June 2022 Valerie & Valise Income Report

It’s gone from zero to sixty around these parts – how about you? Just like in April, I spent most of June on the road, trying to fit in my (admittedly monstrous pile of) “desk” work around two major trips – which were also work! After starting the month in Alaska on a partnership trip with Windstar Cruises, I ended it on the other almost the literal other side of the world in the Maldives.

This second trip was a bit different than anything I’ve done before; I was hired by a resort to lead astronomy programming in the future and this was a trial/press trip. It was fun to be on the other side of the journalist coin – providing the experience instead of writing about it!

In any case, it was a busy month, and as always I’m grateful to have built a career that allows me this much freedom and still runs when I’m not available to work on it full-time. This month is actually the fourth anniversary of leaving my last traditional job, and I have no intention of getting another one any time soon!

TL;DR:

• Travel: 🛫🛬🛫🛬🛫🛬🛫🛬🛫🛬
• Blogging: ⚖️
• Income: 👍

This month’s photos were taken in the Maldives on my astronomy trip at the end of the month.

Travel in June

June was a very busy travel month – and it’s not slowing down any time soon!

• Destinations Visited: 2
  • Alaska
  • Maldives
• Flights Taken: 5
  • 2 home from Alaska
  • 3 to the Maldives
• Days on the Road: 20 out of 30 (66%)

While I’ve said in the past that I don’t prefer traveling more than 50% of the month, it was necessary to do so this month. Luckily, J was with me on one of the trips, so we did have the majority of the month together despite me being on the road so much.

As is the case for most of my travel in 2022, both of the trips I took in June were work-related: the first was a Windstar Cruise to Alaska and the second was an astronomy press trip to the Maldives (where I was the astronomy guide, rather than a member of the media!).

Blogging in June

While I obviously would love my traffic to keep growing, it’s pretty common that historically, May is the highest traffic month on my site – 2021 was an exception to this rule as things were bananas last year with Alaska travel planning, and I don’t really know why that hasn’t happened again this year.

In any case, having June on par with May is a very nice spot to be in; it is hopefully a good sign for the rest of the summer staying strong until travel starts to slow down in September. (Alaska is a very seasonal destination!)

• Pageviews: 187,983 (↓<1% from May 2022, ↓7% from June 2021)
• Unique Visitors: 166,339
• Traffic Breakdown:
  • Organic: 81%
  • Social: 8%
  • Direct: 1%
  • Email: <1%
  • Referral: <1%

Most Popular New Post: The 27 Best Things to Do in Anchorage (According to a Local!) (For one last month!)

New Posts I Published in June

As I was on the road so much, I only published three new articles this month. However, they were all part of my partnership agreement with Windstar Cruises, so important to get done – and they’re also helpful for readers as they fill in some gaps in my Alaska coverage.

1. Where to Eat in Sitka: A Local’s Guide to 10 Great Restaurants
2. The 9 Best Things to Do in Wrangell (According to an Alaskan!)
3. How to Make the Most of One Day in Ketchikan, Alaska’s “First City”

I’ve also been working with my writer to update some older posts; this has been a big step for me as I keep very tight control over the tone and style of V&V. However, as I know how awesome my writer is, I should never have doubted her ability to do a great job – and it’s made my life easier by getting posts updated more frequently (an important part of any long-term content strategy!).

Business in June

As my traffic was basically the exact same between May and June (especially when controlling for the number of days in each month), it’s no surprise that my income is also very similar. Even the breakdown of income categories is almost identical!

June Income Report

• Advertising income: 77%
• Affiliate income: 19%
• Product income: 4%
• Sponsored content/campaigns: 0%

Total income for June 2022: $13,926 (↑<1% from May 2022)

tRPM: $74.08 (↑1% from May) (What is tRPM and why does it matter?)

Months I’ve been blogging on V&V: 105 (no site is an overnight success!)

I obviously am happy with this amount for my site – it’s a really solid amount to earn right now, as it has been a very strange year for Alaska travel and my affiliate earnings thus haven’t been quite what they were like last year. It’s worth noting that this isn’t even my entire income, as all of my sites are monetized in various ways and contribute to my overall income. Have any questions about this month’s recap? Let me know in the comments.