Christina Tiplea

Conquer Overwhelm. Live Intentionally.

January 2016 Blog Income and Traffic Report

by Filed Under: Blog Income Reports, Self-Employment

Want to know how I made over $2,400 from blogging last month as a stay-at-home Mom? Click to read exactly how I earn an income from blogging in my January 2016 Blog Income and Traffic Report!Hi Friends!

I hope you had a wonderful January and are well on your way to achieving any big goals you set for yourself this year.

I’m back with another income report, so let’s jump in!

If you’re new here, I’d like to give you a little background about myself and these income reports.

I’m a work-at-home Mom to my 1-year-old daughter. In addition to running this blog, I also offer freelance marketing and writing services to my clients. I do all of this while being a full time Mama to my baby girl, without utilizing any childcare….and rarely working while she’s awake. This is proof that if I can find the time to earn an income from blogging, you can too!

The reason that I share my blog income reports is because I think it’s a great way to show that it is possible to earn an income online doing something you enjoy and are passionate about. I want to provide inspiration and encouragement to those of you reading who have doubts about your abilities to be able to make an income through blogging. This is also a great forum for me to share my experience in trying to earn an honest income from my blog, and all of the tips and tricks that I learn along the way.

If you are interested in starting a blog, I created a tutorial to help you start a profitable blog of your own in only 4 easy steps.

January 2016 Blog Income and Traffic Report:

-This post contains affiliate and referral links-

Income

The income below is for money earned during the month of January but not necessarily paid out during the month of January. It’s also important to keep in mind that these numbers do not reflect the taxes I will need to pay on this income.

  • Sponsored Posts- $0 (read last month’s report to learn about my decision to cut out sponsored posts this month)
  • Affiliate Programs – $2,314.11 (Go Daddy, Amazon Associates, MOYM, etc.)
  • Google Adsense – $94.98
  • IZEA – $5.91

Total Income: $2,415 (+$58.80 compared to last month)

Expenses

The P.O. Box & Tailwind expenses are actually a yearly expense that I paid in entirety for a year, but I feel like breaking it out into monthly increments helps to see a more accurate picture of my total expenses compared to income.

Total Expenses: $43.67

January 2016 Net Profit: $2,371.33

Traffic Report

I received 133,152 page views in the month of January (+30,608 compared to last month).

Income Analysis

I feel like I keep saying this every month, but January was another month that shocked me in a good way.

I made the decision at the end of 2015 that I was going to calm down on all the sponsored posts I was bringing to this space (you can read more about the logic behind my decision in December’s income report).

Because sponsored posts made up the majority of my blog income the last few months of 2015, I thought for sure that my income for January would completely plummet. I honestly thought it was going to be around $200-300 for the month. And I was totally okay with that!

So imagine my surprise when my affiliate income started increasing drastically, enough to not only make up for the income lost by not doing sponsored posts, but actually surpass it.

Cue me calculating the numbers a million times over just to make sure I was adding them up right ;).

My traffic also increased by a decent amount this month, so I’m left wondering if the increase in my affiliate income was due to my traffic increase, or because I had no sponsored content published this month so my readers were more open to what I had to share. I may never know the real answer to that, but I have to admit that it’s been such a relief to not be doing any sponsored posts lately.

While I’m still open to the idea of doing a small amount of them in the future, they really are a lot of work compared to some of the other options for making an income from blogging. And no matter how awesome and informative I try to make my sponsored posts, I still feel sleezy when I’m publishing more than two of them a month. #TruthBomb

We’ll see what the future has in store for me and sponsored posts, but for right now I’ve been enjoying not doing them these past few weeks. It’s also really encouraging to see that I don’t necessarily need to do them to make money from my blog.

Why I switched from MailChimp to ConvertKit

January was a month of increased expenses for me, and that’s all because I switched from my free MailChimp account to ConvertKit. I might have initially panicked a bit about taking on this $29 per month expense, but am quickly realizing what an amazing asset this tool is for my business.

I’m only a few weeks into using ConvertKit, but can already say that I freaking love it. It’s allowed me to grow my email list by leaps and bounds (I added over 2,000 new subscribers to my email list last month), and has allowed me to easily share content upgrades in my blog posts to add more value for my readers. What’s not to like about that?!

I might end up doing an in-depth post on all of the pros and cons of switching from MailChimp to ConvertKit in a future blog post, but I’m planning on sharing more details with my blogging buddies who receive blogging related tips and trick from me on a weekly basis. If you’re not on my list already, use the form below to join our gang! You’ll get a free blogging goals worksheet too – woot woot! And p.s. I used ConvertKit to make this form. Sweet, right? 🙂

If you’re interested in starting a blog, don’t forget to check out my tutorial to learn how to start a profitable blog of your own in only 4 easy steps.

Top posts of January 2016:

As always, thank you from the bottom of my heart for all of the encouragement and support! How was your January? Let me know in the comments below!

Comments

  1. AvatarHaley @ hoBson homestead says

    Thanks so much for being transparent. These posts are so inspiring to show how small bloggers can gradually grow their blog. I blog because I love to write and it’s my outlet, but making some income on the side would be a wonderful perk!

    • Christina TipleaChristina Tiplea says

      Aw thank you Haley! It sounds like your priorities are in order, I would say that if the passion for writing and sharing isn’t already there, it would be very hard to eventually make money from blogging anyway. And not very fun either if it wasn’t something you enjoy! I look at blogging as my hobby I love that just so happens to make me money too. Sounds like we are kindred spirits! 🙂

  2. AvatarSarah @ the frugal millionaire says

    Congratulations on another fantastic month, Christina!! These income reports are what help keep my motivation going, so thank you for sharing!! Keep up the great work – you are killing it!! So happy to be following along!!

  3. AvatarKaitlin @ The mom on puRpose says

    Thanks, Christina for sharing. I’ve honestly put off sponsored posts because I worry about if I can actually write them. I’m not a sales person and don’t really wish to be on my site. I’m sure I would feel fine with it if it were something I really loved, but those posts are hard to get for newer bloggers!

    It’s so nice to see that you can make an income without sponsored posts all together! In sure one day I will get my feet wet with them, but until then you give me hope!

    You are totally rocking your blog. Congrats on your growth. You are definitely doing something right! Thanks for sharing!

    • Christina TipleaChristina Tiplea says

      Thank you Kaitlin! And I definitely struggled with the first sponsored post I wrote, trying to balance serving the company that was paying me for it, while also making sure to always keep my readers my priority. I think the best sponsored posts aren’t salesy at all anyways, I’m sure you will do great when the time comes!!

  5. AvatarElise says

    Awesome job on the income!! I am constantly hustling to get my numbers up, but your post definitely encourages me to keep on going!! Thanks for the breakdown!

  6. AvatarSamara says

    This is AMAZING Christina!! I am so happy for you 🙂 Keep up the hard work!!

  7. AvatarAnnie says

    I really enjoy your blog, writing, and advice. Sponsored posts are a great way to introduce something that I might need or enjoy. You do not present them in a way that is pushy or abrasive. They are informative. Just wanted you to know that as a reader, your sponsored posts are not a bad thing. Have a good day.

    • Christina TipleaChristina Tiplea says

      Aw thank you so much for taking the time to let me know that Annie, I really appreciate it! It means a lot hearing that from you, and certainly makes me feel better about potentially bringing a few of them back in the future. Thanks again!! 🙂

  10. AvatarSarah @ Sweet Miles says

    I LOVED reading this, and I just found your blog. Bookmarking now! Very encouraging to see how you’ve grown your blog and made an income. I generate a small income, though not anything near where I’d like for it to be! I would love to increase it enough to go to working part time and be home more with my little girl! You are awesome!

    • Christina TipleaChristina Tiplea says

      Aw thank you Sarah! Way to go on monetizing your blog, that is awesome! I feel like once that first little trickle of income comes in, that is a sign that you are for sure doing something right. Keep on rockin it!! 🙂

  11. AvatarShirria @ DGTH says

    Great job! These type income reports inspire me and actually seem “doable” with time.

    Question, in your opinion do you have to have a huge following for Izea? I’ve been signed up with them, but have not been approved for any campaigns. I assume it’s because I don’t have a great following at this time.

    • Christina TipleaChristina Tiplea says

      Thank you Shirria!

      Nope, I really don’t think you need a huge following. I’ve applied for campaigns even recently and have been turned down, sometimes you just might not be a good fit for the current campaigns. Keep applying for sure!

  15. AvatarFeuza says

    2k subscribers! you go girl, do tell how you got that? just content upgrades? blogging more? also yes do that post about jumping over, Id love to know
    ps pinned your photo/blog

    • Christina TipleaChristina Tiplea says

      Thanks Feuza! Yes content upgrades, as well as the free 4-week course I started offering in January :). Definitely not blogging more, I’ve been blogging less than ever these past few months. Thanks for pinning!!

  16. AvatarTerri says

    This is so inspiring. I’m currently working like crazy to make more income from my blog as I await the arrival of my first baby. These posts definitely give me hope that making sizable income is certainly possible.

  17. AvatarAbigail @ipickuppennies says

    Way to go!

    My traffic is significantly lower than that, but I’m just now finally getting into Pinterest. I’m hoping to change that. I’m definitely seeing a rise in numbers. In the first two months, my pageviews increased by about 50%. So that’s something!

    I’m going to do some sponsored posts, but definitely wouldn’t be comfortable with more than two. But probably at most I’d do one a month.

    Unfortunately, I’ve never had much luck with affiliate stuff. Maybe because my traffic is lower? I’m still trying here and there, but it’s not a main focus.

  18. AvatarKristin says

    Oh wow, you are killing it! I find these reports soooo helpful – because there are so many ways to make an income online and everyone gets to shine differently.

    Girl, you need to write a book about affiliate income!

  19. AvatarJane Travis says

    Thank you for sharing your income report – I do love the ‘smaller’ ones – and by that, I can see someone who has a business like me and it’s growing and working.

    Great income via affiliates 🙂

    Jane

  20. AvatarAlicia says

    Wow, this is so inspirational! I’m new here, but I can tell I’ll be coming back to read more. I’m also a SAHM to 3 boys, and just now entering the blogging/hopefully freelancing world, and reading posts like these give me so much encouragement. Congrats on listening to your gut, and it paying off! Keep up the great work! 🙂

    • Christina TipleaChristina Tiplea says

      Thank you Heather! I don’t currently have posts about blogging besides for my income report, but I do share blogging tips via my blogging newsletter (sign up is in this post). I’ll have to keep that topic in mind for a future newsletter! 🙂

  23. AvatarJulie says

    This is so encouraging! I’ve yet to do anything to bring in money for my blog but its nice to hear about your experience and how affiliate posts seem to be the way to go. Thanks for sharing!

  27. AvatarMAT says

    Hi Christina,
    Awesome,but why don’t you share your income report any more?

  28. AvatarHelen says

    Thank your for sharing your income reports. I am new to blogging myself and find it incredibly overwhelming. There is A LOT to learn! Finding these reports and blogger communities help to keep me going!

    Thanks!

  29. AvatarKerissa says

    So I just found your blog about 15 minute ago through your income report post from October 2015, I’ve now stumbling upon this more recent income report with about 1k increase in just a few short months. This is soooo exciting to read!! I started my blog about a month ago–seeing your progression is something that fuels my desires. Thank you for sharing!

  30. AvatarLoreeta Berndt says

    This is very inspiring. I love how real you are. I currently use mail chimp so now I will have to check the one you use! Keep up the good work?

  31. AvatarRaynee says

    Hi Christina,
    I am a new blogger and enjoyed this article a lot! I found it extremely helpful, educational and inspirational.
    I have a question or two……:) Would you explain what tailwind is? I also would like to know if you would do a blog post on the differences between a hosted free email and the convertkit? I’m learning so much already and I truly enjoy the bloggers who are inspirational and willing to share experiences and knowledge.
    If you ever look at new bogs I would love for you to look at mine and give me some feedback. I appreciate all opinions.
    If there is ever anything I can help you with, please let me know.
    http://www.thefrugalbranch.com

    • Christina TipleaChristina Tiplea says

      Hi Raynee! Thanks for stopping by and the sweet comment! I’m so glad you found this to be helpful. Tailwind is a scheduling tool I use for Pinterest 🙂 I will keep that topic and the one about ConvertKit in mind for future blog post ideas, I appreciate your feedback. Best of luck in your blogging journey, I’m looking forward to checking your site out!!

  32. AvatarJayleen says

    Yay! Way to go on your income! So exciting! I’ve never done a sponsored post but should probably look into it! You are rocking it, Christina!

  33. AvatarVictoria Aleman says

    Great and Genuine Post. Is not easy to get started, but as a new mom, I am trying to blog along sharing my opinions here https://bit.ly/2Fr6u3A as a“Side Hustle”. Excited for what is to come!

  34. AvatarIke ANTHONY isaacs says

    Hi Christine,
    Thank you for the information on how to make money from blogging. I have been blogging for over a year now on face book and WordPress but I didn’t know I could monitize my blog. I will follow the 4 steps process you listed. Thanks

  35. AvatarLu Ram says

    Hey Christina! Thank you for sharing the feed back you got for blogging, excellent report and how it is possible to get to where you are thank you for inspiring new comers, I will use this post as reference for advice. Thanks again.

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