Webby
Mon 3 Apr 2006
OK I know I said that March was not looking like a record month. Well it was in the end! The first two weeks saw me well down due to a collapse in visitors to a couple of my big earners.
For some reason unknown to me things went crazy in the last week with record visitor numbers across many of my sites. I have tried to investigate why this happened and I have found that the Yahoo search engine made some big changes to its index which may account for the spike.
So now for the figures for March. I earned a little over £1550 or $2800 from the web in this month. There were three more days in March than Feb so it would have been pretty even over all.
Now my spending and earnings since I left home last October. I am currently £700 better off than I was when I left England which I am pretty pleased about. I have spent a lot of money though for a backpacker. I worked out that I’ll be on my 14 flight on Saturday!
My first goal was to go home better off than when I left but now it is to go home with what I consider a UK living wage. I am starting to believe I can achieve this in a month or so and then I want to earn more than I did working in the corporate jungle.
I am realising now that if I set my targets higher I feel far more motivated. Motivation was an issue when I was striving for $20 a day and even recently I have had motivational issues. I am now thinking big and it is helping me to the next level.
Thinking big is something I remember reading on Webmasterworld a while ago and it is one of the best tips out there.
April 3rd, 2006 at 7:26 pm
Congratulations, it’s awesome to read your story and it really helps me to get going;). I think I found two or three niches to cover, but I am a lousy programmer (and I reckon that is the same with many (travellers) reading here) - any additional tips/links on how to solve this, how to find a programmer you can trust etc. would be very much appreciated.
Cheers!
April 4th, 2006 at 5:53 am
Hi Jens,
You don’t have to be a programmer to do this. All you need is a decent web site software package such as Dreamweaver, Front Page for instance.
I am going to do some investigation into free software packages for creating web pages and will report them back here.
April 4th, 2006 at 12:21 pm
I found your site by visiting lonelyplanet’s forum. For the past couple of weeks I have been thinking of doing exactly what you are doing now! I am currently working in Tokyo, Japan in IT. I have lived here for about 9 years and started to think I need a change.
I was planning to go back to Australia next year, but I just don’t know if I could handle going from working in IT in Japan to working in IT in Australia.
Last year, I joinged Adsense and have been making a number of sites. My main site is: www.tokyoessentials.com It is my best earner and make reasonable money from hotel and tour affiliates, also selling links through linkworth.
I have a great month in January $850 with just google, and last month I made around $600. Sometimes it feels like the more you try, the worse. I write about what I am doing in my blog: www.retireyoungandwealthy.com I have links to most of the sites I am running.
I am an avid reader of webmasterworld also. I went travelling in China, Yunan for Christmas and just loved the ability to travel and update my sites at the same time. A number of hostels had free internet and was a reasonable speed.
My immediate thought was to create an Asian travel site, but then I was reading about what you said about niche websites. I have registered overlandasia.com for creating such a site. Maybe backpacking sites don’t make much money.
Anyway, like you said you need to treat it like running a small business. If you have never seen his site Stevepavlina.com can also be inspring.
Sorry, for the long email, I am just interested to see someone doing, what I would love to be doing in a few months time. I have a couple of questions if you don’t mind me asking.
I have a pretty nice laptop Fujitsu biblo, and is very compact, but I think I would be worried about it getting stolen. But I guess you need the right tools to make it a success.
I was thinking of getting a palm with a portable keyboard to do some writing. Do you think it would be a good idea?
Also, can I ask how much you were making before you left the uk?
Good luck with the project! I hope to be doing it some day too.
Michael
April 4th, 2006 at 6:25 pm
I found your site in Lonely Planet, too, and have PMd you a couple of times. I have an idea for a niche site, but the complexity of it all is overwhelming as I don’t have a laptop with me and must use internet cafes.
So for now, I am trying something different partly because it was easier to get into. I’ve signed up with a couple of stock photography sites. Travel shots don’t sell well, but I take odd close-ups, and I’m hoping they’ll sell. The no-laptop thing is a pain, but right now it’s working OK.
April 21st, 2006 at 11:53 pm
Hi,
Congratulations on your web site, and your moneymaking ventures.
I spent over 23 of the last 28 years traveling throughout the world. Unfortunately, the Internet, Affiliate programs, etc., where just beginning towards the end of my travels.
After 5 years in the same location, I’m stir crazy. So, it’s time to hit the road again.
My main question for you is, how much did you make in your very first 2 months from the Web?
I have a laptop, good understanding about the Internet and building a web site, but have never tried making money off of it.
Anyway, I appreciate your information, and I’m happy that someone is giving startup ideas without selling a book or services first.
Good luck to you in the future.
Stanley