I'm pretty sure @mezzofanti can say "been there, done that" for that 'precious experience'.
[Journey] Scaling an Authority website to 10K a month (and beyond)
- Thread starter Kikerinka
- Start date
mezzofanti
Senior Member
- Feb 24, 2017
- 969
- 798
you mean "priceless"?
well, like @zackh said, "been there, done that" - I worked 4+ years as freelancer/blogger, and it was great, but one must know when the end comes... and walk away...
bruce willis
Junior Member
- Jan 3, 2022
- 128
- 150
Hi Kikerinka, I just saw that you posted an update.
Without expecting a return to the pre-AI era, I feel that Google's cleanup operation is coming to an end and that the remaining sites (the good ones) will regain some of their former glory, without expecting to return to previous levels.
For my part, I'm torn between going back to work as an employee or launching a new project that won't be affected by AI.
The problem is that I need 12 to 15 hours a day to get it off the ground. With a wife and two kids, if I get five hours, I'm lucky!
Without expecting a return to the pre-AI era, I feel that Google's cleanup operation is coming to an end and that the remaining sites (the good ones) will regain some of their former glory, without expecting to return to previous levels.
For my part, I'm torn between going back to work as an employee or launching a new project that won't be affected by AI.
The problem is that I need 12 to 15 hours a day to get it off the ground. With a wife and two kids, if I get five hours, I'm lucky!
D
Deleted member 1247054
Guest
Wow this kind of post is scaring me. I know that everything that is digital will have an end. And I know that this end can be sooner than expected. But getting back to a 9-5 job. Nahhh.
Thomas Shelby
Power Member
- Jan 3, 2013
- 635
- 366
I saw someone comment on SERoundtable that HouseFresh has made a full traffic recovery (and beyond) since the HCU.
Look at the keywords they are ranked for. Insane.
This article is interesting too.
Look at the keywords they are ranked for. Insane.
This article is interesting too.
Kikerinka
Elite Member
- Dec 18, 2010
- 2,584
- 9,441
Hello all. It's been a while since I've been here. Rainy day where I'm at the moment, so I thought I would give you at least a short update on what's going on for me in IM.
1. Main website:
- Last weeks were disappointing, speaking in terms of RPMs. Very low considering what we've seen in similar time of the year the previous years. So, even if one is still lucky to have some traffic, the monetization isn't as it has been before...
- I changed a bit the way I sell eBooks (mostly because of some changes to my 'business', administrative wise). I am finally off from PayPal for good. This seems to have slightly positive impact on the number of sales. Definitely sold more than last year this time of the year, plus this year everything is going to dogs online, so the relative difference would be perhaps even higher. What I try to say here is that eBook sales are not dead, and I may try something next year with it, if I find the time.
2. Selling websites. - I decided to sell some of my smaller sites. Already sold one, for a surprisingly high multiple (close to 60, I guess I got lucky, or perhaps someone saw something in that website that I didn't?), and made roughly $1,600 after the fees I paid in the process.
Now I am in the process of selling couple of more sites. I guess I'd be happy with any 30+ multiple, but let's see how it ends up. In any case, my idea is that in the mid of 2026, I'll have only 2 sites meant to make money from IM. Other sites I will either sell or let expire, when they barely make anything... What a change considering that at one point I had over 30. But here we are. I plan to still keep my authority website (in the case that some miracle happens, the AI bubble bursts, and some people come back to normal search). The other website I plan to keep is the website from my second journey (more on it in a second).
Of course, I still have more websites, but these are related to my offline projects or some non-profit stuff etc, and do not really depend on the changes that take place right now in the online world...
3. Website from my second journey:
- This is a seasonal niche, so I can already see some drops in traffic, but there is still some traffic. The website still has a lot of direct traffic, repetitive traffic, even occasional bursts of social media traffic, basically it isn't that much dependent on Google (even though Google is no. 1 traffic source for this site).
The tricky thing here is monetization. It's really a hit and miss for me now, in terms of consistency. I had days when on a single day the website made $20-$50, then for a week or two it would make nothing, and then again a big day. BUT, it is niche that still interests me (not like my main niche in which I lost interest), and I have a lot of ideas (based on the data I have, and my knowledge of the niche), about content that can bring traffic.
It will be actually likely the only website I will really work on this winter. Let's see how far we can get, I'd keep you updated. But I have a feeling that maybe next year a month will come when this website will make more money than my authority website. Or perhaps that's just a wish. I any case, I now treat all this IM think more like a hobby, a bit of winter time activity when I am not focused on my offline projects (that I live from right now). So let's see what will happen...
- So that's it in short. Hope you're all well, and just like me found other interesting ways of making a living. O course, the bug will always be there in the head of one who made a lot of money online once upon a time, that maybe it can be repeated, in one way or another. But I am personally very happy with my life right now, and would not change it for the one I lived a few years ago, even for all the money I made back in the day...
Take care guys, and any questions, don't hesitate to ask.
.
On a more serious note, it is great when one has something to fall back on. Imagine people who just did SEO from their early twenties, and now maybe are in their 30ties or 40ties, with no school and former jobs. In such a case one really may end flipping burgers as the famous joke goes. But maybe for one's humility that isn't a bad thing, flipping burgers for a while...
But in real, it is crazy good right now. A few days ago I used Chat GPT as a tax consultant, for a rather complex, international issue.
I can tell you that in 30 minutes I had better information that I'd get from a top-not tax advisor that would easily charge me hundreds for such consultations. And that's just one example. The way the human brain works (impatient dopamine seeker), just more and more people will use AI. There's no famous glory days coming back, not even a shadow of these days.. The only way less people use AI is that it gets paywall only, or simply vanishes.
In any case, good luck with your project. If you want, you can share with me more in PM here. I wonder what it is that it won't be affected by AI.
.
1. Main website:
- Last weeks were disappointing, speaking in terms of RPMs. Very low considering what we've seen in similar time of the year the previous years. So, even if one is still lucky to have some traffic, the monetization isn't as it has been before... - I changed a bit the way I sell eBooks (mostly because of some changes to my 'business', administrative wise). I am finally off from PayPal for good. This seems to have slightly positive impact on the number of sales. Definitely sold more than last year this time of the year, plus this year everything is going to dogs online, so the relative difference would be perhaps even higher. What I try to say here is that eBook sales are not dead, and I may try something next year with it, if I find the time
. 2. Selling websites. - I decided to sell some of my smaller sites. Already sold one, for a surprisingly high multiple (close to 60, I guess I got lucky, or perhaps someone saw something in that website that I didn't?), and made roughly $1,600 after the fees I paid in the process.
Now I am in the process of selling couple of more sites. I guess I'd be happy with any 30+ multiple, but let's see how it ends up. In any case, my idea is that in the mid of 2026, I'll have only 2 sites meant to make money from IM. Other sites I will either sell or let expire, when they barely make anything... What a change considering that at one point I had over 30
. But here we are. I plan to still keep my authority website (in the case that some miracle happens, the AI bubble bursts, and some people come back to normal search). The other website I plan to keep is the website from my second journey (more on it in a second). Of course, I still have more websites, but these are related to my offline projects or some non-profit stuff etc, and do not really depend on the changes that take place right now in the online world...
3. Website from my second journey:
- This is a seasonal niche, so I can already see some drops in traffic, but there is still some traffic. The website still has a lot of direct traffic, repetitive traffic, even occasional bursts of social media traffic, basically it isn't that much dependent on Google (even though Google is no. 1 traffic source for this site).
The tricky thing here is monetization. It's really a hit and miss for me now, in terms of consistency. I had days when on a single day the website made $20-$50, then for a week or two it would make nothing, and then again a big day. BUT, it is niche that still interests me (not like my main niche in which I lost interest), and I have a lot of ideas (based on the data I have, and my knowledge of the niche), about content that can bring traffic.
It will be actually likely the only website I will really work on this winter. Let's see how far we can get, I'd keep you updated. But I have a feeling that maybe next year a month will come when this website will make more money than my authority website. Or perhaps that's just a wish
. I any case, I now treat all this IM think more like a hobby, a bit of winter time activity when I am not focused on my offline projects (that I live from right now). So let's see what will happen... - So that's it in short. Hope you're all well, and just like me found other interesting ways of making a living. O course, the bug will always be there in the head of one who made a lot of money online once upon a time, that maybe it can be repeated, in one way or another
. But I am personally very happy with my life right now, and would not change it for the one I lived a few years ago, even for all the money I made back in the day... Take care guys, and any questions, don't hesitate to ask.
Thanks for the update mate, I hope you continue enjoying the 9 to 5. Maybe there is even the 13th salary at the end of the year?Well, I like blogging - I write what I like to write about (with or without AI help), people come to my site (various traffic sources), read the text, see ads, follow my affiliate links, and I earn money - nice.
However, my main source of traffic was Google and after HCU back in September 2023, everything changed. Add to that browsers like Brave (no adds), similar extensions for other browsers (no adds), coupon extensions (steal Amazon clicks/cookies - check "honey" scam), etc, I simply had it enough.
(I had email lists, but they were not enough to drive enough traffic to my sites.)
I did try at the beginning of this year with two sites and they had excellent growth in Google Webmaster Tools regarding views in Google search, but there were no clicks. I also had few ideas about topics that Google and AI simply can't do much damage (at least I hoped), but I was simply too tired of everything.
Note: my idea were iq-test, general tests, and quiz sites, but ...
So, back in the office and 8-hour shifts...
(at least I had somewhere to go back
. On a more serious note, it is great when one has something to fall back on. Imagine people who just did SEO from their early twenties, and now maybe are in their 30ties or 40ties, with no school and former jobs. In such a case one really may end flipping burgers as the famous joke goes. But maybe for one's humility that isn't a bad thing, flipping burgers for a while...
Mate, there's no end to this AI. It's just too good, too dominant. There is only one way it can end: that the bubble burst like the DOT.COM bubble decade ago. Meaning that the AI companies eventually fail to generate the profits they promise, and will have to close their expensive operations (because they are extremely expensive).
But in real, it is crazy good right now. A few days ago I used Chat GPT as a tax consultant, for a rather complex, international issue.
I can tell you that in 30 minutes I had better information that I'd get from a top-not tax advisor that would easily charge me hundreds for such consultations. And that's just one example. The way the human brain works (impatient dopamine seeker), just more and more people will use AI. There's no famous glory days coming back, not even a shadow of these days.. The only way less people use AI is that it gets paywall only, or simply vanishes.
In any case, good luck with your project. If you want, you can share with me more in PM here. I wonder what it is that it won't be affected by AI.
It's a hard lesson to learn, but in a way also a very liberating one. Everything will have an end. And not only everything that is digital
.Hey @Kikerinka I’m glad to read your update and hear how things are going.
Wow this is just so amazing! Thanks for sharing. Definitely can learn a thing or two from this! Will read later today after I got done with my work.
Kikerinka
Elite Member
- Dec 18, 2010
- 2,584
- 9,441
Hello everybody. How's life? I will soon embark on another longer 'digital detox', so before that happens I wanted to update the thread here--should anyone still follow it
. Sadly I proved a prophet with my words. If you remember, roughly a year ago I posted an update here. Back then my IM earnings were about $1K/month. And I said something along the lines that with the current development with AI and everything, likely I will come here in a year time, and say my IM earnings are about $500/month. And that's exactly how it is now. So, maybe in a year from now, it will be $250/month, though I hope this prophecy won't come true
.Anyway, what happened since my last update?
- On the authority site (the website this journey is about), I haven't done any work, except of some improvements to the process of digital product sales. But this changes nothing really, and the traffic and the earnings are simply slowly decreasing.
- I managed to sell one more small website, from my original niche, with a decent multiple, though nothing close to the previous sell.
- Worked maybe 100 hours online this winter, mostly on one specific website, that has some relation to my offline life right now, and it is a niche that interest me. Also worked a bit on one side project. Both of these show some positive signs, but...
- GSC of the first project
- GSC of the second project
BUT, the problem are conversions, and monetization. It's just horrible these months. I feel that some BIG affiliate programs that tend to work really well (I won't tell which, but you may guess) just lost traction. Maybe consumer change behavior, maybe overall pessimistic mood in the world (economically and politically speaking), maybe, maybe...
Take this one as an example:
- For the program in question, it's just a horrible conversion rate... If I had the same as last year, in September or October for example, I'd made 100 euro at least from this one alone. But I made 1.90 instead
. And the same goes for everything, including my own DP sales.
So, while I still have traffic, while good engagement metrics are there on the websites, the RPM overall on the little I have left from my IM network is just getting worse all the time.
Of course, there are many worse things happening in the world now, and luckily I do not depend on this income anymore. Treating IM only as a hobby right now, I am quite happy to again forget about it at least for a few months, not checking stats or anything, and then see if some miracle does happen, or if my income continues to dwindle away...
That's at least a short update, and I'll be glad to hear how some of you are doing, especially if someone had some good success with websites recently
. Or are they completely dead now??? Let me know what's up, and all the best to everyone here!Kikerinka
AdScaleVault
Newbie
- Mar 12, 2026
- 23
- 12
nine years old and still pulling traffic is honestly the hardest part most people never get to, i killed a site around year three by switching niches and lost everything i had built. curious about the adthrive setup though, at 339 informational articles are you seeing rpm consistency across the content or are certain topics just carrying the whole monetization load?
bruce willis
Junior Member
- Jan 3, 2022
- 128
- 150
Another interesting update. Unlike you, my ad revenue from my content site tends to stay steady or even increase slightly. A few link sales in my niche and it doubles the site's revenue... I now only publish one article a week using a customized AI prompt. Well, traffic isn't really picking up either. Now I also think that, with all the various geopolitical issues, the advertising world is being a bit more cautious.
Kikerinka
Elite Member
- Dec 18, 2010
- 2,584
- 9,441
Thank you all for liking the update, so it seems somebody is still watching this journey. Now we can call it from nothing to $20K/month and back to nothing .
Jokes aside, even if you don't see me here for some time, I'll sure be back to update you again on the progress.
To Bruce: Nice that you still continue mate, good luck with all your efforts!
. Jokes aside, even if you don't see me here for some time, I'll sure be back to update you again on the progress.
To Bruce: Nice that you still continue mate, good luck with all your efforts!
mezzofanti
Senior Member
- Feb 24, 2017
- 969
- 798
'Alo Kiki, how are you doing?
I am still on BHW, regularly, every few months
I have no sites any more (from zero some 15-20 years ago to ~20 sites some 5-10 years ago to zero again) - I gave up completely from blogging (not even as a hobby) and I am fully back to sys admin world.
Preparing MS AZ-801 exam while it is still available
GL to everyone...
I am still on BHW, regularly, every few months
I have no sites any more (from zero some 15-20 years ago to ~20 sites some 5-10 years ago to zero again) - I gave up completely from blogging (not even as a hobby) and I am fully back to sys admin world.
Preparing MS AZ-801 exam while it is still available
GL to everyone...
Mist_Operator04
Newbie
- Aug 19, 2026
- 1
- 0
wow dude this has been one of the most complete entrepreneur journeys i have read here in a long time. Congrats I hope this Q doesn´t bother you considering that time flies but were you running a similar website like imarketing_dot_courses?
allan.d
Regular Member
- Apr 16, 2021
- 335
- 278