Welcome back to the latest edition of the B. Britnell monthly income reports! June 2016 was an incredibly interesting month for the blog – a period characterized by a relaxed pace of work yet simultaneously achieving another monumental milestone in traffic. As I reflect on these reports, now six months in, a distinctive pattern in my blogging rhythm has emerged. I’ve noticed a clear cycle where one month I’ll pour every ounce of energy into blog projects, pushing hard to innovate and create, only to follow it with a period of intentional ease, focusing primarily on the foundational tasks like developing and publishing new recipes.
This dynamic ebb and flow has led me to ponder whether I should strive for a more consistent, middle-ground approach. However, I’ve grown to appreciate this system. It allows me to tap into peak productivity when my passion and motivation are at their highest, then step back and recharge when I feel the need for rest. My core philosophy for Food With Feeling has always been to keep it a labor of love, a creative outlet I genuinely enjoy. This isn’t just an observation; it’s a reminder to all fellow creators: embrace your surges of inspiration, work diligently when the drive is strong, but also recognize the importance of stepping back to prevent burnout and preserve your passion. Your creative journey is a marathon, not a sprint.
For those new to B. Britnell’s transparent monthly insights, let me provide a brief overview. I initiated these comprehensive reports in January of this year, with a commitment to publish a detailed breakdown each month. These reports meticulously outline my income streams, operational expenses, and vital traffic statistics. Beyond mere numbers, each report serves as a focused deep dive into a new area of blog development or strategy, followed by a transparent account of my findings. This practice has been invaluable for my own growth, offering clarity and direction, and has also fostered incredible connections within the broader blogging community – an aspect I truly cherish.
Now, without further ado, let’s delve into the specifics of June’s performance!
The Traffic Report: Fueling Growth for Food With Feeling
June proudly marks yet another record-breaking month for B. Britnell in terms of overall traffic. This continuous upward trajectory is incredibly gratifying, bringing me ever closer to my ambitious annual goal of achieving 100,000 pageviews in a single month. Witnessing this consistent growth fuels my enthusiasm and reaffirms the effectiveness of my content and engagement strategies.
Achieving Milestones: Overview of Pageviews
The consistent increase in pageviews signifies a growing reach and a wider audience engaging with the content on Food With Feeling. This isn’t just about numbers; it’s about the connection being built with more food enthusiasts and aspiring home cooks. Achieving record highs month after month is a testament to the quality of recipes, photography, and the overall value provided to readers. This momentum is a strong motivator to continue innovating and expanding the blog’s offerings, ensuring that the content remains fresh, engaging, and highly discoverable for both new and returning visitors.
Cultivating Community: New vs. Returning Visitors
While the overall traffic continues to surge, the ratio between new and returning visitors remains a stable and positive indicator of audience loyalty. My monthly returning visitor rate consistently hovers around the 20% mark, which I consider a strong sign of a healthy, engaged community. This metric is crucial because it highlights that a significant portion of my audience values the content enough to come back repeatedly. It’s not just about attracting new eyes; it’s about building relationships and fostering a loyal readership. Maintaining this strong base of returning visitors speaks volumes about the blog’s sticky content and the positive user experience it offers. A heartfelt thank you to all of you who continue to make Food With Feeling a regular stop in your online culinary journey!
Strategic Growth: Top Traffic Sources Analyzed
Consistent with the overall stability and growth observed across this report, my top ten traffic sources in June closely mirrored those of the previous month – a very encouraging sign indeed. The most exciting revelation is undoubtedly seeing organic Google traffic firmly established as my #1 source. This indicates that my ongoing efforts in search engine optimization (SEO) are yielding significant results, allowing my recipes and articles to be discovered by a wider audience actively searching for food-related content. It underscores the importance of well-researched keywords, quality content, and a technically sound website structure. Securing the top spot from organic search is a powerful testament to the long-term value of investing in SEO.
Equally gratifying is Pinterest holding strong as my #2 traffic driver. This reflects the dedicated work I’ve been putting into optimizing my Pinterest account, creating visually appealing pins, and strategizing content for this powerful visual search engine. For a food blog, Pinterest is an indispensable platform, acting as a visual catalog where users actively seek inspiration for recipes, meal planning, and culinary tips. The synergy between high-quality food photography and effective Pinterest strategies is clearly paying off, driving substantial traffic and engagement. The stability of these top sources provides a reliable foundation for continued growth and demonstrates the effectiveness of a multi-channel approach to attracting readers.
Monetizing Your Passion: June’s Income Breakdown*
*Transparency is key: Some of the links provided below are affiliate links. Rest assured, all products and services listed are those I personally use, trust, and enthusiastically recommend as valuable tools for any blogger or enthusiast. Should you have any questions about these recommendations, please don’t hesitate to reach out via email. The following figures do not include income generated from my separate food photography business.
- Mediavine: $496.12
This represents income from display advertising placed strategically throughout the blog. Mediavine is a premium ad network that helps publishers optimize ad placements for maximum revenue while maintaining a positive user experience. Their sophisticated algorithms and dedicated support make them an invaluable partner for monetizing high-traffic blogs. This consistent passive income stream allows me to focus more on content creation. - Freelance Writing: $125.00
Diversifying income beyond the blog is a crucial strategy. This revenue comes from writing food-related content for other publications or brands, leveraging my expertise and writing skills developed through the blog. It’s an excellent way to supplement income and expand my professional network within the food industry. - Sponsored Post: $0.00
While sponsored content is a significant income stream for many bloggers, June saw no sponsored posts. This can happen due to various factors, including seasonal brand campaigns or my own selective approach to partnering with brands that genuinely align with Food With Feeling’s values and audience interests. This ebb and flow is a natural part of working with brands. - Food Blogger Pro: $11.60
This affiliate income is generated when readers sign up for Food Blogger Pro through my unique link. This platform is an incredible resource for food bloggers, offering comprehensive courses and a supportive community for everything from recipe development to SEO and photography. My earnings here reflect the value I truly believe Food Blogger Pro offers, as detailed in a dedicated post encouraging bloggers to join. - Food Photography School: $0.00
Similar to Food Blogger Pro, this would be affiliate income from sales of courses at Food Photography School. While there were no sales this month, promoting high-quality educational resources like this aligns perfectly with helping aspiring food photographers improve their craft, as highlighted in my post offering tips and tricks for food photography. - Greater Than Gatsby: $19.20
These earnings come from affiliate sales of Greater Than Gatsby Lightroom Presets and Photoshop Actions. I frequently use and recommend these tools for enhancing food photography, explaining how they help achieve a polished, professional look. This income is directly tied to several posts where I demonstrate how I edit photos using Greater Than Gatsby products. - Amazon: $34.17
The Amazon Associates program is a versatile source of affiliate income. This money stems from various Amazon affiliate links strategically placed throughout my blog posts, recommending kitchen gadgets, pantry staples, photography equipment, and other relevant products that enhance the cooking and blogging experience for my readers.
Total June Blog Income: $686.09
Investing in Success: Understanding Blog Expenses
Running a professional blog, especially one focused on high-quality visual content like Food With Feeling, involves strategic investments. These expenses are essential for maintaining site performance, creating engaging content, and supporting continuous growth. Here’s a breakdown of June’s operational costs:
- WP Engine Hosting: $86.00
Reliable and fast web hosting is the backbone of any successful blog. WP Engine provides managed WordPress hosting known for its speed, security, and exceptional customer support. Investing in premium hosting like this ensures optimal site performance, which is crucial for SEO and providing an excellent user experience, especially with a growing volume of traffic and high-resolution images. - Food: $203.59
This category specifically covers the cost of ingredients purchased for recipes that are formally photographed and published on the blog. It’s important to note that this does not include ingredients used solely for recipe testing or personal consumption, maintaining a clear distinction for business expenses. Accurate tracking of food costs is vital for understanding the true cost of content production. - Props: $47.09
For a food blog, visual appeal is paramount. This expense covers new plates, bowls, cutlery, backdrops, and other styling elements used to enhance the aesthetics of food photography. Regularly refreshing my prop collection allows for creative diversity in imagery, keeping the blog’s visual identity fresh and captivating for readers. - Adobe Lightroom/ Photoshop: $10.91
These are indispensable tools for any professional photographer or blogger. The Adobe Creative Cloud subscription grants access to industry-standard software like Lightroom for photo organization and editing, and Photoshop for advanced image manipulation. These tools are critical for achieving the high-quality, vibrant food photography that defines Food With Feeling. - Mailchimp Premium: $20.00
Email marketing remains one of the most effective ways to connect directly with your audience. The Mailchimp Premium subscription allows for advanced features, automation, and a larger subscriber base, enabling me to send out engaging newsletters, recipe updates, and special offers directly to my dedicated readers, fostering a deeper community connection. - The Blog Village: $25.00
Investing in ongoing education and community support is essential for staying current in the fast-evolving blogging landscape. The Blog Village is a platform or community that offers resources, courses, and networking opportunities for bloggers, providing valuable insights and helping to refine strategies for growth and monetization.
Total June Blog Expenses: $392.59
June’s Strategic Focus: Mastering Video Content
In June, my primary strategic focus was deliberate and straightforward: dedicating efforts to producing high-quality recipe videos. Honestly, this focus extended well into July as well, underscoring the commitment to this new medium. My goal wasn’t just to create videos, but to incrementally improve with each one, refining techniques, storytelling, and overall production quality. I am incredibly proud of how these initial videos turned out, and my excitement about delving deeper into video content production is palpable. Initially, I approached video with a degree of uncertainty, questioning its long-term payoff. However, I’ve become a firm believer that video content will be a significant growth driver, and I’m genuinely pleased to be embracing it while it’s still a relatively novel and evolving format within the vibrant food blogging landscape.
Speaking of video, I have an exhilarating update to share! My latest recipe video, posted on Facebook, initially garnered a respectable 3,000 views upon its release. This felt like a significant achievement, a good start. Then, approximately ten days after its initial publication, something incredible happened: the video suddenly went viral! Over the course of just a few days, it skyrocketed to over 140,000 views! How cool is that?! I am absolutely thrilled by this unexpected success. This viral moment wasn’t just about views; it translated into tangible growth for the blog. I gained around 700 new Facebook followers and a valuable handful of new email subscribers, proving the immense power of engaging video content. This momentum has fueled my determination to quickly produce and launch my next video, hoping to replicate and sustain this incredible reach.
I want to extend my deepest gratitude to every single person who shared that video. Your support and willingness to spread the word mean more to me than you could possibly know. It’s truly a testament to the power of community.
Oh, P.S. — THIS is the video I’m referring to. Go check it out!
Looking Ahead: Next Month’s Affiliate Marketing Deep Dive
Last month, I set an ambitious goal to dedicate July to a thorough exploration and implementation of affiliate marketing strategies. Confession time: I didn’t quite get to it. Not even a little! So, in the spirit of continuous improvement and goal setting, I’m officially rolling that objective over into the next month. My enthusiasm for affiliate marketing remains incredibly high, particularly because I’ve identified a few specific brands whose products I genuinely use and absolutely LOVE. This authentic connection is paramount, as I believe in promoting only what I truly stand behind. I’ve even completed a substantial amount of the groundwork and research necessary for these promotions.
Now, the critical next step is to channel my focus, dedicate the time required, and get those insightful posts and recommendations published. I’m excited about the potential to further diversify the blog’s income streams while simultaneously providing valuable recommendations to my readers. Expect to see some exciting new content focused on these beloved brands and products very soon!
Blogging with Purpose: Giving Back to the Community
Your continuous support and readership are not just fueling the growth of this blog; they are making a tangible difference in the world. Thanks to every one of you who visits Food With Feeling, I have once again been able to sponsor a young girl in Haiti this month. This commitment is deeply personal, and it’s a practice I intend to continue for many months to come. My ongoing plan is to consistently donate 10% of all income generated directly from the blog to charitable causes.
This opportunity to give back, even in what might seem like a small way for now, fills me with immense gratitude. It transforms the act of blogging into something far more meaningful, connecting my passion for food and sharing recipes with a broader impact. Thank you for being an integral part of this journey, for allowing me to pursue my passion, and for collectively contributing to something greater than ourselves.