We will receive a commission if you make a purchase through our affiliate link at no extra cost to you. Please read our disclosure policy for more information.
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.
UPDATE: You are also welcome to check out the essential blogging lessons here that I’ve learned, along with a review of how I generated $27,689.76 for the month in my latest income report. Additionally, I will be updating the “Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)” section at the end of this post to address all your questions and comments about blogging, including those pertaining to my blog income reports. I encourage you to leave a comment or pose a question – I’d be more than happy to help you in your blogging journey!
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. You can see my previous blog income reports here:
- March (My 3.5 years of blogging and last income report) – $27,689.79
- How I Blog Full Time and Earn A Six-Figure Annual Salary – $120,000
- February – $7,498.94
- January – $6,790.93
- December – $6,840.01
- November – $5,532.13
- October – $4,798.01
- September – $4,509.50
- August – $2,797.61
- July – $703.57
- How I Made My First $100 Blogging with Display Ads
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 banking job (which made me anxious and depressed) because of the full-time income it generates.
I was quite surprised and never imagined this small blog earning 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 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 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 basic Bluehost plan here, which works out to be only $2.95 a month. That’s an upfront investment of only $36 for the entire year, which is 60% off regular pricing!
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!
UPDATE: I’ve updated this ebook (version 2.0) from 180 to 380 pages, and it now includes new chapters like ‘How to Skyrocket Your Traffic’, ‘How to Properly Use ChatGPT to Write a Blog Post That Fits Your Personal Style and Voice’, ‘How to Use Affiliate Marketing to Monetize Your Blog’, ‘The Secrets That Pro Bloggers Are Hiding About How They Make Money with Their Blogs’, and so much more! I highly recommend you check it out and see what other bloggers have achieved by following my strategy!
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:
The time has arrived that you’ve anticipated!
I’m going to reveal the total income and expenses for my two blogs during the months of September, October, and November. But before we dive into the figures…
For those just starting out or yet to begin a blog, be aware that in my early days, my blogging costs were considerably lower. In the beginning, I managed my first blog on a free theme, and it wasn’t until the second year that it began earning more than $7,000 each 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 very important to spend money on things that help your blog grow if you want to earn from it. The good news is, it doesn’t have to cost a lot at the start.
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 my blog consistently makes money and I’ve learned much about blogging, I’m putting the earnings back into better hosting, hiring a Virtual Assistant (VA), and improving services and tools for blogging. You won’t need these things until your blog begins to bring in more money.
Remember to start small and take your time to learn!
November 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 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 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!
FAQs About My Blog Income Reports and Blogging Questions in General
On a daily basis, I receive many questions about blogging from bloggers, students, and readers. Some are beginners, and some have been blogging for a while but aren’t achieving the results they desire. So, I decided to answer some of these questions in the FAQs here, which allows me to spend less time responding to each person individually via email. If you have any questions, please post them in the comment section below, and I will provide my honest answers to help you achieve your blogging goals.
Most of the questions I receive are related to starting a blog, making money, or getting traffic. For those, I recommend you to visit my other posts below that will help you:
- How To Start a Profitable Blog and Make Money
- How To Make Money Blogging For Beginners
- How To Use Pinterest For Blogging
- How To Get Traffic From Pinterest
- How Long Does It Take To Grow on Pinterest?
1. What is the income report from bloggers?
A blog income report is like a behind-the-scenes peek at the money stuff – it shows you the cash coming in, what’s going out, and what’s left over from a blog. Usually, bloggers will also share a bit of their journey – like what they’ve been up to that month, what’s been hitting the mark, and what big dreams they’re chasing for the future.
2. How much do you earn per 1,000 views on blogging?
The equation for earning money through ad displays on your blog is directly proportional: more traffic equates to higher earnings.
Payment from ad networks for bloggers is usually based on RPM, or revenue per 1,000 page views. Therefore, an increase in your traffic generally means an uptick in your revenue.
Keep in mind that your RPM isn’t a fixed number – it can swing up and down based on a whole bunch of stuff. We’re talking about the type of content you’re creating (your niche), what time of the year it is (hello, holiday shopping season), what’s hot at the moment (trending topics), and how the economy’s doing (boom times vs. not-so-boom times).
Where most of your readers are located (their geographic location) matters too, as does the value of the keyword that’s getting your page to rank. And let’s not forget about who’s serving up your ads (the ad network you’re working with). So yeah, there’s a lot in the mix when it comes to your RPM.
But in general, you might earn anywhere from $5 to $50 per 1,000 page views.
To illustrate, if your blog attracts 100,000 page views per month, your earnings from display ads alone could range between $500 and an impressive $5,000 a month. A more typical estimate, however, usually falls somewhere in between – let’s say between $2,000 to $3,000 per month for 100,000 page views.
3. Can you make $1,000 a month with a blog?
Yes, it’s certainly possible to make $1,000 a month with a blog.
Let’s consider this scenario based on our RPM discussion: If you manage to secure an RPM (Revenue Per Mille or 1,000 page views) of, let’s say, $22 – which is a reasonable figure for many niches – then you would need roughly 45,500 page views per month to generate $1,000 purely from display ads. However, as I mentioned earlier, ad earnings will largely depend on factors.
Beyond display ads, you can also diversify your income streams through other avenues such as affiliate marketing, sponsored content, and the sale of your own products and services. I always encourage my readers to diversify their income streams, as this strategy can increase their chances of reaching that $1,000 per month goal without being wholly dependent on display ads.
4. Can blogging be a full time job?
Absolutely, blogging can indeed become a full-time job.
In fact, there are many bloggers who manage their blogs as their main source of income. I am an example of this myself – I’ve turned blogging into a full-time career and it’s currently earning a six-figure annual salary. You can learn more about my personal story in one of my other posts where I answer this question more thoroughly — Can blogging be a full-time job?
However, it’s important to remember that successful blogging requires your investment of time and effort. It involves consistently, taking initiative, having a positive attitude, implementing effective blogging strategies, staying up-to-date with the latest trends in your niche, and developing and maintaining strong relationships with your readers.
On top of that, to earn a substantial income from blogging, diversification of revenue streams is key so you aren’t heavily reliant on one single source. I made the mistake of being too dependent on one source and my income experienced a temporary fall in the past. Again, diversity can include display advertising, affiliate marketing, sponsored posts, selling products or services, and more.
So, while blogging can definitely be a full-time job and provide a great income, it also calls for dedication, strategic planning, and a willingness to adapt and learn continually. With these elements in place, it can be a very rewarding and profitable career.
5. What is the average income of a blogger?
According to one source, the average annual income for a blogger is approximately $73,199.
However, I would caution against relying on figures like these as average earnings because they can vary greatly for numerous reasons.
Here’s the thing: millions of people start blogs, much like millions of people start businesses. Unfortunately, many don’t succeed, not due to lack of capability, but often because they didn’t make the necessary investment in terms of time, effort, or energy.
And then, there are those who put in a ton of time and energy, but their hard work doesn’t hit the target because they didn’t put their money or time in the right places, like decent resources or investing in ebooks, resources, or courses. So, if you ask me, the secret sauce to nailing it in the blogging world – just like with any business – is about making smart moves with your time and money, and sticking with it even when it feels tough.
So, you might hear that the average blogger makes around $73,199 a year, but don’t take that as a promise. What bloggers make can vary big time. Some might not make as much as they would in a regular 9-to-5 job, while others are earning six-figure or even seven-figure salaries from their blogs.
At the end of the day, what you earn from your blog comes down to how much time you’re willing to put in and how good you are at strategizing your content.
6. I have multiple interests like fitness and skincare. How should I choose a blog name that reflects all my passions?
I get a ton of questions every day from my readers who are totally stuck on what to blog about. They have loads of interests that don’t exactly mesh together like budgeting, cooking, fitness, skincare, gardening, fashion trends, you name it.
Just the other day, one of my subscribers hit me up with this question when she was starting her blog:
Hey Ling, I have a question for you: I plan to write about both fitness (which is my profession and my education) and also skincare (which is also a huge passion of mine). Should I keep the name FitbyMary for my blog to be cohesive with the domain name? And do you think I need to add anything about skincare in the name, or just keep it simple like it already is?
Here’s my answer, and I hope you guys find this helpful for any similar situation when it comes to choosing a blog name that reflects your passions:
Choosing a blog name that reflects all your passions can be a balancing act.
I think in your case, FitByMary is simple, memorable, and totally nails the fitness vibe, which is awesome!
I know it can be a bit tricky to weave skincare into a blog that’s all about fitness, especially when they don’t seem related. But if you’re committed to blogging about both fitness and skincare, how about considering a name like “FitAndGlowByMary”?
Or, if skincare is a huge passion of yours, think about starting a skincare blog instead with a name like “GlowByMary.” The great thing about skincare is you can totally still blog about fitness and exercise since they’re actually part of a good skincare routine! It’s a known fact that exercising and staying fit are great for your skin. Plus, you can also chime in about nutrition and foods as they are super important for skin care.
Just sharing my thoughts and opinions as a skincare enthusiast myself!
Regardless of what you choose, the most crucial thing is to make sure your blog content is neatly organized into categories or sections (e.g. fitness, nutrition, skincare, etc.), making it easy for your audience to navigate through your topics.
If you’re set on blogging about fitness and skincare on your blog, I’d suggest focusing on one topic and really honing in on it before branching out (e.g. write at least 20 to 30 posts about fitness before branching out to skincare) – and always make sure your content can relate to each other in one way or another.
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! 🙂
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! 🙂
Surya Nivas
Wooah! I must say I’ve never read such a long article before. But it really worth it. I have to tell you that your content is absolutely top notch.
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!