Hey, Taylor here!! I’m recipe creator, blog writer, food photographer, and marketer here at Fresh Cup of Joy.
I am sharing this traffic and income report to (1) keep track of the numbers and have a succinct record of them for my own sake, and (2) share my food blogging journey with others! This is going to be a very real post, sharing exact numbers, income, and more.
Before diving in, I want to say THANK YOU for supporting my blog in many ways. To those that try recipes, share links with friends, and read my posts, I am grateful.
September 30th marks one month of consistently sharing recipes on my blog. I have had Fresh Cup of Joy since July 2022, which means I’ve been creating for just over 2 years, however it was more of a hobby to do when I had time. I was never really consistent and didn’t have much of a strategy until this year.
Table of Contents:
Where I grew:
I joined Food Blogger Pro, where I upped my game in food photography. Fun fact: I’m a portrait photographer (taylorwhitephotography.com), but photographing food and people are two entirely different skills that don’t necessarily transfer over. In fact, it was so hard to create images of my recipes that until this month, I was using my iphone camera despite having not one, not two, but three full-frame DSLR cameras. Needless to say, I was struggling, so learning the ins and outs of food photography from Lindsey at Food Blogger Pro and gaining confidence to actually use my professional camera for blog images was a game changer (see below for evidence):
I also went from a “whenever I have time” approach, and am now on a consistent and strategic content schedule posting two recipes each week, and updating old posts in between. I have a great workflow from recipe development and testing all the way to marketing on Pinterest and socials. I have a system down now, which is why I’m seeing the traffic numbers rise!
What I accomplished this month:
- I published 7 new recipes:
- Homemade Salsa Recipe: Fresh, Easy, and Delicious!
- Authentic Borscht Recipe
- Apple Pie Ring Recipe | Easy Fall Dessert Recipe
- The Easiest Pie Crust Recipe You’ll Love
- Sardinian Longevity Soup | Minestrone Recipe For Healthier And Longer Living
- How to Make Pizza Sauce With Fresh Tomatoes [EASY]
- Healthier Pumpkin Spice Latte Syrup Recipe
- I shared 2 lifestyle blog posts about two surgeries I had this year (these brought in a significant amount of traffic)
- I updated 1 old recipe post:
Traffic Report
Website Analytics
September had about 1,542 sessions and 1,774 page views. This is a record month for traffic to my blog! Most of my traffic came from organic social including Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram, with Pinterest coming in the lead. Two blogs got a significant amount of traffic including:
- Rosemary Parmesan Bread Jersey Mike’s Copycat Recipe
- Todd’s Final Goodbye: My Parotidectomy Surgery Journey (my personal story)
Another recipe, How to Make the Juiciest Chicken Gyro Recipe | Easy Mediterranean Meal, is starting to gain traffic (884.4% increase from previous month), and I plan on updating this blog post in October to reflect better images and more internal links to and from other recipes.
Youtube Analytics
This was a big month for FCJ’s youtube channel as it reached 1004 subscribers! 🎉
I shared three recipe videos:
- Apple Pie Rings: https://youtu.be/z3WM7uMRdqI
- Rosemary Parmesan Bread: https://youtu.be/zk0WcOR5tH4
- Pizza Sauce with Fresh Tomatoes: https://youtu.be/gNmb2yUhtKw
I also shared 4 youtube shorts videos, which all help to drive traffic to those main videos.
Most of my youtube views and subscribers are driven through my cube storage to cabinet video, which I posted over a year ago, though luckily my new recipe videos have been steadily bringing in more subscribers and views as well. My plan with this youtube channel is to share lifestyle content as well as recipe videos, and keep my blog more food-focused. I just need 1,300 more watch hours to be able to monetize my channel and collect some ad revenue. That’s the next goal!
Subscribe to my youtube channel 🙂
Pinterest Analytics
- I reached a total audience of 26.69k, which is 53% higher than the previous month.
- I had 421 outbound clicks, an 83% increase from the previous period, with my top pins being about mosquito repelling plants, my rosemary parmesan bread, and my DIY cube storage project.
I have been pinning consistently (scheduling at least 3-5 pins each day), doing keyword research, and creating new boards. My next goal is 1000 outbound clicks from Pinterest!
Income Report
My only income source at the moment is Amazon affiliates, which brought in a whopping $1.51 in September. The main place I include affiliate links right now are on my cube to storage cabinet video on youtube, which is where these clicks are coming from. I hope to include a few more affiliate links on the blog in coming months!
Overall, my traffic increased tremendously from all sources, and it’s likely due to consistent posting and good marketing. Stay tuned for my next traffic and income report!
