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Happy August Readers! If you’re new here my monthly blog income report is where I share my blogging goals and achievements with my readers. It chock full of honesty. You won’t find any embellishments in this income report.
Yes, you read that right!!!
But if you dare to read to the bottom, you will get a list of awesome resources and see how I make money as a brand new blogger. (Affiliates, Influencer Networks, and sponsorships included in the list!)
Your goals and dreams are reachable. And I hope that by sharing my goals, ambitions, and reality with you, that it might make it a little easier for you to do the same. Below is my monthly goals, income report, and list of blogging resources I used this month.
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- 10 Amazing Self Care Tips for Summer
- 30 Amazing Mental Health Quotes to Fight Stigma
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My Blog Goals and July Blog Income Report:
July was a great month in terms of laying down some groundwork. I networked with other bloggers and was able to write some guest posts. This is a great way to build up your backlinks and help your SEO.
Wins: Although I didn’t meet my monthly goal for page views. I still had my highest # of page views yet, this month! Also, Instagram was a big winner for me this month. I got a post featured on a local News Channels Instagram page 🙂 And this helped me to skyrocket past my goal!
Negatives: Production and Consistency…It’s a little sad how consistently I put this as my negatives for the month. Which is why I’m dedicating part of my august to creating more content so I can stay on top of things better.
| July 2019 Blog Goals | Goal | Reality |
| Blog Posts | 6 | |
| Blog Page Views | 2500 | |
| Facebook Followers | 150 | |
| Pinterest Followers | 400 | 408 |
| Instagram Followers | 350 | 409 |
| Pinterest Reach | 80k | 82k |
| Twitter Followers | 175 | |
| Guest Posts | 2 | 2 |
Blogging Lessons I learned in July:
Plant it now, so it can grow!- This month I started looking ahead in terms of content, goals, networking, etc. And this helped me to put down some groundwork to make some awesome things happen in the next few months. I also took a couple of free online blogging courses and one paid course to help me learn more about blogging!
Ask for help when you need it- I ran into a few issues with Pinterest and Instagram this month and reached out for some help within a few blogging groups I’m part of. People were honest, quick, and informed. I loved it.
My July Blog Income Report-
Monetization- My July Blog Income Report:
July was not the best month for me so far in terms of blogging income. But, I planted lots of “seeds” to grow over the next few months. I also did some influencer campaigns that I have yet to get paid for (so those are not included in this months income.)
In total, this July I received $29.86 in cash payments from ads, sponsorships, and affiliates. I also received a few free products retailing at $70.49.
This month my combined compensation from ads, sponsorship, and gifted items was $100.35.
Although it can seem discouraging to see my income go down this month, I know that the next month has a lot more potential. This is all due to the work I put in this month on applications, sponsorships, etc.
Blogging is NOT a GET RICH QUICK SCHEME!
Influencer Marketing Networks I used to build my July Income:
- WeAre8- This app is an amazing asset to beginner influencers. The pay isn’t very high, but they have some great campaigns with growing brands. I’ve worked with Dunkin’ Donuts, Truman’s Cleaners, and Angie’s BoomChickaPop.
- AmbassadHer- This influencer network has a lot of opportunities available especially in the wellness, lifestyle, beauty niches. I’ve participated in campaigns for Tonic Products, VitaCup, Benelife and more. The pay here usually includes a small bonus and you are reimbursed for the products you purchase. It often includes a portion where you write honest Amazon reviews about the product. Not all products require posting to social media. So far this is where I’ve made the majority of my blog income.
- SocialPubli- This is a new network I joined. I haven’t made any money through them yet. So I can’t really attest to how easy they are to use.
- Savings.com– This wonderful network is new on my list too. But what I love about them is that they allow me to share deals and savings with all of you. In addition to that, they offer many different types of income: giveaways sign ups, affiliates, and sponsorships.
Collaborate with Me!
I’m looking forward to more collaborations and sponsorships for The Sunshine Suitcase in the future. I would love to work with more eco-friendly, plus size and/or mental health related brands.
If you can think of any brands that you think would be a good fit, comment below and let me know!
Affiliate Networks I use to build my Blog Income Report:
Bluehost- A very affordable way to host your blog from the getgo. It integrates effortlessly with WordPress. Self-hosting is the way to go if you want to make an income from your blog. Get a free domain and discount on hosting through my link here.
Shareasale.com– This affiliate network accepts new bloggers and connects you to big-name companies like Groupon, Grammarly, and Tailwind.
Viglink- A great way to monetize links to products already on your blog, as well as connect with
Rakuten Marketing- I just started using Rakuten Marketing. You do have to apply to each individual company you want to work with on this site, but it has a large database with lots of options.
Nuleaf Naturals- They have killer CBD Oil tinctures that I love. I’ve used this to help my anxiety, depression, and migraines! Read more about my experience with CBD Oil here.
Tools I used to Grow my Blog in July:
Tailwind- I’ve used Tailwind to schedule both Pinterest and Instagram posts. This is a great way to automate your socials to help you focus more time on writing and creating. Their Tailwind Tribes is a great way to connect to other bloggers as well.
Pinterest- Working with Tailwind, I used Pinterest to post pins I created using Canva with links back to my site. Pinterest was responsible for over 90% of my traffic this month 🙂
Grammarly- An awesome spellcheck and grammar helper, this app saves my life when I’m on a roll. They make suggestions in real time, which helps me to cut down on overall editing time.
Grammarly also tracks the number of words I check/write each week, which has helped me increase my productivity. I’ve caught many small errors using this as a guide and it’s really helped me to improve my writing style.
Bluehost- You can’t have a website without hosting! Bluehost has helped me to get my blog up and running at a very affordable rate.
Canva– Canva photo editing and templates have helped me to create some gorgeous pins this month that have really helped me to get my blog out there on Pinterest.
August Blog Goals:
My Goal in August is to focus on content creation. July was kind of a whirlwind month, and I really need to work on boosting the amount of content I create. This will allow me to build up more resources for my readers.
August Blogging Goals-
- Blog Posts: Add 4 more blog posts to thesunshinesuitcase.com
- Page Views: 2,500
- Guest Posts: Post 1 Guest Posts to another site
- Facebook Followers: 150
- Pinterest Followers: 550
- Instagram Followers: 550
- Twitter Followers: 200
- Pinterest Reach: 100k
Finally, thank you so much for being here in this space with me. I am truly stunned and appreciative that you are here to share in the Sunshine with me. Let me know if there’s anything you want me to include in my income report.
What's on your mind?