Here’s a quick overview of the questions asked:

• Is Pinterest still effective for driving traffic to a blog? If so, why choose Pinterest over Instagram or other platforms for traffic generation?
• Are keywords relevant on Pinterest?
• What kinds of pins are performing well right now? Videos vs. photos with text vs. plain photos?
• How often and what time of day is best to post?
• Would you consider Pinterest as long-shelf content (such as blogs, long-form videos) or short-shelf content (such as short-form videos)?
• Do we need to be pinning other creators pins on Pinterest?
• Does it pay to run a consideration campaign on Pinterest? Or a brand awareness campaign?
• What about people who create infrequently but regularly (like 2x per month)?
• Pinterest is being flooded with AI images, especially for recipes. They go to sites with all AI generated recipes and images. Is Pinterest addressing this or doesn’t care? And is there a way to report it? Currently there’s not an option for it when you try to report a pin.

Resources:

• Pinterest Predicts 2025
• Pinterest Trends
• 409- Unlocking Pinterest’s 2025 Trends
• Can A.I. Make Pasta Better Than a Pro Cook? | Eric Kim vs. ChatGPT | NYT Cooking

The post Q&A: Unlock Success as a Food Creator on Pinterest appeared first on Food Blogger Pro.

Pennie started her blog with her daughter, Hannah. Their main goal with the blog is to share the recipes we love and develop their market niche.

In this Coaching Call, Bjork and Pennie discuss how she should prioritize different goals for her business, the importance of determining your audience and creating content specifically for that audience, how to start monetizing your site, and more!

Questions Pennie Asked During the Coaching Call:

Question #1 (7:58): I have spent the last year concentrating on getting content added to the site. What should be my next priority? Email marketing or social media?

Question #2 (33:32): How important is it for each post to include all of the extra information other than the recipe itself? Ingredient details, tips, FAQs, etc.

Question #3 (42:04): How do I know when I am ready to start thinking about monetizing my site?

Resources:

• The Generations Cook
• Cookely Theme
• The Perfect Loaf
• 393: How Passion and Sourdough Feed a 9 Million Pageview Food Blog with Maurizio Leo
• Budget Bytes
• The White Coat Investor
• Raptive
• Memberful
• Teach:able
• Circle
• Mighty Networks

The post Coaching Call: Creating Content for Your Audience and Navigating Monetizing Your Site with Pennie Saadallah from The Generations Cook appeared first on Food Blogger Pro.

Here’s a quick overview of the questions asked:

• I launched my site about a year ago and have 30 posts. I have FB and IG pages that have fairly low engagement, which can feel discouraging. I’m feeling stuck on what to prioritize next to grow.
  I’m a new blogger and have posted about 15 recipes so far. I’ve been focusing on SEO and keyword research and plan to dive into food photography once I feel more confident with SEO. My ultimate goal is to build an evergreen source of “passive” income through my blog and digital products, but I’m also interested in fostering a community. My niche is fairly narrow (think something like “Indian” or “Korean” cuisine), and many ‘big’ and ‘established’ bloggers dominate most of the keywords. However, I’ve noticed some gaps on Instagram where I could stand out and create content that resonates with users. If you were in my shoes, how would you prioritize building evergreen content (blog), Pinterest, and social media/short videos (like Instagram and TikTok) as a new blogger? I don’t want to spread myself too thin, but I’m worried that the Instagram space I could excel in might get taken before I start.
• What are you keeping an eye on in the blogging space? What trends do you see coming down the pipeline in 2025?
• If you and Lindsay had started Pinch of Yum now, what would you be doing differently?
• Considering Email Subscribers and Freebie Products: I create a monthly E-Book each month that goes out to my email subscribers first and then I use it to advertise my blog and entice new users to opt-in throughout the month. The recipes in this book are not published on the blog when it first goes out to my subscribers (the 1st week of the month), but are then trickled out on the blog through the rest of the month. So by month’s end, hopefully I have a few new subscribers, and a package of about 8 – 12 new recipes created on the blog that came from the book. The problem is – this is IN ADDITION to all of my other new weekly content (recipe packs, seasonal themed blog posts, or just other new recipes). And unfortunately, the e-books just aren’t performing that well. They are highly stylized, I spend a ton of time, money, and just plain overhead on producing them each month – but they just aren’t doing the trick like I thought they would. But I understand freebies are kind of a non-negotiable for driving new opt-ins. Is this something I should just give up or put down for a few months to try to pivot to something else? And a secondary question that goes with this – how long should a freebie product rotate on your site?
• After the HCU my website has 10 keywords according to Keysearch in over 225 posts. I have been updating every single recipe to make sure it is helpful. Taking new photos and researching keywords, and nothing seems to help. How do I fix this?
• How do you decide which content to offer for free vs paid? I want to create an online course and a freebie on the same topic and use the freebie as an entry point. However, I’d like to know how much information I should provide for free.
• What is the most important thing I should focus on as a new blogger intending to make this a full-time job? I love everything about it from recipe testing, food photography, and writing. I have been at it for a year or so but not a lot of traffic yet.
• Was there a turning point for Pinch of Yum that led to significant growth?
• You mentioned that creating a product first would be a better approach from now on, but how would you recommend increasing online visibility and gaining customers from 0 to 1? I feel like going from being completely unknown to gaining even a small audience is the hardest part. Are there specific strategies you’d suggest to help with this transition?
• What are mistakes you see food bloggers make that keep them from growth?

Resources:

• What to Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking
• How Caroline Chambers Grew Her Substack Newsletter Into a 7-Figure Business
• Niche Pursuits
• 18 Ways to Make Money From Your Food Blog in 2023
• 354: Sharing Zambian Food and Growing a Freelance Photography Business with Clara Kapelembe Bwali
• 408: How a Diagnosis with a Chronic Illness Transformed Helena Murphy’s Career in Food Photography
• 414: How Kyleigh Sage Combines Brand Work and Ad Revenue to Make $10,000-$15,000 a Month
• Memberful
• Mighty Networks
• Shuffle Mamas

The post Q&A: Ask Bjork Anything appeared first on Food Blogger Pro.

Erica’s current #1 blogging goal is to “provide delicious, helpful recipes to help everyday home cooks know what to make for dinner [and] demonstrate that you can absolutely live a healthy lifestyle without strict dieting or eliminating entire food groups (and I of course would love to create a sustainable income)!”

In this Coaching Call, Bjork and Erica discuss how to hire help and outsource work, how to get started on Google Search Console, strategies for dividing your time, the best conferences for food creators, and how to build a community of fellow food bloggers.

Questions Erica Asked During the Coaching Call:

Question #1 (18:11): Hiring help is very overwhelming. But so is trying to do everything myself. I’m finding it SO challenging to know what to hire out because so much of my business is ME. Not only that, but for me, trying to explain how to do something is sometimes more draining than just doing it myself. I would love Bjork’s perspective on the type of help he’d recommend me hire out initially, what to write in a job description and where to find good people to hire.

Question #2 (40:25): I would love a crash course in Google Search Console and Google Analytics. It is all so confusing to me. My traffic has been steadily decreasing for the past three months. I’d love to know which blog posts are losing the most traffic that way I can focus on updating those. I don’t know how to compare traffic to a post 60 days ago vs 30 days ago? etc.

Topic #3 (1:00:25): I did things backwards. I’ve worked hard to build a following on Instagram and TikTok and do think I have a strong online presence. But I did this purely out of the joy of sharing with absolutely zero business mindset. Now I’m scrambling like, how do I make money doing this!? I did get accepted into Mediavine this past February, but my RPM and google traffic has been quite volatile. I spent a lot of time over the past year developing two digital e-cookbooks, which did quite well. And I do sponsored content when the opportunities arise (although they have been rare this year). I struggle with knowing where to spend my time. I see some creators lean almost entirely on social media and do quite well. Others crank out website content and do well that way. Others are killing it on Substack and email marketing. I can’t help but feel like I’m trying to do ALL of the things, but doing none of them very well. And would I be better served leaning hard into one and doing that one really well, or still trying to diversify and do all of them!?

Resources:

• It’s A Flavorful Life
• Follow Erica on Instagram
• Purr Design
• Mediavine
• Raptive
• It’s a Flavorful Life Digital Cookbook
• Savor the Flavor Digital Cookbook
• Loom
• Buy Back Your Time
• Duett
• Email Crush by Matt Molen
• 201: Email Marketing for Bloggers with Matt Molen
• Automatic Evergreen by Matt Ragland
• 386: Getting the Most Out of Your Email Marketing Strategy with Matt Ragland
• Superhuman
• Asana
• Clariti
• Curbly
• Tastemaker Conference
• How to Thrive in the Creator Economy and Build Successful Brand Partnerships
• QuietLight
• InfluenceKit
• Gentleman’s Gazette
• Rhodium Network
• Traffic & Conversion Summit
• Content Marketing World
• HAVEN Conference

The post Coaching Call: Hiring Help, a Crash Course in Analytics, Managing Discouragement, and Finding a Community of Food Bloggers with Erica Baty appeared first on Food Blogger Pro.

Candace started her blog as a side hustle in February 2023 and is hoping to grow her blog to achieve more flexibility in her lifestyle. In this Coaching Call, Bjork and Candace discuss choosing a niche, the importance of focusing on a platform (rather than diversifying and spreading yourself too thin), and how to get started building an audience and increasing traffic.

Questions Candace Asked During the Coaching Call:

Question #1 (14:25): How can I find my niche? Or do I really need to?

Question #2 (38:00): Can I get some help with a weekly planning schedule?

Question #3 (1:03:10): What are some good next steps for a new blogger like me?

Resources:

• Just A Bit Sweet
• Follow Candace on Instagram
• Budget Bytes
• 265: Adapting and Adjusting – Having a Gratitude Mindset with Beth Moncel
• Making the Leap to Full-Time Blogging with Beth Moncel from Budget Bytes – FBP011
• Pinch of Yum
• Travel Wisconsin
• Yummy Toddler Food
• 425: Thriving within a Niche and Creating Your Dream Job with Amy Palanjian from Yummy Toddler Food
• The Perfect Loaf
• 393: How Passion and Sourdough Feed a 9 Million Pageview Food Blog with Maurizio Leo
• Snackdive
• Leveraging Reddit as a Traffic Source
• Key Takeaways From Leaked MrBeast Document For His Team
• Food with Feeling

The post Coaching Call: Finding a Niche, Determining Priorities and Growing an Audience with Candace Bourzac from Just A Bit Sweet appeared first on Food Blogger Pro.

Here’s a quick overview of the questions asked:

• What are some steps we can take to maximize affiliate income?
• How does the Amazon Affiliate program work? Can anyone qualify? Are any other affiliate programs worthwhile?
• Which platforms work best with affiliate links? Do certain kinds of links perform better on social media vs. blog vs. email?
• What kinds of products tend to sell best? Is there a strategy for sharing inexpensive or expensive items?
• What does the commission structure look like for the Amazon Associates program?
• What strategies can help increase click-through rates and conversions through Amazon affiliate links?
• How can you incorporate Amazon affiliate links in your video content in a way that feels organic?
• Are there any steps I have to take to make sure my links are in compliance with Amazon’s policies
• What are the most common pitfalls or mistakes you see people doing with affiliate income?
• Is it possible as a Canadian (with a Canadian bank account) to set up OneLink?
• How much site traffic makes it viable to have an Amazon Associates Program
• Are there any tools or plugins to make the affiliate link process easier?

Resources:

• Tonya Lawson
• Follow Tonya on Instagram and YouTube
• AAWP
• Lasso
• Genius Link
• HB90
• The Fair Credit Reporting Act: Affiliate Marketing
• Ready For An Upgrade? The Best Clarinet Mouthpiece for Beginners, Intermediate, and Advanced Players
• Walmart Creator
• TikTok Shop
• Creative SEO

The post Q&A: Maximizing Affiliate Income appeared first on Food Blogger Pro.

During the Q&A we chatted all about creating food content on Substack, finding success on the platform, who might be a good fit for Substack, how to navigate paid subscriptions, and tons more.

Here’s a quick overview of the questions asked:

• I have a free Substack. How do I make the transition to paid? How much should I share still be free? What could I add to make the paid feel worth it?
• Do you think Substack will replace blogs?
• What kind of people should or should not do Substack over blogs?
• I currently link off Substack to my YouTube videos in my newsletters so I make money from the pre-roll. Does Substack plan to offer video monetization soon for native Substack video embeds?
• Do you notice any commonalities between the really successful food Substacks?
• What role does photography play on Substack? Is it as important as it is for SEO?
• What are your tips for growing a following on Substack?
• Does Substack allow automations and funnels?
• Can you explain how Substack works for people who are new to it? Do you set your own pricing? Is it a monthly subscription for people who join on a paid level?
• Is there any information on the deliverability of Substack vs. other email platforms (ex: MailerLite)?
• I see many successful examples of people who transitioned to Substack from other platforms, but are there any examples of someone who succeeded on Substack without an existing audience?
• Can you talk about the options for food bloggers to share content on Substack – can you hold a discussion forum there, behind the paywall can it hold PDFs for paid readers to download (menu plans, etc), recipe index, etc.
• Are the options either free or paid monthly, or are there multiple options that can be provided (like one-off items) to your subscribers?
• How do sponsorships work on Substack?

Resources:

• HotSingles.NYC
• 40 Ingredients Forever
• Restaurant Dropout
• What to Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking
• Big Salad
• Cup of Jo
• The Eat Good Newsletter
• Why David Lebovitz Switched from Blogging to Substack
• On Substack
• Email Randa

The post Q&A: Using Substack as a Food Creator appeared first on Food Blogger Pro.

Taste Test Tales is a platform dedicated to all things food science. We offer more than just information on food science and how to pursue a career. Here, we delve into the fascinating world of food science, uncovering industry secrets and exploring ways to apply food science techniques to enhance everyday home cooking.”

– Keanu Taylor

In this Coaching Call, Bjork and Keanu discuss the importance of determining your target market and the role you can play within that market. They also discuss how to narrow your niche and find the best platform for sharing your content (blog vs. email newsletter vs. LinkedIn vs. membership site).

It’s a great call!

Questions Keanu Asked During the Coaching Call:

Question #1 (17:01): I need help creating a weekly game plan and setting up my time. What are the top things I should prioritize week to week?

Question #2 (36:15): How many hours a week should I prioritize towards my business?

Question #3 (51:11): How long should I anticipate before I start to see progress in traffic?

Resources:

• Taste Test Tales
• Follow Keanu on Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook
• Leveraging Reddit as a Traffic Source
• Substack
• LinkedIn
• Memberful
• Patreon
• Skool
• OREO Space Dunk Review
• Google Labs

The post Coaching Call: Determining Your Target Market and Focusing on Growth with Keanu Taylor from Taste Test Tales appeared first on Food Blogger Pro.

Here’s a quick overview of the questions asked:

• I know Reddit has rules where you can not self-promote (link to IG/FB), how do you properly post a recipe on Reddit without getting flagged?
• Does the timing of posts matter? Do I need to have a cadence?
• How do you identify the right subreddits to engage with for content creators, especially within the food blogging niche?
• How to sponsored posts/ads work on Reddit? Are they worth it?
• What are some key strategies for food bloggers to use Reddit as a traffic driver without coming across as self-promotional?
• Who is a good fit for sharing content on Reddit?
• What common mistakes do content creators make when trying to use Reddit, and how can we avoid them to build genuine engagement?
• What subreddits should I post in? Should I target more niche ones or try to gain traction in larger ones?
• Should I use my blog name as the Reddit group?

Resources:

• Ewen’s Reddit Leverage Course | 30% discount for Food Blogger Pro Members (use the code FBP)
• Recipes Subreddit
• Monarch Money Subreddit
• ReddVisible

The post Q&A: Reddit as a Traffic Source appeared first on Food Blogger Pro.

Questions Srividhya and Manikandan Asked During the Coaching Call:

Question #1 (20:30): When you have a niche blog (vegan and vegetarian recipes with South Indian recipes) how do you target a bigger audience? Sharing authentic/traditional recipes vs fusion becomes challenging.

Question #2 (38:46): With AI coming into the picture, and with Google moving more towards AI-based search results, what does the future of blogging look like and how should we bloggers prepare for it?

Question #3 (48:52): I am a Clariti user as well. How to leverage it more and repurpose old content?

Resources:

• Vidhya’s Vegetarian Kitchen
• Follow Srividhya on Instagram and Facebook
• Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action
• Pinch of Yum
• Two Huge Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Substack
• Clariti
• Curbly

The post Coaching Call: Targeting a Broader Audience with a Niche Blog, Preparing for a Future with AI, and Using Clariti to Republish Content with Vidhya’s Vegetarian Kitchen appeared first on Food Blogger Pro.