Welcome to our detailed food blog income report for January 2019! In this post, we’ll meticulously break down our website’s traffic performance, the revenue generated, its diverse sources, and the operational costs incurred to maintain and grow our platform. This report is meticulously crafted for aspiring and established food bloggers alike, offering invaluable insights for those aiming to expand their reach and enhance their monetization strategies. A particularly compelling aspect of this month’s success story is the significant impact of a renewed focus on SEO, which dramatically transformed our traffic landscape.
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My Burger Bowls with Special Sauce from January 2019 quickly became a cherished favorite among readers!
Greetings to January 2019! For many comfort food bloggers, January often brings a collective sigh, as the post-holiday season typically signals a downturn in engagement. However, if you, like us, operate within the health food niche, January is synonymous with excitement and unparalleled growth opportunities. It’s truly “go time” for health-focused content creators.
As highlighted in our January 2018 income report, this period each year presents a strategic window to significantly expand our email list, bolster our social media presence, and dramatically increase overall blog traffic. January 2019 proved to be no exception, surpassing all expectations and confirming the enduring power of New Year’s resolutions for healthy eating.
Exceptional Traffic Growth: A January 2019 Success Story
The traffic statistics for January 2019 were nothing short of exhilarating. While operating a health food blog for several years has taught me to anticipate a substantial surge in January, the actual realization of such remarkable growth still generates immense excitement. There’s always an underlying apprehension – a question of whether last year’s bump represented a peak, or if the market for Whole30, Paleo, or clean eating enthusiasts had reached its saturation point. However, this month unequivocally proved those doubts unfounded.
The numbers speak for themselves: our pageviews soared by an astounding 72% compared to the same period last year. This isn’t just a minor improvement; it’s a testament to the effective strategies we’ve implemented, demonstrating that consistent effort and a clear vision can lead to exponential growth, even in a seemingly saturated market. This dramatic increase translates directly into enhanced visibility, greater potential for ad revenue, and a stronger platform for all our content initiatives.
January 2019 Pageview Analysis
Let’s take a closer look at our overall traffic performance in January 2019, contrasting it with the preceding 31 days in December 2018. This comparison vividly illustrates the seasonal impact on our niche, as readers actively seek healthier options post-holiday indulgence.
Beyond the month-over-month increase, the 72% surge from January of the previous year is particularly significant. Considering that last year’s January also marked a substantial growth period for us, achieving such an accelerated rate this year underscores the effectiveness of our ongoing strategies. For a deeper dive into last year’s performance and the initial growth factors, you can refer to my comprehensive January 2018 income report.
Total Pageviews for January 2019: 1,829,241
Comprehensive Income Report for January 2019
Our income reporting specifically focuses on revenue streams directly attributable to the growth and monetization of our food blog and its associated online presence. To maintain clarity and relevance, we intentionally exclude any freelance work or business ventures that, while perhaps born from our blogging experience, are not directly tied to the blog’s operational income. For instance, any earnings from 40A., my food blog virtual assistant agency, are not included here, as they represent a separate business entity rather than blog-generated revenue.
It’s important to note that this month’s sponsored, freelance, and coaching income figures are somewhat lower than typical, as I was still partially on maternity leave. Despite this, the overall performance remains exceptionally strong.
- Sponsored posts: $1,125. Acknowledging a recurring challenge, I consistently find myself underpricing my work in sponsored collaborations out of sheer habit. To rectify this and ensure fair compensation for my efforts, I am actively collaborating with CookIt Media to refine my outreach strategies and secure more appropriate rates.
- Ad revenue with Adthrive: $26,732.74. Our strong traffic performance translated into a significant ad revenue stream. The RPM (revenue per thousand impressions/pageviews) for January was calculated at $14.61 (26,732.74 / 1,829,241 total pageviews). While January RPM often experiences a dip post-holiday season compared to Q4, the sheer volume of traffic ensured a robust income.
- Freelance food photography: none. My strategic focus is shifting away from external freelance photography work to dedicate more time and energy to internal blog content creation and other growth initiatives.
- Freelance recipe development: none. Similarly, I am actively moving away from external recipe development projects to concentrate on developing exclusive content for my own blog and related offerings.
- Food blog retainer clients: $400. This income reflects ongoing, stable relationships with clients who utilize my expertise on a regular basis for their food blogging needs.
- Food Blog & Photography Coaching: $1,800. My coaching rates saw an increase effective January 1, 2019. This month’s income includes a client who had been previously quoted and confirmed their commitment in the new year. Due to demand and the evolving scope of our offerings, coaching prices will continue to increase. Therefore, if you are interested in elevating your food blogging and photography skills, I highly recommend considering our program now before further rate adjustments. Take advantage of current rates!
- Beautycounter affiliate income: $86.38. While I genuinely appreciate Beautycounter products, integrating their promotion into my content hasn’t felt as organic or natural for me as, for example, promoting Thrive Market. I admire how effortlessly other consultants in the healthy food blogger niche excel in this area, but it appears this particular sales platform may not be the optimal fit for my brand and audience.
- Thrive Market: $3,840. As a proud partner with Thrive Market, I earn a commission whenever new members sign up for a trial through my dedicated link. My affiliation with Thrive predates our partnership; I was a loyal shopper long before they reached out. I cannot emphasize enough my admiration for this company’s mission and product offerings.
- ButcherBox: $420. I initiated my partnership with ButcherBox in January after personally experiencing and absolutely falling in love with their high-quality products. This affiliate program is exceptionally rewarding, offering a high payout per sale. The superior quality and appeal of their product make it incredibly easy and authentic to recommend to my audience.
- Digital Product Sales: $897. This figure encompasses sales from all proprietary digital products available on our site, including our popular digital cookbook The Paleo Instant Pot, our professionally crafted food photography presets, and my comprehensive ebook, Improve Your Food Photography Almost Instantly.
- Amazon Affiliate sales: $1,324.29. This income is generated when readers purchase items through links on my site, with no additional cost to the buyer. I receive a small referral fee for these purchases. It’s worth noting that our Amazon affiliate sales are currently seeing a decline, a conscious trend reflecting my strategic decision to prioritize and strengthen my partnership and promotional efforts with Thrive Market.
Total Income for January 2019: $36,925.41 *A truly remarkable achievement that makes the heart flutter!*
Operational Expenses for January 2019
Effective blog management requires strategic investments in robust tools and expert support. Here’s a breakdown of our key operational expenses for January, each playing a vital role in maintaining our site’s performance and supporting our growth initiatives:
- WPOpt: $43. My web host, WPOpt, is an indispensable partner in keeping my site running at optimal speed and efficiency. Their service includes an HTTPS certificate, which simplifies security management immensely. They offer various hosting tiers designed to accommodate different traffic volumes, ensuring a scalable solution for every blogger. While I may need to consider an upgrade soon given our increasing traffic, WPOpt continues to handle our current volume exceptionally well at my existing plan level. I cannot recommend them highly enough for their reliable and fast hosting solutions.
- Mailerlite: $150. My email list is an absolutely critical component of our traffic strategy, acting as a direct line of communication with our most engaged readers. This dedicated focus on list growth has naturally led to a substantial subscriber base. I choose Mailerlite for its straightforward functionality; it effectively meets all my requirements without the need for overly complex or superfluous features. My subscription cost increased by $20 this month, a direct result of reaching the significant milestone of 30,000 subscribers. This investment is well worth it for the direct access and engagement it provides.
- Adobe Creative Cloud: $50. My work heavily involves design, photography, and videography, making the complete Adobe Creative Cloud suite an essential toolkit. For my blog, I frequently utilize Premiere Pro for video editing, Lightroom and Photoshop for professional photo manipulation, and Adobe Illustrator for graphic design elements. The $50/month subscription is an excellent value for the extensive array of powerful applications it provides, enabling us to produce high-quality visual content consistently.
- Later.com: $10. This service is crucial for maintaining a consistent and engaging presence on Instagram. Later.com allows us to efficiently schedule our Instagram posts in advance and conveniently include a link in our bio, streamlining our social media management and ensuring our content reaches our audience at optimal times.
- Food blogger Virtual Assistant (VA): $700. My virtual assistant is an invaluable asset, contributing significantly across a multitude of tasks. From sourcing relevant social media links for sharing to providing critical support during photo and video shoots, her contributions are diverse and impactful. Her assistance in countless other areas has made the most profound difference in the efficiency and capacity of my business, directly influencing what I’m able to achieve and earn. I firmly believe that every growing blogger can benefit immensely from the strategic support of a dedicated virtual assistant.
- Pinterest Specialist: $200. I am incredibly fortunate to work with an exceptional Pinterest specialist who meticulously crafts and executes our Pinterest strategy for 40A. She expertly manages all aspects of my Pinterest activity, ensuring optimal reach and engagement. Her expertise in navigating the ever-evolving Pinterest algorithm and her ability to consistently deliver results make her an indispensable member of our team, and I constantly hope she stays with us indefinitely!
Total Expenses for January 2019: $1,153
Net Income for January 2019: $35,772.41
To have achieved my best month ever (by a significant margin!) while juggling the demands of a tiny baby at home feels nothing short of miraculous. Watching readers enthusiastically embrace recipes like my Egg Roll in a Bowl fills me with immense satisfaction, particularly as it validates the strategic focus on SEO I had diligently implemented earlier last year. This phenomenal outcome underscores the power of long-term planning and consistent execution, even amidst personal life changes.
The Transformative Power of SEO
Early last year, a pivotal connection was made when I befriended fellow food blogger, Erren from Erren’s Kitchen. Erren was deeply immersed in a significant SEO optimization project, already witnessing impressive results, and her enthusiasm became contagious. She compellingly advocated for me to embark on a similar journey, emphasizing the profound impact it could have on my blog’s trajectory. This meant a deep dive into learning efficient keyword research methodologies, adopting new approaches to writing fresh content, and, crucially, undertaking a comprehensive overhaul and update of existing older posts to align with SEO best practices.
Taking on such a massive project, especially while six months pregnant, might not have seemed like the most opportune timing (as my husband might attest!). However, driven by a vision for sustainable growth, I pressed forward, and looking back, the effort was undeniably worth it. The process involved creating a detailed spreadsheet, meticulously cataloging my top-performing posts alongside those exceptional recipes that, despite being underperforming, held significant potential. Each of these selected posts received a complete transformation: new, high-quality photos, engaging video content, updated and optimized copy, and refined instructions. This often meant reshooting multiple recipes each week, sometimes even re-reshooting videos when my growing baby bump inadvertently interfered with a crucial shot. I frequently worked late into the night, fueled by the conviction that this investment would pay off.
My rationale was clear: by investing this substantial time and effort upfront, I would forge a stronger, more resilient platform capable of sustaining high traffic through Q4 2018 and well into January 2019. And remarkably, that vision came to fruition.
It worked. It truly, profoundly worked.
While my overall pageviews for January were up an impressive 72% from the previous year, a more granular examination of my analytics reveals an even more compelling story:
As many current food bloggers can attest, Pinterest has become an increasingly challenging platform due to its frequent algorithm changes and evolving best practices. It’s often difficult to pinpoint what strategies are truly effective anymore. In fact, our new user acquisition from Pinterest experienced a dramatic decline in January 2019 compared to January 2018. This illustrates the inherent volatility of relying heavily on a single social media platform for traffic.
However, the significant shift lies in our organic search results. Traffic derived from search engines such as Google not only doubled but soared by an astounding 136%! This massive increase is a direct consequence of our dedicated SEO efforts and underscores the immense value of sustainable, high-intent traffic. This surge in organic traffic not only boosts our domain authority, signalling to search engines that our site is a reliable and valuable resource, but also critically diversifies our traffic streams. By focusing on SEO, we were able to effectively counterbalance a major dip from a previously reliable platform like Pinterest, creating a more stable and robust audience base. The bottom line is undeniable: SEO is absolutely everything for long-term blog sustainability and growth.
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