Blog Traffic vs. Income: Why Page Views Don’t Equal Profits Anymore - why use https on your website

Blog Traffic vs. Income: Why Page Views Don’t Equal Profits Anymore

One of the biggest questions new bloggers have is ‘How many page views do I need to make money blogging?’

Things have changed in the blogging industry, and what worked before might not work anymore. Also what works for others might not be the most profitable and effective strategy for you.

And while you should definitely keep growing your blog traffic, let’s talk about how that is related to income and what you can expect.

Page views are not directly related to income anymore. 

Here’s why.

I just did my monthly income report for January (I publish these inside my membership Fearless Bloggers) and I had my highest month ever ($7K+).

And yet, the traffic of my main site isn’t really reaching my goals. The site got 22K page views (mostly organic traffic).

Years ago it was hitting 100K monthly page views.

Now, ad revenue is low, it’s not what it used to be. And because of all that’s happening with Google now (it’s not the most reliable source of traffic anymore), many bloggers who relied solely on ad revenue are struggling.

passive income blog boss graphic

It’s all about how you monetize.

Some bloggers earn a full-time income from selling digital products. For me, that hasn’t worked out that well even though I have plenty of courses.

Others do well with affiliate marketing. This isn’t even one of my revenue streams anymore. It used to be years ago.

What has worked well for me is blog sponsorships (working with brands on sponsored content). 

Domain authority plays a big role here, as well as how long your site has existed, whether it’s an authoritative platform in your niche, etc. It’s not just about traffic anymore.

What would make sense here is to double down on what’s already working. Here’s what I do about it:

  • I add my site to new sponsored networks for bloggers all the time (we have a guide with many of these inside the membership);
  • follow up with clients who reached out;
  • form connections as this often leads to repeat clients;
  • update my media kit;
  • keep the site updated (I constantly update old blog posts and create new content);
  • re-assess my blogging strategy;
  • grow other digital assets with the goal of working with sponsors there too.

If you’re interested in sponsored blogging, you can get started with this freebie I have:

If you want to learn all I know about it after having it as my main income stream for 6-7 years, you can check out my course The Blog Sponsorship Boss.

Here’s another example.

My second blog was getting around 4K page views a month solely thanks to Pinterest. In January, it reached 5,375. 

I don’t remember the last time I posted or pinned anything there. And yet, it earns me around $13/month from ads, and every now and then there’s a sponsorship request but mostly because of the connections I’ve formed with brands already through my main site.

The second site is still new, doesn’t have regular readers or high domain authority. 

Now, another blogger can take both of these sites and make a lot of money with them, and monetize in more ways.

So it’s more about how you’ve monetized, the authority of the site, and your brand.

What this means for you

This can give you hope. Even though there are so many blogs out there, and even though every niche might be saturated, there are ways to build a name for yourself and start making money from your blog before you have tens of thousands of page views (or hundreds of thousands).

However, that doesn’t mean you should stop growing your blog. That will always be one of your main activities – testing different methods to bring blog traffic and doubling down on the ones that give results.

What to focus on

You might be wondering what to focus on in your blogging business this year?

Keep growing your blog traffic, but also monetize strategically! Even without many page views, you can earn a full-time income.

And if you want to grow the traffic quickly, use Pinterest.

If you want to diversify, create a following on another platform (it becomes a second digital asset over time and brands can sponsor you on there too).

That’s what I’m doing now. I’m growing that second blog, two Pinterest accounts, and just started using TikTok and IG and creating short videos.

Not everything will work, but I need to give it time. And when another platform grows and I have a following there or build authority in the niche, it can be monetized. 

Just like one blog can earn you a full-time income, two can double your revenue. That can happen with a podcast and YouTube channel too, or a social media platform (these aren’t under your control, though, so don’t put all your eggs in one basket. It’s the least we can learn from the TikTok ban, the changes in the Instagram algorithm, etc.)

How many page views do I need to make money blogging? Even without a lot of blog traffic, you can earn a full-time income. Here's what you need to know:

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