I’m proud to announce that as of last week MyMoneyDesign.com is now 3 years old!
Running a blog is something that unfortunately not a lot of other people can claim to have accomplished. During my tenure I’ve seen a lot of websites start, a lot of them fail, and some of them just completely disappear of the face of the Internet.
But I’ve also seen a lot of the good ones carry on and take their sites to the next level. They’ve encouraged me, inspired me, and even challenged me at times to improve. I’m very thankful for all the friends I’ve made and for everything I’ve throughout this whole experience!
If someone would have told me 3 years ago that this would be my primary way of making money on the side, I would have told them they were crazy. I thought for sure I’d be investing in rental properties or researching hot stocks every day.
But that’s not the case at all.
Though I still love exploring different ideas in personal finance and finding my own little niche ideas to out-smart the tax man, I’ve found that what I really like about blogging is the way I can treat it like a business. (In fact to tie blogging back to personal finance, I found out earlier this year that I was eligible for a SEP IRA which allowed me to save hundreds of dollars in taxes!)
With blogging as a business I have monthly income goals. I have a budget. I have problems I need to solve. This has truly been about as close I’ve ever felt to being a real entrepreneur.
The Biggest Lesson I’ve Learned:
One of the biggest lessons I’ve taken away from the whole writing blogs for money experience is this: If you’ve got an idea for something, and it seems pretty reasonable, just go for it.
Don’t wait around for permission.
Don’t wait for other people’s opinions.
Don’t plan it out and talk about it to death.
Just do it.
I remember years ago finding the book Problogger at Barnes and Noble and having all kinds of questions and doubts about whether this blogging thing was really for real …
I could have never started blogging.
I could have sat on the side-lines forever always being envious of every web article I ever read.
But I didn’t.
Even after I started blogging (and just about every 3 months), some big-name blogger will write a scathing article about how “blogging is dead” or “SEO is done” or “there’s no money out there” or whatever.
Do you want to know what? It’s not. In fact, it’s all alive and well.
If I had listened to the nay-sayers like that three years ago, do you want to know how much money I would have missed out on (to date)?
Approximately $34,000. No, that’s not a typo. That’s approximately how much money I’ve made (gross) since I started this whole blogging thing.
And you know something? Every year my blogging income gets just a little larger.
Why? Because every year I get a little bit better at writing blogs for money rather than just writing for the sake of having a blog.
Every year I get just a little bit smarter about marketing my content and I take things just a little bit further than I did the year before.
I challenge my skills and push myself to evolve.
I love what I do.
What Else Have I Learned About Writing Blogs for Money Since Last Year?
Blog with a Purpose:
I love to visit and read all the new personal finance sites that come out every month. But I’m noticing a lot of new bloggers just put up sites with no clear direction or focus to the site. Their sites just seem to be a bunch of random posts and random thoughts that seem to go in a thousand directions.
If you care about writing blogs for money and want to see yourself someday making an income from it, then you need to treat your website like a business.
The biggest change for me as a blogger has been to think of my websites in this way. When I was first starting to make money with this website, I thought it would just be as simple as publishing a few affiliate links or taking on deals for direct advertising to pull in over $1,000 every month.
But that just wasn’t the case. As I’m sure many of you have found, its really hard to get people to click on your links or actually buy the products you promote. And if you think that driving more traffic to your site will solve your problem, think again!
I believe it was the website Think Traffic (now called The Sparkline) that said “Your Blog is NOT a business“.
I found out the hard way that that statement was true and I needed to do something else to diversify.
So that’s how I got into making niche websites. With niche sites things are different. The topics are very concentrated and structure of the website is created with the intention to draw in readers. That usually helps with both traffic and sales.
Over the last year I’ve been slowly building up my empire of niche websites so that they are bigger and stronger every month (read more about them every month in my niche website updates). As of right now I’m up to 4 niche site projects and they are collectively pulling in over $1,000 per month!
Here’s something that might surprise you: My first two niche sites get a ton more traffic than My Money Design does – and that’s without hardly any promotion at all!
Almost all the traffic to these sites comes completely from organic visitors who find my websites when they search Google. If you’ve got any doubts about the effectiveness of targeting certain keywords and using good SEO when you write your content, I can attest – IT WORKS! Do yourself a favor and get a copy of Long Tail Pro Platinum to research good keywords before you write your articles. It will be one of the best blogging investments you’ll ever make for the long run.
Diversification Helps:
Here’s another thing you may be surprised to learn: I’ve currently running / growing 2 other secret blogs that I’ve NEVER mentioned here on this website before.
Why? What do these other blog projects do for me?
They diversify my potential for money making opportunities!
Now when someone approaches me about advertising for this site, instead of making one sale, I can potentially make 3!
Lesson learned: Capturing multiple audiences and having multiple methods of generating an income is a GOOD thing. Each of the websites I’ve created has a different method or different niche that I will target to earn some cash. Sometimes it will come from Google Adsense using my slick equation. Sometimes it will come from Amazon. Other times it will come from private advertising.
If I had just stuck to one single model or put all my eggs into one “blog basket”, I don’t think I would be anywhere as profitable as I am today.
But keep in mind – Every new site I’ve created has started with a purpose or plan in mind first before I publish even one page of content.
Again – strategy!
It Pays to Upgrade Your Appearance:
This year saw the long-overdue re-design of my website theme. Around Christmas time we took My Money Design from its first crude free WordPress theme to a professional looking one from Genesis.
In case you forgot what it looked like, here is a blast from the past:
If you’ve got any doubts about whether or not to spend the cash to make your site look professional, I can tell you that it’s worth the $100 to go pro. I can’t even begin to explain how much better the site “feels” ever since I did.
To be taken seriously as a professional, you have to appear as a professional. You wouldn’t go into a job interview without looking nice, would you?
Since I’ve improved the appearance of My Money Design, I’ve actually applied the same logic to all my money making websites. I think the results speak for themselves. Not only do the websites look better, but they load more quickly and give the user an overall better experience.
In the end its your users that will make or break whether or not you’ll make any money from your blogging efforts. They will either trust your site and take you up on your recommendations. Or they will be put off by your crappy design and click off your site.
Do yourself a favor and don’t be penny-wise and pound-foolish.
Where Do We Go From Here?
So where do I want to be at with writing blogs for money by the time Year 4 comes to a close?
Lots of places! I’d like to:
- Connect with even more like-minded individuals that can help me just as much as I can help them.
- Be making consistently somewhere between $2,000 and $3,000 per month from all of my sites.
- Increase the SERP rankings for posts on My Money Design.
- Really utilize Amazon as a money-making opportunity. That would mean getting my fourth niche website to really blossom.
- Continue to grow my network of private blogs.
- Publish an E-book. I’ve already got the content!
- Sell a website. I’d just like to see how this process works.
I feel like I’ve only scratched the surface as to what blogging and content marketing can actually do for you. I’m not afraid of the challenge of having to think more creatively as I continue forward with my websites. That’s what you do when you’re in business for yourself. You figure things out. You do what you need to make your results into a success!
Readers – What lessons have you learned from writing blogs for money over the years? What kinds of challenges do yourself facing as you take things to the next level?
Images courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Glen @ Monster Piggy Bank says
Congrats mate – i’ve really enjoyed sharing the journey with you 🙂
MMD says
Congratulations to you as well Glen! And thank you very much for all your help this year. It has been really fun to swap ideas and push each other along the way.
Holly@ClubThrifty says
Happy blogiversary!
MMD says
Thanks!
yskan says
Congrats with the 3rd anniversary! It is impressive to see what progress you have made thusfar with a nice income!
Keep up the good work!
MMD says
Thank you. I am pretty proud that my efforts with blogging have gone this far.
EL @ Moneywatch101 says
Congrats on the blogiversary, I can say you really have a consistent theme when you write your posts. I learned that it is not easy to make money blogging, and that with content alone it will not bring in visitors. Looking to diversify with another site soon, and will grow a niche empire as well. Thanks for all the great info.
MMD says
Thanks EL! I hope you have learned more than enough tricks here and will be able to use some of it to streamline that success.
John @ Frugal Rules says
Huge congrats on 3 years MMD! I can relate to quite a few of these things myself. My challenge is just being fresh and finding new ways to get myself out there, but I imagine many of us feel that way as well. 🙂
MMD says
I can totally identify! Keeping this blog fresh with traditional articles about money has been a real struggle. Sometimes I’ll start writing a post and think to myself – I’ve already written this once before. That’s why I love writing about blogging and making income from other websites lately (even though it’s not totally in the realm of personal finance). It’s a game I like playing and every time I discover something new / useful I can’t wait to write a post about it.
Andrew@LivingRichCheaply says
Congrats on your 3rd b-day! Pretty awesome. I’ve been at it a little over a year but I’m not doing the things I probably need to do to successful earn a good side income. I need to be more consistent posting, I need to figure our some technical stuff, etc.
MMD says
Thanks Andrew. I will reiterate that writing good content is important. But beyond that it really does help to at least dip your big toe in the SEO pool. Simple things like targeting keywords and trying to attract links really do make or break whether anyone will ever find your posts in Google.
Michelle says
Congrats on 3 years! I’ve enjoyed following you over the years 🙂
MMD says
Thanks Michelle! And the same to you. Your blog has gone through some incredible transformations over the years. But with monthly income figures over the five figure mark, you’re definitely doing something right! It’s actually quite inspirational.
Shannon @ Financially Blonde says
Happy blogiversary!!! I am coming up on one year, so I have a TON of respect for people who have been doing this more multiple years. I agree with having a focus and direction around your blog. I think that many first time bloggers (myself included) just use the blog as another form of a diary; however, that will only last you so long. I have formalized my blog’s spot in my personal brand and it is not necessarily for making money, but it is definitely for making connections. I love making connections through blogging. Congrats again!
MMD says
Thanks Shannon. You totally got my point about blogging (in the traditional sense) not being a business. If you just write to write with no theme or focus and scatter your thoughts throughout your posts, then I wouldn’t expect much to come from your efforts. Building a brand and a reputation takes focus as well as time. But its worth the effort once you start to see those repeat readers who are hungry for more. You also know you’re on the right track when other bloggers want to connect with you be a part of your network. That’s when you know you’re on to a good thing 🙂
Mrs. MMD says
Happiest 3rd Blogiversary to you, Mr. MMD 🙂 I couldn’t be more proud of you for sticking with your goal, making extra income for our family, and simply enjoying and persuing a passion of yours. You are an incredible role model for our children by showing them how dedication and hardwork can pay off. May your next 3+ years of bolgging be as fullfilling! And, may we make a boat load of money….’cuz mama wants to quit her job 🙂 I love you, Mr. MMD 🙂
MMD says
Thanks you Sweetie! And thank you for putting up with me always being on my laptop at night. I swear to you – one day this blogging income will be the only source of money we’ll ever need.
Financial Samurai says
Congrats on 3 years! That’s definitely a good amount of time where you definitely won’t be closing down now.
I do think though that a blog can be a GREAT business. In fact, I think I’d much rather have my blog and its revenue that the business and its revenue from Think Traffic Sparkline. Less people, less hassle, less expenses, more passive.
Why don’t you think a blog can be a business? So many folks are making six figures from blogging!
Sam
MMD says
Thanks Sam! No, the doors are going to stay open for quite a while longer 🙂
Let me try to explain the “your blog is not a business” message a little bit further.
What the post on Think Traffic meant by that (and what I take away from it) is that you can’t just write a whole bunch of random thoughts on a website and expect people to pay you for it. That gets more into the “old days” of blogging when people would simply write 3 posts a week, sell a few sidebar ads, wait for someone to email them with a few sponsored post deals each week, and then rake in a thousand bucks per month. That model is certainly not a business!
Even without direct advertising, writing random mixed thought posts without any thought or strategy as to how you can turn that value into income is again not a real business strategy.
I would argue that the things you do on Financial Samurai, what I’m doing here, and what a lot of other professional bloggers do is much more business oriented and opportunistic than what most would consider traditional blogging to be. When we write, yes it may be what’s on our mind. Yes its on a blog. But there is also an agenda there as well. There is some craft put into how you go about promoting certain things. You occasionally promote Personal Capital. I write posts and create entire websites to target traffic to certain keywords. Though they are “blogs”, they are not traditional blogs by any stretch.
Furthermore, we’re also not waiting on anyone to knock on our door and send us email deals for hundreds of dollars. You have figured out a way to make money with affiliate marketing. I am trying my hat with Adsense and Amazon. It’s those kinds of activities where we differ from a lot of entry level or conventional bloggers who wonder why they are not making any money at all.
To your point, I do agree with you that I would much, much rather have a passive income from affiliate marketing than trying to sell services. It sure seems like the opportunity to scale your income upward and beyond is far greater by focusing on affiliate marketing than trying to sell your time hour by hour.
Financial Samurai says
I hope my PF bloggers are sexy post brings in a lot of moolag then! Lol
Michelle says
Congratulations on your 3 year anniversary!
MMD says
Thank you very much!
Financial Forager says
Congrats on 3 years! I am just starting out and hope to make it that long. Thanks for the tips and great content.
MMD says
Thanks a lot and welcome to the site! I hope you learn some valuable information that you can use for your own blog.
Kim says
I love how you have grown MMD and your other niche sites into a real source of income. I think the fact that you love what you do is a huge thing when it comes to using your free time for side hustles. Otherwise you would probably not be nearly as successful.. Congrats on 3 years!
MMD says
Thanks a lot for the kind words Kim. I too have really enjoyed watching your blog grow and flourish with time.
Ben @ The Wealth Gospel says
Congrats! I recently made a small investment in a site redesign, and although it still needs more work, the unfinished product still looks and feels a lot better than the original. I hated going to my own website because of how ugly it was. Sad!
MMD says
I completely hear you! There’s nothing worse than thinking to yourself – my site sucks, why should I expect anyone else to visit it! I’m sure the redesign will be well worth it over time.
Jayson @ Monster Piggy Bank says
Running a blog for three years seems that it tested your determination. I agree with you that having lots of ideas should be the start-off of everything. Whenever I have one, I just go for it. Who knows it will inspire and educate people to do so also. More years to come!
MMD says
Thanks a lot Jayson! Sometimes when you’ve got a good idea you’ve just got to push yourself to go for it.
J. Money says
Congrats man! 3 years is HUGE – most people don’t last 3 months! Haha…
Let me know whenever you’re ready to buy or sell a site – I have a private email list of buyers I ping whenever I know of a site up for sale and we’ve had good success with a handful of them so far. not sure if that makes it *too* easy for you, haha, but it is a resource if you’re interested 🙂 I’ve bought and sold over 10 sites/projects over the past few years so I’m pretty familiar with it. At least in the personal finance niche.
MMD says
Thanks a ton J Money! I will definitely hit you up to learn more about buying / selling sites. I’ve got one in mind that I’d like to see do a little better and then perhaps its off to the auction block.
Brian @ Luke1428 says
And don’t assume all the ideas have already been said or taken. When I started, I really struggled with thinking I wouldn’t be adding anything to the conversation. There is always another angle to approach a topic from and you have your own voice/experience to add to the equation.
I’ve just begun to explore the money making opportunities for my blog. I know it will be a long haul but testimonials like yours give me hope. Congrats on turning 3!
MMD says
Well said! The market may be saturated with personal finance blogs and literature, but that doesn’t mean you can’t do it better or improve upon it! I think as long as there is a problem where people don’t save their money properly or plan for the future, there will always be some kind of opportunity for people like us to help and pull in a side income along the way.
T. Wade says
You are so right! Blogging is a great way to make money but it’s definitely not passive or easy! Thanks!
MMD says
That is the truth! You have to be ready for a lot of hard work.
dojo says
I have been actively blogging for 8 years (I have a Romanian blog that’s this old, this one in my ‘signature’ is younger). I do my own designs (am a web designer after all and actually specialized in WordPress), so this saves me a lot of money. Just like you, I just ignore the people who say ‘blogging is dead’ and just mind my business. My blog is still very young and yet already earned me close to a ‘grand’, which is not bad, since it’s still small and I am not as active as I would like to. Hope to improve though and really get it to work better.
Congratulations on your 3 years, love the blog 😉
Will - First Quarter Finance says
Congrats on your blogiversary! I just found this site and I’m in love! Thanks for being so transparent about everything! I have a lot of reading to do around here. Your ‘daily time on site’ stat is about to go through the roof thanks to me! Haha. But seriously, thank you!