog profitable.
I was also not confident at all during the beginning stages of my building my blog, but over time when you learn one thing at a time and choose to focus on your strengths, you’ll start to build more confidence!
I know you can do this too, Dori! Feel free to keep me posted and let me know how it goes!
Dori
Hi Ling,
I cannot thank you enough for your thorough reply! Wow, I am so honored you read my very long comment and touched on all my concerns. That speaks volumes to me. God bless you!
You make a lot of sense with everything you said, and I will implement your advice in all the areas of my struggles.
I have done the pictures by the window or in natural light, but like I said I do most of my cooking at night so that’s why it’s been hard that way, but I will need to get creative and think of other ways to making lighting better.
I am definitely wasting time trying to make everything look perfect. I will focus my energy more on getting great content out that will be helpful vs. imagery.
I will for sure keep you posted and hopefully I have success with my blog in the coming year.
Thank you, thank you, thank you Ling!
Happy Holidays to you and your family.
Warm Regards,
Dori
Ling
You’re welcome, Dori! ❤️
The best thing about blogging is you only need to write that post once and it will have the potential to generate income for you over the months and years! So, if you can manage to find a time when you can cook during the day (maybe during a day off or staycation) just to take that one photo of your dish, then that will be perfect!
Alternatively, you can look for paid stock photos that closely resembles your dish. I’ve seen many food bloggers do that too when they don’t have time or don’t know how to take a pic, but of course your own is always the best!
I wish you all the best and I can’t wait to hear more about your success!
Cindy
Hi Ling! I was wondering what social media platforms do you use to promote your blog. Do you recommend only using Pinterest? As for Pinterest, do you use a manual or Tailwind strategy that you learned from a course or an e-book?
Congrats on your success! You truly deserve it! Many people think blogging is easy, but it’s much more complex than it seems. I started a blog recently and I’ve been struggling a lot with writing good content. I just feel like nobody will ever want to read it, that’s why I’ve been interested in how to promote my blog!
Cindy
Ling
Hey Cindy
Thanks for your kind words! 🙂
When it comes to getting your blog content out there, I usually recommend Pinterest because it’s more of a search engine rather than a social media. I also recommend learning how to rank on Google searches when you have time, but definitely focus on one platform at a time and don’t try to force learning everything. Learn how to master one thing before moving onto something else. So, the only two sources I recommend are Pinterest and Google for now.
I do manual pinning using the Pinterest scheduler. I have taken a break from Tailwind for a while but may get back to it depending on my mood.
Writing good content that is engaging is vital but it’s okay to not have it perfect the first time. As you learn, you will grow with your blog, which means you can always go back to your blog posts and make changes to beef them up down the road.
There will be people who want to read your content as long as it’s something that helps them solve a problem. Plus, I realized that you will also find who your true audience is overtime when you get the hang of blogging and engaging with your readers! 🙂
Let me know if that helps, and keep me posted!
Savannah
Hi Ling! Thank you for sharing this updated income report! It gives me hope! I started my blog back in August and your ebook helped me set up my blog! It’s been 5 months now and I am still struggling to get traffic and I’ve made exactly $0 and spent quite a bit on lots of different courses. But I can’t seem to get any traction on Pinterest. I only get a handful of visits to my blog each day and I just don’t know how to increase that. I have Tailwind and was posting around 15 pins per day, only about 2-3 of my own. But it seems Pinterest has changed a lot recently and everyone says something different about it. Most recently I watched a Youtube video from a blogger and she said she reached out to Pinterest and got a message back saying basically to stop posting other people’s pins. I’ve also read that Pinterest wants fresh content and that means new pins; but then recently in a Facebook group, someone mentioned that Pinterest said they wanted fresh content and that consisted of a new link never posted to Pinterest before. So I’m just lost and not sure how to move forward with Pinterest. As a result I have been trying to focus on SEO but I know that will take a lot of time. Thanks again Ling for all you do! Savannah
Ling
Hi Savannah!
I’m glad to hear you found my ebook helpful and I’m very ecstatic to hear you say this gives you hope – you should feel hopeful no matter what! I definitely know that feeling you’re going through and my advice is to always remain positive and believe that you can do this (even if it means having to be stubborn… I am very stubborn when I see something not working out for me)!
Based on what you say, it sounds like you are learning A LOT and are on the right track with your Pinterest game. The time that you pinned only 2-3 of your own pins may have been a result of lower traffic (and remember, Pinterest is a long-term game), but it’s good that you are aware of the 15 pins a day of your own pins now. I do agree that as of the Pinterest update, you should be prioritizing your own pins and saving them to the most relevant board first. Pinterest support told me the same thing too. And yes, consistent fresh pins have been vital for over a year.
I’ve heard about the fresh content and the new link too, but I’m not stressing too much over that part because Pinterest can’t expect content creators to pump out long and valuable content daily AND create new + engaging pins at the same time. That’s asking for a little too much now and people will definitely burn out!
There’s a lot of conflicting information out there, and it’s confusing, but listen to the ones that were told to you directly by Pinterest. Do take it with a grain of salt and follow the Pinterest strategy that works best for you. Given that your blog is still very new, and you are brand new to this, it’s not abnormal to feel that your Pinterest isn’t getting much traction – that’s literally how I felt too when I was at your stage, lol! But, again, stay positive and continue implementing what you’ve learned from the courses you paid for. Once you figure out and find your way to break that traffic threshold, you’ll be on your way to earning your first income. It’s a long-term game and I really really do believe it just takes time for things to pick up.
You can also learn SEO on the side too as long as you feel that you know enough Pinterest to keep going with your current strategy. I also recommend testing different pin titles and images, along with template designs, and compare to see which one yields better results.
Let me know how it all goes!
Savannah
Thank you for the encoragement Ling! Will do!
Skye
Hi Ling,
So inspirational, as usual! Thank you for your post and all the details and questions answered. I launched my blog live mid November, 2020. I use Tailwind and Pinterest in an attempt to drive traffic to my blog, and the traffic is very, very minimal. I understand, since I just started using Pinterest. I set up an opt in form on my site using Mailchimp, but can’t set up the automatic emails because I don’t have a P.O. box and don’t want to use my home address. I feel like the little traffic I have from Pinterest is going to waste because I’m not capturing those users’ email addresses. Is this the case? Or is it okay to not have an opt in form on my site right now? Is it okay to not do anything with that traffic while I build my content up? I only have 5 blog posts so far. Thanks!
Ling
Hey Skye!
That’s great to hear that you’ve launched your blog a month ago – congratulations on the recent launch! 🙂
Given that your blog is only 1 month young, it’s not surprising that your traffic is still very minimal. This is very normal and expected!
I have confidence that you’ll be able to drive traffic to your blog over time once you create more content and learn the proper Pinterest traffic strategies.
I know you hear a lot of bloggers encourage you to start collecting e-mails on Day 1, but I personally don’t recommend this especially when you are totally new to blogging. Learning how to build and engage with an e-mail list is a separate thing (it’s literally like a course on its own and requires you to nurture them on a regular basis). This may be challenging when you are still at the beginning stages of trying to create content and set up your blog on WordPress.
I followed the advice of other bloggers about collecting an e-mail list along with creating a free opt-in form when I was still very new to blogging. Looking at hindsight, I regret collecting emails that soon because I realized at that time that even when you collect a list, you NEED to know how to communicate and engage with them. This is something I recommend learning AFTER once you have more blog content along with some experience building your blog and gaining some traffic.
About your P.O. Box. question, I am using ConvertKit and I know they allow you to use another address (they provide you with one, so you don’t have to use your own home address).
And no, that is not going to waste just because you’re not capturing their email, especially when you have very few blog posts right now.
I recommend you to focus on building content and learning how to engage with readers on your page first. I also encourage you to continue to learn how to use Pinterest. I always encourage my readers to take things ONE step at a time and to not overwhelm themselves with too many things because all those additional things become a distraction and will stray you from focusing and mastering that one thing.
So, yes, it’s okay to not have an opt-in form for now and come back to it later once you are a little more experienced! 🙂
I hope this blogging advice helps!
Naazneen khan
Hey Ling!! As a beginner, I have posted a few pins on Pinterest!! Just asking when will I be able to earn money? I guess analytics is quite good!! It would be great if you answer 😊 please check out the images!
Ling
Hey Naazeen
Have you started a self-hosted blog yet?
I highly recommend investing in a cheap hosting plan with Bluehost. That way you can start creating content and make your own pins and promote your blog content using Pinterest and the analytics it gives you based on your Pinterest business account – it’s free to use and sign up for.
Many people ask me if they can start earning money immediately just by pinning a few pins on Pinterest, and it doesn’t work that way. Making money with a blog will require you to build it and get some traffic first.
I always recommend beginners to start a blog and write valuable content for their readers first. Once that’s done, then learn how to use Pinterest, create pins, and save them to Pinterest to get traffic. Once you get traffic back to your blog, you can apply to place ads on your posts and make money online. Keep in mind that learning how to get traffic and applying the proper Pinterest traffic strategies will take some time before you start seeing results.
I have many blog posts that talk about this and you can learn more here:
https://www.finsavvypanda.com/how-to-start-a-blog-and-make-money/
https://www.finsavvypanda.com/how-to-make-money-on-pinterest-for-beginners/
https://www.finsavvypanda.com/category/blogging/
In my free 7-day e-mail course on how to start a blog, I also teach beginners how to start their blogs so they can earn their first income. 🙂
I hope this helps!
Laura
Hi Ling!
I signed up with Bluehost for the 36 month plan, but I am a little confused on how to install WordPress. Do I have to do that through Bluehost? Thanks for your help!
Ling
Hi Laura,
You first need to log into your control panel here and click on “My Sites” tab from the side navigation menu to the left.
Next, you can click the “Create Site” button on the top right. And finally, you can click on “Start Building” button followed by entering your admin information to install your WordPress.
There is more info on this page here on how to enter your admin information. You’ll be on your way to installing WordPress on Bluehost!
Let me know if this helps! 🙂
Cy
How much traffic on average are you getting per month now? Is the majority of that traffic from Pinterest? How did you learn to make such incredible pins that stand out?
Ling
Hey Cy!
Traffic goes up and down and it varies depending on the season and algo changes. In general, this blog has over 100K monthly pageviews from Pinterest. I get some love from Google but haven’t really focused much of my time in that space as much as I’d like to. I do enjoy Pinterest a lot more than Google – it’s just more fun for me lol!
As for pin design, I am using Canva and I enjoy playing around with it during my free time. Most of the learning comes from trial and error – tons of experimenting with color, images, and titles. I recommend using the Canva Pro because it gives you a huge library of better quality stock photos compared to the free ones, which makes a huge difference to your pin design. What I noticed is no matter how well a template is designed, if the picture doesn’t speak to the pinner, or if it’s low quality, it may not get clicked into as much. But of course, your title and your audience matter too!
Hannah
Hi Ling! How are you doing? What are 2 great digital ad companies that we as new bloggers can start off with putting on our Blog for monetizing it?
Happy Holidays,
Hannah
Ling
Hey Hannah!
Happy Holidays to you too!
When I first started my blog and didn’t know a single thing about making money with a blog, I applied for Google Adsense. This is a great start for beginners to gain experience and learn how to make money with ads on their blogs. But if you are a total beginner with no experience, I highly recommend focusing on setting up your blog properly first and creating a good collection of content first. This is something I teach in my ebook here, Treasure Map To Blogging Success in 30 Days. I also have a chapter about making money with display advertising for beginners in the ebook.
I never recommend new bloggers to dive straight to applying to put ads on their website without building a foundation and setting up the blog correctly first. That’s because advertisers can reject you right off the bat when they see that your blog doesn’t fulfill their standards. This is one mistake I always new bloggers make when they get too anxious to apply immediately, and I hope they read this to avoid it.
Also, you may want your domain name to age a few months (while building and focusing on building quality content) before applying because your blog will be too new and they may reject you for that too.
Once you gain more experience and understand how to get a good steady amount of traffic to your blog, I highly recommend applying for Mediavine for ads – as of Summer 2020, they require you to have a min. sessions of 50K monthly to apply (roughly 60K monthly page views). An alternative is Monumetric, which requires 10k sessions, but I never used them before.
So, definitely start small and learn as a beginner by applying for Google Adsense first as a baby step. But remember to focus on building a quality blog! 🙂
I hope that helps!
Olivia
Such great info! I’ve had a photo biz and blog for years but never monetized. I wonder if it’s better to start from scratch?
Ling
Hi Olivia
If your current photo business and blog still have an active domain and you’re still on a web hosting plan, then you can work off of that – but make sure it’s a self-hosted blog and not something that’s “free” like blogger because those free sites will be extremely tough to work with advertisers and monetize. It is always the best idea to just pay for an affordable web hosting plan and work with that.
If you want to start a blog in a totally different area not related to your current business, then it’s a good idea to start from scratch! 🙂
Let me know what you decide to do! I’m more than happy to help.
Ankush
Hey ling!
I really enjoy your blog income reports, so much to learn.
I have a few questions if you can help:
1. For Pinterest, when you create a fresh pin, to how many boards you are saving it and with how much interval?
2. I am struggling with Pinterest, my fresh pins getting like 1-20 impressions. I used to get 1k plus impressions. Yeah old account. Hows your fresh pins performing
Thanks
Ling
Hey Ankush
I’m glad you enjoy my blog income reports!
There isn’t one magical solution that works exactly the same for everyone but here are my answers:
1. At this point, the maximum I’d save a pin to a different board is up to 5 or 6. I don’t follow an interval when it comes to “re-pins” or “re-saves” – these are pretty random and on the fly for me, but if I choose to repin certain pins, I make sure I don’t re-save them to more than 6 different boards.
2. I’ve heard there are bloggers who are seeing 1-20 impressions on their fresh pins, which is low and unusual for fresh pins especially if it’s happening consistently and all the time. Have you tried writing new content and pinning those brand new blog posts out? If you have been publishing new content, but still seeing low impression on your fresh pins (both directing to older posts and new posts), I recommend contacting Pinterest support and ask them if there are any issues with the account. They can do some investigating for you. Also, it’s not guaranteed that every single one of your fresh pins is going to get high impressions (Pinterest algorithm has its random ups and downs), but if you start getting over 1K impressions for some of your fresh pins – though not all – then I wouldn’t worry about it.
I hope that helps. I wish you success with your Pinterest game! Feel free to let me know how it goes! 🙂
Eyong
Thanks ling. It’s been a long time so far. I engage in an online business but it was not successful, so this time I will like to start my blog but I don’t know what niche to blog on or what to write about. Please help. Thanks!
Ling
Hi Eyong
That is exciting to hear that you would like to start your blog!
In my step by step guide on how to start a blog for beginners, I have a section where I listed several of profitable niches that you can consider starting your blog on:
https://www.finsavvypanda.com/how-to-start-a-blog-and-make-money/
You can find this under “A LIST OF PROFITABLE BLOG NICHES” section of that article and it’s followed by a guidance on what you should blog about.
On top of that, to help my readers determine what to blog about or what niche to choose that will best suit their interests and abilities, I encourage them to ask and answer these 3 questions to get them started. This will help you narrow down your choices:
1. What are your interests? What topics are you excited to learn about? List 3 blog topics you enjoy.
2. What do your friends and family compliment you on?
3. How will your topics help your readers?
Here is an example of my personal answers when I started my blog. This will give you ideas on how to answer your questions and determine your niche and what to blog about:
1. What are your interests? What topics are you excited to learn about? List 3 blog topics you enjoy.
– Refurbishing furniture and home decor
– Personal finance tips, frugal living, and budgeting
– Self-improvement, development and self-care
2. What do your friends and family compliment you on?
My mom and dad tell me I’m good with managing my money. My friends tell me the same. They also say I’m creative and that I’m crafty. Some tell me I’m good at flipping small furniture pieces and decorating homes that are small spaces. I have friends who also tell me I’m good at motivating and comforting people around me.
3. How will these topics help your readers?
– Giving inspiring ideas on refurbishing furniture and home decor ideas to people who struggle to make their homes nice and cozy on a budget.
– Help people who struggle with saving money
– Motivate and inspire people who have low self-confidence
By answering these questions, it will get you thinking about the skills you have, and/or what topics you’re interested in writing about.
I hope this helps you start your blog and determine your niche and what to blog about!
Flaminia
Congrats, Ling! I have enjoyed reading your post, always very informative, a true guide for beginners like me! I’m sure your second blog will do great 🙂
Happy holidays
Flaminia
Ling
Hi Flaminia!
I’m glad to hear you enjoy reading my blog posts. And yes, the second blog is doing great!
I can’t wait to see your blog take off!
Happy holidays to you too! ❤️
Jenna
This is the post that I needed to give that push to start my blog!!! I’ve always wanted to start a blog and have been dragging my feet for almost a year now. I read so many blog income reports but they didn’t push me to start. Yours is different… it shows a real progress that you started from nothing and now you’re here! Thank you for your transparency and honesty!!!
Ling
Hi Jenna
I’m glad to hear that this pushes and inspires you to start your blog!
I’m very excited for you and I can’t wait to see you launch.
Let me know if you have any questions about blogging and I’ll be happy to answer!
Alex
Hey Ling, your blog is very admiring and has been such an inspiration to me.
I am still working on my blog, not launched, and I’m hoping it comes together soon making some income so I can earn a full time income blogging. Hopefully, I will get to where you’re at one day. Lol
Congrats on your success!
Ling
Hi Alex,
That’s awesome that you’ve started your blog! I wish you the best and success to come with you and the blog in the new year!
Thank you for your words!
Feel free to let me know if you have any questions in your blogging journey. 🙂
Marc
Ling,
Congrats on the growth of your blog! I’m glad to see you’re doing so well.
Ling
Thanks Mark!
It is nice to hear from you. I hope you are well and staying safe! 😊
Hannah
Hi Ling! Thanks for the update! Will do!
Happy Holidays,
Hannah 😇