Have you ever wondered if it’s really possible to make a full time income from blogging? Let’s keep all the click-bait Pinterest graphics aside and ask someone who needs to know what’s the secret behind earning enough money from your blog to turn it into your job: Ell Duclos from Boss Girl Bloggers.
Ell is living the dream most bloggers have when they start: She has successfully monetized her two blogs and now makes a living from blogging.
That’s why I’m more than happy to have her at my virtual coffee table and ask her all the things you always wanted to know from a full time blogger. We are talking about how her blogging journey started, what was difficult for her and why she thinks that it’s still possible to make a full time living from blogging in 2020.
Hi Ell, I’m so happy to have you for this interview! Tell us about your blogging journey. When did you start blogging and how did it come you are now writing two pretty different blogs?
I started my first blog EllDuclos in April 2017. The reason why I started this blog was because I was a full time server and college dropout who couldn’t get a high paying job no matter how hard I tried. Growing up I always had a passion for writing. At this time I was also addicted to pinning my “dream” life on Pinterest which eventually led to me figuring out that people were making money blogging. One thing led to another and my blog was created.
I used my blog as a way to escape from my “reality” at the time but, I also had hopes to make income blogging. 6 months in I had my first $1,200 month which gave me hope that this might actually work and help me escape the serving industry.
During the beginning stages of my blog I also created a FB community Boss Girl Bloggers. Blogging felt lonely at times and I wanted to connect with like minded women who were pursuing the same dream. My community took off quickly and grew to over 25,000 members in 6-8 months. As I continued to grow and make more money as a blogger, the members of BGB were interested in learning from me. That’s when my focus started shifting to marketing and teaching others how to start and grow a profitable blog. I also learned how to master Pinterest marketing which became a huge focus of mine.
About 2 years after my first blog launch, I launched my second blog Boss Girl Bloggers which was inspired from my FB community!
Let’s talk about being a professional blogger! How does your everyday work life look like?
My everyday work life really depends on the tasks I need to do that day. I like to have a set morning routine where I wake up, get coffee, spend some time alone before working. Some days my focus is on client work while other days my focus is strictly on just my content and marketing. I lay out a more thorough schedule in this post!
How do you find the inspiration and topics to write about?
I like to keep a running list of blog post ideas in my notes on my phone. I’ll look through the list and create a blog post on an idea that stands out to me at the time. Keyword research has a lot to do with my content creation strategy as well. I find it important to blog on topics that get searched.
I’m curious! What’s your most clicked blog post about? Do you know that?
For my lifestyle blog this post is my most clicked blog post and on my Boss Girl Bloggers website this post is most clicked.
You have managed to successfully monetize your blogs and are now making a full-time income from them. Was earning money from blogging always your goal or did this happen by coincidence?
It was definitely a goal of mine since I wanted to leave my full time job. When I started my blog I didn’t expect it to take off as quickly as it did. It’s important to remember that success as a blogger will come at different times for everyone and that’s okay.
I love your Pinterest resources and all the amazing content you put out about building a successful blog! So as an expert for generating blog traffic, what would you say: Is there a number of monthly views you need to start making money?
Thank you so much! When it comes to monetizing your blog and blog traffic I would say, yes it’s important to have blog traffic BUT, you don’t need 100,000 monthly blog views to make an income. It’s all about how engaged your audience is. I had my first $1,200 month as a blogger with about 30,000 monthly blog views. The key is to build trust with the audience you DO have.
A lot of people say that blogs are dead and nobody is reading blog posts anymore. What’s your opinion? Is it still possible to start a profitable blog in 2020?
In my opinion blogging isn’t dead at all! In fact, I believe blogging is more alive than ever before. It is saturated but don’t let that stop you! If you think about it, if you want to search for something online it will most likely lead you to a blog post. From recipes to DIY and how to’s. It can still be done.
With two successful blogs as your fulltime job, you are a true role model for every new blogger! What is your No. 1 tip for brand new bloggers or those who think about starting a blog? What is something they shouldn’t miss when starting out?
I have so many tips I could mention but I think the most important thing is to remember that you need to market your content properly. If you aren’t marketing your content you won’t get the views you want. From the very beginning make sure to focus on SEO, Pinterest marketing, social media marketing and email marketing. There is so much to learn when it comes to starting and growing a profitable blog. I am still learning every day. You have to be committed and dedicated because it IS a lot of work. Just remember to give yourself grace.
Thank you so much, Ell, for sharing your experience with us!