If you're not familiar with Google Analytics, it's an information gathering system that gives you detailed reports about how your blog is viewed. You can find out where your viewers are from (though not who they are specifically), what pages are most viewed, how viewers find your blog or link to your blog and a host of other things you never thought of.
I saw that a number of viewers linked to my blog through other blogs I've never heard of. It turns out that I am listed on their blog rolls. That's great, I don't mind a bit, but I'm curious why they aren't on my list of followers. This brings me to question number one; do you have links to blogs you don't follow on your blog roll?
My next question has to do with comments. I have (at this time) 57 followers. On any given post, I average between 12 and 15 comments. I'm curious why some people never leave a comment. I know that a few of my followers don't blog regularly anymore, so those I understand. It's not that I need my ego fed by everyone who stops by, I just like to know who's reading and hear what they have to say. So question number two is; do you regularly leave comments for all the blogs you follow?
For me, blogging is about connecting with other people. I think of it like sitting around in a big room, sharing stories, experiences and knowledge. The numbers don't matter much to me, except that the more blogs I follow and the more blogs that follow me, the more there is to laugh at and learn from. This leads me to my last question; what is blogging about to you?
Whether you've been dropping by for months or you've just stopped by for the first time, I'd like to hear what you have to say!
Willoughby
22 comments:
First off, I hope you feel better, wish I could email you some of the soup I made on Sunday.
About commenting, funny you should pose this question today, the main reason I don't always comment is that once I start trolling though all the blogs I follow, commenting, then check out the blogs they follow and comment on those I find that it is 2:33pm and I have done NO WORK AT ALL!! Argh. Got to go.
I had to comment on this one though :^) Feel Better!
Hope you feel better soon. This 85-degree weather in SoCal would probably do you good :)
Anyway, to me blogging is about interacting with other adults. Being at home with little ones can make me feel so isolated. I used to feel like that when Kennedy was a baby, for most of 05. I felt like I was on an island with no other adults around. Blogging is where I get a lot of my adult interaction, where I can feel like I'm part of something instead of feeling like I was alone on an island somewhere. It's nice to have a social outlet since I don't get that at work, since my work isn't typical.
As far as leaving comments, I try and leave comments if I feel like I have something to add but sometimes, like right now, I'm reading blogs on my phone and not all allow me to leave comments on their blogs (Tats, 5th).
And I've linked to blogs before that didn't link to mine. If I feel a. Blog is worth reading I will link to it. Having said that sometimes I'm slow to link to blogs.
I wonder why Luis can't comment on my blog via the cell phone? I must go check out my comment controls.
1st off: Su! I am so sorry you are ailing. Is it what Mallory had? It's so hard being the mom, sometimes, because who cares for the caretaker?
2ndly: I try to comment as much as I can. Sometimes I may miss a day or two but that might be because I have nothing to add. It helps that my laptop is on throughout the day. In between lessons I sneak a quick peek at a blog or 2 or 3.
3rdly: For those commentators who happen to stop by and are not followers, I do try to visit their blog to thank them.
Get to feeling better!
I have never mentioned a blog that I am not a follower of on my blog. I try to comment on every post of every blog that I follow, but sometimes I'm in a hurry and I don't. But I try to! There is one blog that I read that has over 500 followers and that is the only one I almost never leave a comment for - she has enough already! :) Anyway, I like to think of us as a group of people who have become friends because we share common interests.
For me it's pretty simple: I'm nosy and I "talk" a lot :) I like learning about other people, especially if their lives are different than mine. I'll have to check out why LB can't comment on my page...
I've been thinking about this a lot. I love the creative outlet...never even thought about the social part of it until later. Find that less of my time is creative and more of it social. I think that is the nature of the game until the Following is larger. I need to do Google Analytics. My assumption has been that if people are visting, reading, or watching in our case, they are leaving comments. Have no idea if people come an don't leave comments. But I'd like to know that. I Follow everyone who follows me. The new plan is M,W,F I read EVERYONE I follow that has something new that day...so usually 70 or so blogs. Some of those people don't follow me (losers! just kidding). So that is my chance to reach out to them and hope that they'll give us a shot. Tuesday and Thursday I comment on those that specifically came to read my blog that day. I use those two days to read books, think of topics, write articles. Nothing on the weekends, except posting awards if I got any. Had to put up some boundaries there. I think the schedule is one of those things I will have to change periodically. I'd like to devote more time to creating though. Working on that. Is this helpful? Holly at lifelaughlatte.blogspot.com
I just reread my post and I'm not sure I made a lot of sense. Forgive me, I'm suffering with a ruptured ear drum and it's painful. It makes it hard to concentrate.
Question number 1 - I was trying to say that it seems odd to me that someone who doesn't follow or comment shares my blog with their readers. I just wondered if it seemed odd to anyone else.
Question number 2 - I did a poor job of expressing myself on this one. What I meant to say is that I've never heard from some of my followers. Not once. I just wonder why they never leave a response and I wondered if any of you do that. Even if I don't comment on every post, I leave comments from time to time so the author knows I read their blog.
I read every blog on my list every day, but I don't always comment. Some have so many commenters, I feel like I am just adding to a huge list. Sometimes I am just lazy and and just want read. :)
I do notice that you can choose to to follow privatly, maybe that is why some don't show up as followers.
As for commenting, I read every post of every blog I follow. But, I don't necessarily leave a comment on every one. Sometimes the nature of the post, the content, doesn't interest me or connect to me. So for me to make a comment would be useless. Likewise, sometimes a person I follow has hundreds of followers and so many comments on their posts that I feel like mine would be a waste of time, or possibly not even be read by the blog owner.
I also notice that I never have anywhere near the same number of comments as I do followers. Most of the time, my comments are from the same people who faithfully read my blog.
And there are a handful of followers who NEVER comment on my blog. Never. So I wonder why they are even following me.
I tried looking up the Google Analytics, but as a technically challenged moron, I can't seem to find where you look that stuff up. Maybe you can help me out with it.
I try hard to comment on as many as I can, but it is hopeless. I work , have 2 small kids and sometimes there is no time, but that doesnt mean I dont appreciate everyone who follows my blog. I love all the ones I follow and anxiosly await everyday to see something that catches my eye that I can try!!!
I comment on almost every post that I read. And I read almost every post in almost every blog that I follow. That is a lot of almosts. And a lot of comments.
I have never linked to or mentioned a blog that I don't follow. That is weird. I gave up google analytics. I still have it but I don't check it. I don't have time with all these blogs to read!
If there is a blog listed on my blog roll, I am a follower of that blog. Do I always leave comments? No, but I really should more often. I think blogging is a sort of social outlet and it does feel good to see comments! :)
Blogging for me is mostly a way to get things out of my head, both good and bad. A way to share things going on in my life that I think might interest other people, as well. I rarely post much now, I am just so busy with the things going on in my life, BUT I read other people's posts just about everyday. I am one of those people who reads every post of the people I follow, but rarely do I leave comments. I do for some but there are a few that I never do.
I'm not sure why, but usually there are several comments already by the time that I get to read them... and it feels redundent... and sometimes I just feel shy. That might seem silly, but sometimes there just isn't anything that I feel like I can add to the "conversation".
I was surprised by the social aspect of blogging, and I sometimes feel overwhelmed by it(I'm more of a few but good friends kind of gal, than a lots but more surface friends kind of gal)... so at times when I feel saturated by commitments in my "real" life, I shrink back away from the blogosphere... and it is pretty easy to just be a watcher and not be noticed in the blog world!
geez! Did that comment just let you know WAY too much about the inner workings of my head? : )
I hope you are feeling better soon!!
Willou - I understand your #1 question, but I don't have the answer. I don't know why people would do that.
2. I have about 45 followers, yet average abou 12 posts, sometimes less. I'm with you; I don't get it.
Question 1.
I do have links in my blog that I don't follow. Did I get that right? I must have gotten confused there. I cannot reconcile "FOLLOWERS" and the Blog Links, and I feel that I should do something about it soon because it forces me to spend so much time on the internet.
Question 2.
I always always make sure that I leave comments in blogs that are in my links list or with blogs that I follow. I think it's not just polite to do so, but it's how you build, establish, and make your "relationship" flourish.Ü
Bloghopping.Ü
I like this post of yours.
I'll admit...sometimes I don't always comment. I ALWAYS read EVERY SINGLE BLOG POST from the blogs on my list.
However, I can answer two of your questions in one shot...
I comment the same way that I blog. If I feel that I need to say something, I do. If I don't, I don't. It's not that I'm not interested in the post (or the news stories)...it's just that, sometimes, I don't have anything else to add.
However, on the other end, I love getting comments on my blog. I love responding to comments on my blog. Which tells me that I should leave comments more often.
This morning, I told Lee at HH&H that I should just say "I was here." That's kind of generic, though. I'm looking for a way to leave a big "C"...like Zorro. That would be interesting...
I am still figuring out this stuff too..along with proper blog etiquette.
If you are on my blog roll, I follow you. I try to comment as much as I can especially to those who regularly comment on my blog (although I am behind recently and not sure I am going to catch up). Sometimes I am not sure what to say if I don;t have an opinion, etc and that is hard.
I have a bunch of followers who I have never heard from. When I first started I followed everyone..not anymore...I have a formula now (just kidding!).
I also have numerous people who keep coming back and commenting but never follow..go figure!
I use Stat Counter...never heard of Google Analytics.
I am still figuring this out myself...but if I discover anything I will let you know.
I may also steal Holly and Charisse's system. I am finding I can not do this like crazy everyday...I must take care of my kids at some point!
I can barely see...so I am not looking for typos..sorry!
Holly
We're of the same mind this week. I have a post for Wednesday on Followers and Blog Lists. I'm trying to figure it out too.
For me, I read upwards of 200 blogs and I comment A LOT-- Probably 90% of the time. I enjoy the interaction and appreciate the writer's time to post for my viewing.
Why someone would include you as a fave blog and NOT comment on your blog is a mystery.
I've noticed that the more I comment on other blogs the more comments I get. But if I'm on vacation and don't comment, my comments drop way down. So to answer your last question, I read because I enjoy it and I comment to show my appreciation and to join the conversation.
xo
1) I don't have a blogroll, so no answers here.
2) I always read the posts of the blogs I follow ( = a little more than 20 posts a day), but I don't always comment. Sometimes I don't get what the post is about (especially when it refers to American people I am not familiar with). Sometimes I cannot relate to it. Sometimes the writer gets so much feedback, that I feel my 2 cents are not necessary.
But it is true that comments per post are always less than followers. That's what makes me appreciate loyal readers even more. :)
This was an interesting read. I've read other posts about this before, but I haven't commented because, as is the case whenever I don't comment, I didn't feel I had anything to add.
Lately I've been trying to figure why I need the comments. I keep trying to decide whether or not to turn them off altogether...but that's a comment for another day.
I try to read all of the blogs on my blogroll every day, but I don't always leave a comment. I don't always have anything to say. That is true in real life too. I like for what I say to mean something to the hearer/reader. To make a difference. Lots of times, what I would say has already been said. Same thing with following. I don't want the followee to think it's an obligatory thing with me. I want that to matter, too. I want to be able to comment and contribute something to the conversation and if I follow too many it means I can't always do that. But just because I'm not following, it doesn't mean I'm not reading. And the same goes for commenting.
All of that being said, I recognize now (from your post and the comments left here) that comments themselves matter to some. It's given me more to think about and for that my friend, I thank you.
Just wanted to say these were interesting questions and I read through all the answers. I try to comment on all my followers at least 1-2 times week, life permitting. It sometimes is a bit overwhelming. Sometimes Id like to write paragraphs but have no time. I do try to read every day and catch up with what I miss. Interesting post.
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