Confessions of a Six Figure Professional Blogger

2008 Annual Blogging Income Report

January 2, 2009 | Blogging, Feature

As we mark 2008 off our calendars, I thought I would take the opportunity to provide a broad income report of my blog business for the year. From there, I look ahead to 2009.

money Obviously, I don’t go into insane detail on these income reports. That kind of information is between me, my accountant and the IRS. :)

As of this post, my profit & loss report in Quickbooks shows that my business generated $141,657.15 in 2008. This is gross income, before expenses. Also, I made some money this month which will not be paid until January (which is totally fine with me because that means it gets taxed next year).

In 2007, I made $140,011.55. So, I did just a hair better than last year.

This year, I made less money in advertising revenue than I did in 2007. I’m not really too surprised by that seeing as a lot of companies began to really question their advertising budget this year (morons). However, I made up for the loss of revenue by way of my premium membership program on PCMech. I also did significantly better with affiliate programs in 2008.

That said, the growth was small enough that I pretty much consider it flat-lined. This means I need to push harder in 2009. I need to step up my game. I need to provide TONS of value to my readers. I need to be a smart marketer. I need to work smarter.

If you’re not growing in business, you’re actually dying because the rest of the world moves around you. So, my aim is to always grow.

Yaro Starak talked recently about employing the 80/20 rules as we move into 2009. Smart advice. Because I want to (and intend to) make more money in 2009. That said, I have a family and a growing little girl that likes her daddy. So, as busy as I am, I simply cannot sit in my office all the time and work (nor would I want to). So, I’ll work smart, get rid of useless actions, and move forward.

Starting in January, we’re going to explore the idea of my wife working with me for a few hours per day. It will be great to get her more involved in my business so that she knows how I do things and can actually help me. I’m hoping we don’t have some of those issues other spouses do when working together. :) If she can swing it and I train her properly, it will be a great opportunity to get more done in less time. Plus, it will give her some much-needed time away from a crying baby – at least for a few hours.

So, 2008 was a great year. For 2009, however, I think I’ve got a real grip on things that I didn’t have one year ago. I expect 2009 to be a successful year.

And my aim is to bring a lot of my readers along with me. Sound good? :)

If you enjoyed this article, you might also like...

  1. January 2009 Blogging Income Report
  2. Blogging Income Report: February 2009
  3. Blogging Income Report: Last 3 Months
  4. March 2009 Blogging Income Report – The Last?
  5. April 2009 Blogging Income Report

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  • Congrats pal,

    this inspired me a lot :)
  • I just realised also, that you don't have gravatars turned on for your comments, is there any reason for that?

    Thanks!

    Derrick
  • Hi David,

    Always good to see people doing well online :) . And nice to see you did explicitly state that it was GROSS income and not just flat out say you made $X dollars. . as I think that is misleading especially when you compare incomes of people who are working :). .

    I am very curious as to how much expenses one would have to create such an income??, I understand that you may not want to disclose your taxable income, but it would be good to get a ball park idea of the expenses involved - eg. . a few thousand dollars (less than 10%) or ten's of thousands of dollars (eg 40-50% of gross income). .

    Cheers!

    Derrick
    Blogging Newbie
    http://www.TheNetExperiment.com
  • Jon
    Congrats on making a very good income online David! Thanks for your insight and I look forward to reading even more in the coming year.

    Jon
    http://DreamClue.com ...get the message!
  • Congratulations on a very successful 2008! This was my first full year blogging and my earnings pale in comparison, but it pays the mortgage so I feel truly blessed. Here's to an even more successful 2009!

    - Jason
    New subscriber, fan
  • You've made quite a nice sum of money from your blogging efforts, 2009 is the year I am going to become a successful blogger and earn money from what I enjoy doing.

    I will be following you and your journey through to 2010.

    Best wishes for the new year.
    Darren
  • Impressive numbers, Dave! Can't wait to see 2009 stats, i bet you will do even better.
  • Well done friend.. and yes in 2009 you will kick tush!
  • I like the sound of this: After full training, Malika can run the business for you every other week while you change, feed, entertain and bath your daughter, whilst at the same time teaching her early how to be a girl-geek. - Brilliant thinking! Also great division of labour, and equality of the sexes. One up for girlpower! ;-)

    It's a bonus to see that you did slightly better than last year in these difficult and changing economic conditions. Granted it's only a minor increase in productivity; but still an increase nevertheless.

    In the light of huge companies going under you're doing very well! Best wishes for 2009. - Go get 'em.
  • David,

    These numbers are very impressive, but for some reason I think you'll blow them away in 2009!

    Success in your journey,

    Todd

    Follow me on Twitter:www.twitter.com/toddackerman
  • I just recently found you and added your blog to my reader. I think you truly have a talent that not all people can achieve.

    Good luck! Happy New Year!
  • What's the key?

    Is it getting more search traffic? It seems like you already deliver a lot of value, so it seems like it would either be a traffic issues or a conversion issue.
  • Congratulations on the improvement over 2007, and especially for your honesty - it's good to know that even someone as talented as you doesn't achieve exponential growth year on year!
    I have worked closely with my wife for a few years, and it works very well for us. Just remember to "turn off the work switch" when you come out of the office, or you'll end up working, or talking about it 24/7, which isn't good for anyone.
    All the best for 2009, mate.
  • You're an inspiration David, such figures here in South Africa are just a pipe dream, however you're proof that its possible if you play the game properly.
  • Wow, that is awesome. Congratulations man. I can't believe I just recently started reading your blog. I actually found you from Yaro's twitter profile. We just did an interview last night and it should be up soon. I hope next year works out even better for you :)
  • Congrats. I’m sure you inspire people everyday with this huge blog income
  • Congratulations on the numbers; granted, I'm sure you would have liked to have seen a bigger one, but from my end, it looks pretty sweet.

    Best of luck in '09!
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