I made it to Mediavine Pro, earning over $100K a year just from displaying ads on my website while working a 9–5.
Wild, right?
A few years ago, I was working a regular 9–5, dreaming about having a blog that actually made real money. Not “a few extra bucks for coffee” money, but money that could give me freedom.
Fast forward, and I grew my blog to earn over $10K a month just from ads. I reached Mediavine Pro while still clocking into my day job, taking lunch breaks to write posts, and squeezing in Pinterest pin designs before bed.
If you don’t know, Mediavine Pro is Mediavine’s higher tier for bloggers earning over $100K a year in ad revenue, and hitting that milestone was huge for me. It meant my blog wasn’t just a side project anymore – it was a real business that could support my goals and give me choices. Here is my Mediavine dashboard screenshot:
If you’ve ever wondered if it’s actually possible to hit these numbers without being glued to your screen 24/7, let me walk you through how I did it—and the mindset shifts that made it possible.
How It All Started
I used to work in a press company specialized in online marketing, selling sponsored content for big sites. I saw firsthand how these sites made money from traffic, and it planted the idea that maybe I could build something too.
Before blogging, I tried selling jewelry on Etsy. To support that, I was also selling jewelry at mall stands. It was fun, but I quickly realized I didn’t want to spend all my money on crafting supplies (if you’re a crafter, you know the feeling – every chain and pendant sparks another idea you have to make, and suddenly your cart is overflowing, lol). I also didn’t love spending weekends standing at a mall booth, hoping for sales.
Deep down, I knew I could do something bigger. I wanted something that could scale.
That’s when I fell down the affiliate marketing rabbit hole. I binged podcasts and read every blog post I could find, learning how to make money online with a blog without being an influencer or needing to show up on stories daily.
Eventually, I started my own blog. I didn’t know exactly what I was doing, but I knew I wanted to do anything to make it work, and probably combine affiliate income and ad revenue. I paired it with a Pinterest strategy and spent months testing what worked and what didn’t.
I’d wake up early before work to write posts, pin content during weekends, and brainstorm keywords while folding laundry at evenings. It wasn’t glamorous, but it was building something that mattered to me.
How It Actually Grew
There are bloggers out there who will tell you how they succeeded overnight, went viral, and managed to grow their blog to $5K a month in just three months.
While I believe it does work out that way for some, that was not my story.
For me, it was more like publishing posts that got 10 views, then 50, then 200, slowly watching things grow as I optimized what worked. I’d get excited about hitting 100 sessions in a day, then freak out when I hit 1,000.
I did have viral moments but it took time to build a steady monthly income. I had hundreds of small steps that stacked on top of each other until I finally applied to Mediavine after 5 months and later qualified for Mediavine Pro (after 7 years!), which requires over $100K/year in ad revenue.
Seeing those RPM numbers climb and realizing my blog was paying for vacations, groceries, and investments felt like the best reward for sticking it out during the slow months.
The Results
By the time I made it to Mediavine Pro, my blog was getting steady traffic, mostly from Pinterest, with some posts quietly bringing in thousands of visitors each month without me touching them.
Ads became my main income stream, turning my blog into a consistent revenue source I could rely on, even during busy weeks at work.
I also layered in affiliate links and a few digital products (some I’m working on now), but ads are what made it possible to hit that $100K milestone.
My 5 Tips That Can Help You Get There
If you’re working toward Mediavine Pro (or your first Mediavine milestone), these are the five things I’d tell you over coffee, things I learned over the year blogging that I think are super important and can help you grow your blog.
1. Never Give Up When It’s Slow
I almost quit so many times, thinking “this post flopped, traffic is going down, maybe I’m not good at this.” But every blogger I know who’s successful went through that phase. The difference is they didn’t stop. As a blogger, you are going to learn so many things in this dynamic industry, you need to set your goals, and do everything you can to achieve them. I promises that if you stick it and be consistent, you’ll manage to get to it.
2. Don’t Be Afraid to Fail
I tried niches that didn’t work. I made pins that tanked. I wrote posts no one read. I developed products I didnt manage to sell. Each “failure” taught me what to do differently, what I love and things that are just not for me. You can’t skip this stage. This is part of your journey. What is important it to know how to learn from your failures and grow from there.
3. Invest in Learning
Blogging is weird. It’s not a traditional business, and there’s no clear roadmap. Most of my friends don’t even understand exactly how I make money blogging, haha.
Honestly, there are probably a thousand ways to succeed as a blogger, and if it works for you, it’s legit.
Investing in a course from a blogger who was actually earning real income taught me strategies I never would have figured out on my own. Plus, it saved me so much time.
When I first started, I didn’t have money to spare, and I didn’t want to “spend” $500 on a course I thought I could piece together by reading free blog posts online. But once I bought my first course, it completely changed my mind and opened me up to trying more.
I can’t say every course was 100% productive, but I took at least one small, actionable tip from each, and it helped me see the standard and quality I want for my own course that I’m working on now. It saved me time, helped me grow my business faster, and gave me the confidence to keep going.
You probably wonder what are the courses I took, I’ll soon publish an article covering all the courses. If you want to stay updated, make sure to subscribe to my newsletter here – to get all my latest blog posts, useful tips and updates.
4. Double Down on What’s Working
I wasted a lot of time writing posts that didn’t move the needle. Once I saw which posts were bringing in traffic and income, I started making more of those, updating them, and creating spin-off posts. When you just start, your goal should be publishing as much content as you can in your niche. You can’t tell what will work for you until you start publishing content out there. But once you start publishing, you’ll see what content works better and what should be improved.
Improving your content can help you in two big ways. First, it can increase your RPMs (revenue per thousand visitors). The higher your RPMs, the more money you’ll make from the traffic you already have.
Second, it brings more value to your readers. When people find your content genuinely helpful, they’ll remember your blog and want to come back for more. This is huge for building your brand and earning your audience’s trust.
5. Get Help So You Can Grow
You can’t do everything alone forever. The one thing that helped me grow this business while working in a day job, was start hiring freelancers to help me with writing and social media management. Hiring VAs for tasks like Pinterest scheduling, image creation, writing and updating old posts freed up my time to focus on content strategy and creating better posts. If you want to scale, you need to learn how to free up your time so you can focus on the bigger picture – thinking about strategy and growth instead of getting stuck in the daily grind.
Quick Wins You Can Steal 😉
If you want to move the needle faster:
– Choose high-RPM, evergreen and seasonal topics
– Treat Pinterest as a search engine, don’t just randomly – check out my Pinterest strategy here
– Focus on creating valuable content for your readers that will make them think – ohh I have to read this/save it!
– Start your email list now, even if it’s small – helps you stay in touch with your audience
Final Thoughts
If you want to grow a serious blog business, and reach $100k a year while working a day job, it’s 100% possible. It takes consistency, a willingness to fail, and the patience to keep going when things are slow.
And honestly, if I managed to build this business and reach this milestone while juggling work, life, and everything else, you can too. Want to read more? Check out my latest income report on how I made $875 in one day – read here.
