I all the time look again at my most up-to-date roundup earlier than I write a brand new one, simply to jog my reminiscence about what I used to be as much as after I wrote the final one. In my January/February replace, I used to be nonetheless within the throes of winter in Ohio, and beginning to really feel hopeful about getting a vaccine earlier than summer time.
I really feel like these final two months have moved at warp velocity; spring got here early to Ohio, with cherry blossoms and new buds showing on the bushes weeks sooner than regular. And, after all, the vaccine rollout within the US has moved sooner than most of us anticipated.
Elliot and I at the moment are totally vaccinated towards COVID-19, and to say it is a reduction is the understatement of the yr.
I do know I’m very, very fortunate to be within the US proper now with entry to a shot earlier than many of the remainder of the world. I’m not taking that with no consideration, and I actually do not wish to make mild of the truth that different elements of the world are nonetheless struggling; vaccine inequity is actual, and this is not over.
But after the terrible first yr of the pandemic that we had right here within the US, it is an immense reduction that issues are lastly trending in the appropriate route for my household and family members. (Though we did not make it by unscathed; each of Elliot’s mother and father ended up getting COVID in March. If you are not vaccinated, it isn’t time to let your guard down but.)
But sufficient concerning the ‘Rona. Let’s get on to the newest replace!
March and April: The months in journey
- Countries visited: 1 – USA
- States visited: 1 – Ohio
- Flights taken: 0
- Days spent on the street: 0
Travel highlights
I did not truly go wherever within the final two months, so I’ve no journey highlights for you. In March, I used to be constructing vaccine antibodies and stressing about Elliot’s mother and father (his dad was hospitalized for a couple of days).
On a private be aware, although, being vaccinated meant I acquired to really hang around with some mates and household in April! I drank mimosa flights and ate meals indoors for the primary time since final yr, Elliot and I had mates over for a sport evening, and my mother, sister and I took my nephew on his first outing to the aquarium.
I do know it isn’t as thrilling as touring someplace unique, but it surely’s thrilling when in comparison with the final yr. I’m trying on the brilliant facet in that I’ve been capable of work on numerous new content material for my Cleveland website recently!
Travel lowlights
No journey means no journey lowlights.
March and April on the weblog(s)
While my motivation to create content material has waned once more, visitors to my most important website took off in March. Like, we’re speaking pre-pandemic visitors numbers right here, which is fairly loopy because it’s largely solely US content material getting visitors proper now.
Americans, it will appear, are able to journey – a minimum of domestically – once more.
A Dangerous Business visitors: 262,074 distinctive guests and 348,995 pageviews in March (which is a whopping 60% enhance over February!), and 269,523 distinctive guests and 363,047 pageviews in April.
Most well-liked submit: How I Failed at Being a Digital Nomad – After sharing an abbreviated model of this story on Instagram, I made a decision to inform the entire story in a weblog submit. I attempted to develop into a digital nomad again in 2013 – and fully failed at it.
Other posts printed in March or April:
On the Cleveland weblog, visitors noticed slightly bump in March, and has remained regular since then. My aim after all is to proceed rising this website, however I’m fairly proud of how far it is come within the final yr!
Cleveland Traveler visitors: 25,031 distinctive guests and 35,278 pageviews in March, and 26,538 distinctive guests and 35,808 pageviews in April.
Some of what was printed:
*This submit was written by my good friend Kat from World Wide Honeymoon, who freelances for me over on Cleveland Traveler.
I have never been placing as a lot effort into social media recently (particularly on the accounts for my most important website), just because I have never had very a lot to share.
I’ve been enjoying round extra with Reels on Instagram and movies on TikTok for my Cleveland account (yow will discover me on TikTok @clevelandtraveler), however I have never had something go viral but to encourage me to dedicate extra time to it.
Most well-liked submit on Instagram (@dangerousbiz) – This picture of Cobh, Ireland, is all the time a crowd-pleaser, and it was no exception after I re-shared it this yr for St. Patrick’s Day. I am unable to wait till we will journey to Ireland once more!
Most well-liked submit in Instagram (@clevelandtraveler) – It’s all the time amusing to me to see which pictures on my (a lot smaller) Cleveland IG account will get tons of likes every month. For this time-frame, this picture of bubble tea was the winner by a large margin.
March and April enterprise replace
I’m tremendous fortunate in that visitors (to each of my websites, actually) wasn’t affected as a lot because it may have been because of the pandemic. With visitors, advert income, and affiliate gross sales all on the rise once more, I’ve seen a return to near-pre-COVID earnings numbers – which I’m tremendous grateful for!
A Dangerous Business March earnings report:
- Advertising: $6,520.13
- Affiliates*: $2,109.11
A Dangerous Business April earnings report:
- Advertising: $5,332.8
- Affiliates: $2,881.94
- Other: $1,000
(Note that that is my earnings earlier than deductions/bills and taxes.)
*Curious about how I generate profits with associates? I even have a course on that! You can try my online marketing for journey bloggers course right here.
On Cleveland Traveler, I had an earnings spike in March due to advert income from December. Otherwise, earnings is remaining regular on that website, and I believe making $1000 monthly persistently needs to be an attainable aim!
Cleveland traveler March earnings report:
*This quantity is means increased than regular as a result of that is the payout for my advert earnings in December. My Cleveland website sees an enormous visitors spike earlier than the vacations.
Cleveland traveler April earnings report:
- Advertising: $781.97
- Product gross sales: $27
- Other: $500
(Note: A Dangerous Business was began in 2010, and has been monetized for greater than 7 years; Cleveland Traveler was began in 2019, and has been monetized for 14 months.)
Business highs
Making work plans! – The journey business is slowly beginning to creep again into existence, particularly throughout the US. I acquired employed for a cool Instagram marketing campaign with Booking.com in April, and I’ve a couple of work initiatives developing within the Midwest this summer time. It feels wonderful to be speaking about work initiatives once more after feeling a lot doom and gloom for a yr.
Business lows
Airbnb says bye to associates – You all know that online marketing is one among my largest earnings streams, and you additionally most likely can guess that journey affiliate gross sales had been fairly dismal in 2020. The one saving grace was that Airbnb launched a brand new associates program final spring, and invited all of the journey content material creators to hitch. And with individuals eager to e-book residences and cabins greater than lodge rooms within the final yr, Airbnb grew to become an essential affiliate for lots of us.
But after lower than a yr, the rental large determined to shut down its associates program fairly all of the sudden. Meaning that every one the Airbnb-focused content material they had been encouraging bloggers like me to supply for six+ months grew to become fairly ineffective from an affiliate perspective.
I after all perceive that that is simply how enterprise goes generally and I am unable to say I’m stunned that Airbnb would screw over publishers identical to it recurrently screws over property homeowners, renters, and native individuals within the cities wherein it operates. But it is attainable to be each not stunned and nonetheless upset about it on the similar time.
When you see me recommending Airbnb lots much less within the coming months, because of this!
Saying goodbye to my digital assistant – Another “low” just lately is that my superior digital assistant who had been working with me since November 2019 determined to maneuver on to larger and higher issues this spring. She’s acquired her personal weblog and is now off to journey the world and I’m so excited for her! But I’ll positively miss having her assist. I now must determine whether or not I must go searching for a brand new assistant, or whether or not I could make do by myself once more.
Upcoming this spring
May: West Virginia street journey – Elliot and I are off on Saturday on our very first post-vaccination journey! We’re not going far – only one state south to discover West Virginia for every week. This is a state I’ve pushed by a number of instances, however have by no means actually spent a lot time in. Now looks like the proper time, particularly since WV is all about out of doors adventures. We’re going to go whitewater rafting, do some climbing within the latest US nationwide park, and are even gong to sort out a through ferrata! I’m so excited to have one thing new to share with you.
June: Wisconsin – I’m positively planning to get out within the US extra this summer time, beginning with a visit to Madison, Wisconsin in June! I’m planning to drive, so might lengthen my journey to incorporate another elements of Wisconsin and perhaps a cease in Chicago, too.
I’m so excited that I can as soon as once more write this: If you wish to comply with alongside on any of those adventures in real-time, make sure you comply with me on Instagram and/or Facebook!