Hey all! I’m back with another income and traffic report to share with you today. I started doing income reports as a way to be more transparent about my business and hopefully shed some light on ways that you can grow your own online business, too.
I know that sharing one’s income online, for the world to see, is kind of a strange thing to do. Trust me, it took quite a bit of courage (and convincing from my friends!) to share this data with you. In fact, I held back from sharing my income reports in the past because I never (ever!) wanted to appear like I was flaunting my results. Rather, I do this because I genuinely desire to help you grow your own business and want to provide some behind-the-curtain results of how I’ve grown and tweaked my own. I want to show you both what worked for me and what didn’t so that you can apply those lessons to your own dreams. My overall hope is that my income reports inspire or inform you to create and grow your own online biz.
Thank you for traveling with me, behind-the-scenes, while I take you through my income and traffic reports each month. I’m grateful that you’re here. And if you’re working on growing your own business and blog? Best of luck to you, my friend. Now, let’s get into it!
Hey you! It’s been awhile since I did an income report. I got all kinds of busy the last couple months during the launch of The Blog Hive that I just never got around to it. Bah! But I’m going to try to keep up with them each month because of all the sweet emails and tweets I got from people who were hoping these reports would make a reappearance.
Honestly, when I first started doing income reports, I was scared of what people might think, so I’m glad that these reports are helpful and/or motivating for you. That was my plan all along. *Mr. Burns Fingers*
Anywho! Let’s get down to it, yeah? Here are my income and expenses from the previous month:
December Income
- E-Course Sales: $45,881
- Affiliate Commissions: $8,064
Total Income: $53,945
December Expenses
- Affiliate Fees: $2,200
- The 90 Day Year E-Course: $1,999
- PayPal + Stripe Fees: $1,193
- Facebook ads: $950
- Virtual Assistants: $474
- Giveaway: $450
- Teachable*: $299
- Infusionsoft*: $278
- Edgar (6 months plan): $195
- CAOC E-Course Installment Payment: $97
- Zapier: $20
- Google Apps*: $17
- MotionMail: $10
Total Expenses: $8,182 (Anything with an * next to it is an affiliate link)
Net Profit: $45,763
Can we all just take a moment to say, in unison, “daaayummm expenses much?” Ha! As I was creating that list of expenses, I was certainly surprised myself, since my expenses are usually closer to $1,500 than 8-freaking-thousand. But alas! December was a big month. My biggest, ever, actually. In 2013, my annual income was about $55,000, which is so close to last month’s income that it just blows my mind. Like, how did this happen?
Anyways, let’s boogie, shall we? Here’s what went down in December…
I launched The Blog Hive
This was truly game changing for me in so many ways. The Blog Hive is an 8-week e-course that shows you how to take your blog and turn it into a profitable business. It’s a course I’d had in my mind for over a year. I actually remember having a mastermind meeting with a couple friends back in 2014 and telling them about the idea. It just took a little while to actually make it come to fruition. 😉
Anyways, when I launched TBH in December, it brought in a little over $100,000 in two weeks, which was exciting and mind blowing to me. In case you’re wondering why my income report isn’t $100,000, then it’s because 30% of course sales happened during my first webinar, which was at the end of November. And another 30-40% will be paid out over the next five months via payment plans. It’s also nice to have that monthly recurring revenue being paid out via payment plans each month, so I know the baseline for how much I will make each month.
Aside from earning a big paycheck from launching The Blog Hive, I also felt like I began to find my calling with courses. I LOVE the material I’m teaching and it literally thrills me to see my students saying it’s helpful for them. One of my favorite parts about this course is that it has a strong community focus. We have an active Facebook group, I do Q&As for students every couple weeks, and everyone is put into a Mastermind Group, where they can chat with 2-3 other students in a more intimate setting. The Mastermind Groups are crazy cool.
It just makes me so freakin’ happy to see people connecting with each other. You know how some people say that they knew since they were a kid that they were born to be an entrepreneur? Well, honestly, I didn’t really ever have that feeling. I liked “tychoon” games and started or led lots of organizations in high school and college, but money was never part of it. But the thing I did always feel burning inside? That I was born to connect people. To make them feel good. Empowered. And able to achieve goals with the support of others. I see that with TBH and it just brings me this deep sense of pride and happiness.
I can’t wait to relaunch this course in the future to bring a new class of students into the mix. 🙂
Screw people who say December is a bad time to launch 😉
I launched TBH in December, even though there are mixed opinions about whether or not it’s a good time to launch. Honestly, I wouldn’t recommend launching Christmas week, but other than that? December can be a great month to launch. Here are two reasons why I think this is:
- People are already in the “buying” mood. Which other months during the year are people used to buying things as much as they are in December? November and December are big months for buyers, with Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Christmas. So, it’s a bit of a different mindset around this time of year. People are used to paying for things, so pulling out your wallet to buy a course doesn’t feel as strange as it might during other times of the year.
- People are thinking about The New Year. The start of a new year is always a transformative time for people who want to change their life or make a dramatic shift. So, if your product can help people reach a new goal, then it can be very convincing.
…Basically, people who say that December is a bad time to launch are probably people who have never launched in December. 😉
Expenses moving forward
Even given my laundry list of expenses last month, I have a hard time hiring people to help me with my business. Even though I know it’s vital to growing a business, it’s the one type of expense where I realize I could do it myself, but shouldn’t. It’s been a big mindset shift for me to see the difference, but I think I am finally coming out the other side!
I read something recently, where someone said that they were just going to try to follow through with all of the decisions that brought them fear. So, if hiring a new assistant sounds scary and expensive, then do it. If working with a CPA sounds unnecessary and costly when I’m used to TurboTax, then it’s probably something I need to do. Having this “fear formula” has been helpful for me. And honestly, hiring people to help me with my business has become both necessary and wonderful. If I really want to grow as a business owner, I need to focus on my priorities and delegate the rest. Anyways, this was a big lesson and source of resistance that I’ve had to work through, but I’m glad I did. 🙂
Traffic Report for December:
My monthly traffic didn’t change a whole lot during October/November/December! For the past few months, I’ve been blogging dramatically less. I’ve decreased from about three posts per week to more like one post per week. I was nervous at first that people would just forget about me and TNC, but I realized that I have so many other touch points for my brand (like the Facebook group, newsletter, webinars, social media, etc!) that having less blog posts doesn’t make a difference.
In the case of my traffic, it really hasn’t made much of a difference at all. I also have quite a lot of posts in the archives, which certainly helps to keep people entertained and interested. I’m working on a new blog design and plan to make the archives more accessible, too. 🙂
Bottom line: decreasing the number of blog posts you share may not affect your brand, so long as the posts you create are valuable and you have other ways for people to learn from and interact with you.
Alright y’all! I genuinely hope this was helpful for you. If you liked it, then you can view more income reports here. Have a sweet day. 🙂
January 14th, 2016 at 3:02 pm
This is truly amazing! I hope to one day achieve this. Congratulations on all of your success! I’m currently just trying to grow my blog. It’s difficult but I’m going to keep on truckin! Very inspirational and good for you for sharing!
January 15th, 2016 at 11:51 am
You’re so sweet! Thank you for this comment. And best of luck with growing your blog. 🙂
January 14th, 2016 at 3:11 pm
I think my favorite part of this post was when you shared how you’ve always had that “burning” to connet people. I also never considered myself a born entrepreneur. In college, my parents suggested that I take some business courses and I totally blew off the suggestion. (I mean, come on….accouting? Boring!) But like you, I just have that unquenchable desire to do something that helps other people soar! (And I was quite brilliant at those tychoon games, btw) Thanks for these posts and for all the encouragement you always share! This year I’m focusing on not letting my fears get in the way of my ambition. Kelli the Entrepreneur? Okay. I’ll claim it.
January 15th, 2016 at 11:52 am
Kelli, I love this! I think perhaps there are two (or more?) types of entrepreneurs. I like our particular kind a whole lot, that’s for sure! 🙂
January 14th, 2016 at 3:12 pm
Aw Melyssa! I’ve been with u since the beginning of 2015 and you have come such a long long way! CONGRATS! You’re a true inspiration! BTW, what do you use to get recurring payments for your course? I’d like to offer that to my students but have no idea how to set it up with paypal! Is it Stripe you use for this? Cheers!!
January 15th, 2016 at 11:53 am
Ximena, that means so much to me! I love hearing from people who have been around for a long time. It’s special to be able to go through all of these business changes with similar faces by my side. 🙂
And I use a platform called Teachable to sell and host my courses. They have recurring payments, which are set up through Stripe. 🙂
January 14th, 2016 at 3:33 pm
I’ve said this before but dang girl, you are so inspiring. You have taught me so much in the Blog Hive and I’m so thankful for it. If (I mean when) I get to this point with my blog I’m flying my butt down to LA and taking you out for dinner because I’ll owe it all to you.
January 15th, 2016 at 11:54 am
Meagen! Way to make me smile. 🙂 I just love your positive energy in the Hive and can’t wait to take you up on that dinner. 🙂
January 14th, 2016 at 3:35 pm
Melyssa, Congratulations! You are one smart chic-a-dee!
January 15th, 2016 at 11:54 am
Aw thank you Maria! 🙂
January 14th, 2016 at 4:03 pm
Wowser Melyssa! Congrats on such a great month!! Loving your site!! Must admit that I am having MAJOR REGRET over not signing up to the Blog Hive. So badly wish I had! Hope that you will run the course again in the nearish future! Thanks!
January 15th, 2016 at 11:55 am
Thank you so much! <3 Aww shoot, I'm sorry you're regretting not signing up! It will be re-launching sometime in the next few months, so keep your eyes peeled. 🙂
January 15th, 2016 at 5:14 pm
No no don’t be sorry!! Totally my bad! I’ll keep my peepers peeled for a relaunch in the future!! Keep up the great work- you’re amazing! 🙂
January 14th, 2016 at 4:37 pm
Hi Melyssa
Every time I see one of your emails i have to come an read whatever you’re saying. I’ve been following you for some weeks now and i think you are just an amazing example of what we can make with our blogs, sites, knowledge and passions if we work on them.
Congrats on the blog hive launch I hope some results like yours some day soon when i launch my course and Keep the great work girl!
Regards from Colombia
January 15th, 2016 at 11:55 am
You are so kind, Luis! Thank you for this truly sweet comment. It means so much to me! I can’t wait to hear about your future launches. I bet they will be incredible. 🙂
January 14th, 2016 at 5:11 pm
Congrats girl! This is incredibly inspirational – so proud of you! Thank you so much for being vulnerable and sharing this with us. It’s SO helpful to see someone break it all down. This. is. awesome.
January 15th, 2016 at 11:56 am
Paige, your comment is SO encouraging to me! Thank you for being such a sweet source of inspiration! I’m really glad you enjoyed this post. 🙂
January 14th, 2016 at 6:06 pm
Just a side note, I actually love being being able to see some of the courses you personally take to move your business forward.
January 15th, 2016 at 11:56 am
Awesome! If you ever have questions about any of them, let me know! 🙂
January 14th, 2016 at 11:24 pm
Congrats girl! You’re killin’ it! So glad to be a part of The Blog Hive!
January 15th, 2016 at 11:57 am
Aw thank you, Molly! I’m so glad to have you in the Hive, too. And I love when your instagram photos pop up in my feed. They are SO gorgeous!
January 15th, 2016 at 1:12 am
Wow this is honestly incredible!!! So inspirational, congratulations
Katina | http://www.katinalindaa.com
January 15th, 2016 at 11:57 am
Aw thank you so much, Katina! <3
January 15th, 2016 at 3:46 am
WOOT that’s incredible xx Congratulations x And thanks for sharing 😉
January 15th, 2016 at 11:57 am
Thank you Sarah! I appreciate that. 🙂
January 15th, 2016 at 6:35 am
The neatest thing is that your two biggest expenses were variable expenses. They are directly related to more sales. Congrats!
January 15th, 2016 at 11:58 am
So true, Ben! I guess I can’t complain about higher expenses when it means I’m making more money, ha! 🙂
January 15th, 2016 at 1:33 pm
Also, keeping some retained earnings(emergency fund) to make sure you can afford to pay salaries and other fixed costs if you have some down months could help calm your fears. Congrats though.
January 15th, 2016 at 8:45 am
So…my December traffic is around half of yours but you make OVER 400 TIMES what I made in December! Um, I definitely think I’m doing something wrong here…
January 15th, 2016 at 11:58 am
Ha! Jessica, you better get your butt in The Blog Hive the next time it launches. I can help you with that. 😉
January 15th, 2016 at 10:12 am
Melyssa, You continue to inspire me to succeed. A big high five for your own success!
January 15th, 2016 at 11:58 am
Thank you so much, Joyce. 🙂 I appreciate that so much!
January 15th, 2016 at 11:31 am
You. Are. Awesome. Thank you for being so open about stats, expenses and income! You really are a connector– so glad to see it’s become a profitable skill!
January 15th, 2016 at 11:59 am
Thank you Daisy! That means a lot to me 🙂
January 15th, 2016 at 11:33 am
Melyssa, you truly are a blogging superstar! You’ve inspired so many people, and you are truly changing lives through your course! I know you’ve changed mine! Being part of the blog hive gave me the courage I needed to step back and reassess how I was spending my time and what was working for me and what wasn’t; I’m taking a semester off college to pursue the whole entrepreneurial shebang and put my heart and soul into it. My mental and emotional health has benefited so much from that decision, AND I’ve already a huge return on the extra time I’ve been able to put into my blog. Thank you so much for everything you do and for sharing your advice and experiences!
January 15th, 2016 at 12:00 pm
Morgan!! This comment means so darn much to me. I’m really glad that you’re in the Hive, and it’s SO exciting to hear that you’re taking some time off to pursue your passions full force. Congrats on seeing a huge return already. That’s fantastic! So proud of you, Morgan. <3
January 16th, 2016 at 5:00 am
I love how real and honest you are about your income! It’s super inspiring and makes things somehow feel more attainable to me! My one question for you would be.. If I just finished my website and now I’m up to the part of growing my email list, what would be one step I can take to get there?
January 19th, 2016 at 11:48 pm
Thank you Soshy! I appreciate that. 🙂 If you just finished your site and you’re now growing your email list, then I’d recommend just focusing on creating killer content for your blog, which also leads into your content upgrades/pieces of extra content people can download if they sign up with their email. That way, you’re producing great content for your blog, while also growing your email list. 🙂
January 16th, 2016 at 8:51 pm
Wow! This is great, and so inspiring. and even though joining TBH wasn’t in the cards for me, right now, I’m seriously so happy for you. I just discovered the Nectar Collective a couple of months ago, but you have been such a help. So, good for you! 🙂
January 19th, 2016 at 11:47 pm
That’s really sweet, Megan. Thank you! 🙂
January 17th, 2016 at 10:04 am
That’s awesome! Congrats on The Hive launch!! (working extra hours to save money and hopefully jump in the next session!). I would love to hear more about Infusionsoft. How do you like it and how do you use it? It seems pretty awesome!
January 19th, 2016 at 11:46 pm
Thank you Julie! I’d love to have you next time. 🙂 Infusionsoft is pretty neat! I can’t really fully explain how to use it, as it has an enormous amount of features and possibilities, but essentially, it’s used to create advanced email sequences and campaigns. I’m still learning all of its capabilities, but I enjoy it so far for the most part! 🙂
January 18th, 2016 at 5:06 pm
Wow you’re a blogging inspiration! I hope one day I’m able to grow my site to even half of what you’ve been able to do!
January 19th, 2016 at 11:45 pm
You’re so sweet, Rachel! Thanks for the encouragement. 🙂
January 18th, 2016 at 9:18 pm
Wowza Melyssa! This is soooo inspirational. You are seriously a rock star. I also love the fact that you always seem to invest in yourself as well (just checking out the 90 day year e-Course) that you have listed.
Wishing you all of the best this year! #Seriouslygottastepupmygame!
Cheers – Kim G, YourChicGeek
January 19th, 2016 at 11:45 pm
Aw thank you Kim! Your comment is so sweet. 🙂 And yes! I feel like I’m always enrolled in at least one course at a time, haha! 🙂
January 18th, 2016 at 10:54 pm
I love love love reading Income Reports! Thank you for this 🙂 It’s inspiring to really see how much you’ve worked to earn what you’re earning right now. Wishing you all the best!
Those insights about December launches… my thoughts exactly! 🙂
Pam x
http://craftedbypam.com
January 19th, 2016 at 11:44 pm
Thank you Pam! That means a lot to hear. Glad you like these reports! <3
January 19th, 2016 at 7:43 pm
wow this is so inspiring!
January 19th, 2016 at 11:44 pm
Glad you enjoy it. 🙂
January 19th, 2016 at 9:10 pm
You are a super star!
January 19th, 2016 at 11:44 pm
Aww shucks. Thanks Elizabeth! 🙂
January 19th, 2016 at 11:32 pm
Wohoo, so happy to read another income report! And to hear that you will make the archives more accessible! 🙂
Do you ever fear sharing about your income because people might abuse it? (e.g. becoming friends just for your money, or stealing from you.) I write income reports on my blog as well but I’m not sure if I should continue doing that if my income gets higher, because of that fear.
Although…. apparently in that case I should decide to continue with it! 😉
January 19th, 2016 at 11:43 pm
Hi Luz! Glad you enjoy these reports. 🙂
There’s definitely a little bit of fear when sharing my income online, mainly that people will overcharge me for things or that someone could be more determined to somehow steal from me, like you mentioned. But so far, those fears haven’t been merited at all and I haven’t had any negative experiences. 🙂 I’ve also never heard of any of those negative experiences happening to others who share income reports, so I hope it’s just a fear we create rather than a potential reality. 🙂
January 19th, 2016 at 11:46 pm
Great to hear! Thank you for your quick response 🙂
January 22nd, 2016 at 8:57 am
Wow that’s amazing! Nice to see how others are doing it and gives me inspiration that I can do it too. Its always nice to see different ways on how different bloggers make income etc.
Thanks for sharing and keep being a #badass
Lauren Baxter | Lovely Decor
http://www.lovelydecor.co
xx
January 22nd, 2016 at 11:21 am
This post gave me just the right surge of confidence to start my own blog. I’m trying to hone my talents in writing to perhaps contribute to my family’s income in an intentional way, and seeing your honesty and the bare-bones numbers really ignited my heart. Thank you!
January 24th, 2016 at 7:03 pm
Gee your business is really shooting up. I thought you we’re already making so much when you were still doing website designs but switching into this new business really has it going better for you. I’ve recently had a three month break from blogging so I’m trying to get back inspiration and motivation and this is just so awesome. I’m still struggling on how to make money from my blog. Hopefully it’s going to be awesome for my business (to-be) this year, too. Keep on rockin’, Mel! 🙂 <3 <3 <3
http://www.heidepadilla.com
January 24th, 2016 at 11:56 pm
Thank you for sharing this – it’s awesome to see someone being so transparent. I’m just starting to write by business plan and this has helped so much! Thank you.
Lisa x
lisavillaume.com
January 25th, 2016 at 8:31 pm
This was so inspiring. We are beginning the process of monetizing our blog and figuring out what’s best for our audience. I have shared so many of your posts with my coeditor!
http://www.loveandthesky.com
Career, personal finance, and lifestyle advice for the millennial professional.
January 26th, 2016 at 2:57 pm
Pretty unrelated to this post, but will you no longer be doing personal goals and resolutions on this blog?
January 27th, 2016 at 12:22 am
awesome, awesome, awesome! Thank you for sharing 🙂
January 30th, 2016 at 10:01 pm
Hi Melissa,
I just wanted to drop by and let you know how incredibly inspiring you and your work has been to me during the last few weeks.
I’m planning some bigger changes in my life and your posts are always encouraging and so positive!
Thanks a million!
And I’m really glad to see, that you are so so successful with the work you love!
All my best wishes to you and many thanks!
Verena
hamburgvoninnen.de
February 4th, 2016 at 6:32 am
Melyssa. Melyssa. Melyssa. This is me being speechless.
$45,000+ in one month is an amazing accomplishment. Would love to see a post on “Last 5 purchases I made” because I always wonder… when a blogger brings in $30,000 + in one month…. what the hell do you buy?
I think if I made that much in ONE MONTH from one revenue source (your blog) I’d just put that money in the bank and forget about it because spending it would mean digesting the fact that I accomplished something so incredible.
February 6th, 2016 at 1:13 am
honey,how are you
February 10th, 2016 at 10:36 pm
It’s not bad
February 11th, 2016 at 1:39 am
well done Melyssa, I’m delighted for you.
I’m a complete newbie in online matters however I’m still creating my own website (thank God for helpdesks!) however I really want to master the whole list-building/CTA/newsletter aspect and I’m wondering if I wouldn’t better off getting some help cos it’s gonna take me forever and I still need to DO the work I’m advertising (business and life coach). Your point about investing in some help totally speaks to me, what’s the best way to go about finding a ‘virtual assistant’? (bear in mind I’m in France)
Have a lovely day
Carine
May 27th, 2016 at 6:34 am
well said,
February 14th, 2016 at 2:30 pm
You’re doing such an amazing job. Thanks for helping us with online stuff!
February 15th, 2016 at 10:52 am
Hi Aprivé! Thank you so much for your sweet words and for reading! 🙂
February 25th, 2016 at 12:59 pm
I just discovered your blog while researching brand collaborations.. great tips! I also saw that your course is closed for now… when will you be opening it up again? Congrats on all of your success!
Jessica
http://diningtraveler.com
February 25th, 2016 at 1:23 pm
Thanks so much, I’m glad you found me! Which course are you looking into? You should be able to register!
February 25th, 2016 at 1:41 pm
The Blog Hive. I added my name to the mailing list. Thanks for your response!
February 26th, 2016 at 9:56 am
Ah, yes! Look for more info in your inbox this Spring!
March 12th, 2016 at 10:20 am
I think it’s so brilliant you share information like this, it’s so valuable to others going full time. You’ve had huge success so big congrats.
My own blog has a huge careers and tips focus and they drive the most traffic for me, and i’ve definitely been taking inspiration as to how to push this to the next level.
Mel x
mediamarmalade.com
March 15th, 2016 at 2:07 pm
Thank you so much, Mel! I love that your focussed on upleveling your blog too. 🙂
March 16th, 2016 at 5:10 am
Love your blog! It is so helpful, especially for a new blogger like me!
March 17th, 2016 at 8:31 pm
Hi Kate, welcome to the blogging world! I know you’ll have so much fun. Thanks for reading and commenting!
May 27th, 2016 at 6:34 am
impessive income
May 30th, 2016 at 11:38 pm
Thanks for the kind words, Chad 🙂