This post was most recently updated on November 21st, 2023

[A collaboration post – all thoughts are my own.]

How is my blogging year in 2022?

My blogging year in 2022 marks the second anniversary of Merry of August. I started it in the middle of 2020 as a hobby. I always take my time starting anything because I know that once I get started, I’m in it for the long haul. However, I still consider my commitment to publishing weekly content on an internet platform for the past two years to be a huge success.

In order to plan ahead and produce the most polished and captivating lifestyle blog I can, I keep my expectations reasonable, use time management strategies that I’ve acquired over the years, and use all of the tips and tricks I’ve picked up along the way. I’ve worked with over 30 brands, and I feel like that’s a noble cause and one that has helped me achieve my own personal writing goals. In the meantime, below is a recap of Merry of August in the year 2022.

Articles

As of December 31st 2022, I had published 175 posts. I have a job as a freelance translator and a lot of downtime to write. When the pandemic struck, I found myself with even more free time. That made the first six months simple in terms of honing my WordPress skills, writing blog posts, and discovering how to promote that content in order to reach the largest audience possible.

For a lifestyle blog, my traffic has always been modest but decent. Monitoring which posts thrive and which ones fail is really crazy. My audience kept growing as the pandemic reached its height. But in 2022, they started to decline a little, and at that time, I was so preoccupied with establishing my career as a blogger and translator that I eventually burned out. I failed to maintain a healthy balance between my personal and work lives.

I began arranging my weekly schedule of 2-3 postings in 2022. Well, most of them are personal growth posts, which I adore creating almost every day. As a Day Translations ambassador, I also have the opportunity to contribute to a monthly campaign they have set up. I take this chance to write about topics that are relevant to my day-to-day work as a translator.

I truly enjoy using a planner, and I can say that doing so helped me manage my time better as the year went on and I started to get behind. When my schedule became too hectic, I made the decision to reduce the number of articles I published for a week or decline a few of the small translation projects.

Traffic

For me, it’s not at all about the numbers. At the time I first launched the blog, I thought at least 1,500 monthly views would be a good number. Having said that, it’s interesting to watch how things have progressed over the course of the year.

I’m not sure if an algorithm changed, if it’s just that I’ve accumulated so much content over the years, or if I’m just producing more engaging and SEO-friendly blog articles, but my search engine traffic has dramatically increased this year. Google is usually where readers and brands find me, which is such a relief because social media is so picky about how it plays the game.

Speaking of social media, I still maintain a constant level of activity on Twitter and Instagram. I make it a point to attempt to publish something on each of these platforms every week or month. My second-best referrer after search engines is Twitter, followed by Pinterest and Facebook.

Although the majority of my followers are on Twitter, few of them click on external links. But if a link on Facebook piques their curiosity, Facebook users will quickly click on it. In 2022, I haven’t been very active on Pinterest, and I’m glad I’ve never relied on it for views, but I appreciate the amount of traffic it sends. It takes a lot of effort and is too unstable to rely on.

These days, video contributions on social media are very important. But I’m not at ease speaking in front of the camera. Neither am I nor do I aspire to be a videographer. I’m not really sure if I will start posting Instagram reels, though.

Income

As you can see, there are no advertisements on my blog. For bloggers who wanted to advertise their blogs with me, I placed monthly sidebar ads. The posting of guest posts on my blog is also free for bloggers.

Instead, I worked with some brands and was affiliated with some companies. My blog doesn’t cost a lot to run because I keep expenses low. And I’ve long realized that I’d rather use that time to build a website I’m proud of than one with annoying pop-ups.

So, if you want to support my blog, consider buying things that interest you through the affiliate links. But take comfort in the fact that my content will always be free and focused on the topic I’m writing about, not about taking your money, which seems to have infiltrated every other corner of the internet.

In 2022, my income will mostly come from working with brands, affiliate marketing, and advertising from bloggers. I have worked with several brands this year, mostly through Intellifluence and pitching to brands. For affiliate marketing, I promote valuable products from Etsy and get paid for the commission.

For blogger advertising, I’ve been fortunate this year to meet many bloggers and assist them in publicizing their blogs and posts. Maybe not much, but for new bloggers who want to get more exposure, I’ll be more than happy to help them build their blogs.

After deducting the PayPal fee, I managed to hit $7,137+ in 2023! I doubled it! In 2022, I got around $2,800. A great number for a two-year-old blogger! I will keep working smarter to hit more in 2023!

Most-viewed blog posts

Speaking of content, part of reflecting on each year is figuring out what topics people are reading about. Of course, my most-viewed page is my home page; after that, here are my other popular posts.

1. 8 Powerful Types of Affirmations To Create A Better Life – I was also pleased to see this guest post take off because it’s so well written, offers readers some really helpful tips, and is the kind of guest post I want to see more of in 2023.
2. 5 Types of Languages are Spoken in Bali – I was so excited to see how this post took off because I had so much fun writing it, I love the topic, and it still fits my niche.
3. 30+ Gifts For Parents That They’ll Love – I haven’t been able to update this post, but it was the third most viewed post in 2022.
4. 6 Simple Ways To Celebrate International Translation Day – This was written in 2021 and took off really well in early August 2022 because we celebrated International Translation Day in September 2022.
5. 2023 Calendar: 14 Things To Add To Your Schedule – The number of visits this post has received over the past few months surprised me, but I suppose many people are asking for answers to prepare for 2023.

I look forward to whatever ideas I come up with in the future. My goal is always to grow my DA, share useful tips, offer blogging advice, and create valuable content. Given how visual today’s content is, blogging may be fading. However, I have experienced progress over the past year and am hoping to have something to share in this particular format with my readers.

I’m extremely grateful that I was able to double my income this year, allowing me to further the growth of my blogs. I also participated in Blogmas for the third year and finished 25 posts in 2022. I’ve never gone with the trends. But in 2023, I’m hoping to bring something more worthwhile. I want to share more of myself and make sure that people have a reliable platform where they can get answers to their questions or solve their problems.

I hope this blogging year report gives new bloggers an insight into how hard this is. However, I also hope it isn’t enough to put you off. If there are any things you would like to know about, then please let me know in the comments section below.

Thank you, 2022! Welcome, 2023!

What are your blogging goals for 2023? Leave your answers in the comments below!