Blog Income Report: How I Made $7,612.86 in 5 Months Blogging Full Time

I find it so motivational and hopefully I can get there some day.  While my income report is nowhere near that, I am super proud of the work I have put into Bella Style Living.

TAKE ME STRAIGHT TO THE BLOG INCOME REPORT

How I started blogging full time...

I've shared my blogging journey a ton on Instagram, but never really shared with my blog readers. I started my blog in April 2018 as a creative outlet (like, how many times have you heard that one?) 

Honestly, my 9-5 was so unfulfilling that I craved any opportunity to get to talk about fashion and beauty. You see, I got my degree in broadcast journalism in the hopes of being the next Maria Menounos, so I truly enjoyed chatting about all those things.

While in college, I got a job at a bank and slowy, unintentionally worked my way up from teller to management. It was supposed to be only a college job. After graduating, I landed a part-time position at a news station here in Houston. 

I briefly worked both jobs (going on 4-hour sleep intervals, it was brutal.) Eventually, because of the little pay, I quit the news job and went full time at the bank for a few more years. 

Leaving a secure 9-5 making 65k+ plus benefits to literally nothing, was scary AF! I have a family to help  support, a mortgage, and bills to pay.  But my husband gave me his blessing and I decided to leap!

I realized that if 17 years passed in the blink of an eye, I could easily end up retiring in my sad little cubicle doing something I absolutely hated.  It was dimming my light and I had to make the change. 

How do bloggers make money?

I think it's important to be fully transparent if I am going to share my blogging journey and how I started my business.  Please note that I did not make $7,612.86 during my first 5 months of blogging ever.  

I have been making money on my blog for about 2 years before leaving my job.  Nothing substantial, but I attributed the small earnings to the little time I had to devout to my blog. 

Chances are if you are just starting out, you may not see income for a while if you are a new blog. If you want to see substantial earnings, you have to put in the work and treat your blog like a business.  That means 30-40 hours a week and you have to be consistent. 

Bloggers make money from a ton of different avenues.  There is affiliate marketing, ad revenue, brand collaborations and selling products or services. 

Don't forget to join my private Facebook group where we chat all things blogging and influencer marketing. Get to know other women just like you who are ready to grow their businesses or just make good money on the side.

Affiliate Marketing

When I first started, I was making a few bucks with affiliate marketing.  I'm with a few affiliates but the ones that generate the most income for me is Amazon, LTK (formally Rewardstyle) and ShopStyle. 

Whenever I share outfits or other products on my social channels or on my blog, I will link to my affiliates.  When someone clicks that link and buys from that retailer I get a commission (at no extra cost to the customer) - kind of like a finders fee. 

Affiliates usually pay me the commission 60-90 days from when someone made the purchase.  So if someone returns the item they purchased, the affiliate will deduct my earned commission for that sale.

Ad Revenue

I signed up with an ad company late in my blogging game.  I've had my eye on Mediavine because its the ad company that the big bloggers use.  Unfortunately for me, you have to have about 50k+ monthly users to your blog in order to be accepted. 

I started off with Google AdSense as my first ad company. The money I received was so sad -- but so was my traffic. I was only on Google AdSense for about 3 months before I learned about SheMedia. 

I've only been with SheMedia for a few months, but I liked that I can tailor the ads shown on my blog to cater to my audience.  

Brand Collaborations

Many bloggers partner with brands to promote products and services that their audience will benefit from. Personally, I partner with brands match my brand pillars -- fashion, beauty, and lifestyle. 

Brands will pay bloggers to either write blog posts or create content for the brands to use in their social channels or marketing. 

Selling Products

Bloggers may also sell products, physical or digital, for revenue. A food blogger may sell a cookbook or an e-book for their readers to purchase. 

I created an Etsy shop last year selling LTK graphics to be used in Canva (I'll have a whole post on what apps I use to blog at a later date.) I haven't been proactive in promoting and haven't made any sales this year. 

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MY BLOGGING INCOME REPORT 2022

The one thing about blogging is that the amount of money you make can vary month to month.  There are so many factors when it comes to the revenue potential.  What I've learned is that consistency is key.

I'm still learning a ton (especially after taking this course) and am always finding ways to get better at blogging.  If you want to blog as a career, you must A- Love what you're writing about. and B - Keep at it.  It can be so demotivating when you don't see growth or money coming in, but stay with it and it will happen (I tell myself this everyday!)

BSL Income Report

Many bloggers will do a monthly income report but I figured I would start my first blogger income report for the first months of full-time blogging in 2022.  These past few months I've made $7,612.86 which averages out to about $1,522.57 a month. 

I included the Pinterest creator fund income in the affiliates section because I wasn't sure where else to include them.  Unfortunately, Pinterest has discontinued this creator fund opportunity. 

I have yet to be paid from my ad partners so I also did not include them.  But I'm hopeful I'll see some income from them in 2023. 

Affiliates

Brand Partnerships

what I learned from these past few months of blogging full time

I think one important thing to remember is that this is not what I took home these past few months.  I've actually taken a loss due to my blog expenses. 

From my website hosting to blogging extras like Semrush and Canva, blogging can get costly depending on how professional you want to take it.  I'll share more about the products and services I use on a later post.

One of my more costly expenses was signing up with a business coach.  I have since discontinued her services because I could no longer afford the monthly fee.  However, I knew the value in hiring a person who I could talk business with and could give me pointers for growing my blog, along with keeping me motivated. 

Another business investment was hiring my first virtual assistant.  She has helped me greatly with growing my LTK.  I wanted to invest (I say invest because her services have helped me make money) in someone who could help me generate more money for my business.  

As a first time business owner, I've made some mistakes and had to cut back on a few services, but I definitely look forward to restoring these services once I generate more income. 

Starting, and growing, a business is hard work.  I'm actually in the thick of it right now and it is a struggle.  Everyday I wake up thinking of ways to grow and make money. 

I'm constantly trying to suppress the thought of failure and having to return to a job I do not like. I love blogging and working from home. I love being here when my kids get off the school bus.  I love being my own boss.  But there are many worries and headaches along the way. 

I hope this post was insightful and hope it helps your blog journey. Don't forget to sign up for our exclusive newsletter where we'll discuss all things blogging and business. 

This post was all about the BSL blog income report and how much I made my first few months as a full time blogger.