February 2017 Blogging Income Report

February 2017 Blogging Income Report –How I made a full-time income from my blog. What worked, what didn’t, and what you can do too!

My February 2017 blogging income report. This is where I will share with you everything that I did in the past month to earn money from my blog. You’ll get the inside scoop on what worked, what didn’t and resources that you can use to get started for yourself.

If you’re new around here or are just wondering why on earth someone would share their income so openly online, I’ve got answers for that too. 🙂 I started sharing my income reports with everyone the second that I got my very first pay day from blogging.

I started sharing my income reports with everyone the second that I got my very first paycheck from blogging. Why? Because reading income reports from very successful bloggers (even $1,000/month is still a lot of extra cash) was what got me into blogging in the first place.

My hope isn’t to rub it in your face (please, please, PLEASE don’t ever think that). My hope is that you know that this is a real way to make additional money for your family. Even if you can only blog for 1 hour each day while the kids are napping, it’s possible to make a part-time income from just that. I never even knew that blogging as a job was a “real” thing until I started reading income reports.

But I didn’t start out making a full-time income blogging…

Last year I was ready to quit blogging. After working 40 hour work weeks for 4 months and making close to $0.17/month, I was done. I had put all of my creative energy out there and was getting nothing back. I was really spent from doing all of the wrong things.

And this year, I’m earning a full-time income working 20 hour weeks. My life is completely different than I ever imagined it, but it’s better than I ever could have imagined!

I owe 150,000% of my success (every. single. dollar.) to Elite Blog Academy. That was the turning point in my blog and in my life. To date, it’s still the biggest investment I’ve ever made for my blog and it has paid for itself over and over again! Their training showed me step-by-step what it takes to be successful in the blogging world. But since there is only a very short window of opportunity for joining Elite Blog Academy, my favorite year-round resource is Building a Framework. It’s a full “how-to” about blogging from beginning to end, and it’s really amazing!

Related post: The Blogging Class that Made Me a Full-Time Blogger

But what if I don’t think I can make money blogging?

Not too long ago, there was a time when if I made $100 in a month, I was ready to shout it from the rooftops. I looked up to other huge bloggers who made $5,000 or $10,000 a month and I just kept thinking that I could never do that… there’s no way that I could ever make that much, let alone $100!

Everyone starts at 0. 0 pageviews, $0, 0 followers. Everyone! Even mega-bloggers like Crystal Paine, Ruth Soukup, Melyssa Griffin, Rosemarie Groner, Michelle Schroder and literally everyone whose emails you get, whose sites you visit… all started at 0.

Trust me, you can do it too. With a lot of hard work and dedication, you can make an income and a dream job, too!

Ready to start your own blog?

If that sounds like something you want to do, I can help you make that a reality with free step-by-step instructions for how to start your own blog here. Because I’m a cheapskate frugalista (hair flip), my favorite part about blogging is that it’s super cheap. I mean, what other hobby costs $2.75/month and can make you $100,000? Honestly!

What changed this month:

• I really went all-in with affiliate marketing this month (thanks a lot to this amazing course that I took). But I love that it’s done in a way that isn’t gross or “salesy,” nothing like “you need to buy this from me!” I’ve always shied away from affiliate marketing because, really, it’s sales. But the way that I see it isn’t like I’m pushing things on people that don’t want them; it’s connecting people with tools that they’ve been looking for. 🙂
• I got Leadpages and WOAH my mind is blown! I have a 60% conversion rate on my newest email opt-in. And it’s so easy to set up great graphics for other pages to send someone to once they sign up (like to a special deal for a frugality ebook!). Seriously, it’s been a game changer.
• Selling my own products. I finally started selling my own course, Pinterest Group Board Master. Honestly, I’m really excited about it! It’s everything about Pinterest Group Boards that you need to know, from where to find them and how to ask to join them, to making sure that you have a marketable Pinterest that will make the group board owner want to add you to their board. if you’re a new blogger, I highly recommend it! 🙂
• I also lowered my posting schedule for the first time ever this month! I went from 3 days/ week to 2 days/ week. That might not seem like much to you, but that has literally made me the most productive person for things that aren’t just writing new content (spoiler, blogging in only like 20% writing. The rest is all marketing.)

What didn’t work:

• Facebook ads. I mean, I guess they worked kinda well, but not enough for the amount of money that I spent! Plus, marketing on Instagram is a pre-selected option for facebook ads. And, let’s be real, who has ever clicked through on an Instagram ad?! No one, that’s who.
• Pinterest ads were an even bigger fail! Now, admittedly, that could have been an issue on my end. But when I spend $.10 per Facebook ad click but you want me to spend $2.50 per click for Pinterest… you’re nuts! No thanks.
• Beating myself up! I am just so mean to myself sometimes! I’ve made more money in a month working 20 hours each week than my husband has ever. That’s not a knock on him! But it’s just the ridiculousness of my attitude. So my traffic dipped. It’s not a big deal! Every time my traffic dips, I’m always ready to just throw in the towel. But that only makes me less productive. So I’m going to keep trying to make that a priority next month!

Here’s my February 2017 Blogging Income Report

Affiliate income: $6,269

• Elite Blog Academy – $3,682
• Bluehost (check out my tutorial on how to start a profitable blog) – $775
• Amazon – $478
• Swagbucks – $250
• Ebates – $215
• Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing Course – $97
• Survey companies – $95
• Digit – $95
• Ultimate Bundles – $72
• Core Affiliate Strategy to Make More Money Blogging – $65
• The Ultimate Pinterest Strategy Guide to Get Seen by 4 Million People/Month – $50
• The Ultimate Guide to Building a Profitable Blog – $50
• The Best Freezer Cooking Class Ever – $49
• My favorite course for productivity – $49
• 17 Strategies Used to Go From 17K to 350K+ Page Views in 9 Months – $35
• How I Grew My Facebook Page From 2,000 to 100,000 in Five Months – $32
• Izea/SponsoredTweets – $27
• Real Life Money Plan – $22
• ConvertKit – $22
• Others – $109

Ad Revenue: $1,286

My own products: $862

• Pinterest Group Board Master Class – $485
• Private coaching sessions – $150
• Essential oil 101 ebook – $17
• Frugal living ebook – $210

Pageviews: 122,433

Total January Blogging Income Report: $8,417

I have expenses that I need to account for:

• Convertkit: $99
• BoardBooster: $40
• Haute Chocolate stock photo subscription: $25
• Big Scoot (I changed my site host and couldn’t be happier): $13
• Facebook ads: $455
• LeadPages: $300
• Focused Blogging Conference (My very first blogging conference! If you’re a blogger on the east coast, check it out! You’ll get to meet some AMAZING bloggers! And it’s really small, too.): $375

Total expenses (excluding taxes): $1,307

Making my pre-tax take-home income $7,1110.

Previous income reports:

• January 2017 blogging income report – $3,131
• December Income Report – $5,333
• November Income Report – $3,292
• October Income Report – $2,668
• August Income Report – $1,987
• July Income Report – $1,923
• June Income Report – $1,286

March goals:

• Make more freebies.
• Make more e-courses.
• Write more ebooks.
• Get back into a regular posting schedule.
• Take more time for learning new things for my business.
• Redesigning new website – CarolineVencil.com (YUP! Coming your way in April 2017!)

This is arguably the coolest thing that I’ve ever done! You guys… I make money from the internet. Like, it’s my JOB! How crazy is that?!

And I mean it when I say it: if I can do it, anyone can do it! All you need is the right guidance and a whole lot of determination!