This was definitely one of the most exciting months I’ve had with this blog! So many goals were hit, networks were joined, and future plans were made for some fun additions I’m hoping to launch later this year!
As always, if you missed last month’s report, you can check it out here. If you’re not a blogger, this style of post might seem a little out of place, but it’s my way of staying transparent to my readers and helping newer bloggers learn about tracking their progress and monetizing their blogs!
Speaking of monetizing, I wrote my longest post ever last month on how to start earning money blogging! I poured my heart out into this 3,000 word guide with helpful advice for bloggers with any traffic numbers, and any experience with making an income blogging.
Behind the scenes, I also joined several networks that I’ve had my eyes on for years! I’ve always been in awe of bloggers who are members of Collectively and Pollinate, so I’m super excited to say I’ve joined both this month!
And on a personal note, I also found out this month that I was accepted as a 2016 Grace Hopper Scholar! For anyone who hasn’t heard of GHC, it’s a huge conference for women in computing held in Houston, TX this October, and the world’s largest gathering of women technologists (around 12,000 women from around the world are expected to be there!). Being a scholar means I get to attend with all expenses paid, and go to some special scholars-only events, so I’m super excited!
Now for the stats!
June Income
BlueHost: $360
ShopStyle Collective: $60
Amazon Associates: $485.62
Total: $905.62
June Expenses
Creative Cloud: $10.82
BoardBooster: $5
Hosting: $8.95
Total: $24.77
TOTAL INCOME: $880.85
So I finally figured out that Amazon Associates was definitely the affiliate program I should focus on, rather than ShopStyle, and the results (around $400+ from last month) show it. I still like using ShopStyle for their product widgets, but for actually linking to items, I’ll be sticking to Amazon from now on. I prefer to buy there as a shopper anyway, because prices are usually cheaper and Prime is a thing!
June Traffic
I hit 100k monthly pageviews!!! This was one of those goals I kept in the back of my head, thinking maybe by the end of 2016 it could be feasible. Reaching 100k this month was a total surprise, and it just reaffirms to me that starting JessicaSlaughter.co five months ago was the best decision for me!
Takeaways
My biggest takeaway this month was that you don’t need to post every day (or even three times a week) to see success! While I do wish this number was a little higher, I only wrote three posts in June and saw my traffic increase by 40,000 pageviews, and my income increase by $700. It’s said over and over again, but quality over quantity is key!!!
Instead of writing multiple posts a week, I spent lots of time updating old posts, making them longer, adding affiliate links where they fit naturally, creating more eye-catching graphics, and overall adding more value to every post I’ve made. A post you wrote last year might be getting 10 views a day, even though it has the potential to be a great read. By updating it with new information, adding more helpful details, and making sure it’ll pop out on Pinterest, that old post could become your most popular one with just an hour of effort!
July Goals
- Get prepared for vacation: I’m heading to Yellowstone and Seattle next week (!!!), so I have a lot to do in preparation for all that time away from this blog!
- Land a sponsored post: I’ve applied to a few sponsored post opportunities that I should be hearing about over the next few weeks, so it’d be great to get into one!
- Start planning for the fall semester: I’ve recently come up with some ideas for an Etsy shop (a long time, yet to happen dream), geared towards the needs of college students and bloggers. I have some ideas of what I want to create, but if there’s anything you’d be interested in seeing, let me know in the comments!
Questions
If you have any questions about something you read here, growing your blog, or just blogging tips in general, don’t hesitate to ask in the comments! You can also check out my blogging archives for over 50 posts on blogging!
If you’re interested in starting your own blog, I wrote a tutorial that will help you start a blog on WordPress for the price of a latte per month. I didn’t start making money blogging until I switched to self-hosted WordPress, and I recommend this route to new and old bloggers! Have any questions about getting a blog up and running or whether self-hosted is right for you? I’m happy to help!