I literally feel like I just wrote my last monthly blog income report because this month just flew by. Always seems to happen the last quarter of the year.

 

I’ve been working hard putting new post ideas together, gift guides, making our money goals for next year, and planning out the next steps that I hope are going to take my blog to the next level. Also scored me some great Black Friday blogging course deals 😉

 

Blogging income reports are a great way to see how other bloggers make money, improve traffic, and to pinpoint your own growing pains.

 

This month was my highest earning month at just under $800!

 

My first goal blogging, after I realized how much time it took me to learn the basics, was to make $100 a month. Now my goal is to make $1,000. From there the sky is the limit.

 

I began blogging June of 2017 and it took me a whole entire YEAR to make a little over $200.

 

My first months blogging I made pennies. Then it went up to a few dollars. Just before switching to Mediavine I was making $50 a month with Google Analytics.

 

 

 

 

Blogging is not a get rich quick scheme. It takes time, strategy, and dedication.

 

I hope my blogging income reports and this one in particular, will encourage you to consider pursuing blogging as a side hustle and if you’re blogging for awhile and NOT seeing results to keep on going.

 

Not all of us can be overnight successes, however there are a few bloggers within my niche who have been growing exponentially that have inspired me to invest more in my blogging education and to focus more on SEO and affiliate marketing. Thank you!! 🙂

 

On to the numbers!

 

November 2018 BLOGGING STATS

 

{This post may contain affiliate links, which means that I may receive a commission if you make a purchase using these links. Full disclosure policy.}

 

Traffic: 14,756  29,456 pageviews

 

After my giant drop in traffic last month I used the updated tips in Carly’s course to double my traffic. Her course helped me triple my traffic in August and qualify for Mediavine.

 

I created a ton of new pins and funneled them into my Tailwind queue, which always has at least 200 pins ready to go.

 

I sent emails to multiple Pinterest group boards to join, but haven’t heard back from any yet. Time to send follow-up emails.

 

I added more pins to my secret group board and completely forgot to make it public with all the Thanksgiving festivities. It’s officially live now so if you’d like to join my Money Tips and Tricks group board click the link.

 

SOCIAL MEDIA

 

PINTEREST:  1,522  1,865 followers

 

FACEBOOK: 557  555 followers

 

INSTAGRAM: 504  505 followers

 

TWITTER: 1,027 1,030 followers

 

 

I gained 343 new Pinterest followers this month.

My social media growth on my other platforms was minimal and I’m okay with that.

 

REVENUE FOR November 2018: $799.62

 

Ads

 

Mediavine: $728.22

 

Mediavine’s  payment cycle is NET 65, which means I’ll get paid in February.

Mediavine offers a lot of support and suggestions to increase your earnings that I haven’t had a chance to take advantage of yet.

 

 

Sponsorship

Linqia: $0

 

Linqia was my very first pay-per-click sponsorship opportunity, but I didn’t receive any new opportunities this month.

They offer a lot of support, pay you within 10 days of project completion, and the average earning is $220 per program.

 

It’s a great place for new bloggers to start doing sponsorship opportunities because they look at your combined traffic and social media reach. Other networks require you have a huge following that can take a long time to achieve. When I joined I didn’t have even 1,000 followers on any of my social media profiles.

 

Sign up for Linqia here!

 

 

Referrals

 

I genuinely love these sites because they help people save money doing things they already do and buy and they aren’t blogging-related.

 

Groupon: $0

 

eBates : $25

eBates lets you earn cash back on items that you already buy. They also provide great promo codes and discounts. We earn a few hundred dollars a year though our online purchases.

I had someone sign up with my referral link months ago and they just made their first purchase so I made $25 from them this month.

 

iBotta: $0

Ibotta is an app that lets you get money back by submitting your grocery receipts. I had a few people join my team and am just waiting for them to submit a qualifying receipt to get a referral payment.

 

 

Product Reviews

 

 

Intellifluence: $0

Intellifluence connects brands with influencers who want to try and review their products. Some are paid while others are only given the product to try for free.

They had a lot of opportunities to create video reviews of different toys and other products. Still waiting to see if I qualify for any of them.

 

Affiliate Marketing

 

Amazon Associates: $0

I’m honestly a little surprised that I didn’t make any money with Amazon this month with all the holiday shopping and my non toy gift guide. I just purchased an affiliate marketing course that can help me step up my game.

 

Pinteresting Strategies: $46.40

I am an affiliate of Carly’s course because it’s affordable and it works. I think Pinterest is one of the best ways to get traffic to your blog fast with little experience. I didn’t understand Pinterest at all when I started blogging and even though I took a blogging course, it wasn’t focused on Pinterest.

 

 

Related posts:

* October 2018 Income Report

*September 2018 Income Report

*August 2018 Income Report

* 13 Easy ways to get new Pinterest followers

 

 

Blogging Resources

 

Pinteresting Strategies by Carly Campbell: $47

 

I LOVE this course for several reasons.

 

#1 Unlike other Pinterest courses that say you need to purchase a pin scheduler to get tons of traffic, this course is focused on manual pinning. Carly gets over 200,000 pageviews a month without using a scheduler.

 

#2 It’s super cheap compared to the other Pinterest courses out there.

 

#3 The book focuses on a unique pinning strategy using Google Analytics that I have not read about anywhere else and I do my research.

 

#4 Carly runs a Facebook group that is full of the most helpful people, it’s even has some big name bloggers. They all give great advice (FREE) and answer questions ASAP. Carly also does Facebook Live videos and gives updated Pinterest traffic tips.

 

#5 My traffic got a huge spike after implementing her tips and my Pinterest follower growth has consistently been growing since taking her course.

 

 

 

I bought Carly’s book because all of the great advice she gives, her honesty, and the fact that she doesn’t actively promote her book. The majority of her book promotion is through word of mouth. I read the reviews on her page and they were all singing her praises. Check them out here at Mommy on Purpose!

This course helped me triple my traffic in September and the updated version helped me double it from last month. Read my >>full review on Carly’s course and get a promo code here<<.

 

The Billionaire Blog Club

Pinterest Manual (BBC)

 

BBC offers a $39, 165 page Pinterest Manual that Scriv’s the mastermind behind this blogging membership periodically updates to give you the best and most current information.

 

It is currently in its 3rd edition and has a bunch of pictures. I’m a visual person so it works for me. If you liked my post on how to gain new Pinterest followers you will absolutely love the BBC Pinterest Manual because it goes into such detail.

 

TAILWIND

 

I use Tailwind to look at my stats and used Tailwind Tribes to triple my traffic in August.

 

I try to manually pin as best I can using Carly’s Pinteresting Strategies because she was getting OVER 200,000 pageviews a month strictly through manual pinning. She now uses Tailwind when she’s too busy.

I love Tailwind’s SmartLoop feature and ability to pin at intervals. I am working on filling up my queque and hope to get it filled by the week.

 

Sign up for Tailwind here and get 100 free pins and a $30 credit!

 

 

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

 

It was my highest income month to date and I’m really enjoying blogging now that I’m not putting so much pressure on myself and the increase in income is nice too 😉

 

My most popular posts this month were:

 

11 Things rich people do that poor people don’t

8 Ways to reduce your heating bill (another old post that gained a lot of traffic because of a new pin creation, plus it’s getting colder outside)

6 Bank accounts you should have

Things we stopped buying to save money

13 Important Things to Do After Becoming Debt-Free

Best things to buy after Christmas

 

 

I noticed that I had 2 comments on one of my most popular pins that weren’t the nicest of comments so I guess it means I officially made it! Also I think it helps make my pin rank even higher so 😉

 

I made my first affiliate sales (not Amazon) and it felt AAAA-MAZING! I also created some free printables to include as an added incentive, but the perfectionist in me wants to make some additions.

 

CONCLUSION

 

After putting in the work, my traffic is back up.

 

I purchased 3 blogging courses during Black Friday sales that focus on affiliate marketing, increasing traffic, Google, and some SEO. I know my blog will only make so much money with ads and hate depending on traffic. It can get really stressful.

 

We have another cruise coming up next year and I am going to contact the cruise line and pitch for some freebies in exchange for a blog post review. I never heard back from the cruise line we went on this year, so fingers crossed.

 

2019 is right around the corner and I’ve really been thinking about how people blog full-time for a living. I enjoy my current  job, but blogging offers a freedom that is very appealing. I’d love to be able to spend more time with my kids. Maybe one day I’ll look back on this income report and laugh.

 

My one goal for December is to learn something new every week that can improve my blog and not worry about whether traffic is up or down.

 

The money is nice, but I believe more will come in due time (with a lot more work).

 

Now stop procrastinating and get your holiday shopping done so you don’t get caught spending too much money or stressing!