August 2017 Traffic and Income Report

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Hello, hello!

I’ve had a handful of newbie blogger friends and some mamas in a blogging group ask about blogging income and how it works, so here it is! Hopefully this is something that other bloggers will find beneficial. Now, I am definitely not rolling in cash like some bloggers, but for a mom that blogs between diaper changes (why won’t she just go on the potty?!) I’m not doing too bad!

This will likely be the one and only income report published here. I’m definitely not a blogging blogger and sharing how much money you make is kinda weird, right?! But who knows, maybe I’ll have some new and exciting info to share 6 months from now!

When other bloggers share their income reports, many of them include non-blogging incomes, such as Etsy sales or courses. None of that here! One day, I might go back to Etsy, but at the moment, ain’t nobody got time for that!

Some of the links below are referral or affiliate links. I may earn a commission at no cost to you, if you use these links.

Traffic – August 2017

Monthly page views: 59,509 (from Google Analytics)

Pinterest once again was my top referrer with nearly 30,000 visitors reaching my blog from the platform. I currently have 14,610 followers and average 3.5 million monthly views to my Pinterest profile.

Blog Income – August 2017
  • Sponsored posts: $900
  • Mediavine Ads: $794.46
  • Amazon Associates: $46.28
  • Freelance writing: $65

Total Income: $1805.74

I’ve been with Mediavine since January and they are the ad network that I recommend to everyone! They are so fun and easy to work with. There is a page view requirement with them though, so that’s something to consider.

Earlier this year, I decided to focus most of my affiliate marketing on Amazon. There are two reasons behind this. The first: you can find ANYTHING on Amazon. So instead of earning a few dollars here and there on five different affiliate networks, I can actually watch the earnings stack up with Amazon.  The second reason: cookies. No, not those of the chocolate chip variety. If someone clicks my Amazon links and decides they don’t want the product I linked to, I can still earn a commission from whatever else they buy on Amazon within 24-hours.

Blog Expenses – August 2017

Total Expenses: $58.00

I use CoSchedule as my editorial calendar and to send out most of my social media messages. Even with the hefty monthly price tag, this plugin is completely worth it! CoSchedule makes it SUPER easy to share links and images from my WordPress dashboard with only a few clicks.

I actually started using BoardBooster in August as a way to promote my Pinterest without having to actually do the work. Pinterest is my best referrer, and the BoardBooster looping tool has helped keep my profile active.

I even started using Tailwind this month to ensure my Pinterest is constantly updating with top quality pins! With Tailwind Tribes, I can add my link to be pinned by top Pinterest users. It also gives me an opportunity to find and schedule all of my pins for the week! Definitely a time saver! Plus, Tribes are free to join!

Net Blogging Income: $1747.74
Expenses not included above

There are many services that I pay for on a yearly basis that I didn’t include here. I paid for my domain and hosting upfront for like 3 years, which gets you a bit of a discount.

  • PicMonkey: $33/year
  • Hosting: $71.40/year
  • Domain: $30/year
  • Blog design: $200ish?

OH! And let’s not forget federal taxes (which were due last week)! If you are making money, you need to be paying out taxes. If not, you may be in for a nasty surprise, when you go to file your taxes!

To keep track of my income, expenses, and file taxes, I use QuickBooks Self-Employed. They keep track of everything for me and estimate my quarterly taxes. Plus, come tax time, I can easily import everything when I go to file. Because I use TurboTax to file my taxes, I got a free year of QuickBooks Self-Employed.

Did I cover everything? I’d be happy to add in any additional info I missed!

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