Blog Traffic Report: What to Expect in Your First Month of Blogging

Inside:If you’re feeling a little discouraged by the posts that claim you can make thousands in your first month of blogging, this blog traffic report will shed light on what you should actually expect. Learn how to get readers to your new blog, as well as what to expect the first month. 

If you’ve read anything about beginning blogging on Pinterest, you’ve probably seen the posts.

“How I Went from 0 to 20K Pageviews in my First Month Blogging.”

“How My Blog Made More Than $1,000 in its First Month.”

“How to Start a Blog in 15 Minutes!”

With stats like these, everyone should start a blog. Right?

It is possible to do the above with a new blog? Apparently. Is it likely? I’m gonna say no.

I would have loved to get 20,000 pageviews this month, and though posts like these can be encouraging, they can also leave a beginning blogger a little discouraged.

But the truth is, we are all starting from the bottom. There are many big bloggers out there. And guess what? They all started from zero. They too had good days and bad days. Frustrating days. I’m guessing that most of them were not instant successes.

I worked on my blog for months before I launched. While this is not a tactic that is for everyone, it is what worked for me. I am a mom of two little ones and I work full time. Although I’m super busy as it is, blogging is just something that I’ve always wanted to do. You can read more about my why here.

And I made it to one month! It’s been a rollercoaster of emotions. There were days when I was sure that I was rocking blogging, and other days filled with frustration.

First Month Blog Traffic Report: What To Expect The First Month Of Blogging

I have published 13 posts in the last month. Unexpectedly, this post has brought in 30% of my traffic. Which is insane. It is the post that I almost didn’t publish. I was expecting this post or maybe this one to be my most popular.

First, let’s look at where I started. Before launching, I had a landing page for starting my email list (with this freebie!) and I started to grow my Instagram account. I launched with 7 posts. Because of these three factors, my first two days of blogging were two of my highest performing days.

Before launch:                                           After 1 month:

Facebook followers: 0                               Facebook followers: 48

Instagram followers: 212                          Instagram followers: 384

Pinterest followers: 132                            Pinterest followers: 336

Email subscribers: 43                                Email subscribers: 73

Pageviews: 0                                             Pageviews: 2,859

I polled other bloggers in one of the Facebook groups that I’m in to see what typical first month page views look like.

Getting 20,000+ pageviews in your first month is unrealistic. I came in at almost 3,000 pageviews (not as good as my friend Alexandra at Coffee and Coos with 6,000 (!),) but still very successful.

I owe a great part of my first month success to two things:

Understanding Pinterest

At first, I was kind of randomly pinning and making it up as I went. I know that if I had continued on that path, I would not have seen much growth throughout my first month. Pinterest is confusing. The algorithm is always changing and you need to have a Pinterest strategy in order to make Pinterest like you.

Once I implemented Carly from Mommy On Purpose’s manual pinning strategy, my page views soared.

If manual pinning sounds too time-consuming for you, I later purchased a lifetime membership to the best blogging community/resource out there, which teaches you everything you need to know, including a solid Pinterest strategy. You can read my review of Billionaire Blog Club here.

Joining Facebook Groups

In the beginning stages of your blog, you will spend most of your time promoting. And promoting. And promoting some more. Facebook groups are necessary in helping to get your pins out there. And necessary for connecting with other bloggers who are willing to help you out.

Find some Facebook groups and get active.

Okay, so now let’s talk about what you should really expect during your first month of blogging.

Expect that the majority of your time will NOT be taken up by writing blog posts.

There is so much more to blogging than simply creating posts. You also must grow a social media presence, develop a Pinterest strategy, find or take beautiful photos, create pinnable images, format your post, optimize your post for SEO, include inbound and outbound links, and promote, promote, promote. 

Writing is the easy part.

Expect that you will have good pageview days and bad pageview days.

There is nothing more discouraging than when you have your highest pageviews one day, and the next day, crickets. It’s normal. There were days when Pinterest hated me. And then there were days when Pinterest loved me.

Pinterest traffic fluctuates a LOT. Organic search traffic is much more predictable, and it’s never too early to start working on Pinterest traffic. Billionaire Blog Club helped me a ton with Google traffic (and like, everything else!).

No matter how prepared you think you are, you will still have to work really hard to get viewers to your site.

As I said before, I worked hard on my blog for a long time before launching. I didn’t want to look like the new kid on the block. I have beautiful vertical pins and a beautiful theme. I researched blogging for hours and hours. I mistakenly thought that my beautiful site and pins would magically lead thousands of viewers to my blog with little effort from me.

Expect to feel discouraged at some point.

I had many moments of discouragement. When I first started my Instagram account, I was starstruck by all the beautiful mommy blogger feeds. I began to feel like I could never compete.

When I didn’t get as many pageviews as I expected on a certain day, I was frustrated. You need to remember that blogging takes time. But if you’re patient? It just might pay off.

Expect to love it.

Despite the ups and downs of this past month, blogging has lit a fire in me. I am excited to see where it takes me and I am having so much fun. 

Expect to have your own level of success.

Let’s go back to the beginning of my post. Instant success as a blogger is not likely. Blogging is a marathon, not a sprint.

I interviewed four of my favorite new mommy bloggers. These ladies have great content and have promising futures in the blogging world. But they’ve also experienced the same highs and lows, disappointments and realizations that blogging is hard work.

Be sure to check out their blogs. They are all amazing.

Kristen from Applecart Lane

What surprised you the most when you started blogging?

Alexandra at Coffee and Coos

Cindy at Living for the Sunshine

Cindy also wrote a post about her first month blogging experience which you can find here.

What surprised you the most when you started blogging?

I guess I was surprised at the number of Facebook groups for bloggers supporting bloggers. I wasn’t expecting to hook up with a supportive network and imagined I would be doing this alone, at least for the first few months. It definitely was a pleasant surprise to be able to make connections and feel supported right away.

Heather at Flashes of Bliss

What surprised you the most when you started blogging?

I was so surprised of how many details you have to take care of when having a blog! I think people think it is just like writing in a journal everyday, and it is so much more.