This is an as-told-to article based on a conversation with Anne Moss, a 50-year-old Chicago-based cofounder of 25 websites. Insider has provided documentation to support her business revenue. The following has been condensed and adjusted for length and clarity.
- Anne Moss owns 25 websites where she blogs regularly about topics like gardening or home decor.
- She started in 2000 and for years made $3,000 a month — now she makes $130,000 in revenue monthly.
Because I adored cats, I launched The Cat Site, a Hebrew-language blog about them, in 2000. To reach a larger audience, I chose to write in English for my second blog.
My husband continued his full-time work while I left the military in 1998 to provide us with a safety net. As a mother of two sons, it worked well for me because I could homeschool them while working on my new business.
Ad revenue brought in roughly $3,000 per month for the first 15 years or so. Through web study, I discovered how to run advertisements on my own.
For the next two decades, I bought websites, and by the time the pandemic came, my 25 blogs had developed into a publishing business bringing in an average of $130,000 per month, primarily from ad-management firms like Mediavine and AdThrive, as well as Amazon affiliates. My monthly expenses are around half of my monthly revenue.
My company has always been quite adventurous.
I registered a large number of domain names in various categories, and I chose names that might be utilized for future ventures or made into a brand.
The factors to consider when choosing a domain name have evolved dramatically over the previous 20 years, although I started with four-letter domains. Back in the early 2000s, many good domain names were still available, so I didn’t have to spend a lot of money to purchase them.
Around 2016, I began to observe changes in CPM pricing, which quantify how much a thousand ad impressions on a webpage costs. When I originally started, I earned $2 or $3 for every thousand views. It surged tenfold due to the introduction of ad bidding; Google Ads holds an auction every time an ad space becomes available, and advertisers bid to secure a position, raising CPM costs. My CPM rates for some sites exceeded $20, $30, and even $40.
I knew it was time to increase my investment in the company.
I hired my first virtual assistant through OnlineJobs.ph in 2018. My spouse and I invested around $10,000 in 2019 to recruit freelance writers and develop the business. I’m currently posting jobs on the ProBlogger employment board.
We were losing money at initially since new sites don’t usually get a lot of traffic right away; it can take anywhere from nine to 18 months to see meaningful traffic. This time was seen as an investment by me, and my spouse was quite supportive because he saw the potential in it as well.
Having attended business school, he was able to assist me in developing a company strategy with many scenarios, which reassured us of our next actions. It was an issue of seeing what would happen when we altered costs and potential revenue — for example, would the model still be lucrative if we had to pay $50 or $100 per post?
We had to be cautious because we’re in our 50s and don’t have the luxury of starting over like younger entrepreneurs.
When the epidemic struck, it was terrifying at first because businesses cut back on advertising, and my earnings fell. However, traffic increased dramatically since individuals were at home perusing the internet.
My spouse and I were certain we could go all in after looking at the stats. We took a life-changing decision to relocate from Israel to the United States because the majority of our audiences are based there.
According to my analytics, some of the best-performing niches are home décor, DIY, and gardening.
I don’t believe there is a “bad” niche. A couple of sites, including one in the pet specialty and another in the home-decor area, have failed. Some of my websites have visitors but no revenue because they are new. A site’s ranking on Google can take more than a year, so it’s a long game.
I don’t utilize technical SEO methods like link building on my websites because I’m all about producing high-quality content. When I recruit a writer, I teach them to write not for Google, but for the readers, by putting themselves in the shoes of the readers. What is their mental state? What do they want — information or entertainment? The answers to these questions govern the creation of content.
It’s critical for new authors to have clear rules outlining the expectations for style, tone, and structure. These guidelines should be reviewed on a regular basis and revised as needed to guarantee their relevance and effectiveness. Creating video training materials can be an excellent method to save time while ensuring that everyone receives the same information. Finally, delivering regular feedback to writers promotes a culture of continual progress.
People and process management are critical to success.
I’m the new CEO. After asking a query about a professional service I was considering on Facebook, I discovered a fantastic COO with exceptional people skills. My primary concentration is on content production and traffic generation. The COO is in charge of all infrastructure aspects, including information systems, IT, risk management, human resources, compliance, finance, accounting, and corporate governance. I work a lot, even on weekends.
Clear communication, goal planning, and a supportive work environment are all required for effective people management. I believe in setting expectations and checking in with my team on a regular basis to ensure everyone is on the same page and progressing toward our common goals.
We believe in open communication and transparency. I make a concerted effort to empower my team members by distributing tasks and allowing them to own their work. This not only helps them gain confidence and abilities, but it also allows me to focus on other elements of the business.
I’m also experimenting with developing email lists, branding websites, and selling digital courses. You never know what Google may emphasize, which is why I’m attempting to establish direct ties with my clients via a mailing list. Offering sign-up forms alongside high-quality material is part of our approach for converting readers to our email list.
My recommendation to anyone interested in starting a blog is to focus on your site and content rather than stressing too much about finding the perfect domain name. While top-tier domain names are becoming more difficult to come by, there are still lots of good-enough possibilities accessible.
