Google rankings went up... and down. What I did 😅

Hello, my friend!

How have you been doing lately? 😊

Toronto got hit with a crazy snowstorm last week, so I mostly stayed home, helping my husband shovel our driveway.

One morning, we woke up to over 50 cm of snow—it took us three hours to clean everything!

It was kinda fun... but at the same time, I couldn’t stop thinking about all the tasks I could’ve done for my business in those three hours. 😅

As a solopreneur, knowing how to prioritize and delegate is a must.

There are always a million things to do, and if you try to handle everything yourself, you’ll eventually burn out.

I’ve lost count of how many times I wanted to quit my side hustles because a full-time job seemed like an easier (and more stable) option.

But then I remind myself that relying on just one income source these days is risky. That’s why I keep an open mind for new opportunities and grab the ones that align with my values.

The good news?

My online business gives me more flexibility now.

I spent this week working entirely on my own online business while discussing the project details with my clients.

Here’s what I worked on and achieved:

✅ Updated my "Substack alternatives" blog post—it jumped to #5 on Google! 🎉
✅ Made $200 from a sponsored post
✅ Earned a $388 affiliate bonus (will share details in next month’s Affiliate report)
✅ My biggest affiliate commission this week — $200
✅ Published a new premium post and welcomed 4 new premium members (forever grateful! 🙌)
✅ Updated my "Content writing tools for SEO" blog post—it climbed to #3 on Google!
✅ Updated my “SEO tools for small businesses” blog post — it’s the last one for this week, so I’ll be tracking its performance
✅ Updated my "SEO books" blog post… but Google decided to drop it from #7 to #14 instead. 🤷‍♀️

Yep, sometimes content updates don’t go as planned.

SEO is unpredictable.

Content updates usually boost rankings, but Google may prefer the older version in some cases. I’ll monitor the blog post performance for a month and decide on the next steps.

You can learn more about my content update experiment from this Medium article. 👇(Medium subscription isn’t required for my Premium members)

But overall?

My site has been slowly but steadily growing in impressions and clicks over the past three months—ever since I started treating it as a real business.

And that makes all the effort 100% worth it. ❤️

Want to contribute? 😊

You probably know I update my SEO book every year.

This year is no different.

But I’ll be honest, it took me way longer than usual. But I’m totally fine with that because I care about quality over speed.

This time, I’m doing a major revamp!

I’ve improved my SEO writing process and shared even more writing tips.

Plus, the 4th edition will include:

• A case study on how my content outranked industry giants and ranked in the top 3 for multiple keywords

• A case study on what I do when my website rankings drop

• A step-by-step guide to finding, analyzing, and prioritizing primary & secondary keywords

• How to create a solid content writing plan

• How to craft SEO-friendly outlines

• My best writing tips to make sure your content meets Google’s expectations

Below, you can see the outline of the new ebook edition, but I’m open to suggestions.

If there’s anything specific you’d love to see in the ebook, let me know.

Just hit “reply” and share your thoughts!

Oh, and as always—if you’ve already purchased the previous edition, you’ll get the 4th edition for free. 🎉

The 4th edition of my SEO book is dropping in mid-March 2025!

💰 Normally $32.99, but you can preorder now for just $19.99.

📖 What you get:
✅ The 3rd edition of my SEO ebook
🎁 Bonus: My SEO checklist for new websites (yours FREE!)

🔥 And when the 4th edition is out? I’ll email you a copy instantly—no extra cost!

P.S. The 3rd edition of the ebook comes as a PDF because it’s packed with charts and images. And since it’s a digital product, all sales are final—no refunds. 😊

My Premium newsletter

Access my behind-the-scenes insights from my affiliate journey, learn about my latest marketing experiments, and read my Medium stories for FREE —all for just $7/month! 💡

Here’s what’s inside:

✅ January Affiliate Report – A breakdown of my affiliate earnings, the exact programs I use, and where my sales come from. No fluff, just real numbers.

✅ Reddit Case Study – How I got 27,000 views and 96 upvotes in 48 hours from a single post. Everything I did, what worked, and what I’d do differently.

✅ Medium Stories – Access my articles for free with friend links—no Medium subscription needed!

✅ My Ebook: “5 Ways to Make Money Writing” – Practical strategies to turn your words into income.

I drop new insights every month, so you're always learning something fresh.

Curious how much a WordPress blog with 10k+ traffic can make and what’s actually working?

Join below! ⬇️

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Have a great weekend!

Victoria

P.S. Check my Premium Newsletter to learn the behind-the-scenes insights from my affiliate journey, read my Medium stories for free, and learn from my recent marketing experiments for just $7/month.