Hey there! Welcome to the blog income report for September 2021. This is my fourth income report for Striving Blogger; you can read the last month’s one here: August 2021 Income Report.
Income reports have always been one of my favorite categories of content to read online, and I’m thrilled to be able to write my own ones.
This September 2021 blog income report will share my income, expenses, traffic, and recommended blogging tools.
Even if I can inspire one person to start a blog or persevere through hard times, I’ll be more than happy to keep posting these!
September was another crazy month, and I’m excited to move into October.
I’ve had to overcome a lot of self-doubt and imposter syndrome throughout blogging, and some of my hard work is finally starting to pay off.
Anyways, without further ado, let’s get straight into the traffic and analytics.
Why publish an income report?
I love publishing income reports because it’s a way to inspire other bloggers through their journeys, and it’s fun to talk about a “taboo topic.”
It’s also cool to see an inside scoop from a beginner’s perspective.
These income reports are also published for these three reasons:
- Accountability: I can use income reports to see the growth of my blog over time. It’s also handy to keep myself accountable and learn what went right/wrong for the month, and what goals I should set for next month.
- Inspiration: As I’ve stated, income reports are my favorite pieces to read by bloggers. It’s a way for new bloggers to get inspired or seasoned bloggers not to give up on their journey yet.
- Transparency: I’m all about transparency. As you’ll see in this income report, my earnings are meager. But that doesn’t matter to me yet. I’m never trying to show off my income; I’m merely documenting my growth as a blogger. I hope this transparency resonates with you, whether you’re a blogger yourself or thinking of starting a blog.
Unlike many bloggers who post income reports after they’re making thousands a month, I thought I’d switch up the narrative and share income reports as a low-earning blogger.
As you’ll see, I’m not earning $5000 a month or hitting milestones of 50,000 page views, so I hope this transparency will resonate with you.
Anyways, let’s now get onto the traffic and metrics for September 2021.
Blog Income Report – September 2021
To monetize this blog, I basically rely entirely on affiliates. The same as last month, I’m still in the process of taking my products off of Etsy.
I did make one sale, but that was after I heavily discounted the price. As I’ve stated previously, I’d rather give printables free to my audience than sell them for a minimal profit.
However, I need to diversify my income, but this blog is still so young, so I’ve got a lot of time to do so.
I’m planning on adding Ezoic ads to my blog in the next month or two, but I really want to get over 2000 page views to make it worthwhile. If I get at least a $5 RPM, it’ll cover my expenses.
Income for September 2021: $3.17
In September 2021, I made $3.17 in gross income from this blog. While it isn’t as much as last month, I’m not as concerned. I still need to update many old blog posts and hone in on the affiliate programs I’ll be using from now on.
You may look at this number and roll your eyes, I get it isn’t a lot, but I’m still happy with it.
Another exciting thing is that I got accepted into the Amazon Affiliates program with four weeks to spare, so that’s encouraging.
I was holding off updating gift guides and Amazon affiliate articles if I didn’t get accepted into it, so now that workload is off my shoulders.
Expenses for September 2021: $10
Expenses haven’t changed for the past few months, and my only costs are from my web hosting with Cloudways.
It costs me 10 dollars a month, but it’s worth every penny.
While it is more expensive than other web hosting platforms, I love the company, and my page speeds are super fast. A big mistake I made, in the beginning, was buying Bluehost’s three-year plan. It cost me like $100+, and I used it for literally two months before I gave up on them.
So for September, I had a net income of -$6.83.
Blog Traffic & Metrics for September 2021
Traffic for September 2021 – 840 pageviews
My blog had 840 pageviews from 595 sessions in September.
Traffic is up 106% from August, in which I received 408 pageviews from 299 sessions. Traffic has been rising again this month, and I see consistent days of 20 – 50 pageviews, which is exciting.
I started focusing on Pinterest traffic again, as it’s been picking up over the past month, driving over 100 people to my blog. I now know which pins work and which don’t, so I’m focusing on it again.
Last month, I aimed to hit 600 – 700 page views, and I hit the goal with ease. Next month, I aim to hit around 1200 pageviews.
Traffic has been doubling every month for the past few months, so if it follows the same course, I should be at around 1700 pageviews next month.
Blog Traffic Month-over-Month:
February: 128 page views
March: 129 page views
April: 122 page views
May: 135 page views
June: 111 page views
July: 223 page views
August: 408 page views
September: 840 page views
Posts Published +7
In September, I only published seven new articles. While I didn’t post as much as I’d hoped, I needed a break after participating in the content warrior challenge last month (31 posts in 31 days).
I will try to get this number to at least eight posts (two a week), but I hope for 12 new posts in October.
I must note that it was hard to find the motivation to write because my state is still in lockdown, and my family was also stuck in a two-week quarantine (I couldn’t leave home for exercise or anything).
Also, I found myself wanting to lie in bed all day, and it was kind of rough, honestly. It’s hard to find motivation when you can’t leave your home or take a walk to clear your head.
I’ve never forced myself to write as I don’t want to consider blogging a chore, and I’m thankful I only wrote when I wanted to.
Again, hopefully, next month, I’ll be able to publish more, but I’d rather not stress myself out or produce low-quality articles just for the sake of posting new content.
Email Subscribers +14
In September, I had 14 new email subscribers, bringing my total to 25 subscribers. I added some freebies to my free stuff page and saw an uptick in signups.
Unlike last month, I actually sent out a few emails to my subscribers and saw positive results. I sent out six emails in September, compared to a measly one in August.
I aim to create a couple more freebies in October too.
Creating an email list has been challenging to say the least, but I’m excited to see the course it’s taking, and I hope it keeps growing over the coming months.
Also, this list is free for up to 1200 subscribers, as I’ve been able to refer a couple of bloggers to increase my list capacity.
Blogging Goals for October 2021
From now on, with my income reports, I’ll state my blogging goals and whether or not I reached them in my next month’s income report.
It’s a way to hold myself accountable and strive to hit these goals.
These are my four main blogging goals for October:
- Publish eight new articles: It’s pretty easy to achieve, and this income report already counts as one. I have dozens of drafts of post outlines, so I should hit this easily.
- Reach 1200 page views: It’s around a 50% increase from this month’s figures; hopefully, I break 1K page views!
- Make $10: Which is just enough to cover my expenses for web hosting.
- Hit 40 email subscribers: Considering my uptick in sign-ups this month, I should be able to hit this number easily.
Next, we’ll move on to my recommended tools and resources for bloggers (with discounts and credits).
Disclaimer: Some of the links below are affiliate links, where I may receive a small commission on purchases at no cost to you. These tools and resources are ones that I thoroughly recommend for all bloggers. You can read my entire affiliate disclosure here.
Recommended Blogging Tools & Resources
Cloudways
The web hosting that I use and love, it’s more expensive than regular hosting but doesn’t compromise on speed or features.
The plans start at $10/month but get billed month-to-month, meaning you won’t get charged until next month.
Try Cloudways Today (receive $15 credit at signup)
PS: Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to start a blog with Cloudways.
A2 Hosting
If Cloudways is too expensive for you, then A2 Hosting is another excellent pick. The plans start at $2.99 a month and are fast and reliable.
Perks of A2 Hosting include:
- 100GB SSD storage
- Free SSL
Just a heads up, unlike Cloudways, you have to pay the price in full at the beginning.
Get A2 Hosting (up to 72% off)
WP Rocket
The caching plugin I use to get page speed scores of 90+. It’s user-friendly and guides you through what each feature does.
Get WP Rocket (10% off)
PS: Learn how to get a perfect Google page speed score here.
Salient Theme
The theme I use for this blog. It’s a multipurpose theme, and I love everything about it. It comes with hundreds of pre-built templates and is beginner-friendly.
PS: Read my in-depth review here.
ConvertKit
The email marketing service I use. The platform is user-friendly and is built for bloggers by bloggers.
It’s free for up to 1000 subscribers, and then plans start at $29 a month.
Wrapping Up September 2021 Income Report
Thanks for reading this blog income report for September 2021.
Hopefully, this September income report has taught you a few things or was generally just a good read.
While I didn’t earn much money this month, it’s exciting to see my page views increase and an increased click on affiliate links.
As I’ve stated, the primary purpose of these blog income reports is to be transparent with my readers and display the highs and lows of blogging.
While it was a more challenging month, I know I’ll bounce back better than ever in the coming months.
Anyways, I will be back with another blog income report for October, hopefully with 1K+ pageviews. 🤞🏼
How much did you make in September 2021 from blogging? Or, how many page views did you receive?
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