Ever wondered what magic transforms a love for food into a six-figure business? Meet Jamie Silva, the creative force behind "A Sassy Spoon."
Jamie always dreamed of running her own business, and when she found herself at a career crossroads, she didn't hesitate to dive headfirst into the world of food blogging. Fast forward a year, and she was accepted into Mediavine, her site now boasts millions of page views, and she has even branched out into coaching other aspiring food bloggers. Let’s dive into how Jamie turned her Cuban culinary roots into a multi-six-figure success story.
Meet Jamie Silva
Jamie Silva, born and raised in Miami by Cuban parents, always wanted to start her own business. Despite trying various online ventures and lifestyle blogs, she never stuck with them until 2016 when she decided to fully commit to her dream of becoming her own boss. Jamie had been working as a social media strategist for culinary clients and climbing the corporate ladder in the healthcare industry. Her creative and entrepreneurial spirit craved a change from her mundane routine, so she quit her full-time job to find her next move.
Instead of interviewing for new 9-5 jobs, Jamie researched how to make money from a food blog, inspired by income reports from successful bloggers like Pinch of Yum. In February 2016, she bought her domain and began sharing recipes using iPhone photos, later upgrading to a used DSLR from a pawn shop. She focused on SEO and site speed from the start, knowing the importance of ranking on Google. By July 2017, she qualified for Mediavine with 47 000 monthly page views and later for Raptive with over 100 000 page views.
Why she created her site
Jamie read extensively about food blogging before even buying a domain name, inspired by successful food bloggers like Pinch of Yum. Despite her business and digital marketing experience, she didn't initially know how to make a substantial income from a blog. However, the potential seemed promising, so she took the plunge.
Jamie purchased her domain in February 2016, sharing recipes with iPhone photos at first, then upgrading to a used DSLR. She prioritized SEO and site optimization early on and worked with a local PR firm managing social media accounts for restaurants. Her main traffic drivers were Google and Pinterest, helping her grow her blog into a multi-six-figure success.
How much she’s earning
Since 2017, Jamie Silva's income has come from a mix of display ads, sponsored content, affiliate marketing, and freelance food photography. By 2018, she was earning $85k per year, and in 2019, after adding blog coaching, her revenue surpassed $100k. By 2021, Jamie's income scaled to multi-six figures and has stayed consistent since.
As of 2023, Jamie’s income breakdown is:
- Ad Revenue: 78%
- Blog Coaching: 21%
- Affiliate Marketing: 1%
Most of her income comes from the display ads on A Sassy Spoon, generating multi-six figures alone.
Jamie averages $20k months with Mediavine Pro, with some variation depending on the season. She stopped working with brands in late 2022 to focus more on coaching.
A Sassy Spoon receives over 3.5 million page views per year, or about 290 000 per month, and Jamie works around 20 hours per week on both coaching and her blog.
Her main marketing strategy
In 2022, Jamie hit a page view plateau. Despite her SEO efforts, traffic remained stagnant. She decided to narrow her niche from comfort food to Cuban cuisine and revamped her content strategy to align with her Cuban heritage.
This focus helped her break through the plateau, increasing her traffic by 40% by the end of 2022.
Her thoughts on SEO
SEO is vital for Jamie’s business, with organic search being her main traffic driver. Her SEO strategy focuses on leveraging semantic SEO and creating content that aligns with her niche and EEAT to build topical authority in Cuban cuisine. Instead of chasing keywords, Jamie now creates content that meets the intent behind user queries, which has helped her connect better with her target audience.
Keyword research
Jamie’s approach to keyword research has evolved. She used to start with keyword research, but now she uses it to cross-reference her blog posts. Knowing her Cuban Cuisine niche well, she plans content based on audience needs rather than just ranking keywords. She develops, styles, shoots, and writes her recipe posts, then uses KeySearch to enhance them with keywords if needed. This strategy has helped her continue to grow her blog traffic.
Link building
Jamie has never actively pitched for backlinks. The backlinks she’s gained over the years have come from publishers finding her content through Google or Pinterest. She doesn’t have a specific strategy for building backlinks but focuses on strategic internal linking, which has been crucial in breaking through her page view plateau since 2022.
Jamie’s content creation process
Jamie Silva, the creative force behind "A Sassy Spoon," has a well-structured content creation process. With 319 blog posts, she organizes her tasks into themed days to manage her workload efficiently. Sundays and Mondays are for planning and prep, Tuesdays for shooting, and Wednesdays through Fridays for calls, editing photos, and writing. This method helps her stay consistent and keeps her content schedule on track.
She also has a team to support her. A food photographer assists with additional recipes, and her virtual assistant (VA) handles Pinterest and Google Web Stories promotions, and sometimes drafts blog posts in WordPress. Jamie no longer shares content on Instagram or Facebook.
Her email list
Jamie uses opt-in forms within her blog posts and Mediavine’s Spotlight Subscribe feature to grow her email list. Subscribers go through a welcome series followed by a nurture sequence. Since narrowing her niche in early 2022, her email subscribers have tripled.
Her favorite resources
The resources that have fueled Jamie’s growth include:
- Books: The Flavor Bible, Ratio, The Science of Good Cooking, Steal Like An Artist, Essentialism, Atomic Habits, Profit First, and The Big Leap.
- Podcasts: The Sassy Solopreneur (her own), The Blogging Millionaire, Food Blogger Pro, and Eat Blog Talk.
Her go-to tools
Jamie’s essential tools are:
- Google search console: To monitor site performance and ranking on Google, and to identify content that resonates with her audience for new content ideas.
- Support system: Entrepreneurship can be lonely, so having a network of business and blogger friends is crucial.
- Mentorship: Jamie values mentorship highly. Working with Foodie Digital has been particularly beneficial for A Sassy Spoon, saving her time and energy and aiding her growth.
Her biggest challenge
Jamie’s biggest challenge has been prioritizing herself and minimizing hustle. While she has improved, she acknowledges the need for balance, allowing time for rest and personal space outside the business.
Her greatest accomplishment
Jamie is proud of building a profitable, sustainable business from scratch. Starting in 2016 with zero followers and page views, she now runs a multi-six-figure food blog. Last year, she reached $1 million in overall revenue. Her blog, which began in her one-bedroom apartment, now supports her lifestyle, maxes out her 401k, and provides the freedom she once dreamed of.
What she wishes she knew when she started
Jamie wishes she had focused on the Cuban Cuisine niche from the start, rather than playing it safe with a broader comfort food niche. Emulating early bloggers who covered a wide range of topics seemed promising, but a focused niche would have likely led to quicker success.
Her main mistake
While Jamie hasn’t made any major mistakes, she believes she should have outsourced tasks sooner. Delegating photography, writing, and social promotion has significantly accelerated her growth and freed up time for revenue-generating activities.
Her advice for other entrepreneurs
Jamie advises entrepreneurs to fill a market gap by showcasing their expertise, which builds trust, attracts the right audience, and enhances SEO. She stresses the importance of persistence, staying focused on your goals, and avoiding comparisons with others. Even when progress seems slow, she encourages others to keep going.
Conclusion
Jamie Silva's journey from leaving her job to building a thriving Cuban food empire with "A Sassy Spoon" is a true tale of passion, persistence, and smart growth. Starting from her Miami apartment and now raking in multiple six figures annually through smart SEO strategies, captivating content, and a dedicated team, Jamie not only found success but also crafted a lifestyle of freedom and fulfillment.
