Helloo Everyone,
We all have goals right? Life goals. Career goals. Health goals. So what’s wrong with having blog goals? In fact I have loads myself! That’s right I look at my blog stats from time to time, I keep track of how many followers I gain on my social media accounts each month and I’ve recently starting setting myself goals that I want to achieve so I can keep improving my blog! I wasn’t like that at all when I first started blogging back in 2014 but at that stage I guess I was still learning the ropes.
Okay let’s get straight to the point: there’s nothing wrong with caring about your numbers!
For some bloggers numbers aren’t important or they might not keep track of their stats and that’s completely fine! Honestly if that’s what you’re happy with then carry on because you’ve got to be able to enjoy what you’re doing and no one should try convince you otherwise! The only thing you’ve got to be aware of is that many of us blog for various reasons; for one it may be a hobby and for another it could be their whole career! Even then neither of the ideas would be wrong for wanting to keep an eye on your numbers never mind that they’re in different situations. Blogging is a passion of mine but I also do it as I want to start working with brands and yes gain followers. That doesn’t mean I don’t care about anything else? The quality of my content is essential no matter what however I want more people to read my blog because that’s what it’s here for.. TO BE READ AND ENJOYED!
I find it unfair when others say that numbers ruin blogging as that’s not always the case. I think if you take it too far then it might start having a bad effect on your blogging experience. It’s all about finding a happy medium and if you can’t find it then don’t pressure yourself to try. Bearing in mind that just because something doesn’t work for you, doesn’t mean it won’t work for someone else.
Stats are quite important to me, as you can probably tell already, which is why I use Google Analytics. It allows me to find out about my audience (that’s you) for things like how you react to different posts on my blog! This means I can evaluate and improve on bits that I need to. I would find it more difficult to do so without that! Twitter analytics is also great for seeing what tweets had the most engagement and the percentage of followers I’ve gained over a period of time. Yes it’s not my top priority but I would be lying if I said they haven’t helped me in the long run. Trust me if I didn’t enjoy it there’s no way I would keep doing it!
Best of luck with your goals. Twitter seemed to be quite sided about it last night, I think they're great but not always necessary. Like you say, people blog for different reasons. I think it shows determination and drive, I really hope you surpass the stats you've set yourself as goals this year! 🙂
Becky; http://www.rebeccamarie.co.uk xxx
Thank you Becky and I hope I do too haha! I agree you don't have to have goals necessarily, I just don't agree with others saying that no one should because like we both said it can be really motivating 🙂
I think deep down everyone cares about stats – pageviews, followers etc. Who doesn't want more people reading their blog? Some people just don't like to admit it. At least you're honest!
Nicola
http://nicspirational.co.uk
There's nothing wrong with caring about stats but there does seem to be this weird thing where people feel uncomfortable saying it. That's partly why I done this post because I wanted to show that it's okay to be like that.
Thanks I do like my honesty 😉
I totally agree with you! I love stats because I love looking at numbers! I try to make sure that they don't get me down to much when they are not doing so well as I would like but when they are good, it is so moivating and really gets me in to gear x
http://thriftyvintagefashion.blogspot.co.uk
Yeah I've always been a fan of numbers! That's a good way to approach them, you don't want them to become overwhelming and then you start to not enjoy blogging.
Fab post. I do care about my numbers. They aren't the be all and end all but it is always nice to gain followers and views. I'm glad someone finally said this! Also I would love to hear how you organise yourself with your blog! x http://www.aimeeraindropwrites.co.uk x
Great post I myself have blogging goals too, your so right watching your numbers and wanting to work with brands doesnt mean you dont have passion for what you do, to me it just means you want to reach to another level
Your spot on. I do care about numbers but I don't let my self get worked up about it. I still blog for the passion.
Lust For Beauty
Numbers essential for me as I'm trying to make a career out of this. They help me figure out what my audience likes to see & read about & they also tell me which medium draws the most traffic in. Also, setting goals is what pushes me to do better and improve. I set high, yet attainable goals & that works for me so far.
Wendy | XOBeautyAddict.com
I think it's brilliant to have goals, without them is there any point in doing it? When I see my readers increasing it gives me more hope and inspires me to write more! I think checking your stats can also give you the confidence and this will improve your blog even more! Great blog
Demi xxx
http://denbraberbeauty.blogspot.co.uk/2016/01/my-goals-for-2016.html?m=1
I've never been completely focused on my numbers, but it is something I'm looking at more now. It's giving me a goal to achieve. I don't think it's a bad thing if you want to increase numbers – for me, I'd say it's bad when that's taking over your mind and ruining the blogging experience for you. It should still be enjoyable afterall! It's definitely an interesting topic!
My blog goal is just to gain followers that are genuinely interested in my content. The numbers themselves don't matter to me as long as it's the same people returning and engaging with my blog 🙂
Erin | beingerin.com
Great post! 🙂
moremindfulyou.blogspot.com
WE have the same computer! <3 lol