Income Report for October 2018 (2 Niche Sites)

I had high hopes for October, but the first 2 weeks were bad due to low ad CPMs.  I was told it’s normal due to it being the start of a new quarter.  The last 2 weeks were good.

Q4 is a big earnings period for many content sites and of course e-commerce sites, but I have to admit Q3 (Summer) was really good for me… my best one yet.  Before Summer I braced for a downturn, but that never materialized.

Typically traffic for me dips in Q4, especially December. While CPMs and affiliate commissions should be good in November and December, traffic losses hurt overall ad revenue.

I’ll have to see what happens.  Predicting this stuff is like trying to predict the weather in Vancouver, BC.

On the plus side I have 2 other sites coming along nicely with one now earning 4 figures per month.  I’m not including those in the income reports because that’s not the point of these.

Expenses

Over the years my expenses ballooned out of control.  In October 2018 I dramatically cut back expenses; a lot of stuff I wasn’t using and other expenses I didn’t really need.  That will definitely help my bottom line.

Here’s the report.

The income numbers (USD)

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER ABOUT THIS INCOME REPORT:

My income reports pertain to only two niche sites I publish.  One is a broad-niche, wide appeal type of site monetized with display ads and affiliate offers.  The other site is a focused niche site serving a particular business community.  It’s monetized solely with affiliate offers via an extensive email newsletter.  

This income report does NOT include any revenue or expenses pertaining to fatstacksblog.com or other niche sites I own.  

The point of these income reports is to demonstrate that niche sites (or blogs) can be profitable and a good business.  They’re also popular articles which helps get more traffic to this site.

Revenue

Niche Site #1: Broad-Appeal Niche Site (B2C):

• Display ad revenue:  $25,147
• Affiliate commission revenue:  $2,896
• Total revenue niche site #1:  $28,043

Niche Site #2: Narrow Niche Site (B2B):

• Affiliate Revenue:  $4,928

Total revenue for both sites:  $32,971 (September 2018 =$34,600)

Expenses

I do my best to attribute a portion of my overall expenses applicable to the 2 sites reported on in this income report.

Part way through October I reviewed all my expenses and cut out a bunch. Accordingly, my overall expenses dropped a bit in October.  I hope they’re a bit lower in November.

• Content: ,800 (approximately)
• Hosting: $1,200
• VA: $425 (I scaled back to one VA who can handle all sites now that major updating/projects are over.
• Software (AWeber etc.): $700 (my overall software expense is a bit higher than this, so I approximate the cost applicable to the two sites in this income report).

Total expenses:  $4,125 (September = $5,200)

Net Income

Net Income for the 2 niche sites:  $28,846 USD (September = $29,400)

Jon Dykstra

Jon Dykstra is a six figure niche site creator with 10+ years of experience. His willingness to openly share his wins and losses in the email newsletter he publishes has made him a go-to source of guidance and motivation for many. His popular “Niche site profits” course has helped thousands follow his footsteps in creating simple niche sites that earn big.