How to Improve Your Blog Stats

Advice, Blog, Life, Write 135 Comments

A lot of people complain about their bad statistics. They whine that no one visits their websites. They ask themselves what they’ve done wrong,  and they wallow in self-pity as they eat chocolate and cry under the shower.

Look, guys, it’s a simple formula: We all want to be heard. Which basically means, engage with others and they’ll engage with you.

Seriously, it’s that simple.

I engage with a lot of people here in WordPress, and believe me, WordPress has a HUGE market for writers. I read, comment, and like a lot of posts, and I follow a lot of blogs. I also reblog what I like.

Dude, there’s a TON of fantastic work out there.

The interesting part is that not even half of the people I engage with return to my blog. They don’t even visit. They just reply to my comments with a “Thanks” and we never see each other again.

That’s dumb in ways I cannot begin to explain. Look, if someone reaches out to you, you goddamn reach out to them.

Anyway, let’s say that a third of the people I engage with pays it forward. Out of that third, another quarter ends up following my blog.

Are those discouraging numbers?

You bet they are.

Does it sound like a lot of work for little return?

That’s because it is.

And at the same time, it kind of isn’t.

Once you start engaging, the funniest thing will happen. It’s like inertia: once you start moving, the tendency is to keep moving. That means your numbers will start growing the more you engage, until a point where they keep growing even when you don’t engage. For me, that means the days in between my posts.

Slowly but surely, your blog starts gaining a life of its own, and that’s pretty cool.

You see, your comments link back to your blog. Your likes link back to your blog. The more you engage, the more you’re out there, and the more you increase the chances that people will discover what you have to say.

In this process, I’ve met some amazing folks. Seriously, these bloggers kick ass. And it’s really fun reading what they have to say, and knowing what they think about the stuff I have to say.

It’s the basic principle of a community, and every marketer worth a penny knows that building a community is a powerful thing.

So, if you have bad statistics, stop whining and start engaging. I’ll leave you with a great post on the subject by a living legend, Mr. OM.

We’ll continue with our usual nonsensical blabbering on the next post ; )

135 thoughts on “How to Improve Your Blog Stats”

  2. Will you say more about reblogging? I reblogged once and got a complaint from the original blogger. I’m not sure what I should have done differently. Since then, I’ve been reblog-shy.

    Reply

      • Yes. You will always meet weird people, though. I guess that it depends on the content? Maybe if it’s a chapter of their book or a poem, they wont be pleased? Which is still something I don’t understand. As long as you give credit to my work, I WANT you to put it out there because it puts me out there too. To me, that’s logical, but I guess it varies from people to people : (

      • This is a great article — I’m pretty new to the blogging thing and have also wondered about the etiquette of reblogging (and also the organizational angle of how it then shows up on your site).

        Thanks for writing this and being so diligent on follow-through with comments, etc!!!

    • So far as reblogging goes, the stock answer seems to be “they can turn off the option if they don’t like it.” So the ball is technically in their court, if they take issue with it. I’d add the P.S. of “get an idea of their rough personality from their posts and language first,” though… reading a few posts will give you an idea if they’re the sort to go nuclear for sharing their words.

      Reply

    • not your fault, some people are just crazy, if you don’t believe me I can copy and paste comments from this one crazy person that I just ran into, but that would be just being redundant. keep reposting commenting chatting and eventually you meet people that like to talk and like to share and repost and reblog and read

      Reply

    • You can reblog any blog you want in wordpress, if someone gives you crap about reblogging then what in the hell are they even blogging for. Password protect that crap

      Reply

    • There’s no shame in that at all : ) To be honest, in the beginning it was really hard for me too. I spent hours checking other people’s blog and got almost nothing in return. Mr. OM told me that once it picked up, I’d see more movement. All I needed to do was keep engaging with others. And sure enough he was right. So hang in there, keep engaging and your numbers will improve for sure : ) You already have a good deal of followers, it’s time to work those numbers for you ❤

      Reply

  6. I must say some days are definitely harder than others to keep up the momentum, though I do it regardless. I spend hours upon hours a day reading blogs, commenting on blogs, liking blogs. When my mind is on the numbers it’s a difficult day. But on the days that I am receiving feedback, even on their own site, I feel involved in an amazing community and it all becomes so much easier. 🙂 I remember reading one person’s blog where they flat out admitted that they never visited other’s blogs, that they weren’t here to pay it forward, just to talk at us…for whatever reason it unnerved me. 😉

    Reply

  8. I loved this post, because it’s completely true! Even though I had never blogged before until last year, I knew even then that to be heard, you have to be seen. You have to find what you like to read about and give feedback to others. Slowly, people will start coming to you. Of course, you have to give something that they will enjoy and want to read, but engaging is half the battle! I ignore the blog whiners. Negativity breeds negativity. If you don’t like something, change it! (Although, I am a hypocrite in the sense that I wish I could lose the baby weight without working out. Haha.) Thank you for writing this wonderful post! I look forward to reading more of your work. 🙂

    Reply

  9. Omg I’m so there. Your blog will remain stagnant if you don’t do anything with it. Reaching out to other people has gotten me to meet so many cool bloggers. If you want to be heard you have to hear other people. Following your blog now because you are so on point!

    Reply

  14. Being a bit of an introvert (and also crazy, and prone to fits of depression that can only be cured by hours of Netflix, complete isolation and tripling my caffeine and nicotine intake), I have a hard time reaching out under the best of circumstances. To me, clicking “like” on a post typically indicates “I really love this but I’m feeling very British right now, so will only twitch my finger in faint appreciation.” Actually commenting or interacting takes extreme force of will and usually sends me screaming for the safety of my bed, my dog, and a giant cup of coffee under good circumstances. Under bad, it’s essentially impossible.

    That all being said, I’m a numbers junkie, and love to hit refresh a zillion times a day on my stats. And you can tell where I was being upset and reclusive, and where I was having a “normal” level of interaction (clicked a few likes, dropped one or two comments or responded to comments) and where I was going out of my way to be sociable. It shows. Days where I was hiding? 3-10 views, depending on what I post. Days where I’m being normally responsive, but not seeking interaction? 20-30 views. Days where I’m forcing myself into sociableness? 50-100 views. Easy.

    Interaction matters, and it becomes blatantly obvious if you experiment a bit. Or are crazy, like me. XD

    Reply

  17. haha this is so true! i’ve been trying to reach out to people and they just like my comment and thats it. it gets pretty frustrating sometimes but oh well what can you do besides reaching out to more people
    -Sincerely Aimee

    Reply

  22. Saw this because OM reblogged it and i just wanted to say… damn straight! It’s something that’s so basic, so simple, so “2+2=4” that it’s a kind of a mind fuck to me when people fail to understand how simple it is. Maybe not “easy” (at least not at first because like you said, the work you put in tends to build momentum and take on a life of its own) but definitely simple.

    Anyways, the shortened version of what I wanted to say:
    Well said, couldn’t agree more 🙂 .

    Reply

  23. it’s amazing I’m across the whole spectrum here. I want to communicate I want to spend time talking I work so my work hours are in the way sometimes but when I can I want to chat and talk and communicate reblogging is used to be my way of communicating. but I also have a novel but a few novels but I’m a novel that I’m trying to get off the ground and get more likes and shares and reviews on, so how can I work that into my blog without it being all spammy, because I want interaction but I also want to build a good reading list of people who will follow my book in my work because I think I tell a good story.

    Reply

    • I’m at work too and can’t visit all the awesome blogs! I will visit all of them once I get home though! Hmmm, you have a very interesting question. I’m a fierce believer that you can’t push a book down someone’s throat or you lose a fan. I guess there are many ways to promote a book out there (review blogs, magazines, word of mouth, promotion, specific market strategies targeted at your audience, giveaways etc). I’d say blogging is more to put yourself and your work out there, but not by forcing it into others. i.e. You write stuff that aggregate value to readers and in the end you say: “Hey, by the way, if you want more tips on…check out my latest release” etc etc. You know, subtle. I wouldn’t mention it at every chance I got. Like, you say “Good morning” to some authors and they reply, “Good morning, have you seen my book?” It’s really annoying.

      Reply

      • Yeah I really don’t like that hoe like here’s my book here’s my book but I do like to add a link once in awhile just to the end of some posts revolving around the general topic of my book is. but to shove it down someone’s throat I’m really against that and once in awhile I will make a post like for example I receive me to post that I’m looking for reviews but not on a daily basis I do pop teasers here and there for my book so people can see what’s inside the book. but if you check my blog its you know not daily occurrence thing

  26. Pingback: How to Improve Your Blog Stats | Goilala's District Development Forum Blog

  27. I’m quite new to blogging but I’ve also noticed this pathetic trend of bloggers whining about no one is viewing, liking or following their blogs. Instead of finding more readers, they would just waste everybody’s time by ranting that the bloggers in WordPress don’t care about the works of other bloggers, but do they care about the blogs of other writers? Most like not… that’s why nobody also gives a damn about their blogs.

    My work schedule is as busy as hell but I still allocate some time for engaging with other bloggers. So there’s no good reason for not interacting with other writers.

    Nice post btw

    Reply

  30. I’m really new to this (just over a month) but quickly learned that 80% of blogging is getting your blog out there/marketing and just 20% is the writing bit. I’m struggling at the moment with the whole non-responsive side of it, but it’s slowly getting there. Good to know my hard work might pay off one day! 😉 thanks for the encouragement

    Reply

  31. Thank you for the pep talk. I’m fasting Facebook. Less of it, and more of this, as there is only so much time in life.

    Reply

  33. I so absolutely agree with what you are saying! I don’t like it when I visit a blog and comment and they don’t check back. I don’t expect them to become a follower. That’s something you do if you like everything of that blog. But just check it out. Check out the About. Maybe a post and that’s it. Cool post 🙂 Thanks for that.

    Reply

    • Exactly! Though I have a 100% follow policy: you follow me, I follow you back. Guaranteed. I can’t wait to get out of work and check out the awesome blogs of every single blogger who has engaged with me today! : D

      Reply

      • See, and that’s what I love! You find new people just by doing this: comment and exchange your thoughts. Then you read their thoughts and you get inspired et voila…

  35. I dedicate almost two hours everyday trying to reach out to bloggers (look I’m doing it right now with you) and most people don’t even bother to visit my blog. It’s tiring but I know networking is the only way to get your site recognized. Thanks for the encouraging words ^_^

    Reply

  37. As much as all of this is common sense… I wish I fell into that group who realise this common sense. 😛 Anyway, great words! I shall now make it a point to start commenting on posts and try connect with the writers. *goals!*

    Reply

  38. It is the basic principle of a community, just that lined 10X the power of everything you wrote above. If we get that it is 90% done. Thank you so much it has been in my head now you wrote it perfectly. Anything we take from without depositing into will one day run dry.

    Reply

  39. So i have to admit I didn’t read the majority of the comments on here so I don’t know if someone said this…but I really wanted to leave a comment that just said: “commenting for a follow. thanks” hahaha.. anyway, great post! definitely learned something here. look forward to more great posts!

    Reply

  41. This is true. Just keep it real! If you are desperate it will show it your writing. Passion will attract people into your blog but you do have to spread it and share it with the community

    Reply

  49. Excellent post – an example of this recently was The Harsh Reality Challenge – so many people shared a snapshot of their life as a writer -suddenly people were communicating and sharing – great karma

    Reply

  51. This is a really interesting discussion. The need for loving thine neighbour is a key theme of the blogging U courses and heck does it work. My partner wonders why no-one looks at his photos on flickr and I have a huge following. The difference is that I love looking and got over my fear of commenting. By commenting I learned something about photography – what makes a good photo. My question to him was – how does anyone know that you just put up that amazing photo? Now I’m blogging, I find giving feedback on others’ blogs gives me ideas for a post on my own blog. AND more importantly traffic is increasing. My views per day are highly correlated with the number of visits and comments I make that day.

    Reply

  53. Isn’t blogging a lot like the world out there. If you talk to someone and their answers are unsatisfactory … MOVE ON, find someone else. If you don’t talk to anybody, don’t expect to be spoken to. If you lock yourself up in your house, do you expect your one true love will one day ring your doorbell!? You will have to show yourself to the world and let them know where you are. And, as you say, the keyword is ‘ENGAGE’. Thanks for the blog. Have a prophet-able day – The False Prophet

    Reply

  54. I wish someone had written this when I first started to blog. I went months without so much as a page view. I suppose that writing about what I had for dinner wasn’t the most interesting topic, but aside from that, I had little interaction with other bloggers. It really wasn’t until I started to comment on other blogs did people start to view my blog. Seems obvious now, but it wasn’t back then. 🙂

    Reply

  56. Excellent advice.
    I answer every comment and enjoy them…The best part about blogging so far, is finding other bloggers and readers. 🙂
    Oh and I am never, ever, very unhappy if someone reblogs or shares my posts…ever. Who would be?
    Thank you, glad I found your blog…following and sharing. 🙂

    Reply

  60. Wow, I have had trouble thinking of tags. I love seeing all the tags you have at the end of your post. It is a great help. Found your blog through a comment you made on another blog I read. So, see, it works!

    Reply

  61. Well you liked my last blog that was, you could say, whining about how little feedback I’ve had for my writing on my wordpress and suggesting if you like something, or it makes you think, just say so, however briefly. But, having said that, I do find there are a lot of word press bloggers who like/follow my blog but still say nothing to me about why and I suspect in a lot of cases they are just liking/following for the sake of getting followed/liked back and that to me is pretty pointless. I look at everyone who likes or follows me, but don’t always say anything or like or follow them in return because I can see nothing to make me feel we have a connection and I haven’t got time to follow loads of completely random blogs. Sorry if that sounds picky, but maybe less following for the sake of it and more actual comment and connection would be good. So, thanks anyway for liking my latest. Perhaps you’ll let me know why you liked it. Cheers 🙂

    Reply

    • Hey Penny, I’ll paraphrase Frank Underwood here and say, “You’re entitled to nothing.” Don’t take this the wrong way. These are harsh words, but they are true. Like you said, sometimes you read a blog and you have nothing to add, and that’s fine. I had nothing to add to your post, because one) I had been there, and second) some things you need to figure out on your own. You also need to consider that we all have day jobs, and night jobs and we all have a lot to do, and if I my time is stretched (I write on weekends because that’s the only time I really have), a like is all you’ll get. Had I more time, would I have given a shout to you about my post? Sure. Would I have told you my thoughts? Absolutely. But sometimes, there simply isn’t enough time. You do however, want to show appreciation to a fellow blogger, so sometimes, that’s the reason behind a like, and sometimes, there’s a thousand other reasons behind a like too. Remember: don’t demand anything from your audience. They are visiting your website and reading your content out of their own free will.
      I will add that when someone follows you, it means they are interested in what you wrote. And I for one, think that’s worth a follow back, because I like to know what’s up with my audience and what they have to say.
      And always remember: You’re entitled to nothing.

      Reply

  62. Yes, that’s totally fair enough and I didn’t mean to imply I don’t like being liked! I think a lot depends on why you are blogging and for me the point of blogging is to make connections, particularly around creative writing, and in my busy life I haven’t got time to follow everyone. I’m probably missing out on some really valuable connections, but still, I feel I have to be selective or I will do nothing else, certainly won’t get any actual writing done. I think what spurred me to comment here was because I did feel there was a connection between the subject of my last blog and yours. And I do have a policy of always responding to comments, and am trying to comment more myself. Keep up the good work. Many thanks

    Reply

  63. Thank you for the like. This post on blog stats resonates with me because I’m as guilty as everyone else, we like and then fade into the background. I agree completely that if you want an audience and people to appreciate your efforts it is vital to ‘get out there and share the love.’ For me it is absolutely vital as the blog is part of the way I promote my business. I will be returning often and hope that you enjoy what I have to offer. Thank you

    Reply

  65. Thanks for the follow, and for the terrifically-phrased advice. Easy to get bogged down in blogging, in the futility of doing it into a vaccum. But ultimately, as you said, interaction is key–that’s why I’ve started tweeting! More to deal with, or more fun? We’ll see. Anyway, I like smart-ass writers (as if there are any other kinds), so I will be back.

    Reply

  68. Thanks for this. You sound like a bloke, but I don’t care which gender I get this stuff from. It’s great. Thanks.

    Reply

  69. Reblogged this on Anne Skyvington and commented:
    I’ve been trying to increase the traffic to my blog for a few years now. So when I find this sort of (free) information on a WordPress blog I steal it and share with others. Thanks Princess Kick-Ass. You’re a dear!

    Reply

  70. Great post – it’s not rocket science that if you don’t interact with other bloggers than they won’t be bothered interacting with yours. I think the same goes for twitter – genuine engagement rather than self promotional tweets and automatic tweets #argh

    Reply

  71. Pingback: Likes #5 « Transcend ❤

  74. Great post here. I’ve been rebooted a few times and just felt so great that someone else wanted to share my content.
    Please, anyone here, feel free to visit my page at http://runwright.net and reblog ANY post you choose.
    In fact, I just found this page because someone reblogged you and now I’m about to follow you too. This is honestly how it works, folks. Instead of whining, let’s do our part to build the community.

    Reply

Go ahead, it's a free internet.