When Sara B. Hansen was busy at her day job as a journalist and editor at The Denver Publish and The Des Moines Register, she was in search of a inventive outlet.
As a canine proprietor her entire life, she determined to begin a weblog to share her expertise: Dogs Best Life. That was again in 2011.
Nowadays, her weblog has been garnering thousands and thousands of pageviews and was incomes as much as $10k per thirty days earlier than the latest Google updates. Full disclosure: her web site has been affected by the HCU like most individuals, and whereas it was fairly devastating, she’s not letting it deter her from working her method again!
Hold studying to search out out:
- Extra about Sara’s background
- When she began the location
- When she determined to make it a precedence
- How a lot she had been incomes per thirty days
- Her major advertising technique
- Her strategy to key phrase analysis
- How she creates content material
- Her favourite instruments
- Her greatest problem
- Her best accomplishment
- Her major mistake
- Her recommendation for different entrepreneurs
Meet Sara B. Hansen
My title is Sara and I’m an expert editor and author with over 20 years of expertise.
In 2011, I launched Dogs Best Life, an internet site devoted to serving to canine homeowners with info on varied subjects equivalent to well being, coaching, grooming, and adoption.
I’m additionally the creator of The Full Information to Cocker Spaniels. I’ve owned a number of canine all through my life, together with Browning, a Labrador-beagle combine; Finley, a beagle-cocker spaniel combine; and Sydney, an Australian shepherd-corgi combine.
I now share my coronary heart and residential with Nutmeg, a Pembroke Welsh Corgi.
Why She Created Her Website
I spent most of my profession working for newspapers and magazines, together with modifying roles at The Denver Publish and The Des Moines Register.
I wished a inventive outlet and, since I’ve all the time beloved canine, I made a decision to launch Canine Greatest Life. Initially, the net journal was a ardour mission; I labored on it 10 hours or so per week.
I made a decision in 2019 to make the location a much bigger precedence for my time. Over the following few years, it began producing sufficient visitors and income to develop into a viable monetary endeavor.
Whereas visitors trended upward for the reason that web site’s launch in August 2011, the recognition of adopting canine in the course of the pandemic boosted visitors and advert income sufficient to make it worthwhile.
That pattern has continued, and 2023 was on observe to be the location’s greatest 12 months for advert income (anticipated $80,000+ by a partnership with Mediavine).
Sadly, Google’s updates this fall have been problematic for the location (as has been the case for a lot of area of interest web sites). Whereas the location averaged about 400,000 web page views per thirty days earlier than the updates, that’s dropped to about 200,000.
How A lot She’s Incomes
The positioning was on observe to make $80,000+ this 12 months. It didn’t make vital income till 2019. It has all the time been a ardour mission, not a fast moneymaker.
I attribute the location’s ongoing recognition to the spike in canine adoptions in the course of the pandemic. However pet possession, significantly canine possession, is common with Individuals.
I work on my web site roughly 15 to 25 hours per week.
As for visitors, the location generated 2.3 million pageviews in 2020, 4.9 million in 2021, and 4.2 million in 2022. It was on observe for about 3 million pageviews in 2023.
Then, visitors took a tumble after the latest Google updates, however I am sticking with the location and already beginning to see a restoration.
Sara’s High Advertising Technique
My purpose with the location has all the time been to offer high-quality, useful info for canine homeowners. The truth that the location generates an earnings is a blessing.
Her Ideas on Search engine optimization
Search engine optimization is essential to serving to readers discover the location and its content material. We don’t write for Search engine optimization, however we all the time be sure that the articles and headlines are maximized for search.
As for studying about Search engine optimization, as a result of I labored on information web sites, primarily once I was the breaking information editor on the Denver Publish from 2014 to 2018, I discovered on the job about Search engine optimization and the way vital it was to maximise your work to achieve potential customers.
Key phrase Analysis
The first purpose is to offer useful info that’s optimized for optimum attain.
I’ve been utilizing Semrush for years. I began utilizing its free instruments and switched to the paid model within the spring of 2019.
On the time, the location had about 10,000 organic keywords helping drive traffic. We ultimately climbed to 177,000 natural key phrases at our peak in November 2022. We at the moment have about 60,000 natural key phrases driving visitors to the location.
I used Semrush’s key phrase magic instrument and key phrase hole instruments to determine key phrases we should always embrace on the location, however I don’t let that be our solely information. I additionally belief my information judgment and am all the time looking for fascinating article subjects.
For instance, I’m at the moment engaged on an enormous canine breed information that may function a cornerstone article for the location.
Sara’s Content material Creation Course of
My purpose is to first, discover fascinating, well timed, or useful subjects. Then, analysis them to make sure the articles present the knowledge readers want most. Final, optimize them to make sure they embrace search phrases that may assist deliver readers to them.
To seek out the proper subjects, I exploit information judgment, keyword search, and key phrase hole search.
For instance, over time, I’ve labored so as to add articles on a number of canine well being points, coaching points, and canine breeds.
I publish at the very least 3-5 new articles weekly and regularly refine and replace present articles. I don’t have a devoted crew, however I’ve sometimes used skilled writers. We additionally commonly publish contributed articles from veterinarians, canine trainers, and different canine web site homeowners.
As of November 2023, now we have 1660 articles on the location.
Her E mail Lists
I write a month-to-month publication. Readers can use a signup type on the location to get on the email list. I exploit MailChimp to handle my checklist of 980 folks at current.
Her Go-To Instruments
My favourite instruments are as follows:
WordPress, because it’s the best content material administration system I’ve ever used. I like to recommend it extremely, particularly for individuals who have little internet expertise.
Semrush, as this can be very useful for figuring out key phrases and the way greatest to develop them.
And Headline Studio, which is a good instrument to make sure you’re writing probably the most compelling and Search engine optimization-friendly headline.
Her Greatest Problem
Within the early days, my major problem was making time for the location along with working full-time.
In truth, the largest problem is Google itself.
Its updates this fall have been heartbreaking and extremely irritating. In some ways, I really feel like I’m beginning over.
One of the best factor I can do is proceed to offer high quality info to assist canine homeowners.
Her Best Accomplishment
Constructing a profitable web site that helps canine homeowners, particularly first-time canine homeowners, is my best accomplishment.
Being a canine proprietor is numerous exhausting work.
You get unconditional love and plenty of snuggles, however making certain you have got a wholesome, well-behaved canine takes effort and time.
Too many individuals assume coaching stops after finishing a 6-to-8 week primary obedience course. In actuality, coaching ought to be a lifelong mission.
My purpose with Canine Greatest Life is to offer info to make making a wholesome, pleased, well-behaved canine simpler.
What She Needs She Knew When She Began
After I obtained able to launch the location, I purchased a template.
Massive mistake. Massive, large mistake. It was glitchy and didn’t work. I ended up hiring a designer to rebuild it and make it work.
Looking back, beginning with the designer from the start would have been smarter and simpler.
Her Important Mistake
My greatest mistake is just not persistently updating content material to maintain it contemporary and guarantee it’s optimized.
If you happen to don’t regularly work to replace your content material, you threat having Google downgrade it.
Now I exploit Semrush’s instruments to investigate our prime 10 to twenty articles every month to search for alternatives to enhance them.
Her Recommendation for Different Entrepreneurs
Now’s a difficult time to begin a brand new web site.
Some folks would possibly assume the rise of AI would make it simpler, however I consider it probably poses threats to go looking and content material era that we don’t totally perceive but.
If you happen to plan to begin a web site, be affected person.
Concentrate on researching and writing high quality content material. Don’t anticipate to make cash in a single day.
