Case Study: Donna Poirier
Donna grew from 8K to 30K+ monthly sessions and monetized her blog through Journey by Mediavine!
Meet Donna
Donna is the creator of LadyPearTree, a food blog she started researching in 2020 and launched about a year and a half later. Her blog focuses on easy, everyday recipes with a healthy twist – particularly pasta, soups, and ground meat dishes.
The Challenge
Before joining the group coaching program in January 2024, Donna faced several key challenges:
- Technical Struggles: She found herself overwhelmed by the technical aspects of running a food blog, particularly with website backend setup and forms.
- Lack of Community: “I have friends, and I talk about blogging, but no one really understands like another food blogger.”
- Time Management Issues: Despite being part-time, Donna struggled to establish a routine that balanced blogging with her personal life. “My head was always spinning, and I didn’t have a set routine.”
- Finding Her Voice: Initially, she kept her writing safe & generic. She was struggling to break out of the Google-pleasing mindset and express her personality through her content.
The Solution
Through the six-month group coaching program, Donna implemented several key strategies:
- Technical Support
- Access to detailed Loom video tutorials for visual learning
- Step-by-step guidance for technical setup
- Resource library of backend solutions
- Community Building
- Regular group coaching calls
- Peer feedback and support
- Collaborative exercises that helped build confidence
- Time Management Systems
- Established consistent content creation routines
- Designated specific days for recipe shooting and writing
- Created structured workflows
- Brand Development
- Found her authentic voice
- Developed confidence in sharing her personality
- Built a distinct brand identity
The Results
Within months of completing the program, Donna achieved significant growth:
Traffic Growth:
- January 2024: ~8,000 monthly sessions
- February 2024: Qualified for Journey by Mediavine (10,000+ sessions)
- November 2024: 30,000+ monthly sessions
Revenue Growth:
- Successfully monetized through Journey by Mediavine
- Established a consistent income stream
- Created a foundation for sustainable blog growth
Personal Growth:
- Increased confidence in content creation
- Developed an authentic writing voice
- Established sustainable routines
“I’m super-stoked and motivated to keep going with the whole thing,” Donna shares. “The coaching was really helpful on that business side because of course I’m making money now… it’s a start and it’s just amazing that you can create these recipes and this website and suddenly you’re making money from it.”
Please note that individual results may vary. Case study details shared with client permission. Past performance does not guarantee future results.
Donna’s Key Takeaways
- Finding Her Voice: “I figured, you know what, I’m just going to be less generic and just be who I am…you either like it or you don’t, and that’s fine.”
- Community: Connecting with other food bloggers who understand the unique challenges and can provide meaningful feedback is invaluable.
- Consistency & Time Management: “Now, if I’m shooting a recipe, I know which day that is. If I’m writing it, I know which days those are.”
- Confidence: External feedback and community support helped validate her work and boost confidence in areas like photography and writing.
“I found with the coaching what I really loved is having access to you who has an abundance of knowledge and all the Loom videos you would do…I could follow along as I was setting things up.”
Is Group Coaching Right For You?
Donna recommends the program for bloggers who:
- Have their website setup complete
- Are in the beginning stages of their blogging journey
- Want access to comprehensive resources and tutorials
- Are looking for community support
- Are ready to implement strategic changes
“If you’re considering it…just do it. You have everything to gain and nothing to lose quite frankly. You gain access to all the amazing resources…and also you have access to a community.”
Donna’s Advice for Food Bloggers
- Do Your Research: “Take the time to figure things out before jumping into it… spend time figuring out the back end of blogging, understanding SEO and all that.”
- Be Resourceful: Utilize comprehensive resources rather than piecing together information from multiple sources.
- Diversify Traffic Sources: “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket with Google… I’m really trying to branch out learning all the different areas that you can pull traffic from.”
Donna’s Group Coaching Testimonial
Watch Donna’s Full Interview
Ready to monetize your blog like Donna did?
Join our group coaching program!