When Megan Wristen was shifting round rather a lot together with her household, it was tough to discover a regular job. Then an opportunity encounter with a coupon blogger modified her life.

She began her weblog, Mommy Travels, again in 2008 and has documented her adventures whereas touring to twenty-eight nations together with her three youngsters.

She has grown it through the years to earn sufficient earnings to place two youngsters by means of faculty, and she or he has diversified her earnings, incomes from 9 completely different sources. She’s additionally began extra blogs within the meantime.

Maintain studying to seek out out:

• How she realized about running a blog
• How a lot she’s incomes
• The place her earnings comes from
• Her important advertising methods
• What distinctive approaches she makes use of to get visitors
• Her ideas on search engine optimization
• Her key phrase analysis technique
• Her ideas on hyperlink constructing
• How she creates content material
• How she grows her e mail record
• Her favourite sources and instruments
• Her greatest problem
• Her biggest accomplishment
• Her important mistake
• Her recommendation for different entrepreneurs

Meet Megan Wristen

As a former Air Drive spouse, I moved 9 occasions in 11 years, so I discovered myself taking no matter job I may get regardless of having a level. 

It was extraordinarily irritating to look at an interviewer throw my resume within the trash proper after I was about to get employed as a result of he realized we had been stationed there. Though that is unlawful, there was nothing I may do about it.

In 2008 we had been stationed within the panhandle of Florida. On the time my youngsters had been 7, 4, and 1. 

In an try to make pals, I joined a MOPS group (moms of preschoolers). At one of many occasions, they’d a coupon blogger are available in to visitor converse. I didn’t perceive her methodology; it was difficult and appeared time-consuming. 

However what I did perceive is that she was plugging her weblog consistently all through her speak. 

I went to her weblog and realized shortly that she was getting cash off of it. I contacted her and requested some questions. 

Throughout our speak, she wasn’t comfy disclosing how a lot cash she was making, however she did say that she would by no means train once more. 

I had a historical past and English diploma with plans to show, however may by no means get off the waitlist earlier than we moved once more. For sure, this assertion spoke volumes to me. 

By the tip of the month, I had began two blogs, certainly one of which might go on to develop into my important job and earnings. The opposite I should have deleted it in some unspecified time in the future. 

I began Mommy Travels in October 2008 as a blogspot weblog, since there was no such factor as WordPress at the moment. 

How A lot Meagan’s Incomes

I make sufficient to place two youngsters by means of faculty on the identical time. 

I make advert income, affiliate earnings, influencer earnings, and receives a commission to go on journeys. 

I additionally promote photographs to manufacturers like GoPro and AmaWaterways and on locations like iStock and Shutterstock. For cellphone photographs, I promote them on Stockimo.

I additionally supply search engine optimization consulting and social media consulting companies. I both cost a flat fee for this or an hourly fee; it will depend on the consumer’s wants. 

I additionally wrote a cookbook, so I get royalties from that, and I simply launched a month-to-month clothes rental subscription at Journey Fashion Skilled, although it’s too quickly to say the way it will do. 

I’m on liketoknow.it/mommytravels, so I make commissions from the outfits I put on on journeys. 

I’ve a copyright infringement service that tracks down unauthorized use of my photographs after which collects cash for them. 

The children and I are in so lots of the photographs that it’s fairly apparent when my photographs have been stolen. 

As for visitors, Mommy Travels obtained between 80,000 UMV and 115,000 UMV over the past 10 months. 

Throughout the pandemic, journey stalled, so I ended up operating a small media firm in Dallas for two.5 years. 

I transitioned again to my weblog final November. 

Covid affected it as a result of I had such little USA content material versus different nations. For instance, I had many Thailand articles that did fairly effectively, however Thailand was one of many nations that closed the longest, which meant no visitors throughout that interval. 

Since Covid, I’ve labored laborious to extend the quantity of articles I’ve within the USA whereas persevering with to construct content material about different nations. 

I work on my enterprise 40 every week, however after I’m touring and having to create content material, it may very well be extra. I see individuals saying they’re solely working 10 hours every week and marvel if that’s true. Perhaps if they’re outsourcing rather a lot. 

Her Most important Advertising Technique

Again within the day, I used Pinterest essentially the most. At one level, 60% of my visitors got here simply from Pinterest. Sadly, that bubble burst fairly a while in the past. 

I nonetheless proceed to make pins when I’ve further time and feed the content material into Pinterest, nevertheless it’s a low precedence for the reason that return is so little. Now, as a substitute of Pinterest as a visitors driver, I have a look at it as a backlink. 

I examine my analytics day by day and particularly watch to see the place visitors is coming from. 

If I see visitors coming from a supply I’ve by no means seen earlier than, I’m going and analysis it to see if I can leverage it in my favor. That is how I realized about Whisk. 

I’ve recipes on my weblog and somebody had shared a recipe or two on this platform. 

After I noticed visitors coming in from it I went to see what it was. I then began an account and added my very own content material to the system in hopes of getting extra visitors. Whisk is now Samsung Meals and now not driving a lot visitors, sadly. 

The Significance of search engine optimization

At this level, search engine optimization is tremendous vital, however I’m unsure how vital it will likely be a yr from now with the rise of AI. 

I search for issues to put in writing about that I’m an authority in and for “low hanging fruit” locations that aren’t effectively coated and I can simply rank for. 

I watch articles to see in the event that they rank for something I didn’t embody after which will add details about what it’s already rating for. I attempt to solely use my very own photographs in hopes of exhibiting up when individuals do a picture search. 

If I’ve one thing climbing in Google search, I’ll add a photograph and even create a video only for that article in hopes of bumping the article even greater. Lumen5 is a free product that makes use of AI that will help you create movies tremendous quick. 

I’ll geotag photographs to assist the publish rank for a selected location. 

Key phrase Analysis

Ahrefs is my important device, adopted by RankIQ. 

I additionally spend plenty of time trying by means of Google Search Console. 

There I search for key phrases that I’m rating for however shouldn’t be as a result of that’s not what the article is about. 

I subscribe to the Exploding Matters e-newsletter for concepts. I take advantage of it for a more moderen weblog I began, Her Life Skilled, to try to write one thing instantly that’s on an upward trajectory. 

Hyperlink Constructing

I’m in a personal Slack group that provides backlinking. There are a whole lot of content material creators within the group, which makes it simple to construct backlinks. 

I take advantage of FatJoe to syndicate one piece of content material. They are going to get an article positioned on 100 to 200 information web sites for a price. 

I additionally hyperlink swap with creators I meet on press journeys. After the journey, I’ll attain out to them personally and ask to swap two hyperlinks with them. 

I’m syndicated on MSN, in order that’s a straightforward approach for me to get backlinks. 

I’ll publish a recipe after which share it to Samsung Meals, Yummly, FlipBoard, FoodGawker, Pinterest, and different food-related web sites. 

I push articles out to each attainable social media platform, together with random ones like MeWe, Padlet, and Peartree. I don’t care if I get visitors from these, I simply need the backlink. 

Anytime there’s a new social media platform on the market I be a part of it and begin posting. I don’t care if the platform is controversial, a backlink is a backlink. 

I additionally suppose it’s vital to construct inner hyperlinks. I by no means have an article exit with lower than two inner hyperlinks. After I write an article I do know I ought to rank for, I’m going and discover some outdated articles and instantly put in inner hyperlinks to the brand new article. 

I joined FB teams which are for hyperlink constructing by letting them use a few of your content material in a round-up. 

For instance, in the event that they’re seeking to create a round-up of the very best resorts in Riviera Maya, I might submit a brief paragraph a few resort we’ve been to with a backlink to my full evaluate on my web site. 

I’ve discovered submitting to round-ups to be a good way to quickly construct backlinks. Nonetheless, it has not often led to visitors. 

Meagan’s Content material Creation Course of

I really feel like I’m everywhere on this. 

My content material creation is a continuing mixture of articles I’m doing as a result of they’re simple to rank for, articles about one thing I used to be paid for, and articles to cowl issues we’ve executed or locations we’ve stayed. 

I do have sure cities I attempt to add to at the very least as soon as a month like Las Vegas, Dallas, NYC, and Portland. 

Like many bloggers, I attempt to cowl each angle I can consider on one metropolis if that metropolis is doing effectively on my web site. If issues to do with youngsters in Portland, Oregon is doing effectively then I’ll write issues to do with youngsters in Portland, Oregon. 

I attempt to replace a number of outdated articles every week, however I’m fortunate if I get to at least one every week. 

I’ve tried to area of interest down over the past yr, which I imagine has led to a rise in my RPMs. I’ve moved plenty of my life-style content material, meals content material, and automotive content material to different web sites. 

Her E mail Checklist

I’ve an e mail record and I e mail each Wednesday, often or on the very least 2 to 4 occasions per 30 days. 

Generally, I’ll e mail on the day I do know the RPMs would be the highest that week primarily based on a calendar Mediavine gives for the month. 

If Wednesday is a low RPM day however Thursday is tremendous excessive, I’ll e mail on Thursday as a substitute. 

I take advantage of the Develop plugin. They embed a subscribe type into each single article that pops out a bit when somebody is scrolling. 

I do an occasional giveaway utilizing a funnel to gather e mail addresses. I supply a free printable child’s journal for subscribing. 

Her Favourite Sources

I hearken to plenty of podcasts, just like the Social Media Advertising podcast, Area of interest Pursuits podcast, and Pat Flynn’s Sensible Passive Earnings, however solely sure episodes. I additionally just like the Running a blog Millionaire podcast.

Her Go-To Instruments

I take advantage of the next instruments most frequently on my weblog:

To resize and compress photographs earlier than I add them, I take advantage of a web site known as I Love IMG. 

To geo-tag photographs, I take advantage of Geoimgr. 

And for video, I take advantage of CapCut. Increasingly locations are extra interested by being featured on Instagram or TikTok. If video isn’t your factor, this may prevent a great deal of time. 

Meagan’s Largest Problem

There was little-to-no details about running a blog after I began. I needed to be taught every little thing from scratch. 

Now, I might say my greatest problem is Google’s algorithm modifications. I haven’t been deeply affected like many others, nevertheless it’s nonetheless a ache. 

Her Biggest Accomplishment

I’ve received awards, and had my photographs featured on GoPro merchandise and been featured in outstanding magazines. 

However I believe the power to make sufficient cash to boost three youngsters, ship them to school, and present the youngsters the world is my greatest accomplishment. 

The delight I felt publishing a cookbook was excellent, nevertheless it’s not the sensation you get if you watch your baby develop and be taught by means of new experiences. 

What She Needs She Knew When She Began

I began in 2008. So, principally every little thing. 

I want I had began an e mail record from day one. I want I had promoted my e mail record far more from the very starting as effectively.  

Her Most important Mistake

Oh gosh, the place to start out?

I made a mistake in not switching to WordPress sooner. WordPress is simply a lot simpler than another web site on the market. 

I do plenty of consulting and I’ve had purchasers utilizing every kind of alternate options. Why, I’m unsure. One factor I do know for certain, one thing that’s tremendous easy to do inside WordPress will be difficult and time-consuming on different platforms. 

I made a mistake by not ensuring each single article has one thing for buy in it. 

I nonetheless battle with this as a result of it’s time-consuming. I make extra off of Mediavine adverts than I do affiliate hyperlinks so it’s a decrease precedence. 

Her Recommendation for Different Entrepreneurs

Be life like. You’ll not see in a single day success. These programs telling you that you’ll make six figures are mendacity. 

Running a blog is difficult and there are tons of issues you must know find out how to do.