Welcome to the November business income report, where I share how I earned money online last month. Below is an overview of November’s results, why I publish these reports, and updates about the blog and business.
If you’re new to Making Sense of Cents, you might wonder why I publish my income reports each month. In short, I started these posts years ago to track and share the side income I earned while still working a full-time job. Since I left my job as a financial analyst in October 2013, my reports now reflect all the ways I earn a living through the blog and related projects.
I publish monthly income reports for three main reasons:
- To show others how side hustles and online income can make a real difference. Before I discovered side income reports from other bloggers, I didn’t fully appreciate the potential of side hustles. Sharing my results helps inspire others and demonstrates legitimate ways to boost income from home.
- To track progress and learn from my business. The reports act as a journal that helps me review what worked, what didn’t, and where I can improve.
- To prove that making money from home is possible. There are many legitimate online income sources, and I share examples to help readers explore their options and consider starting their own blogs or side businesses.
Life is great now that I run my own business full time. I genuinely enjoy waking up every morning and working on the blog. I don’t expect everyone to love their job, but I do believe your work should help you live the life you want outside of work—spending time with family, pursuing hobbies, or traveling.
How was my business income in November?
I earned $106,383.89 blogging and online in November, before expenses.
For the first 11 months of 2016, my total earnings were $887,556. 2016 surpassed 2015 by a wide margin, and I’m aiming to reach $1,000,000 for the year.
The business is healthy and growing. In November I focused on improving page views, and I’ll share more about that in a future post. My Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing course continues to perform well, and many new students joined last month. I’ve received a lot of encouraging feedback from students who saw meaningful increases in their affiliate income after taking the course.
If you’re a blogger, my course covers the exact affiliate marketing strategies I use. If you’re starting a blog, I also offer a step-by-step tutorial on how to start a WordPress blog affordably.
Breakdown of November 2016 income – $106,383.89:
- Affiliate income – $52,324.89 total, including:
- Bluehost – $31,850.00
- Survey companies – $11,389.50
- Teachable – $3,015.00
- Ebates (estimate) – $1,000.00
- Credible and SOFI affiliate payouts – $900.00
- MOTIF Investing – $874.00
- Ultimate Bundles – $800.40
- Uber – $380.00
- Izea/SponsoredTweets – $377.35
- $5 Meal Plan – $264.29
- Bookkeeper Business Academy – $243.75
- How To Work From Home Selling On Amazon FBA – $221.80
- The Ultimate Pinterest Strategy Guide – $180.40
- Digit – $155.00
- MaxBounty – $110.40
- Proofreading course affiliate – $95.52
- Amazon – $95.09
- EarnMoreWriting.com – $79.60
- 17 Strategies to Grow Page Views course – $70.00
- ConvertKit – $52.20
- Aweber – $34.20
- How I Grew My Facebook Page guide – $32.00
- Miscellaneous affiliates – $104.39
- Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing course – $37,872.00
- Sponsorships and advertising – $14,325.00
- Display advertising – $1,862.00
Total: $106,383.89
The total above is for November before fees and expenses. Some fees and expenses—virtual assistants, Teachable platform fees, technical help, newsletter costs, PayPal and Stripe fees—reduce this amount by roughly $2,900. I also paid affiliates promoting my course $7,019.55. After accounting for expenses and fees (but not taxes), I made approximately $96,464.
Please remember I run my business independently, so I cover taxes (over 30%), health insurance, and other benefits that an employer would normally provide.
For more information on monetizing a blog, see the blog’s guide to making money blogging.
Below are links to several past income reports and highlights from previous years to provide historical context for how the business has grown.
- $672 extra in May (2012)
- $6,523 in January extra income (2013)
- $11,927 in October income – I finally left my job (2013)
- $12,640 in January income (2014)
- $23,758 in February income (2015)
- How I made $300,000 online in 2015
Comparisons and 2016 online income total:
- Total income in November 2016: $106,384
- Total income in October 2016: $99,607
- Difference from previous month: +6,777
- Total in 2016: $887,556
Blog news
The blog is doing well. I was recently verified on Twitter, which was a nice milestone. I remain about two months ahead in my publishing schedule, and I’ve used the extra time to work on SEO improvements learned in a mastermind course. I plan to increase guest posting to raise awareness of the blog and diversify traffic.
Traffic held steady at around 400,000 page views in November. Pinterest traffic declined due to platform changes, but organic search and Facebook traffic increased. Despite lower page views, income stayed strong—illustrating that blog revenue isn’t solely dependent on traffic volume. That said, I’m actively working to grow traffic and my email list.
Recent business updates:
- I’ve started scheduling monthly Twitter posts to test whether Twitter can drive meaningful traffic to the blog. So far, it appears worthwhile.
- I’m testing Haute Chocolate for blog images and have been pleased with the results—many images in this post are from that service.
- I launched a free “How To Start A Blog” email course, which has helped thousands of people begin blogging.
- A free “Master Your Money” email course launched in August and includes financial lessons and worksheets like a free budget template.
- I plan to create a free personal finance support group on Facebook to give readers a place to talk about money and find support.
- I switched to ConvertKit in April to improve email marketing and make newsletter campaigns more efficient. The change has helped affiliate income despite lower page views.
I often get questions about how I stay connected while traveling in an RV. I use a Verizon MiFi device to maintain reliable internet access when free Wi-Fi isn’t available or secure.
Popular new posts on the blog last month:
- The Truth About Making Money Online
- Are You Going To Spend Over $1,000 This Holiday Season?
- What It’s Like Living In An RV
- 13 Retail Store Tricks That May Be Causing You To Spend More Money
- You Don’t Have To Go Broke For Your Kid’s Education
- Yes, Personal Finance Should Be Taught In School
- Why Paying For A Storage Unit Is A Waste of Money
- How To Make $25,000 – $45,000 A Year As A New Photographer
Featured Question: How can I make more blogging income around the holidays?
Each month I answer a reader’s question; this one came from a student in my course and became a lesson in Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing. The holiday season—especially November and December—is prime time for affiliate marketing because shoppers are actively searching for gifts and deals. Here are effective ways to boost affiliate income during the holidays:
- Publish holiday gift guides. Readers frequently search for gift ideas, and curated guides help them decide what to buy. Gift guides are a popular and reliable way to promote affiliate products.
- Share sales, discounts, and coupon codes. Holiday promotions create urgency and increase conversions. Highlight sales in blog posts and social media to capture buyers looking for deals.
- Promote affiliate links on social media. Social channels are easy ways to share products without the effort of producing long posts. Timely social promotions can drive quick traffic and sales.
- Mention affiliate products in newsletters. Include curated affiliate recommendations in your email campaigns—when allowed by the affiliate program—to reach engaged subscribers directly.
These tactics can help make the holiday season one of your most profitable periods as a blogger.
Past featured questions have covered topics such as increasing affiliate income, whether you need huge page views to earn money, creating and selling websites, blog monetization strategies, and more.
My plans for the blog and business
Setting goals keeps me focused and motivated. Current priorities include:
- Promote the blog and business better. I’ve improved promotion efforts, especially on Facebook, which recently grew to several thousand visits per day.
- Diversify traffic sources. With much traffic historically coming from Pinterest, I’m investing more time in Facebook and SEO to balance sources.
- Continue learning and improving. I’m studying SEO and applying strategies to increase organic search traffic.
- Participate in more interviews. I completed multiple interviews in November tied to the course launch and have webinars and events planned.
- Increase page views to 1,000,000 per month. This measurable goal is a stretch target for Summer 2017; I plan to focus on Pinterest, Facebook, and SEO to reach it.
Affiliate income results
Overall, I earned $52,324.89 in affiliate income in November 2016. I value affiliate income because it can be passive and supports a lifestyle of travel and flexibility. Affiliate marketing doesn’t require huge page views to be effective—new bloggers can earn meaningful income when they learn how to choose and promote products correctly.
My affiliate marketing course, which launched in July 2016, contains six modules, over 30 lessons, worksheets, bonuses, and access to a private Facebook group. It covers everything from choosing profitable affiliate products to improving conversions, building trust with readers, disclosures, tools, and promotional strategies. The course is designed to help bloggers at any stage and in any niche.
How was November for you? Are you interested in earning blogging income?