March already feels like decades ago, but so many important things happened that set us up for success in April that it would be a shame to just skip over the nitty gritty details. Inside this income report you will find out exactly what we have been investing in and spending time learning about behind the scenes, as well as our brand new tool to help automate some of the processes.
Why do we do income reports?
In an effort to be as transparent as possible in our own business, we have chosen to make 2017 the year in which we showcase the good, the bad and the ugly. That means we talk about money on months when we bring home the bacon and on months when we’d rather not discuss finances. We hope you learn a LOT from these reports. Replicate and tweak our strategies to use in your own business. Get inspired, learn from our mistakes and grow your own online business.
Please note: Links marked below with an asterisk (*) are affiliate links. By clicking and purchasing we may earn a commission on this sale. This comes at no cost to you and only is for products and companies we truly believe in!
March Income
Affiliate Income: $439
Course Sales: $10671
TOTAL INCOME: $11,110
March Expenses
Stripe/Paypal Fees: $375
Groupies T-Shirts*: $81
Squarespace: $244
Libsyn: $20
MotionMail: $10
ConvertKit*: $149
Courses / Online Education: $1379
Independent Contractors: $2084
Facebook Ads: $41
Postage: $4
Office Supplies: $23
TOTAL EXPENSES: $4,410
NET PROFIT: $6,700
Payroll to Abagail & Emylee: $5,283
Holy Moly Education
Our friend Jessica Eley said this recently and I just can’t seem to get it out of my head.
“If you keep doing what you’ve always done, you will keep getting the results you’ve always gotten.”
Obvious, but still a hit right to the gut.
When Emylee and I started our business we spent a ton of time learning and implementing new strategies, then we would turn around and teach those strategies to all of you. Well, at some point or another we got so bogged down with the day to day that we forgot to keep learning and to keep investing in ourselves and our personal growth.
So we finally put our foot down and rolled out a chunk of change on two programs — Pursuit HQ from Melyssa Griffin and FB Everything from Courtney Foster Donahue.
With all the changes that were happening over at Instagram and Pinterest we knew some of our strategies would have to shift.
Facebook, Finally
As much as we spent a whole lotta time fostering the growth of our Facebook group, we had completely ignored our page — like, it was a desert island. To continue to grow at the pace we were used to, we were going to have to start to pay for advertising — I know, I am just as shocked that I said it as you are.
So we spent the whole month learning how to do Facebook ads and implemented a totally new system to get content out to our Facebook page without a ton of hassle.
Enter SmarterQueue.
The biggest shift in using this program over the other schedulers out there is that you can create categories for your content and then automatically recycle your posts to increase engagement. Ditch the spreadsheets and manual scheduling. With categories, queues, and a visual calendar, SmarterQueue posts what you want, when you want.
Want to test drive it yourself? You can try it for 30 days FREE!
Passive Income, Baby
Luckily, even though our heads were in the books — or should I say screens — the business still worked. It is such a relief to know that after a year and a half with all the systems we have in place that products still sell on their own whether there is an active promotion or not.
Think about ways you can passively sell your products via your blog content, social media or even through solid referrals and testimonials.
We’re very thankful for how far we’ve come.
Bigger Things to Come
After a long conversation with our bookkeeper, Parker from Evolved Finance, we knew that in order to make our revenue goals for the year some things would have to change. Specifically, what we offer.
He reminded us that it takes just as much effort to market a $29 product as it does a $1000 product and he is so right.
So with that in mind we aren’t making our favorite program, Trello for Business, normally $29, a $1000 product — not to worry! However, we are working on some massive things to come throughout the rest of the year. Things you haven’t seen from us before. So prepare yourself, because this baby is just taking off.
