Tag Archive for: professional blogging

Some bloggers post their income reports online. Does that give you a moment’s pause? Why would they do that? What is an income report and should I be posting one as well? Monthly income reports can be a point of contention in the blogging world. Some people are fervently against EVER sharing their income reports, citing privacy concerns. Other’s share their monthly income reports to help bloggers grow their business. However, the bloggers who do choose to post their income reports are in the minority.

An income report is a line-by-line breakdown of a blogger’s earnings usually on a monthly basis, provide the reader with an understanding of where a blogger’s income is coming from.

 

Why publish a monthly income report?

 

Publishing a monthly income report is a personal decision. You do open the door for trolls, haters, and criticism when you post successful numbers. You need to understand the why behind what you decide to do – sharing or not sharing. Don’t make a hasty decision, take the time to weigh the pros and cons and see if publishing your income report is the right decision for you and your blog.

 

Here are some reasons why some of the bigger bloggers have chosen to publish their income reports:

 

1. The first reason is simple: to get more traffic. Up and coming bloggers read income reports to learn and figure out their main source of income and different ways you can generate income.

2. To gain exposure for their business.

3. Encourage and motivate bloggers trying to generate a sustainable income.

4. Lends credibility to their voice if they are making a significant income.

5. Income reports add the opportunity for conversation and learning from each other. Failures and successes are posted, failures can be inspiring as well. Realizing someone else makes mistakes and learning from each other’s mistakes is an important element of reading income reports.

6. Putting it together is as much for the blogger as the consumer – evaluating and learning as you view expenses on a whole instead of individually.

But remember, there are some drawbacks to reporting your income on your blog. The bigger your income can make a reader feel like you are not relatable, or people’s pettiness and jealousy of someone else’s success can cause for some mean comments and trolls. By posting income reports, there are some who might copy your ideas instead of using you for inspiration.

 

Here are a few bloggers who share their income reports:

 

We wanted to give some examples of bloggers who have chosen to share their income reports.

1. Neil Patel began earning a six-figure income before turning 18. Now he makes millions through his blog. You can check out one of his recent income reports. His three most famous sites, KissMetrics, QuickSprout, and CrazyEgg, help organizations and individuals with SEO and web analytics.
2. Smart Passive Income focuses on Internet marketing, and it was founded by Patt Flynn. He describes his service as being the  “crash test dummy of online business.” Flynn began income reporting back in 2008 and was one of the first to begin the trend.

3. Melyssa Griffin (The Nectar Collective) struggled with the decision to share her income report on her blog. She chose to do it for a “behind-the-curtains” peek for her followers. Griffin’s blog mission centers around helping people build their online audiences and their income, so it was a natural decision for her to make sharing her income report.

4. Entrepreneur’s Journey is the brainchild of Yaro Starak. He uses his site to help fellow entrepreneurs through coaching and practical approaches to build their audience.

 

If you are considering sharing your income report, spend time on other blogger’s income reports. Glean from their successes and learn from their failures. It can add credibility to your claims as an expert when you share your income report, and it provides the opportunity to develop the trust of your followers. And followers trusting your brand is one of the best ways to grow.

 

 

Tell me what you think – to report or not to report?