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I GREATLY VALUE honesty. I think it’s important to be scrupulously honest with others and brutally honest with ourselves. That brings me to HumbleDollar’s annual report card.
After steady growth over the site’s first five years, our sixth year—2022—saw mixed success. Below are five key metrics that I track. These numbers, I believe, tell you not only about HumbleDollar, but also a little about the mood of Americans over the past 12 months.
Pageviews. This is the number I watch most closely. In 2022, readers perused more than 4.7 million of the site’s pages, up from less than 4.4 million in 2021. That might seem like reasonable progress. But the fact is, the site saw handsome growth in last year’s first seven months, only for growth to stall out in August. In fact, pageviews in September, October and November were well below the same months in 2021.
Comments. This has been a high point. The number of comments posted in 2022 jumped more than 40% from 2021’s level. I’m a little surprised by how often commenters turn personal-finance questions into political debates, but maybe that’s unavoidable amid today’s hyper-partisan politics. Still, even with that, the comments posted are almost always fairly civil. Not sure how to comment? Click here.
Subscribers. In 2022, the number of folks receiving our twice-weekly newsletter grew 15%, from 16,000 to almost 19,000. If you aren’t already subscribed, you can sign up here for our free newsletter and here for our daily email alerts.
Advertising. Though the site’s pageviews were up 7% last year, total advertising revenue fell 9% compared to 2021. I hear occasional complaints about the quality of the ads, which often tout political causes or promote dating sites. The ads you see are automatically served up by Google AdSense, though I have some ability to restrict what sorts of ads get shown, and I’ve started to make greater use of those controls.
Donations. These are the site’s other source of revenue. Donations fell 16% last year. For those of you who donate, please know that your financial support is greatly appreciated.
What explains the site’s mixed success in 2022? I believe that, to some degree, it mirrors what’s been happening in the economy and the financial markets. As businesses braced for slower economic growth, and as readers grappled with falling financial markets and higher inflation, a hit to advertising and donations was perhaps inevitable.
Meanwhile, the grim financial news seems to have worn down some readers. By 2022’s second half, it appears their appetite for reading about personal finance had waned, in the same way many of us lost our appetite for checking our investment account balances, plus there was a heap of other news that folks were focused on, notably the war in Ukraine, Queen Elizabeth II’s death and the U.S. mid-term elections. My hope: Once the stock and bond markets recover, so too will readership, donations and advertising rates.
I’ve long viewed HumbleDollar as a public service rather than a moneymaking venture. In fact, a few years back, I even explored turning the site into a nonprofit, but the administrative hassles involved deterred me. The upshot: I’m less bothered by the fall in donations and advertising dollars than by the sluggish growth in readership. Like most writers, I’m happy to make a few bucks—but what really makes me happy is having lots of readers.
While revenue and readers were hard to come by in 2022, the site continued to post plenty of great content, thanks to HumbleDollar’s talented collection of writers. We posted 30 essays in a series dubbed “My Money Journey.” Those essays will be published as a book in April. Intrigued? You might preorder the book from Amazon or directly from Harriman House, the publisher. Harriman is currently offering a 30% discount to HumbleDollar readers. Use the code HDMMJ30 at checkout. If U.S. buyers select economy shipping, the mailing charge should be just $4.
Our other big new initiative in 2022 was the Two-Minute Checkup, a quick-and-easy financial tool that aims to provide feedback across a user’s entire financial life based on just nine inputs. The Checkup was unveiled in early August. Based on the feedback, we posted a revamped version in November. Almost 30,000 folks have now tried the calculator, but I’d love to see the Checkup used even more widely. Please share this link with friends and family—or just tell them to go to TwoMinuteCheckup.com—and also encourage them to sign up for our free newsletter.
HumbleDollar’s Philadelphia lunch, attended by writers (from left to right) Adam Grossman, Jonathan Clements, Sonja Haggart, Logan Murray, Greg Spears, Dick Quinn, Jim Kerr and Rick Connor.
In early November, eight HumbleDollar writers—all of whom live in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, except Adam Grossman, who flew in from Boston—gathered in Philadelphia for lunch. It was a great success. Yes, there was some talk about the site and personal finance. But mostly, the writers were just happy to meet one another in person.
That got me thinking that perhaps HumbleDollar should hold a conference for the site’s readers. Conferences, of course, can be big moneymakers, but that’s not my goal. Indeed, I’d want to minimize the cost to participants, so it wouldn’t be a deterrent to attending.
My initial thought: How about a conference in Philadelphia that offers perhaps six hours of sessions over two mornings, with afternoons free for sightseeing, and lunchtime and evenings available for socializing? The sessions would include some guest speakers and a chance to ask questions of your favorite writers. There would be a charge to cover the renting of a conference room, breakfast, a coffee service and perhaps the cost of a guest speaker or two, but the rest—lunch and dinner, hotel rooms, travel—would be up to attendees.
Even a modest conference like this would be a big undertaking, but it would be worthwhile if there was a lot of enthusiasm. Is there? Let me know in the comment section below whether you’d be interested in attending and perhaps even helping out with the organizing.
I just turned 60. Readers are often surprised that I’m not older. But remember, I was just 31 years old when I started writing my column for The Wall Street Journal, so I’ve been at this for a long time—perhaps too long, at least according to my detractors. Will I retire, some readers have asked? At this juncture, I have no plans to ride off into the sunset. My goal is to keep HumbleDollar going for many more years, though I plan to cut back the number of articles posted, so my days aren’t quite so busy.
Jonathan Clements is the founder and editor of HumbleDollar. Follow him on Twitter @ClementsMoney and on Facebook, and check out his earlier articles.
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Yes, do the conference. In Person with option for folks to zoom in. Philadelphia is convenient to so much of the east coast, and the city is relatively affordable and walkable with great restaurants. All we have to do now is figure out how to affix “palooza” to whatever you decide to name the get together. let’s do this!
“I’m a little surprised by how often commenters turn personal-finance questions into political debates”
IMO, the biggest weakness of personal-finance is it is relentlessly personal.
A lot of the way people thrive financially is through community solutions.
To take one example, it should be possible for most people to use cars a LOT less. Something like 90% of car trips are less than 4 miles.
For someone in reasonable shape, that is a fairly easy walk or bike ride.
Car use is one of the most expensive things to do, including indirect costs of taxes to support roads, health costs of crashes & pollution, house garages, and much more.
But too many short non car trips are too dangerous. And to solve that, you need community solutions – which is political.
I would def be interested! Gleaning info from the group would be great.
Sounds like a great idea Jonathan. Rocky statue, Duke and Duke building from Trading Places and maybe some pickleball?? Look forward to it.
Thanks for all the great content!
Like other HD readers, I’ve been reading your work since the 1990s with the WSJ. I’m highly interested in traveling up from NC for a Philly conference. Andrea Carpenter
As my self-employed husband and I edge into retirement, he’s FINALLY showing an interest in financial topics. Yet he won’t read the many email forwards I’ve sent him of the great articles HD runs. I would love to get him to a two-day conference in Philly where he could focus, listen, and learn, and maybe up his engagement in the conversations we need to have.
Also, as we discuss perhaps changing our living situation (location and type), we’re looking for opportunities to talk to others about their places and experiences. So the social aspects of an in-person conference are very appealing, too. I hope it happens!
He may come around eventually. I kept telling my husband about the great HD articles and he didn’t read them initially but I continued to talk them up. He reads them now and enjoys them.
Thanks for your enthusiasm. I’m sensing there may be enough interest to make this happen. I hope to figure out some details within the next month or so.
Thank you Jonathan for all of your hard work on this site. It has become a staple of my weekly financial education, and I have really enjoyed the diverse perspective of all the writers. Being located just up north in the Lehigh Valley I would love to attend a conference and would be willing to help with the planning as well. Cheers to all.
Love the conference idea, but as a retired non-profit executive, I might suggest using an internet service (of which there are many) which allows for remote participation. Our attendance really spiked during Covid when we transitioned to Zoom and/or Go To Meeting platforms, and nothing was lost except the bar bills. Some of your readers, such as this one, might have health issues that preclude non-essential overnight trips. To minimize your time involved, there are meeting planners who would handle this from marketing to on-site to the remote broadcast. For a nominal fee, of course.
It would probably be too expensive for some of us (with hotel etc.) as early retirees younger than you with not really enough cash on hand & whatever we have in the market being underwater, still we wouldn’t rule it out in the future though preferably other locations than Philly. Some other websites have their conferences set up where sessions are recorded & there’s not such a heavy emphasis on people having to attend in person though I do see the benefit of that too. Thank you for hosting HumbleDollar & all that you do. I am a longtime admirer of yours from your days at the WSJ.
A conference of like minds for readers of HD is a wonderful idea. I would be very interested and would love to help and contribute.
Hi Jonathon! I discovered HD about 2 years ago and it has become my primary financial newsletter, I love it! I found myself searching the site recently for articles too. I like hearing from other retirees that are normal folks about their journey. I would consider joining a conference also, as one of the things I need to focus on in retirement is relationships and getting to know others. Our daughter is in Philly so would welcome an opportunity to get there!
Humble dollar helped me stay the course during 2020 and 2022, amidst significant market volatility. It was easier between 2010-2019 to keep a level head when things were going relatively well…… It’s not the same with the 20+% drop and inflation. It’s surprises me to hear you say that was less readership this year. I would have expected more readership. I keep it simple and use only T-bills, VTI, VXUS, & VT.
I’ve actually always thought HD was/is not-for-profit, in spirit if not in letter – meaning run with no profit motive even if not a 501c3.
I’d be glad to join a conference, and to help with it, assuming we’re in the US when it happens. I’d have hopped on a train for lunch in Philly too!
I’d be interested in a conference. Good idea.
JC, I think you’re right about the reasons for the slow down in viewership. When markets are down there’s just less interest in personal finance. People just want to close their eyes. I know I looked at my accounts A LOT less this year. Just didn’t want to face the music.
Count me in! This could be the beginning of the annual meeting (which is all that is required) of the Board of Directors of your new nonprofit! (-:
Hek Yeah, a tax deduction for a business trip. GOOD THINKING!!
I live in Southern California and would be interested in attending a HD conference in Philly. I would enjoy listening to the presentations and visiting Philly. Thank you for HD!
I would be interested in attending a conference in Philadelphia. I could finally see the Rocky statue and indulge in a cheesesteak sandwich! Several of them. Thank you for all the time you put into the site. I have gotten much value and wisdom from it.
My husband and I would love to travel from Oregon to attend a conference in Philly. Thank you for creating and maintaining HD! As recent retirees in our late 50’s, we have found the articles to be consistently interesting, informative, and evocative.
I think the idea of a conference is a great idea. If you’re greating an email group of people who are interested, add me to it.
Jonathan, regarding article comments, I am curious to know if you can/do separate out comments from other writers, subscribers, and the general public. I find that often other writers comment on a piece and while their insight is valuable (that is why they are HD writers, after all), I suspect that it would be better for HD’s health if a grater proportion of commenters were the general public, to expand the audience. In other words, other writers already are in HD’s intellectual ecosystem, so comments from them are not as additive (from a growth of readership standpoint) as would be casual readers who are not embedded.
That’s a good point. I don’t have a good handle on the breakdown in comments between writers and readers. But I greatly appreciate that writers are so willing to respond to comments and to weigh in on articles from other writers. As I’ve mentioned before, amid the great cesspool known as the internet, HD is a haven of civility, and the active participation by writers is a key reason.
Also, if you had an ability for people to just “like” or “emoji” react to an article I think that would be nice. Sometimes I just want to “thumbs up” the article, but I don’t have anything particular to say.
Jonathan,
I would gladly attend a conference.
To underscore my interest, you’ve pulled me from the sidelines to post my first comment here, just to say so! I’ve been an avid reader since the Getting Going days.
Love the HD site and have been a regular reader here for several years, too.
Would love to join a conference!
I also have followed HD since its inception and have picked up some great advice and ideas along the way. I also found a good financial advisor through the site so that’s a bonus for me. Calendar permitting, I would attend a conference and find an in-person experience to be best. Philly is a good spot for me, but as a southerner I would vote for a warmer season (anything but winter really). Thanks for everything y’all do!
Congratulations on completing 6 succesful years. I thoroughly enjoyed the meet up/luncheon in Philadelphia. The folks I met were even more enjoyable in person than on the digital page! I’d be happy to attend a conference and help.
i enjoy reading H$. I have recommended it to many friends who enjoy it too. Keep up the good work.
I enjoy the content weekly and especially appreciate the variety of different perspectives, levels of wealth and stages of life. It is relevant and helpful for me as I head towards retirement. However it may be more valuable for my young adult children that are just starting out and dont have much money or financial knowledge. The Philly conference is a great idea but I dont anticipate traveling to it so a zoom option would be much appreciated.
Jonathan, I am an inveterate collector of certain articles that pique my interest in various subjects. I was cleaning out a bookcase recently and came across your final column for the WSJ: “Parting Shot: What I Learned From Writing 1,008 Columns” that I had clipped and stored in one of my personal finance books. I failed to note the date. Can you tell me how long I have stored this?
That article appeared April 2008.
Jonathan, the Philadelphia convention sounds like a great idea. Depending on the timing, I would definitely attend.
There are hourly based CFPs out there; Garrett Planning network as an example. No reason to pay AUM fees
Dear Mr Clements
I have followed your writing since your WSJ days and hope you continue. I always find your stuff useful and valuable.
A few thoughts.
1) Mutual Fund Observer became a non-profit a year or two ago.
https://www.mutualfundobserver.com/
I don’t know any of the details, but it is a robust community of investors who contribute money to keep the site running. You might reach out to David Snowball who started it but is also trying to set back, for the details. Registration is free and he answers promptly.
It is focused on mutual funds, less so financial planing although the members start discussion posts about all sorts of stuff. Same problem there with tendency to political crap.
2) I would be interested in a Zoom Conference, but given the expense of travel and hotel rooms, I doubt I would go to Philadelphia from Cape Cod for an in person conference. It would be interesting if there were a lot of attendees from Boston area to arrange a mutual Zoom outpost there. Given the level of involvement in Boston from other “do it yourself” investment groups ( like AAII) I am not sure there is a huge contingent.
3) I consider myself a fairly sophisticated individual investor, so I find a far amount of the content here pretty basic. As an early retiree what I struggle the most with is timing of Roth conversions and how to predict the conversion amounts for most tax advantages without being forced into higher tax brackets. I have found little of use on the web other than generalities, and had my daughter write a basic spread sheet to model various scenarios, but I am not sure it is accurate enough for public dissemination.
More detailed and in depth articles about retirement money management and Roth conversions would be great.
Apologies perhaps to Adam Grossman, but I have yet to find a financial planner worth the money they charge. Perhaps his firm can do fee for service modeling of Roth Conversions, for example, but I depend on this and other sites like MFO for help and insight.
Keep it going Jonathan!
I would love to attend a conference as described. It would be a fun adventure for my grandson as well. I hope it happens.
Kudos to you Jonathan for your initiative and effort. Since retiring two plus years ago, I’ve enjoyed writing for HD, and I hope I’ve brought a slightly different perspective from writers who have a lot more investments and wealth than me. Last year was a busy news year with a riveting mid-term election and several natural disasters, which probably competed for any attention here. Glad to know you’re not ready to retire!
I think you should start w a limited book tour. If you can’t pack a bunch of bookstores or coffee houses, you’ll struggle to pull off a conference. You may not like that much travel, but think creatively. It could be a city-a-month, and you and a rotating handful of the authors could be on hand. Have the traditional book talk and consider a more casual reception at a different establishment afterward. Or plan a book talk plus a few more targeted sessions.
I like your content and your writers. But. Young people would frankly need a different newsletter series. You need to find not just younger readers, but younger writers, still figuring it out. When I was young, I worked in a career that was fulfilling more personally than financially. I just could not have related to writers who have backgrounds in good-paying professional jobs (often in finance or technology-related fields). Whatever the advice, I would have thought “easy for you to say”.
One last note–there is huge value in keeping a firewall between HD content and politics. I know you are trying to help everyone and avoid a political pox. You’re just saying “We’ll talk about the game, not how the rules are made.” But it’s also not surprising that comments go there. How the rules are made is a big deal. I have appreciated Helaine Olen’s willingness to point out that financial guidance can be implicitly political.
I explored doing book signings plus meetups around the country in the months ahead. But the publisher of “My Money Journey” tells me that bookstores are no longer interested in signings unless you’re a huge celebrity. Meanwhile, I’d be happy to do the travel, but — without a publisher to cover at least part of the cost — I wouldn’t come close to recouping the expense involved. Alas.
To a large degree, the content on HD has been guided by reader interest. For instance, HD’s readership is extremely interested in the issues facing those in retirement and approaching retirement. If I had a large staff of full-time employees, perhaps more content geared toward younger adults would be worthwhile. But as things stand, I think it makes more sense to deliver what today’s readers want.
I like the conference idea and I’m happy to help organize.
I go way back to enjoying what you write and now have the privilege of also writing for you.
I’ve passed on the two-minute check-up, and it has gotten rave reviews. Our niece said it scared her.
The conference sounds like a great idea. Unlike other conferences, your idea of a casual approach would be appealing. I would be happy to help as long as I wouldn’t have to give a speech.
Jonathan,
Since being introduced to Humble Dollar about a year ago, I am a steady reader and I look forward to reading your newsletters on Saturday mornings.
I agree with SCao that using a SurveyMonkey or similar survey/polling questionnaire may provide much better insight to you than relying on people taking the time to leave a comment. You could include questions about topics, time of year that might encourage/allow people to attend, range of costs that might be affordable, whether or not they would want to stay at a conference hotel, etc.
For now, count me as a “maybe”. I would probably get more out of the opportunity to meet others and learn from them as opposed to the formal sessions, so please include plenty of time for that.
Jonathan,
I very much enjoy Humble Dollar and relate to the world views and perspectives you and most of the other writers espouse. Thank you for providing this forum! Regarding attending a 2 day conference in Philadelphia, I’d be a definite maybe.
Jonathan: I applaud your work and accomplishments with Humble Dollar and encourage you to keep it going. I get that you want to scale back – same as I wished to do when I “retired” of sorts six years ago. But I must stay engaged not only for my mental acuity but also to “pay it forward” by sharing what I have learned with others. I am always interested in attending conferences, not only for learning something new, but to engage and talk with others. There are so many “conferences” and events in the personal finance space, that saying you want to organize and conduct a conference is one thing, but having something unique and appealing to many people is another. I might suggest to make the theme more about the elements of financial planning for the “masses” and not dominate the sessions with topics on investing. Investing is but one part of the process and the industry has yet to find a way to adequately serve the “other 95%” of the population – those that do not have six figure incomes or seven figure portfolios.
A conference geared toward more middle-income retirees and investors is a good idea. The median income for U.S. retired households was $43,360 last year and even less for those of us who are single.
Regretfully my travels are now limited by health and physical limitations of me and my bride. I would not attend a conference. I am certain the conference would be informative and a joy for those who are able to attend.
I’d suggest rethinking & re-reading the fine print on becoming a (501-c3/501-c4) in a re-establishment.
As per IRS, 501(c)3 is a nonprofit organization for religious, charitable, “scientific, and educational purposes”. Donations to 501(c)3 are tax-deductible. 501(c)4 is a social welfare group, and donations to 501(c)4 are not tax-deductible.
If the NFL can do it from inception for the first 70 years, till about 8-10yrs ago when it became public knowledge*, you certainly should be able to, since you’re actually doing it on the up & up.
Only you know. Did not KFC start that venture at 65yrs old. You’ve plenty of time Johnathan.
Data dictates working people live longer.
Plus, you’re the final word.
I also suspect there will be numerous upcoming .gov grants available for sites in social welfare & educational non-profit learning centers.
The American, and most international educational systems are currently unsustainable. Self-motivation I see as a key factor to employment moving forward. Once A.I’s fully established it will displace many workers. Autos, Truckers, any phone-support, retailers, food industry, etc.
Good Luck!
Thanks for the information. Running a nonprofit involves not just tax issues, but also organizing a board, having regular meetings, fund-raising and grant applications, among other tasks. On a typical day, I start work at 5 or 530 a.m. and knock off around 530 p.m., with breaks during the day to exercise and take an afternoon walk. Still, I’m probably putting in 10-hour days, plus extensive time at the weekend. If I turned HD into a nonprofit, I’d have less time to run the site — and that means readers would be shortchanged. As we all learn as we grow older, the most precious commodity is time, and I don’t have enough time to run a nonprofit and also run the site.
I suggest a marketing campaign focused on younger readers. While I often promote HD to my young-adult children, they often tell me that their friends need personal finance education.
Jonathan, thank you for everything you do to help us everyday retail investors. To poll the readers about the conference idea, perhaps setting up a simple form / poll will be better vs. posting comments here? (many readers may not post comments.) A related question, how will this conference be different from the Boglehead conference? Thanks.
Perhaps a poll would be useful at some point. For now, I just want to see if there’s some appetite for a conference. The Bogleheads conference — which I’ve attended three times — is mostly investment focused, though I sense the reason most folks go is to socialize. I think that would be a big appeal of an HD conference. In terms of topics, the subjects that most engage readers are not just investing, but also planning for and living in retirement, and the mental side of money — what makes for a fulfilling life, how to handle market swings and so on. I would imagine those would all be potential fodder for sessions.
Got it. Thanks, Jonathan. I will be interested in the conference, especially I am already in the greater Philly area here in northern Wilmington (DE). Wish you a wonderful new year in 2023 & keep up your great work!
Yes! I would definitely be interesetd in that conference in Philly. It would be great to meet fellow investors and have in-person discussions. Nothing beats it.
Yes. I would have an interest in the conference .
Keep up the good work you do with Humble Dollar. It’s a nice contrast to some of the things promoted on CNBC.
I’ve been following the site for several years. I like the idea of a conference, and starting out simple, keeping the cost down is a great idea. Over time, that will change. Frankly, meeting like minded people and the social aspects of it would be a great deal of fun.
I read humble dollar every morning. Reminds me of things I already know but sometimes gives me new information or ways to look at financial concepts or issues. Thanks
I am interested in attending a conference.
Happy Birthday! I really enjoy this site. Reading is the way I learned about personal finance, so I wouldn’t be interested in a conference. Reading is more efficient and less expensive.
The second thing I do every morning is read HumbleDollar,(after pouring coffee, of course). The drop of viewers as markets have tumbled seems counter intuitive , similar to investors, (or are these speculators?), losing interest as markets fall,and in many cases, selling as prices decrease . As equity and bond prices drop, I am quite certain the advice given here would be even more important, to try to convince investors that falling markets are a boon , as long as you have several years before the money is needed. I suggest to everyone, HumbleDollar is a great daily read, and, I just finished “the Intelligent Investor”, by Ben Graham, and that is a great read, also, so, now, after more coffee, The Wall street Journal, then Barrons, then to reread Grahams book, particularly chapters 8 and 20. I have benefitted tremendously for the timeless advice given here, and I hope HumbleDollar continues for many years.
Hi Jonathan, this is Chris. I have been reading HD for a long time, but just this year got brave enough to comment. I have always appreciated the quality content posted here. I think 2022 was a great year for HD because I have seen some new writers with different perspectives that I find interesting. I thought the 2 minute checkup was helpful and relevant to me, especially after you and Sanjib tweaked it. I have learned a lot of things through the years from your faithful team of long time writers. I hope my comment will be an encouragement to you. 🙂
Learned of this via Consuelo Mack’s WealthTrack. Subscribed to the weekly newsletter and will try the daily. Not the only personal finance newsletter I get but is perhaps the most easily understood due to the writing style. Satisfies my obsession and would feel a loss if it ever went away.
Thank you Jonathan for everything you do and ESPECIALLY your honesty. As I wrote a couple of weeks ago, I am one of the “guilty” ones that didn’t spend much time here last year. 2023 is a new year. The first time you & I spoke I suggested a conference. Glad you have seen the light! Sign me up and let me know how I can help.
I’d be interested in a conference, and might be able to help organize it, too. Add me to your list.
Conference? Yes please. Philadelphia is fine. I might be able to help organizing.
Thanks for what you do. I am, at least, is one new reader, subscriber and donator. Reading HumbleDollar has become a morning ritual and part of a much needed, much delayed self education program.
I think a conference/get together would be fun. I’ve chaired and helped organize 3 conferences for work over the years, so I could offer a bit of advice there, mostly on putting together a program.