A year ago, some of my favorite blogger’s blogs were booming with retweets and comments, and the social proof was enviable, to say the least. Today, the people leaving the comments and doing the retweets have moved on to other blogs. I’ve observed that people tend to pay homage to a blogger or blogs in groups – similar to the way that work crowds frequent happy hours at bars. The same groups circle the same blogs and then move on to different blogs. I’ve done it myself. There are blogs I “left” several months ago and just never went back to, for no particular reason.
I don’t think there is anything off about this. It’s becoming clear to me that it’s the way the blog world works, especially in the blogging, SEO, social media, or Internet marketing niches. Big blogs can hide it a little better, because they have so much traffic coming in and the new people commenting, tweeting, and linking in simply replace their predecessors.
Everyone loves and desires social proof (comments, retweets, virtual high-fives, getting on link lists, etc.) so I won’t pretend that these things don’t matter. I think that most normal people would like to have it. It’s difficult to see a blog that you’ve spent time growing and growing begin to plateau in terms of its social proof.
But I want to encourage you to notice the swings and take them for what they are worth. You may be a consultant, and your blog is full of social proof but no clients are coming from it or your biggest fans are simply not your target readers. On the other hand, you may be booked solid and have what appears to be a less-than-social blog. It’s difficult to tell what is really going on behind the pomp and ceremony.
A year ago, bizchickblogs was practically a newborn and wasn’t getting any action. A few months later, things got hot and heavy, especially when I was providing blogging advice almost daily. Nowadays, traffic is much higher but social proof is just so-so. It’s okay with me, though.
Here’s how I keep it all in perspective.
- I try not to get caught in a rat race. I analyzed a year’s worth of content on bizchickblogs.com, and the clear winners in terms of popularity are list posts. List posts take a lot of time if they are to be any good, and I can’t and won’t whip them out every single day. So be it. I have to live with that reality.
- I know what I want. If you’re blogging for business, then gosh darn it, blog for business, not pats on the back. Read Patricia’s post on comments and sales here, and then my old post on how comments don’t make you money. If you still don’t believe us, keep at it for six more months and then tell us how you feel about it. This blog is so much better than it was before, in my opinion, with or without comments.
- I enjoy my free time. I once read a post by Tristan Higbee about blog commenting, and how he was leaving something like 100 comments a day. And I’m sure he was getting just as many comments on his own blog in return, and responding to them all. That is a serious time commitment and it does work to an extent. I want to add quickly, though, that the tactic doesn’t work for every niche – trust me. For me personally, concerning bizchickblogs, I just decided that the time commitment required to drive loads of comments is a lower priority than so many other things right now.
Word to the Wise: Don’t become a slave to social proof…
… because it can ruin the integrity of your blog.
This is part of a comment left on a post at TheSalesLion.com, and I love what he is saying here:
I have somewhat regretted moving it from the personal blog I had started it out as years ago. I didn’t feel the need to narrow the niche then. If I wanted to blog about Nintendo, then by God, I blogged about Nintendo, darn it! I have since come to realize that niche blogging really doesn’t matter as much as we think it does. If readers like our writing, they will come back. Simple as that.
Some of you have been doing this for years and years – before social proof meant anything at all – and perhaps it continues to mean nothing to you. I think that at a certain point in a blogger’s life, the love of the game just kicks in… and it’s the love of blogging that keeps long-timers going.
Image credit: Shutterstock
This just became one of my favorite posts in a while. Thank you! Not sure if you heard the recent buzz on “FOMO” (fear of missing out). The conversation revolved mostly around SXSW FOMO. The people watching SXSW tweets started talking about FOMO… I found it interesting that the expression doesn’t clarify missing out on what. Ultimately it’s probably the fear of missing out on social proof opportunities… Am I totally off here?
Hey Mana! No, I haven’t heard of FOMO. I suppose I’m missing out, LOL But since social proof isn’t paying my bills right now, I think that’s okay.
What I find most interesting about social proof is that if that’s all somebody wanted, it’s so easy to get. All they have to do is just start mingling with other people who care about social proof and they’d be in like Flynn.
I really do get why people want/like social proof. We all do to an extent, but it has to be taken into perspective.
Thanks so much for your comment
Tia,
I appreciate your common sense approach to social proof. I know personally that I sometimes forget to go visit some of my favorite bloggers’ sites. It’s usually a matter of getting busy and forgetting to check in. It happens and I’m sure it’s why some of the people who have left comments before haven’t been back to my site lately. Like everything in business, I have to remind myself to not take it personally. As you’ve said, there are swings and as some readers leave others will come.
I’m glad to see you left a link to Patricia’s blog. That’s one of the sites I haven’t been to in a while. I’ll hop over there now and when I read the comments, I’ll probably be reminded of someone else who’s site I should visit. Thanks for another great post!
You’re welcome, Sherryl. I think you’re probably one of those folks who is a great example of Martina’s post today on being a good social media friend.
I think that if I had 4-5 hours per day to spend on social media and blogging, and I didn’t have a three year old or wasn’t a single mom and wasn’t completely exhausted all of the time, I’d be much more successful in social media. Alas, priorities!!!
You’re so right about getting busy – and I think that’s a good thing, though. I really do. It’s nice to see that people have a life outside of blogging and Twitter!
The quote of that comment was terrific. I played with the idea of narrowing my niche but decided I like having the variety of types of posts to write.
Hey Glynis!
Good for you. It’s about doing what you really like. That’s what is most important. I know that everyone says that, but when you read quotes like the one you’re referring to above, you can see that it matters all the more.
Great topic for your post Tia! It can be hard when you’re working your butt off creating great content, and no one seems to be noticing it. It’s gotta be your love of doing it that keeps you going in the end. One thing that I always remind myself, to keep things in perspective, is how few people actually leave comments. I can’t remember the exact stat, but it’s a very small percentage of people that will actually take the time to comment. So just because you’re not getting responses, doesn’t mean you’re not appreciated
Hi Martina – Absolutely. Think about sites like Oprah or Cosmopolitan that gets hundreds of thousands (or more) visitors per month. Consider the ratio of their comments. It’s quite small.
Cheers to you and great post today!!
Tia
Hi Tia:
I loved loved and really loved your post. I did not say this with authority last few months ago, when I reached to this decision. Because, people who have been living smartly with influence in their every day life, have brought the same effect in the comments for blogs. It is a different ball game now. I have decided not to care for comments any more, as it is simply gets some traffic. For my work I have to depend on myself, not for a traffic link to come. Growing is very important. Planning and moving up strategy is important for your blog just like anything else.
Awesome read of the day. Keep up with the web.
Fran A
Hey Fran!
I’m so happy that you liked this one. I liked it, too. I really do not like being negative and and I tried my hardest to put a positive spin on this touchy subject.
Thanks for your comment as always!
Tia
Every blog starts somewhere..but only the ones that really know thier goals in life survives the tsunami waves bthat a year of online marketing will do to you..
“Black Seo Guy “Signing Off”
Wow Tia!
This is an incredible post and so VERY true. In fact, I see the whole “your biggest fan” but not your target audience thing A LOT! This is why it’s so important to know your purpose as it relates to your blogging activities. Otherwise, you can end up getting frustrated very, very quickly. Social proof is always nice, it makes you feel rewarded for what your doing, but if you want to make $$$ you need to be more focused on generating revenue that getting comment feedback. I’ve experienced this in both of my online businesses and I couldn’t agree with you more!
Nice post Tia.
To me social proof matters more for certain bloggers and not so much for others.
Now if your a blogger telling the world you are a Social Media expert then you better have some social proof to back it up..
Now some of the biggest money making bloggers in the works barely get social proof and they are killing it.
It is all relative.
To me RTs are important to a point.. since I sell a Twitter product, then having a decent RT count on posts matters, it shows proof to back my product.
Another thing bloggers need to understand is how social media readers work.. if your writing posts on Social Media, Twitter, Facebook then you will get more RTs comments etc.. then when your writing about other topics.
So you are 100% right that people need to relax social proof.
and remember social proof wont make or break you as a blogger.
Hi Tia
Firstly thanks for mentioning my post. Wasn’t expecting that when I came to read your post
I had an example of what you are sharing here only this past week.
My latest post involved some research (which I enjoy doing) and took more time to wirte than some of my pondering posts. Yet it has had less comments. But I have had those who want to buy my products. Sales are definitely better than comments, though I do enjoy connecting with my readers too.
Like you, I do visit different blogs to some of those I initially visited when I started blogging. One of the reasons is that some of the blogs I originally visited are either not publishing now or publishing less or the posts aren’t now relevant to my journey. I get new readers each time a post is published so it seems to happen everywhere.
As my knowledge base grows, I visit different blogs that will teach me the things I need to grow my business. In the beginning I wanted to know how to blog effectively.
Also if people don’t interact or show an interest when I visit their blog, I’m not going to be rushing back. One way conversations tend to get boring don’t you think?! Many of the “huge following” blogs I don’t visit for that reason. Unless there is something specific I want to learn or to support a blogging buddy who has a GP there.
As always, enjoy your posts Tia. Thanks for sharing with us.
Patricia Perth Australia
Hi Patricia!
Yes, there is so much more I wanted to say about why readers move on; I was resisting being long-winded! I think it’s very natural. I’ve often said that as a blogger, you have two choices: grow with your readership, in which case you will lose the newbies and babies because the info will be too advanced for them, or, continually refresh your content, in which case you will lose your current readership at some point because they will need something more.
I’ve seen blogs that try to accomplish having something for everyone. I think they end up with a lot of fluff and not much useful content. It’s better to just accept that eventually the readership will change.
I’m glad adding the link to your post was a happy surprise, Patricia!
Cheers,
Tia
You won’t be expecting comments, still here I could not resist writing something after reading your post.
You will feel the intensity of love when you are parted for some time. I was away for a couple of months, away from my blogging and my normal online life.
When I returned, I realize, its not just the community actions that drives traffic to your blog consistently. Trying to get comments and having sweet smile to see a number of them dropping in your posts certainly sooth the heart. Still it is not everything that performs.
I have SEO MMO Tips that gets more comments than my ICT Trends but I know, its ICT Trends that performing better and earning me more money.
Social proof, they are good to decorate the showcase. Its better to have if you really have great content that serves you ONE REASON for blogging. We call the ‘Sweet Smelling Gold’ when you have both of them.
Happy Blogging!
Hi Suresh! What a great way to describe it – the “Sweet Smelling Gold.” Love that.
It IS good to have great content that serves one main reason for blogging: whether it’s to educate, to make advertising income, to drive sales, to drive leads, etc. The mark is a great blog is one that accomplishes its goals.
Thanks, Suresh.
Tia
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