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How to Pivot from Ad Revenue to $12,500/Month Selling Digital Products (Real Blogger Case Study)

ByJillian Leslie

If you’re a blogger watching your ad revenue plummet after Google updates and AI disruptions, you’re not alone. Traffic losses of 50-70% have become the new normal, leaving thousands of creators wondering if their years of hard work were for nothing.

In my newest video, I shared the incredible story of Melanie, a registered dietitian and low-carb food blogger who transformed her dying blog into a thriving digital product business. In just 90 days, she went from $700/month in ad revenue to $6,500/month. Ten months later, she’s now making $12,500/month—nearly three times her pre-crash income.

The best part? She used the same expertise, the same email list, and the same audience she already had. She just changed her business model.

In this post, I’ll walk you through Melanie’s exact week-by-week strategy so you can replicate her success, even if your traffic has tanked and your ad revenue has disappeared.

Show Notes:

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The Crisis That’s Crushing Bloggers Right Now

Two years ago, Melanie was living the blogger dream. Her low-carb food blog was generating 180,000 page views per month and bringing in $4,500 monthly from ad revenue. Her traffic was growing steadily, and everything seemed perfect.

Then disaster struck.

Google algorithm updates hit hard, followed by the rise of AI-generated content flooding search results. Within months, her traffic dropped 72%—from 180,000 pageviews to just 50,000. Her ad revenue collapsed from $4,500 to $700 per month.

Sound familiar? This is the reality for thousands of bloggers in 2026. The old model—write free content, get traffic, show ads—is broken. But here’s what most bloggers don’t realize: you don’t have a traffic problem. You have a business model problem.

Why Ad Revenue Is No Longer Sustainable for Most Bloggers

The traditional blogger business model relied on three things:

  1. Consistent organic traffic from Google
  2. High CPM rates from ad networks
  3. Predictable algorithm behavior

All three of these pillars have crumbled. Google’s algorithm changes are more frequent and more devastating. AI overviews are stealing clicks. Ad rates have declined as competition increases. The game has fundamentally changed.

But here’s the good news: your expertise isn’t worthless. You’re just giving it away for free.

The New Business Model: Selling Digital Products and Services

When Melanie reached out to me, devastated by her revenue loss, I told her something that changed everything: “You have a master’s degree in nutrition. You’ve helped hundreds of people manage their diabetes. You have 5,800 people on your email list. Your expertise is valuable—you just need to start charging for it.”

That’s when Melanie realized she already had everything she needed to pivot:

  • Expertise: She’s a registered dietitian with specialized knowledge
  • Audience: 5,800 email subscribers who trusted her
  • Credibility: Seven years of published content proving her authority

The only thing missing was a monetization strategy that didn’t depend on ad revenue.

Melanie’s Week-by-Week Digital Product Strategy

Let me walk you through exactly what Melanie did to go from $700/month to $12,500/month in less than a year.

Week 1-4: Start with One-on-One Coaching ($197 per session)

Melanie’s first move was to offer personalized low-carb meal planning and coaching sessions for people with diabetes. She charged $197 per session.

Within the first week, she booked six sessions—generating over $1,000 immediately.

Why This Works:

  • One-on-one coaching validates your expertise and proves people will pay for your help
  • You can charge premium prices because of the personalization
  • You learn exactly what problems your audience needs solved
  • It’s the fastest way to generate revenue while you build other products

How to Implement This:

  1. Identify your specific expertise and who needs it most
  2. Create a simple coaching offer (60-90 minutes, specific outcome)
  3. Price it between $97-$297 depending on your niche
  4. Email your list with a direct offer
  5. Use MiloTree’s free plan to create a sales page in minutes

With MiloTree, you can set up your coaching sales page with AI-generated copy and start taking payments—all without any complicated tech.

Week 5-8: Scale with a Live Workshop ($97)

After coaching six clients, Melanie noticed they were all asking the same questions. She realized hundreds of people probably had the same problems but didn’t necessarily need (or couldn’t afford) one-on-one coaching.

Her solution: Create a 90-minute live Zoom workshop called “Blood Sugar Breakthrough” and charge $97.

She used ChatGPT to build her outline, incorporated real client examples from her coaching sessions, and delivered it live. Twenty-eight people signed up, generating nearly $3,000.

But here’s where it gets smart: On the thank-you page after purchase, she added an upsell—a 30-day low-carb meal plan bundle for $47. Twelve people bought it, adding another $564 in revenue.

Total from one workshop: $3,300+

Why This Works:

  • Workshops let you serve multiple people at once without sacrificing too much personalization
  • Live delivery creates urgency and excitement
  • You can charge less than coaching but still generate significant revenue
  • Upsells increase your average order value by 40-50%

How to Implement This:

  1. Take the most common questions from your coaching clients (or audience)
  2. Create a 60-90 minute workshop that solves one specific problem
  3. Use ChatGPT to outline your content and create talking points
  4. Price it between $47-$197 depending on depth and niche
  5. Add a low-ticket upsell ($27-$67) on your thank-you page

With MiloTree’s one-click upsell feature, you can add order bumps and post-purchase upsells without any coding. Just check a box, and the upsell appears automatically on your thank-you page. This is how you increase revenue by 40-50% from every customer.

Pro Tip: Download my 6 Purchasing Triggers guide to learn exactly how to position your upsells so more people buy.

Month 3-4: Launch a Membership for Recurring Revenue ($47/month)

Melanie’s final move was to create a low-carb meal plan club—a membership that provides ongoing value to her audience.

What She Included:

  • Weekly meal plans with shopping lists
  • Growing recipe library
  • Monthly live Q&A sessions
  • Private Facebook group for community support

She launched it at a “founding member” price, and 22 people joined immediately.

After 90 days total, her income breakdown looked like this:

  • Coaching: $1,200/month (6 sessions)
  • Workshop (recurring): $1,800/month (running it monthly)
  • Membership: $3,500/month (from initial members)
  • Total: $6,500/month

That’s already more than her pre-crash ad revenue of $4,500/month.

But here’s where it gets really exciting: Ten months later, after focusing on growing her membership, Melanie now has over 100 members paying $47/month. Her membership alone generates $4,700/month in recurring revenue.

Combined with coaching and workshops, she’s now making $12,500/month.

Why Memberships Are the Ultimate Goal:

  • Recurring revenue compounds over time
  • You create once, deliver ongoing value
  • Community keeps members engaged and reduces churn
  • Predictable income lets you plan and scale

How to Implement This:

  1. Start with a simple offer: access to exclusive content + community
  2. Add live elements (Q&A, workshops) to increase perceived value
  3. Price between $27-$67/month depending on what you’re providing
  4. Launch with a founding member discount to get initial traction
  5. Use MiloTree to set up your membership with automatic recurring billing

MiloTree handles all the tech for memberships—payment processing, content delivery, member management—so you can focus on serving your community.

Why Speed Matters: How Melanie Moved So Fast

Here’s the secret to Melanie’s success: she didn’t wait for perfection. She launched fast and adjusted as she went.

After signing up for MiloTree, she launched her first coaching product in 48 hours. Not 48 days—48 hours.

Why MiloTree Made This Possible:

  • AI-generated sales pages: Set up in 10 minutes, not 10 hours
  • One-click upsells: Add order bumps without any technical knowledge
  • No coding required: Everything is point-and-click simple
  • Unlimited products: Test multiple offers without increasing your costs
  • Start free: No credit card required to get started

Melanie started with our free plan, validated her offers, then upgraded to our Grow Plan at $19/month to access unlimited products and advanced features.

The result? She went from $700/month to $12,500/month because she tested fast, found what worked, and scaled it.

How to Grow Your Email List While Building Your Product Business

Here’s something important: Melanie didn’t just sell to her existing list of 5,800 subscribers. She continued growing her email list using four freebie lead magnets set up in MiloTree.

She now grows her list by 400 subscribers per month.

Why This Matters:

  • More subscribers = more potential customers
  • List growth compounds your revenue over time
  • Freebies position you as an authority and build trust

Her Strategy:

  1. Created four targeted freebies for different segments of her audience
  2. Used MiloTree’s free plan to create AI-generated opt-in pages
  3. Promoted these freebies on social media, in blog posts, and in her email signature
  4. Automatically delivered freebies to new subscribers (no manual work)

If you need help creating high-converting freebies, grab my 3 AI Prompts for Creating a Freebie Cheatsheet. These prompts will help you generate freebie ideas your audience actually wants in minutes.

Your Step-by-Step Action Plan to Replicate Melanie’s Success

Ready to pivot from ad revenue to digital products? Here’s your roadmap:

Step 1: Validate with One-on-One Coaching

  • Identify your specific expertise and target audience
  • Create a coaching offer that solves one specific problem
  • Price it between $97-$297
  • Email your list with the offer
  • Book at least 3-5 sessions to validate demand

Step 2: Scale with a Live Workshop

  • Take the most common questions from your coaching clients
  • Create a 60-90 minute workshop
  • Price it at $47-$197
  • Add a low-ticket upsell ($27-$67) on the thank-you page
  • Deliver it live, then turn it into an evergreen product

Step 3: Build Recurring Revenue with a Membership

  • Offer weekly/monthly content + community
  • Include live Q&A sessions for engagement
  • Price at $27-$67/month
  • Launch with a founding member discount
  • Focus on retention by consistently delivering value

Step 4: Continue Growing Your Email List

  • Create 2-4 targeted freebie lead magnets
  • Set up opt-in pages with MiloTree
  • Promote freebies across all your channels
  • Automate delivery so it runs on autopilot

Common Objections (And Why They’re Wrong)

“But I don’t have a huge email list.” Melanie started with 5,800 subscribers. You don’t need 50,000. You need an engaged audience who trusts you. Even 500-1,000 engaged subscribers can generate significant revenue.

“My niche is too competitive.” Every niche is competitive. But you have a unique perspective, experience, and voice. People buy from those they know, like, and trust—not necessarily from the biggest name in the space.

“I’m not tech-savvy enough.” This is exactly why tools like MiloTree exist. You don’t need to be a web developer or understand complicated tech. If you can send an email, you can set up a digital product.

“What if people don’t buy?” That’s why you start with coaching. You’re validating demand before you invest time creating workshops or memberships. If people won’t pay for your coaching, adjust your offer until they do.

Why Your Expertise Is More Valuable Than You Think

The new model rewards you for helping people directly and charging what you’re worth.

Your blog posts, podcasts, videos, and social media content should serve as your marketing—not your entire business model. They demonstrate your expertise and build trust. But your revenue should come from products and services that deliver transformation.

The Difference Between $700/Month and $12,500/Month

Let me be crystal clear about what made the difference for Melanie:

It wasn’t her expertise. She had the same knowledge before and after.

It wasn’t her audience. She had the same email list.

It wasn’t her content. She had seven years of blog posts already published.

The difference was speed.

She didn’t wait until everything was perfect. She didn’t spend six months creating the “ultimate” course. She didn’t overthink her pricing or second-guess her value.

She launched her first coaching offer in 48 hours. She tested it. It worked. She scaled it.

That’s the difference between theory and results.

Start Building Your Digital Product Business Today

If you’re watching your ad revenue disappear, if Google has crushed your traffic, if you’re wondering whether your blog is still viable—I want you to hear this:

Your work isn’t worthless. You just need a different monetization strategy.

You already have everything you need:

  • ✅ Expertise (even if you don’t think it’s “expert level”)
  • ✅ An audience (even if it’s small)
  • ✅ Credibility (your existing content proves you know your stuff)

What you need now is a platform that makes it easy to test, launch, and scale digital products without getting bogged down in complicated tech.

Try MiloTree free—no credit card required.

Set up your first coaching offer, workshop, or membership in minutes. Test it with your audience. See what works. Then scale it.

Melanie went from $700/month to $12,500/month in less than a year. Your journey will look different, but the strategy is the same:

  1. Stop giving your expertise away for free
  2. Start with coaching to validate demand
  3. Scale with workshops and upsells
  4. Build recurring revenue with memberships
  5. Move fast and test often

Ready to find your one gold mine product? Download my free AI prompt that will help you identify the exact product you should build first. This is the same framework I used with Melanie to uncover her digital product strategy.

Your expertise is valuable. It’s time to start charging for it.

Let’s go.

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