We made it! One month of Project Phoenix and we are at the end.
I know you all are dying to know just how well the project went.
Were we able to revive the website in a single month.
Are we well on our road to traffic and riches.
What are the future plans for the site?
Exciting, I know.
So let’s break it down. I’ll go over the final stats. Then I will refect on the project as a whole for the month and finally I will let you in on the future plans for the Project Phoenix website.
Up and to the Right
If you read last week’s email you will know that we beat the August figures in week 3. A bit of a spoiler I know but that’s ultimately what we wanted, growth.
Here are the final numbers for the month. As always check out the Google spreadsheet for more in depth numbers. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wbxif8m4Qb2vKHI5huDDLGGtGWaQKpWfVinmPusU8Lw/edit#gid=0
- Sessions: 1,133
- Page views: 1,407
- Revenue: $4.74
- Pinterest views: 91,603
- Facebook reach: 51,503
- Facebook Followers: 555
Month over month we doubles the revenue for the site and saw about a 30% to 40% increase in traffic.
Both big wins. Does this mean the project was a success?
Well yes. We were able to drive both traffic and revenue growth for the site dispite it being dead for several years.
In addition we were able to revieve the social media account and drive interest in them.
And finally as an added bonus, the new content items on the site were indexed by Google and are already getting traffic.
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
How did the project go overall though? Well I can classify the experience into 2 groupings.
The Good
We achieved the goal. The numbers were up and the site shows positive signs of life everywhere.
It was a fun break to work on the site. I have always enjoyed the niche and I have a big interest in the content.
The site didn’t get hit by Google’s helpful content update!
The Bad
Even though the numbers are up, the bar was set very, very low. Doubling the revenue is good, but when it’s only adding $2.50 for the month, it’s really just playing with numbers.
That being said, the long term viability of the site is very strong. Month over month growth will compound and it has a very bright future.
The Ugly
My focus on the project lost traction towards the end as I was hitting the target numbers.
In the last week I barely did anything on Facebook and the results reflected.
It was growth but at a cost, the cost being my time which was being spent elsewhere.
Soooooo whatcha gonna do now?
Numbers are up, the site is alive, it has a bright future, you love the work. So lets GO!
Wait, wait, wait! Not so fast. That’s the easy answer.
The reality is, it still comes down to my original reason for giving up the site 7 years ago.
Time.
I have other sites that are doing much better right now and are taking up my time.
Can I make this site as big and profitable as the other sites I have?
Most likely, but it’s going to take a lot longer than a month. It will take years.
So time is against me on this one.
The other factor is one I mentioned in an earlier email.
I have a 5 item checklist for every site I consider building. This site still only checks 2 of those 5 items and that won’t change in the future.
I’m not in the business of building pure content sites which is ultimately what this is. It’s too risky. I prefer to build sites/services that are multi faceted and have wider options for traffic and revenue.
So ultimatly what’s I’m trying to tell you all is that I won’t be continuing to work on the Project Phoenix website as we head into October and beyond.
So am I going to sell the site?
That would make the most sense I know. It’s old, got a good base of content, strong social presence, proven revenue and growth potential.
So I could just cash out and take the money.
It’s tempting. It wouldn’t be a fortune but it would be a nice holiday paid for.
Reality is though, this site has a place in my heart.
I’ve proved I can put it down and pick it up and it will still keep chugging along.
I just can’t bring myself to part with it.
Things may change, I may exit from my other sites at some point and pick this up as a hobby site to grown if I have more time.
So for now, it goes back into moth balls. I will play around with it once in a while, post a few things on Pinterest, make some minor content updates. But for the foreseeable future, dormant it will stay.
So what about our journey together?
Fear not, I plan to keep on sending emails. Next week I will tell you about and AI experiement site I started back in June and share the growth details from the last 3 months.
Til then, keep pushing forward!