Welcome to October’s online income report. It’s time to look at my monthly income report and track my progress over the past month.
Background information on my monthly income reports.
This all started out as my extra income report because before October of 2013, I still had my day job (yes, it’s now been one year since I quit!). In those extra income reports, I included all of the income I made except for what I earned at my day job.
In September of 2013, I turned in my notice and my last official day at that job was in October of 2013. Now, my income reports consist of the many different ways I earn an income.
Many have asked why I would ever want to publicly post my income each month. I publish these monthly income reports for two main reasons:
Before I started blogging, I knew nothing about side hustling and making money online. I didn’t think side hustles were worth the time, and I thought the only way to really increase your income was through your day job through raises and promotions. If it weren’t for others publishing their monthly income reports each month, I don’t know if I would have ever attempted side hustling. I want to help others see the positives in side hustling and how it can change your life.
I also like to publish my income reports each month because it’s a way for me to look back, learn from my mistakes and see what I need to change or improve on. My monthly income posts are a great way for me to look back and keep track of everything. It’s also entertaining to go back to older income posts and read about the funny things I did to make extra money. Everyone’s got to start somewhere, right?
I know I say this every month, but it is the truth. Life is great now that I am doing what I want to do. I look forward to each and every work day and it is a wonderful thing. I love what I do so much that it is often hard to break me away from working. That is something I would have never felt at my old day job.
October was also a great month because I won a fun giveaway. I didn’t include the giveaway amount in October’s monthly income since it is not related to my business. I am extremely grateful for the winning though and it has motivated me to start entering more giveaways. Are you a giveaway fanatic? I would love to hear what the best thing is that you’ve ever won!
Now onto my income report!
How was my online income in October?
October was yet another great month. It wasn’t as great as September, but I’m definitely not complaining.
I have several plans in store for future months and I don’t think I’ve been this excited about my business. I’ve always been excited, but right now I am EXTREMELY EXCITED. I’m hoping these plans and excitement will turn into successful projects, and an income as well.
I’m really trying to spend more time working on affiliate income, as I would like to have more of my income each month be passive. That way I can focus on other things that may take longer to build up (such as an ebook) but still be able to bring in an income and save for my financial goals.
Anyway, last month I made $15,245.81 in business income, before expenses.
This is for the month of October and before fees and expenses (most fees and expenses that lower the amount above total around $1,110, which includes VAs/staff writers for my other websites, technical assistance on my websites, PayPal fees, etc.) being taken out.
After expenses and fees, I made approximately $14,136. In the amount above, I do not include the amount I bring in to the websites I provide services to. I only include the amounts that are my actual earnings from my services.
Below are some of my other extra income updates (I publish an update every month but only included some of them below. If you go to my extra income page then you can read them all):
Blog News.
Nothing too big on MakingSenseofCents has happened recently. I did rearrange the menu above. I now have everything sectioned off into categories to make my website look a little more clean. I also added a Recommendations page that is currently a work-in-progress.
I also finally started promoting my newsletter on my blog and started accepting emails for it. I cannot believe I waited this long. If you are interested in starting your own newsletter, I recommend Aweber. I regret putting this off for so long.
Aweber is a MUST if you have a blog. It is a way for readers to subscribe to your blog posts and your newsletters. If you are currently using a free service such as Feedburner, you should switch immediately because that is the number one mistake bloggers make (and I made that mistake myself as well). You can start using Aweber for just $1 for your first month to test it out.
I accepted a few interviews, and some of them went live in October. Below is a little snapshot of a few of them:
I did an interview for WiseBread that was published. You can read about me in the article How One Young Entrepreneur Paid Off $40,000 in Student Debt By Age 24.
I was mentioned in the article ‘I Bombed a Job Interview’: 10 People Reveal the Mistakes That Cost Them a Gig on Learnvest.
I was also mentioned in ReadyForZero’s article 17 All-Star Bloggers Share Their Best Fall Budgeting Tips.
If you are wanting to start a blog of your own, read my post How To Start a WordPress Blog. It gives step by step instructions on starting your own blog.
Wes’s website.
We haven’t done much with Wes’s website in the past month. Actually, nothing has happened. I need to stop forgetting about his website and put it at the top of my to-do list.
My plans for my website and online income:
Publish an eBook – I have written down a few ideas for a two separate books, and started outlining one with different sections to cover. I’m not sure when or if anything will actually happen with either one, but it is fun to think about.
Promote more – I have been getting better at promoting my posts. I have noticed that working on improving my images has led to more visitors from Pinterest, which is awesome! Some of you have asked me what I use for my images, I use PicMoney and I highly recommend them! They have a free service and also an upgraded service which is still very affordable.
Accept more interviews. – I took part in several interviews in October. Saying yes to every interview opportunity has been a wonderful thing so far. I have my first podcast scheduled for December as well. I still get nervous with each and every interview, but it is something I am working to get over. Is this normal?
Staff Writing.
Staff writing is still going well, and I am looking to add one more client in November. That one client will probably be the last one I add to my list for awhile though.
Here’s my monthly shameless plugin: If any of you need a staff writer or just a one-time content writer, please let me know. Whether you need a couple of articles every week, or just a single post with no ongoing relationship, I am your person. I can write regular content and be hired as a staff writer, content to fill in gaps in your writing schedule, content for advertising and so on. My turnaround time is quick and I am reliable.
Update On My Blog and Social Media Management Services.
In the month of October, I managed several different websites for other owners. I’m still loving it and it’s an area that I hope to continue to grow.
If you are interested in the different services I provide when it comes to blog and social media management, you can find a summary of the services I provide here.
Related articles:
Affiliate income – This is finally starting to grow!
Affiliate income is finally starting to grow! For the past three years, I never really gave affiliate income any much of a chance. I didn’t think it would be worth it before.
However, starting in September, I changed my mind about it and started putting more effort towards it. This effort is starting to pay off.
My affiliate income amount isn’t anything crazy, but it is something. I believe I am at about double where I usually am, and November will be an even better month because I will be receiving payments from October’s work.
Some of you have asked me what my method for affiliate income is. With affiliate income, what’s been working for me is that I am only reviewing products that I actually use and love. It makes writing reviews on these products much more fun since I know others can benefit from them as well.
Business and Extra Income in October ($14,136, after most expenses)
Staff writing – $700
Managing websites and social media for clients – $5,611
Website-Related (From the 6 websites I own – advertising, partnerships & Adsense) – $6,885
Affiliate Income – $940
Selling Items From Our Home – $0
Miscellaneous (not related to blogging and online income) – $0
Mystery Shopping – $0
Rent – $0. We no longer rent a room in our house and won’t be adding roommates.
One question I am asked nearly every time I publish my monthly online income report is whether or not I can further break down my income. I have never fully broken everything down line by line, and I do this mainly to protect myself and those I provide services to.
Most bloggers who completely break apart their income have most of their income coming from affiliate links, while I do not. Keep in mind that a majority of my income comes from private clients that I work for so sharing their name and what they pay me wouldn’t be the correct way to run a business.
Also, please keep in mind that I work for myself. This means that I have to cover all taxes (which are around 30%), health insurance, and all other benefits/expenses that an employer would normally provide.
Comparisons and 2014 online income total (after expenses, but before taxes)
Total extra income for October: $14,136
Income in September: $15,272
Difference: -1,136
Total so far in 2014: $135,722
How did you do in October? What are your extra/business/online income goals?
Why do you work towards making extra money?
Comments