How This 35-Year-Old’s Travel and Lifestyle Blog Earns $8k/Month From Pinterest and SEO

Julianne Brainard was working full-time at a legislation agency when she realized that company life was not for her. 

Oh a whim, she created her weblog, Pints, Pounds, and Pâté, in 2018 as a spot to share her journey adventures. Though she labored arduous on her website for the primary yr, she didn’t see a lot success.

Julianne was about to surrender on it when considered one of her pins went viral. In consequence, she acquired 50,000 guests to her web site in a single month and certified for the advert community she wished. 

At the moment she drives visitors utilizing a mix of Pinterest and search engine optimization, and she or he’s incomes $8k per 30 days.

Preserve studying to search out out:

• How she felt about her day job
• What aspect hustle she’s engaged on at present
• Her ideas on social media
• The place her earnings comes from
• Her primary advertising methods
• Her ideas on search engine optimization
• Her strategy to key phrase analysis
• How she creates content material
• How she grows her e mail record
• Her go-to assets and instruments
• Her largest problem
• Her biggest accomplishment
• Her primary mistake
• Her recommendation for different entrepreneurs

Meet Julianne Brainard

I stay in Indianapolis with my husband, toddler daughter, and 5-year-old Havanese, Joey.

After legislation faculty, I labored at a big legislation agency, after which I labored in-house as a lawyer for a pharmaceutical firm.

Lately, I spend my time taking good care of my daughter, volunteering in Indianapolis, and dealing on my ever-growing weblog.

Why She Created Her Website

I began Pints, Pounds, and Pâté in 2018 whereas I used to be working full-time at a big legislation agency as a younger affiliate legal professional. 

It was extremely aggravating. I used to be complaining to a coworker that I had no hobbies, and she or he appropriately jogged my memory that my husband and I have been always touring, which definitely counts as a interest! 

So, that weekend, I actually Googled “methods to begin a weblog,” learn what I might, and jumped proper in shiny and early on Sunday morning.

On the time, we have been touring overseas pretty continuously, and so I simply began running a blog about our journeys once we acquired dwelling. Clearly, as time went on, I discovered much more about running a blog and transitioned out of the “diary-style” weblog publish right into a better-researched, extra informative publish, a few of which I nonetheless replace to today. 

Lately, the powerhouse of what I broadly outline as my “weblog,” together with social media and my Etsy drop-shipping retailer, really remains to be… the web site itself. I’m weirdly happy with that. It feels “old fashioned” to me.

My husband really got here up with the thought of my Etsy store. He was looking for a Christmas present for me and felt there wasn’t sufficient British homicide thriller merchandise on the market (which is true). 

So I created some! It’s not an enormous earner, however I had enjoyable studying methods to arrange the Etsy retailer, join with dropshipping firms, and interface with shoppers.

So far as social media, as a Millennial, I largely use Instagram, however I even have Facebook, X (previously Twitter and previously my favourite social media channel), and Pinterest. 

For the channels on which I’ve been profitable (Instagram and Pinterest), the one “secret” I’ve discovered to develop the accounts is constant posting and adjusting your posts to suit that particular social media channel. 

You actually can’t simply publish the identical content material throughout the entire social media channels and count on it to take off. All of them need totally different content material. 

And, after all, genuinely partaking with different bloggers (not simply commenting like “nice shot!”) and making buddies who assist you to develop!

How A lot She’s Making

With a really notable, multi-year break for pandemic chaos, the weblog has grown very well since I began it, simply over 5 years in the past. With a give attention to European journey, it took me a very very long time to get better from the pandemic.

Nearly all of my income comes from internet hosting adverts on my website, via Mediavine. I additionally use fairly just a few affiliate hyperlink suppliers, all of which I’ve amalgamated under. I simply calculated final month, October 2023, for instance.

Mediavine advert internet hosting: $8,434.93
Affiliate sales: $861.14
– RewardStyle: $608.65
– Amazon Associates: $146.29
– Share-a-Sale: $64.05
– SkimLinks: $42.15

So the overall for the month was $9,296.07, though on common I’d actually say that I earn $8k per 30 days.

Final month I had 196,468 periods. It actually fluctuates with the seasons, so I’m attempting to diversify my articles in order that I’ve articles which can be widespread at numerous occasions all year long.

As for a way a lot time I spend on my weblog, it’s positively modified through the years. After I was working as a lawyer, it was actually solely nights and weekends. Now, I spend all out there nap occasions (once I’m not doing chores), and weekend mornings engaged on the weblog. I’d guestimate about 15 hours/week.

Julianne’s Prime Advertising and marketing Technique

I’m all about Pinterest. I believe bloggers actually sleep on Pinterest or suppose it’s just for “my dream wedding ceremony” photos. 

1000’s of individuals go to Pinterest every single day, in search of all types of data, from European journey tricks to date night time concepts in Indianapolis.

my stats, about 70% of my visitors comes from Pinterest. I’m attempting to diversify that since, as we’ve seen, you shouldn’t put your whole social media eggs in a single basket! 

Lately, I largely write for Google, however prior to now I’ve actually written for Pinterest, and I nonetheless do often. See what’s trending and, in case you have the information and expertise, create a weblog publish to fulfill that want.

The Significance of search engine optimization

search engine optimization comes for all bloggers ultimately. 

Even if you happen to’re driving visitors to your weblog in one other manner, ultimately you’re going to want to search engine optimization appropriately. I lately invested in RankIQ and I’ve been actually pleased with the assistance it’s given me.

I used to be very conversant in search engine optimization as an idea once I began running a blog (I’m a advertising legal professional, together with web sites and social media for large firms), however I didn’t actually find yourself studying methods to do it nicely myself till way more lately. What I did be taught was largely from different bloggers sharing their experiences, and simply Googling round.

Key phrase Analysis

I don’t suppose my course of and technique are terribly distinctive. 

I goal accessible keywords that I can rank for comparatively rapidly. That mentioned, I solely write about issues I take pleasure in, locations I’ve really been to, and so forth. I can’t consider what number of “10 issues to do in X” are written by individuals who’ve clearly by no means been to those locations…

I love to do a mixture of key phrases I can rank for in a short time and a few that take somewhat extra time and have somewhat extra of a payoff once I do rank. 

It’s nice to rank rapidly for one thing actually “of the second” or slim, however these are inclined to change into dated rapidly, or the visitors simply actually isn’t that nice. 

I’ve just a few distinctive present record posts which have actually powered my weblog, yr after yr, and are price the entire effort. Rounding up all of the presents and linking to them takes much more time than you’d count on.

Hyperlink Constructing

That is on my “to-do” record for subsequent yr. I’ve actually not been nice about it. I’ll must poke round another interviews and see what your different bloggers do.

Ship me your ideas!

Her Content material Creation Course of

I usually look forward to some kind of inspiration. And as soon as I’m impressed, I change into single-minded about churning out that weblog publish asap and do nothing else for a few days. My household doesn’t love this strategy…

I’m attempting to publish a brand new article as soon as per week, after which I’m always going again and updating previous posts, which is clearly a lot sooner. 

I’d say it takes me about 15 “billable”  hours to put in writing a brand new publish from scratch. The toughest half is the preliminary drafting, however as soon as it’s written, importing photos and including all of the hyperlinks is less complicated and I try this whereas I watch new homicide mysteries and debate whether or not they deserve a spot in my lists.

I at present have about 200 posts stay on the weblog proper now. I by no means really “delete” previous posts, even when, in hindsight, they’re actually cringy. I’ve chosen to cease modifying some which can be too dated or so broad/scattered that they’ll by no means rank.

Her E-mail Checklist

Mediavine has an incredible instrument for accumulating e mail addresses. Since I began utilizing it, I’ve gotten much more subscribers than I ever did earlier than. In addition they have a instrument for auto-sending lately revealed/widespread posts that I’ve been utilizing. 

It’s lots much less work than composing full newsletters, although I nonetheless try this often!

I’ve about 3,000 subscribers on my email list. I’ve at all times had a subscribe button on my web site, and even firstly, I used to be amazed how many individuals wished to listen to extra! 

Providing a helpful, digital freebie is an effective way to entice individuals to enroll in your e mail record. You may simply create one thing to your area of interest utilizing Canva.

Her Go-To Sources and Instruments

I discovered a very supportive running a blog group via my social media channels. Individuals are so keen to offer customized (free), useful recommendation, if you happen to simply ask. 

I learn a whole lot of primary background info on search engine optimization from websites like Semrush. 

I actually discovered methods to execute my search engine optimization in follow with a whole lot of trial and error. I wouldn’t essentially suggest this strategy, as a result of you find yourself with a whole lot of actually messy weblog posts that it’s a must to return and rewrite, but it surely was free, and it did ultimately begin working! I had a whole lot of free time through the pandemic.

As an entrepreneur, the perfect instruments for me have been:

• My trusty Mac. I at all times put money into a brand new laptop as quickly as I want one.
• Hiring an accountant
• Google! There’s a lot free info on the market.

Her Greatest Problem

Actually, my primary problem is simply discovering the time to dedicate to my weblog. As an legal professional, and now as a mother, I haven’t had as a lot uninterrupted time as I’ve usually felt I wanted. 

Because the weblog has grown extra profitable, I’ve began actually prioritizing it over different issues and treating it like “work.” 

Though I take pleasure in it, generally I simply must buckle down and get issues accomplished.

Her Biggest Accomplishment

The accomplishment I’m most happy with is persevering via/pivoting through the pandemic with a global journey weblog. 

I had days when my income was $4 and I wasn’t positive why I used to be losing my time. However I saved going, and I’m so glad I did. I’ve constructed the profession “everybody needs” and I really like each minute of it.

Within the weeks main as much as the pandemic, the weblog had been rising steadily for practically a yr and I used to be so thrilled. Then, clearly, all of my visitors simply fell off a cliff. It’s extremely disappointing to churn out content material in a vacuum that nobody is seeing. 

I attempted a whole lot of various things. Finally, I began writing a whole lot of listicles concerning the British TV reveals I used to be watching. Actually, it was actually simply writing for one thing to do, however these posts struck a chord and I lastly began getting some visitors again. 

Because the pandemic eased and folks began touring once more, particularly extra lately, even my older European journey content material began discovering a brand new life! It was such a aid. 

However, I’ve additionally added much more home journey content material, which helped get me via the later a part of the pandemic, when individuals have been doing a whole lot of street journeys, and so forth. And lately, the weblog is having record-breaking-day after record-breaking-day!

What She Needs She Knew When She Began

I want I had recognized that you may have enjoyable and earn cash on the identical time. I actually take pleasure in each minute I spend engaged on my weblog. It makes me so comfortable.

Writing a weblog and having my very own enterprise are so totally different from the work I did within the company world. I don’t have “shoppers,” except I would like them. 

Normally, I simply publish what I would like, once I need, by myself schedule, and I don’t must “reply” to anybody. I didn’t know jobs like that existed! 

I can even take breaks. I’ve had a whole lot of well being points over the previous couple of years (together with having a child and getting rheumatoid arthritis), and it’s very nice to have the ability to take just a few weeks “off” with none main issues.

Her Foremost Mistake

My largest mistake shouldn’t be taking myself severely. I’m going to make more cash from the weblog this yr than I did early in my authorized profession. 

I are inclined to “downplay” my weblog and joke about it or name it a interest. Why is operating a weblog any much less of a job than anything that earns a paycheck?

Her Recommendation for Different Entrepreneurs

Go for it. Simply begin. You don’t must lay our a fortune instantly, however you do have to start out someplace, or it’ll at all times be a dream.

Individuals at all times say they aren’t beginning a weblog as a result of “nobody would learn it and there are already too many blogs.” You’d actually be shocked. 

Sure, lots of people begin blogs, however they normally surrender after just a few months. There may be loads of house for you!