What is in a number?
Well, in blogging there seems to be a lot of numbers to think about, ponder on and in some cases: Stress Us Out! I’ve had a number of conversations with bloggers of all sizes about this game we seem to play. Then I attended BlogHer 2012 and heard from some brands.
First and foremost, I believe there are two types of bloggers:
1) Hobbyist – one who sees their blog as a fun outlet to share crafts, recipes, the kiddos, etc.
2) Monetized – one who is looking at it as a small business. Sells sponsorships, works with media groups and brands while sharing crafts, recipes, fashion, etc.
What is monetizing?
I’m sure some of you may even fall somewhere in the middle, but this post is going to speak more to those of you who are interested in monetizing your blog. I am strictly focusing on the numbers/pageviews in this post. For some of the newer bloggers, an overview of ways to monetize your blog will come at a later time. If you want to monetize your blog, then you have to be willing to work for your blog, which means research, a little more research, test some things out and (you guessed it) more research. Over the past eight months I have worked very hard to get my blog to where it is today — and that’s not because someone spoon fed me information. I’ve done a lot of homework, brushed shoulders with some fabulous women and continue to do a lot of research and learning.
Okay, so you want to monetize your blog. One question to consider when talking about monetization on your blogging is, “What numbers should I take more seriously then others?” or “What numbers are important to brands?” Let me first state, that I am not the expert on this. I am sharing some of my own personal opinions, observations and experiences, along with some sound advice received from brands and larger bloggers.
I’m going to break this up into a few a posts — it’s a wealth of information and it’s not my intention to overwhelm any of you. For some of you, this is super old news, but for others you might be getting your monetization feet wet and have a few questions. Let’s start with some thoughts on Google Friend Connect (GFC) and Pageviews.
I admit that before making the conversion to WordPress, I thought Google Friend Connect (GFC) was thee spoken word as to my growth and popularity. Why? Well, that’s what number seemed to get a lot of focus around bloggy land — and I even had one brand tell me that my GFC number wasn’t high enough to work with me. However, that number is truly (in more ways than one), meaningless. Yep! It really doesn’t hold much weight at all. I’m pretty sure I’m going to step on some toes here, but I think this needs to be said. Aaaand regardless of what is said here — I still love every single one of you!! Got it??
Here’s the proof in the pudding! There are some blogs that have well over 1000 GFC followers, but have you looked at their monthly pageviews? 15,000-20,000 pageviews per month. Ladies and gentlemen! Which of those numbers do you think carries the greater weight in deciding on sponsoring that blog? Or if a brand is seeking out bloggers to partner with on a campaign? Yep, it’s those pageviews! The number of pageviews truly defines the following and readership of a blog. In the two sessions that I sat in about working with brands (in which brands were represented on the panel), the number of GFC followers was never once mentioned. However, pageviews were. Pageviews carry a great deal of weight, maybe not all the weight as you’ll read about in another upcoming post — but these numbers do tell a story. Sooo, in a nutshell. STOP worrying about that silly GFC number. Honestly, I’d remove it all together! I think it’s become more of a popularity contest tool and it carries no weight. It’s simply wasting precious space on your sidebar (aka, your retail space)! Right? So, stop tweeting that your 5 followers from 100 and worry more about your pageviews!
Side Note: This will be covered more under monetizing; however, if you sell ad space and are not disclosing your pageviews — you’re doing your sponsors an injustice. That information is pertinent to your potential sponsors. If you’re sponsoring a blog without knowing their pageviews, shame-shame! Regardless of how many followers (via GFC, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc) the blogger has — without the traffic to the blog (aka pageviews), how are your ads being seen? Something to think about. You have to consider the Return on Investment (ROI), something else I’ll touch on under monetizing at a later time. Can you tell that I’m super analytical? I am… and you know what? I think it all makes sense!
Some of you might be asking yourself, “Where do I find my pageviews?” You can see some very basic stats in your Blogger and WordPress dashboards, but those numbers are not what brands/sponsors are looking for. The pageviews you report should come from your Google Analytics stats. Here is a screen shot of mine from July 1st to August 1st.
Do you have a Google Analytics account? If not, you NEED to do that pronto tonto! Visit {here}. Search on Google how to set up your google analytics for Blogger and/or WordPress, you will find all the necessary help you need. Once you have your account set up, be sure to install that within you blog. Again, search for this information on Google. It’s all there, right at your finger tips. The world wide web and Google will become your best friend if you’re willing to do your homework {wink}. Alrighty, let’s get to work on our pageviews — shall we?
Next Up:
The Numbers Game in Blogging: Social Media
The Numbers Game in Blogging: Let’s Grow + Engage
I’ll be partying {here, here, here and here}.
Home Stories A to Z, Craft-O-Mania and The Shabby Creek Cottage.
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Aimee Lane - It's Overflowing says
This is such great (true) information Kelly! You’re a wealth of information, I’m excited to follow the rest of your series. XO, Aimee
Laurie @ Gallamore West says
I LOVE this post!! I found myself shaking my head in agreement because it all just seems to make perfect sense! I too have gotten so caught up in the numbers game & get disappointed, but when I see my Facebook page I feel like I’m really interacting with my readers and that is more important than some silly number, right? I “follow” a bunch of blogs, but I haven’t actually visited their page in forever so that number can’t really mean much. I can’t wait to come back and read the rest of your series. THANK YOU for the fabulous post!!
xo,
Laurie @ Gallamore West 🙂
Kelly says
Hi Laurie! Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving some comment love. It’s my privilege to share some of this information… I’m no expert, but I have lived and learned in bloggy world 🙂 Thanks again. See you around the blog next week! Have a lovely day. xo, Kelly
I am LOVD says
This is a truly great and necessary series, Kelly. Thanks for sharing your know-how and experience!
Kelly says
You are so very welcome! I enjoy putting this information together. Thanks for leaving some comment love. Have a beautiful Sunday, friend. xo
Sarah B. says
Awesome post woman! I totally agree about GFC! Do you mind if I share this with my readers? Thank you!
Kelly says
Thanks so much, Sarah! I apologize for the delay in responding… Please feel free to share a snippet and link back to me 🙂 THANKS again. Have a fabulous week. xo
Brook says
Thank you for this post. I just recently switched to WP and I’ve been checking my stats in Google Analytics, and it’s nice to see the higher numbers and not focus on {like you mentioned} the popularity contest of GFC. I do have a question though, I have both SiteMeter and GA, and of course the stats are different. My Sitemeter numbers are higher. Should I just use those or combine the two and take an average?
Kelly says
Hi Brook! CONGRATS on your recent switch to WP and YAY on seeing the higher numbers 🙂 Good for you. Google analytics are what most brands are interested in, so I’m not sure how to answer that question. Some may even ask for a screen shot, so an average would be inaccurate. Does that make sense?
TidyMom says
great post Kelly!! I had no idea anyone was still worrying about GFC
Kelly says
Can you tell I’m playing catch up? LOL. Yep, a lot of bloggers are still worrying about GFC. Silly, right 🙂
Christine says
Way to go Kelly! LOVE this post!! Looking forward to the next instalments!
Thanks so much for sharing this at The DIY Dreamer.. From Dream To Reality!
Kelly says
Thanks so much, Christine!
Denise Adorian says
My husband and I are both retired. I blog for fun,never imagined it could help us financially.That would be a miracle for us,if We could make a little money from it. Denise from Coffeeberry Cottage
Kelly says
Hi Denise! Well, the skied the limit! Wishing you the very best. HAPPY RETIREMENT 🙂
Miranda @ The Pinterest Project says
This is SO helpful – we have been driving ourselves crazy trying to figure out which of the numbers meant what and held the most weight, etc. It’s really good to know which number is a good one to start focusing on 🙂 We took GFC off our blog for a little while and JUST added it back yesterday – now I’m rethinking that decision!
Thanks for a really good and helpful, thought provoking post.
Kelly says
Hi Miranda! Thanks so much for stopping by — and I’m so glad you found some helpful info 🙂 Please tell me you took that GFC back down???
Ginger says
Great post. Featuring YOU today! 🙂
Ginger @ gingersnapcrafts.com
http://www.gingersnapcrafts.com/2012/08/take-look-at-you-my-favorites_23.html
Kelly says
Thanks so much, Ginger. Always tickled silly to be featured over on your blog. Hope you’re having a fabulous long weekend!! Hugs!
Kaaren says
First of all, I really enjoyed your post. I found it most interesting. and informative. Just starting a blog and I have two questions, totally unrelated.
1. how often do you pull your stats? Daily or weekly? Can you go back to view previous days/weeks stats with this program?
2. In October I attended The Southern Bloggers Conference in Raleigh, NC. (also the first time held). I am on the committee for next year and wondered if there was any one or two subjects you felt were a big successful/must have topic or a speaker that was outstanding. Email me if you prefer. kanownnc@yahoo.com Also any information about next years conference (date, where it is held, cost, etc) I would greatly appreciate it. Some of us may be interested in attending. Do you limit the number of attendees? OH! that is far more than 2 questions. Sorry
Kelly says
Hi Kaaren!
Welcome to the wonderful world of blogging!
In your Google Analytics you can pull your stats whenever you want. Daily, weekly, monthly,etc.
I’m a little confused by question #2. I didn’t attend that conference. Are you asking about the BlogHer conference I did attend?
In 2013, there are sooo many conferences to consider attending. BlogHer, Blissdom, SNAP!, Evo, Haven, etc.
I hope that helps! Wishing you all the best. Hugs, Kelly
Andrew Montgomery says
Hi Kelly,
Thanks for the post. Very helpful. I just wanted to mention that the bounce rate in your stats screenshots from GA looks unnaturally low. That’s not to say you don’t have engaging content, just that 0.6% is too low. Normally this is caused by having your GA code twice (or more) on your page – perhaps you have a GA plug in plus you have it in your wordpress theme? I’m afraid this also results in some page views also being counted twice.
This post was from 2012 so perhaps you’ve realised this already, but I thought I’d mention it.
Keep up the good work!
Andrew
Kelly Rowe says
Hi Andrew! Yes, almost a year after that post was written, I discovered that GA code twice and had no idea how that happened. It was quite devastating to say the least. Thanks for stopping by… Cheers!