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Addicted to blog stats

26 CommentsRandom,

I'm addicted to my blog stats page. It's kind of pathetic. These days I average about 30-50 views per day. That's not unique visitors, but rather how many pages are viewed. It could be one energetic visitor, or a whole bunch of people who show up and don't see anything interesting to look at.

I can tell which pages are viewed and how many times, but that's about it. Not quite as informative as the web site stats I used to get when I had my own site, but I can't complain because WordPress is free!

So back to those stats. It's always fun on Wednesdays when the guys over at Scrivener give me a shout out on Facebook and Twitter for my Tech Tuesday post. On one record day, I had 327 views (that was for the Templates post), mostly from Facebook. So, this week, I'll admit I was a bit disappointed when I didn't get a mention for the post on saving Compile Manuscript settings. I thought it was a really cool feature that a lot of people would be excited about.

Only 37 views this time.

One of the reasons I keep doing my Scrivener posts is because I've had such a good response. When I'm reaching that many people, I feel like I'm helping my fellow writers. I enjoy finding new tricks to make my life–and that of others–easier. Tech Tuesday has been my outlet for that and my penchant for teaching (that pesky know-it-all complex).

So, 37 views was disappointing. I really missed that “2” in the middle. 😉

Now don't get me wrong. I'm not bashing the Scrivener guys. I love Keith and David for all their hard work. I know Keith is busy working on Scrivener 2.0 and I'm really psyched about it. They don't owe me a weekly mention. I already got a fabulous program from them that makes writing so much easier than Word.

What I'm bashing, really, is me. For caring too much about how many people care about what I have to say.

There are far too many blogs out there for me to keep up with. Even good ones that I enjoy. I know this. And it's the same for everyone else.

It's my job to ensure I'm adding enough value that people want to come back.

The rest will follow.

[tweetmeme source=”yourtwittername” only_single=false]

Tell your friends!

26 Comments

  1. Tony

    Reply

    What you don’t seem to realize is that for everyone who visits your blog, there are a multitude who read these as emails!!

  2. MaryC

    Reply

    Hi Gwen,

    I refuse to even think about my blog stats. When school is in session I barely have time to keep up with it myself so I can’t blame anyone else for not being interested.

    FWIW, I enjoy visiting your blog. I think you choose interesting topics to blog about and one of these days I’m going to open that Scrivener trial sitting on my desktop and actually give it a whirl.

    Mary

    • Gwen Hernandez

      Reply

      Thanks, Mary. I have such nice followers. 😉 I should be more worried about the wonderful people I’ve met through my blog, than how many people visit.

      And you should definitely open that free trial. I bought the full version after three days (instead of waiting the full 30) and have never regretted it. Now I wonder how I ever survived without it.

  3. Kathy Fawcett

    Reply

    Hi Gwen,

    I know what you mean about blog stats. We just started the Attacking the Page blog 3 weeks ago and I’m constantly checking the stats to see how many visitors we have. Maybe the novelty will wear off after a few months, but I’m not so sure.

    I must check out those Tech Tuesday posts!

    Kathy Fawcett

    • Gwen Hernandez

      Reply

      It probably doesn’t help that I’ve very numbers oriented either. I track everything. Glad to see I’m not the only one. I know my blog has a limited scope and overall, I’m really happy with it.

      I could see yours taking off after a while because it has a defined purpose that can appeal to a larger audience. As opposed to mine, which is basically about me. 😉

  4. atomicgator

    Reply

    I totally understand Gwen. Nice post. I feel 100% the same way. I don’t know why I worry about traffic but I do feel better when I have a lot and worse when I have very little. I bet I have about the same traffic you do on average but I’ve never had a 327 day, that’s awesome. Good for you.

    Tell you what we can do. I’ll follow you on twitter and if you like my blog http://atomicgator.wordpress.com/ then follow me. When I see you update your blog I’ll retweet to all my followers and if you like mine you can retweet my blog to your followers. It’s a start right?

    First things first, get over to AtomicGator and see if you like our brand of funny!

    Keep up the great work

    ~Rich

  5. christineg63

    Reply

    I don’t even know how to see how many people “hit” my pages on my blog. I have no idea how to add that — I’m technologically disadvantaged and need my clever CP to help me 😉

    Another writer friend of mine told me she doesn’t do ANY social networking on the computer (she’s a GH finalist). She doesn’t even check her emails on the computer. (I know :-)) She only checks them on her cell phone when she is out waiting for bball games to end, etc.

    She said she ascribes to Nora Roberts saying “she only writes words that she gets paid to write.”

    Ah, now that would be lovely!

    • Gwen Hernandez

      Reply

      Yeah, but NR doesn’t need to network anymore! As long as I don’t let it eat too much time, I like being connected. Writing can be lonely business. I’ve been meeting my 1K goal, so something’s working. 😉

      I don’t know if Blogger lets you check your stats. WP makes it easy. It’s under My Account, Blog Stats, or on the Dashboard.

      • christineg63

        Reply

        True enough re: Nora. I told my friend that the social networking is for the social side I have. She’s more reclusive and prefers to stay low. Ultimately, the only benefit I see for me is the social side. It’s fun to keep up with my virtual friends as long as I don’t lose valuable writing time or use it as a way to avoid writing.

        You’re definitely rocking out those words! Woohoo!! Revisions are more like cut, dabble, groan and paste and write again. Blech. But the work is coming along.

        I’ll check out the Blogger site, but I am planning to move to Word Press. I have started the blog site there, but haven’t figured out how to export my blogger blog to it without losing all my daughter’s handiwork.

        🙂

        • Gwen Hernandez

          Reply

          I get more out of it than the social. I’m getting lots of great tips, and referrals for good articles, etc. But, the sense of community is definitely the main benefit for me.

          You should be able to import the Blogger account, but your themes/background won’t come with it. As I understand it, you have to use the WordPress themes for the free accounts.

          Keep at those revisions. It’s like a sculpture. At some point you’ll get from a block of marble down to the art within.

  6. Sybir St. John

    Reply

    Do you know…I have Google Analytics and I think I check once a month, MAYBE. I’ve been so focused on learning more about SEO stuff

    Christine, I think I might have to start subscribing to Nora’s theory. Of course, I’m not sure how to wean myself OFF of my Social networking and email addiction since they’re my office mates.

    • Gwen Hernandez

      Reply

      I haven’t tried Google Analytics. I’m not really trying to promote my site to readers at this point because I have nothing to sell. I’m just building a little community.

      I want to have a web presence in case anyone (think agent/editor) actually comes looking, and I want to be prepared in case anyone (think it again ;-)) ever offers to buy. 🙂

      • Sybir St. John

        Reply

        It’s free, it’s easy to install on a WordPress site. I just tend to use Google because I can keep track of SOOO many things with all their free services. 🙂

        And agreed, it’s it one of the reasons we blog! Plus, it is such a great way to connect with readers, writers, authors and more!

  7. Dunx

    Reply

    And add the RSS readers to your followers list too – that’s where I saw the Compile Manuscript template piece and it seemed quite useful to me.

  8. mirellamccracken

    Reply

    Gwen excelent post! WHat I love the most about it is that it is simple honest and generous. I love the fact that you are sharing your intimate secret about your stats, it takes lot of courage to do that, and very few people share this kind of information.
    We are all addicted to our stats! whether we want to admit it or not. Stats are great source of infomarion and it help us improve our blog.
    Take care my friend!
    Mirella

  10. David Johnson

    Reply

    Hello Gwen!

    I’ll let you know the real reason behind not tweeting or putting your ‘Tech Tuesday’ post onto our Facebook page until Friday 9th April last week. I was stuck up a mountain in Norway without wireless internet access! 2-days was about all I could manage without going slightly insane – I do the page stats thing too! The first thing I did after seeing how many emails I needed to reply to, was go straight to your blog and RT it. I only came across this thread as I’m sitting here on a Tuesday afternoon in the UK wondering what aspect of Scrivener you may have covered this week. 😉

    We obviously appreciate that you do not have to go to all the effort that you have been doing on a weekly basis expounding on certain aspects of Scrivener. We would love you to keep going, am I will thankfully RT and cross-post as often as we can. One thing both Keith and I do feel that we owe you is Scrivener 2.0. I can flatter Keith and say that it is looking stunning! That quality and adding value aspect is so true. If we want to keep people interested in Scrivener, we need to make it the best it can be without bloating the aesthetic. Keith is fortunately a perfectionist! It may take many months longer than we initially anticipated, but I hope it will be worth the wait. Email me when we release and I will get you a free copy sorted.

    All the very best,
    David

    • Gwen Hernandez

      Reply

      Thanks for stopping in, David. I specifically didn’t link you guys to this because I didn’t want you to think I was upset with you. I noticed a distinct lack of Internet presence and figured something was up. 😉

      I’m happy to post about Scrivener for as long as I have cool features to talk about. I look forward to 2.0, because I’m sure there will be many improvements to discuss. Plus, I just can’t wait to get my hands on it. But I appreciate Keith’s perfectionist tendencies. Let’s not interfere with that…

      Good luck catching up on your email, and it’s probably best to check in on Wednesdays since I usually post in the evenings. Thanks for the free copy offer. Just know that I will always be happy to pay because it’s worth every penny! Not only do you guys offer a great product, but excellent, friendly service as well. Thanks!

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