Before we get into my article, I want to set the record straight on something: I like some of the 'minimalist' blog layouts - I DESPISE the ones with extra large first-grade reader stylized print. I wrote Ana's Traffic Generation Cafe, urging Ana to check out the WordPress plug-in Michelle Malkin and other sites, allowing readers to adjust the font. Some fellow commented that I should change the settings on my browser - NYET! - nobody wants to bother doing that, and nobody ahould be expected to!
I present my blog to you as a portal: a vital resource and gathering place - like an internatikonal Airport of our pop culture. News, celebrities, politics, trends... whatver's happening is HERE! Thanks for coming by, and you are ALWAYS welcome here!
Over the past seven days or so, I have noticed the number of visitors to this humble weblog shrinking. This seems to happen every six months or so. After publishing this article, I am going straight to Google Analytics to give this blog a "physical." The drop in visitors reminds me today of one particularly dreary time, four or five or more Decembers ago, when I was startled by a huge drop in readership and went seeking some way to restore the numbers to what I had become accustomed to seeing. (that's how I found EntreCard.) As they say, all good things must come to an end.
While this blog didn't take a beating at all upon the closing of EntreCard, many other blogs that had triple-digit daily visitor numbers suddenly found ithard to attract 20 a day. My numbers had already been headed up, up up... but now they're going down, down, down...
I discovered one shocking theory explaining why this is happening on an article by Wayne Lambert which I saw posted on theprofitshare.com - Wayne thinks Facebook comments might be my problem:
Facebook Comments – Perceived Benefits & Actual Truth
Perceived Benefit: Viral distribution of content
Actual Truth: By the time the comment goes onto the commenter’s wall and news feed, the comment is irrelevant because the people who see the comment cannot see the context in which the comment was made, therefore the comment would appear irrelevant and you wouldn’t get the benefit of drawing the traffic from their network.
Perceived Benefit: People will “like” your content and more traffic will come to your site.
Actual Truth: This can (and does) happen as people will use the Facebook “like” button, however this can be achieved by simply installing the Facebook “Like” button without the full Facebook comments system.
Another drawback from Facebook comments is that it is the longest loading element on your pages which slows down load time, drains resources (even if cached) and ultimately means that Google will see your content as less relevant.
Interesting theory, but I wonder if it actually applies to my blog, which, when the googlebot visits, said bot always lands on my homepage or "start" page, if you will.
MY DECISION ::: I was "turned on" top facebook comments after seeing the method so successfully used by other blogs, like the Watershed Post. For now, I'm keeping fb. While I may be concerned about dwindling traffic, I'm not THAT concerned... not yet, anyway. Here are some interesting stats, leaning me toward keeping fb comments (by the way, my only problem with fb cmts is that I don't know they are there - can't see 'em unless I visit the individual post myself - I need notification - anybopdy know if that can be done?)
Social media has become a huge component of the web and a new study proves that point, claiming that internet users now spend 18% of their time online via social networks.
From Facebook and Twitter to Tumblr and LinkedIn, we have become a social media obsessed population.
According to the study the average time spent on social websites has more than doubled year-over-year from 2.7 hours to 6.9 hours per month
The study also found that more people than ever are using social networks with 24% of Americans in 2008 to 56% of Americans today.
As expected Facebook still leads the pack with nearly seven hours spent on the social network per month. Gaining speed however are Tumblr and Pinterest, both relatively new but super popular social networks.
Then, there is this:
Twitter is now my enemy. And we used to be best friends, by @laurenashburn
The Daily Beast :: After years of using Twitter, Lauren Ashburn no longer uses the social-media tool after "miscreant" tweets were sent in referencing her commentary on the New York Post running a front-page image of a man seconds away from death in a New York City subway station.
Her explanation.
Next thing that caught my eye was a BloggerSentral post by Jennifer James. She follows a minimalist approach to presenting a blog, and on my "to-do" list to try are three tools she recommends: Go Minimal. Use a plain text editor like notepad to draft your blog posts. After all, the ideas you put into words is what matters most. Go a step further and use a professional writing application like QuietWrite, PenZen or Byword. These tools provide online writing environments that are minimal and free of distractions. I know several writers who swear by these. Thanks, Jennifer!
Now, let's check in with some of the old EC network blogs: (after the jump)
Some of the images below are linked to an old Entrecard site that could go dark anytime, so if you see one of those "broken image" graphics, you'll know why!
One of the most - how can any explanation do it justice - thought-provoking, enjoyable and inspiration blogs on Ec was Maitri's Heart... from her blog - Maitri is a writer, 30 year teacher of the journal process, and small press publisher, as well as a Reiki Master, Shamballa Master Healer, spiritual teacher, ordained Interfaith Minister, and "Deep Listening Soul Guide." - that should give you an idea! Of course, she is still blogging!
This was the first EC blog that came to mind - "My Foliage Diary" was the very first blog on the EntreCard network that I ever visited - and I became a 'faithful dropper' - and reader - and if you check it out you'll find what some call a'hit and miss' blogging style - a lot of folks start blogs and abandon them along the way for various reasons... some people just grow out of them. Some get busier elsewhere on the net or in analog reality. yet, you'll still find good reading here.
Because You Are Great, You Are Awesome ::: Yet this morning, I woke up dreaming about today. Yes, I am heading back into work today. However, it will be a different day, a special day. Today is International Help-Portrait Day. [Sat, 12/08/2012 - 07:43]
Happy Birthday Mel! * ~ this wonderful post is a celebration of and for life, with family, food and of course pictures!
And if you head out to Grandma's Goulash blog, you will find a very short, very incomplete list of a handful of blogs that were active on the old EC network - it's a good place to start, and I'm certain you'll find many other great blogs by checking in with Grndma!
Tags: EC 2012 December, EntreCard
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