Visitor logs are something every blogger worries about from time to time. We all do it.
The blog's visitor traffic goes up, then the visitor traffic volume slips down, and then the numbers stagnate into a bland sameness. Regardless of the visitor traffic numbers, bloggers are inclined to worry about them.
Many bloggers are too concerned with the raw visitor traffic numbers. While I am a strong supporter of data and record keeping, sometimes the numbers don't tell the entire story. Visitor traffic logs are no exception. They can be very misleading if used in the wrong ways.
I was talking to another blogger today who was very concerned with her blog's visitor traffic counts. She was hoping for more visitors, or even a steadier traffic volume. I suggested that she not worry, as her blog is still quite new, and still building its audience. The numbers are not as important as providing interesting and informative content to the readers.
Along with the discussion of providing good content, I suggested submitting the blog to the various blog directories, writing useful and on topic comments on other people's blogs. She started using Technorati tags, and that increased her visitor traffic from blog searches. A simple technique is to include your blog's URL on your outgoing e-mail correspondence and on all hard copy paper that leaves your office.
Okay, back to the traffic log discussion. I like digressions from time to time, and I hope that you do as well.
When you open your visitor traffic logs, check for the total visits. They will be different from the unique visitors. If people are returning more than once a day, it could mean they are reading more deeply into your blog archives. It could also mean they landed on your blog by mistake that time, but we won't go there.
If your traffic flow to your blog is consistent or rising slightly, you are probably keeping your regular readers happy. They are returning and enjoy your posts. If that's the case for your blog, stop reading your traffic reports for the rest of the week. Try looking at overall trends from week to week or from month to month. That longer term approach removes any day to day fluctuations either up or down.
A blog is supposed to be fun, and it's not fun to lose sleep tossing and turning about how to maintain and increase visitor traffic numbers. Stop worring about the numbers and spend the time writing an extra post per day instead. Better yet, work on something else that is a more constructive use of your time.
The traffic will arrive if you market your blog and write great content.
Just give your blog readers a chance to help your blog grow.
It will. I promise.
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