Can you make a good living from blogging? Last week I shared the inside scoop on How Much Money I Make from Blogging. This week, I’m showing a different perspective.
Please welcome Mara Strom, the blogger behind Kosher on a Budget. Over the past 2.5 years, Mara has built up one of the most popular independent blogs in the Jewish world, and a good source of Parnasa for her family.
I first met Mara in Rebbetzin Rubin’s chumash class at Midreshet Rachel in Jerusalem more than a decade ago. It was fun to reconnect with her and hear about her journey as a blogger.
In this interview, Mara gives the real story on what it takes to build a blog as a successful business. I think her insights are spot on! Enjoy!
Naomi: Hi Mara!
Mara: Hi Naomi
Welcome to My Parnasa: The Jewish Business Blog. Please begin by telling us a bit about your blog and what makes it special.
Kosher on a Budget occupies the intersection between frugality and Jewish living. There are thousands (if not tens of thousands) of frugal blogs and hundreds (if not thousands) of Jewish blogs. But Kosher on a Budget is one of the only ones that straddles both niches.
In addition to its unique real estate, Kosher on a Budget has been blessed with an amazing community of readers. On Facebook and on the blog, readers share generously with each other – and with me.
How long did you work on your blog before you knew for sure that it was going to be a success?
My expectations have grown as the blog has grown. So, my definition of success has evolved, too. Two and a half years ago, when I started Kosher on a Budget, I thought it would be cool if I could help a few people cut their grocery budget and save some money.
Today it’s more like tens of thousands of people – but the goal of helping them save more and live better has not changed.
Did you ever think about giving up?
I’ve never considered quitting the blog. I love what I do – and while balancing it all can be challenging, I feel fortunate to be right where I am.
How much do you work on your blog?
Kosher on a Budget is my full-time job. It didn’t start out this way, of course, but has grown into that over time.
Today, I work on my blog at least 40 hours a week — from writing posts, to managing the social media channels, to all sorts of behind-the-scenes administrative tasks.
How much do you earn from your blog?
I didn’t monetize the blog at first, but once I did, I’ve seen a steady growth in income, primarily from advertising networks, affiliate links and private ads.
After about a year, that income was enough to completely replace the part-time freelance writing work I had been doing. Over the past sixteen months, my income from the blog has continued to grow, in step with my readership and reach.
Do you think that you owe your success to your niche, since it is relatively commercial?
I know that most of your readers probably aren’t thinking about starting a frugal blog, but for anyone who may think this is a get-rich-quick scheme, I would say: Think again. The competition is fierce. There are thousands of blogs in this niche right now and to stand out, you need to differentiate yourself in some significant way. I think the vast majority of success that KOAB has had is thanks to timing, positioning, voice and, frankly, luck — not the niche.
What other benefits has blogging brought you?
Blogging, like any work-at-home job, affords me a lot more flexibility than an office job. For example, we decided this year to homeschool our children. Blogging allows me to be home with them – fitting in math lessons between posts about Amazon deals.
Beyond that, though, the blog has become a platform, through which I can connect with people all over the world. I have the rare opportunity to not just help people score a few great deals, but also to see their finances in a whole new way.
My husband and I had been though the money gauntlet. Five years ago, we were buried in debt. We crawled our way out of that hole – and today are happily debt-free. I made the decision early on to share our story on the blog. It was rather frightening to be that transparent, but my husband and I both felt that it was worth it if it could help people.
There can be tremendous shame, guilt and secrecy surrounding debt and financial mismanagement. I wanted people to know that they aren’t alone – whether they are at with their finances.
What are the most common mistakes that you see bloggers making, which undermines their success?
Online success means different things to different people. You can have a blog with only a few readers but still have tremendous impact on those readers’ lives. I’d call that a success.
You can have a blog that earns a ton of money, but hate what you do.
Does your blog help people, materially or spiritually? Do you find fulfillment in your job? Do your readers value your opinion and trust your advice? These things can indicate success just as strongly as your bank account.
Am I grateful that I can earn money from Kosher on a Budget? Of course – it’s what allows me to do it full-time!
But, the best way I measure success is by staying true to who I am. That means writing about what matters to me in a manner that’s genuine and authentic. I think any blogger who does that can attract readers and achieve success.
I completely agree with you, Mara. I can’t imagine being able to maintain a blog without a passion for the subject and without the feedback of my readers.
Many other people are considering starting blogs nowadays, but then you hear voices that say there are already too many blogs. Do you think there is still room for new Jewish blogs that can become popular?
Of course! We as a society spend more and more of our time online, so this well is far from filled. But again – popularity is about more than just numbers.
I think new bloggers have to ask themselves: What’s my motivation? Am I doing this because I have something to share, and want to do it online?
Or am I doing this because I see someone else succeeding and think, “hey – that looks like an easy way to earn a living.”
Because if that’s your motivation, I would encourage you to do something else. Anything else. You’ll probably earn more by working at Starbucks – and at least there, you’d get health benefits.
Can you make money from your blog? Absolutely. Can you make enough money to quit your day job? Possibly. But not without a lot of blood, sweat and tears – and a huge helping of good luck on the side.
Thank you Mara, for sharing your insights with us. Anyone who wishes to contact Mara can do so via her blog. I wish Mara and all my readers continued hatzlacha and a Happy Pesach… on a budget 
!
Meanwhile, I’m interested to hear from readers: does this post inspire you to get more into blogging or does it make you more cautious?
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Hi – I actually read Kosher on a Budget and like it a lot.
But I’m a little disappointed in this post.
I was hoping you would explain exactly how a person can make money from a blog.
The only lines you have about the actual income steps are these:
I didn’t monetize the blog at first, but once I did, I’ve seen a steady growth in income, primarily from advertising networks, affiliate links and private ads.
After about a year, that income was enough to completely replace the part-time freelance writing work I had been doing. Over the past sixteen months, my income from the blog has continued to grow, in step with my readership and reach.
I was really hoping this posting would then explain how that works – what are “advertising networks, affiliate links and private ads” and how does one go about finding them? This is the part I really really want to read and learn about – and I am very disappointed that the whole post is essentially a lot of enthusiasm about what is admittedly a wonderful blog, without any useful information to help other bloggers learn how to start making money from their blog.
Maybe could you add a Part3 with some specific steps, details, instructions, how-to, or SOMETHING else more practical?
thanks
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Naomi Reply:
March 5th, 2013 at 10:27 am
Hi Adina,
Thanks for your questions -probably other people are wanting to know the same. Some answers are coming your way soon!
Naomi
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I wouldn’t say I’m disappointed, Naomi, but I do agree with Adina that the interview did not get down to details. But I can understand that. I’m wondering if I would want to share all my techniques if my blog was providing a full-time living for me? Sharing a few of them would be good, though. I guess we all hear so much hype from people selling courses and telling us how successful they are, but we don’t know how much of it is true. One thing that sticks in my mind is that Tim Ferris, the guy who wrote the 4-Hour Work Week, admitted in an interview that he’s a workaholic and works all the time! I’d like to hear how much Mara really earns (maybe just the number of digits) and how much she really works. That would be revealing.
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I understand – I don’t expect her to reveal all her income secrets – but at least explain the 3 terms she used, what that means and how a person sets about getting these things moving, just something.
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Hi guys! I can only answer the questions I was asked
But I’ll be happy to explain to you how the monetization models I mentioned above work.
Affiliate networks are companies that represents retailers. Most big companies have affiliate relationships with private website – think: Target, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc. etc. When you share an affiliate link and a reader makes a purchase thru that link, you earn a small percentage of the sale (anywhere from 1% – 10%, depending on the company). Some companies work thru a middle man company, such as Linkshare or Commission Junction (google them for sign-up information), but Amazon has a direct affiliate program, which you can sign up for here. https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/
There are many different advertising networks, but one of the most popular is Google Ads. This is a great place to start for new bloggers. You get paid per click – so the more readers you have, the more likely your ads are to get clicked on. You typically make anywhere from $.20 – $2 per click, depending on the advertiser that places the ad (Google is the middle man). You can sign up for Google Ads here. https://www.google.com/adsense/v3/app
Private ads mean exactly what the name implies – that I sell advertising space on my blog (or in my newsletters) directly to different companies. As KOAB has grown, more Jewish companies, in particular, have been interested in reaching my readers ad have approached me about advertising. With private ads, you set your own rates – but they should be based on the number of readers you have and your social media reach. When I first took private ads and had just 40,000 page views per month, I was charging $15-25 for a one-month ad – to give you a good starting point.
One last tip: I recommend that you actively balance your monetization goals with your overall blog goals. I have turned down more private advertisers than I’ve accepted, for example, because they weren’t a good fit.
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I also want to find out these details. I am very inspired by this post. I have been wanting to start a blog for awhile but need a bit of direction.
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There’s another piece to her story that Mara actually mentioned from the beginning but the other commenters overlooked:
She didn’t monetize at first. She worked on helping people and building relationships.
By the time she started to monetize, she had a good size audience that wanted to read what she had to say because she was interested in serving THEIR interests. Then, she continued to cater to her loyal readers by providing excellent content (love her site!) and making sure her ads really match her clientele.
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Mara Reply:
March 5th, 2013 at 9:02 pm
Aw, thank you SO much. You are very kind!!
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Ita Reply:
March 6th, 2013 at 12:36 pm
I also found this tip of Mara’s very smart. I love this blog as well!!
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Thank you both, Naomi & Mara!! And to answer your question, Naomi – this has totally inspired me to continue with my plans to start my blog. I have a bit of a timeline now regarding when I plan to start what, and some other helpful “how-to-blog” posts that I’ve saved or bookmarked for getting started, and Mara’s words just affirm my direction. Thanks and kol hakavod…
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Mara Reply:
March 5th, 2013 at 9:04 pm
I’m glad it helped clarify / reinforce your plan, Judy. I definitely think building relationships is the way to go. I have seen lots of other bloggers burn-out when they go the other way. Wishing you much luck & success going forward!
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thank you!!
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For those who are interested in affiliate marketing I use a site called skimlinks that automatically affiliates all my links. I have found it extremely useful especially when you are just starting out and it is hard and time consuming to get accepted into affiliate programs.
Good Luck!
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Oh, thanks so much for that tip, Chaya. I went straight to Skimlinks.com and signed up.
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