Yakezie.com - Topic: What are we doing wrong?

Sunil from The Extra Money Blog on What are we doing wrong?

Sat, 15 Jan 2011 15:21:22 +0000

that's exactly what i keep saying. we need a better benchmark for traffic because alexa isn't it. very misleading. i am working on a lengthy post that will be discussing why most of what we do thinking that it will help our blog really doesn't help it from a substantive perspective. there are some things we can do better such as SEO, marketing, guest blogging etc. that can impact our subscribership base and email lists.

Invest It Wisely on What are we doing wrong?

Fri, 07 Jan 2011 07:02:54 +0000

Oh, wow, I just visited the site and it is looking much improved!

Invest It Wisely on What are we doing wrong?

Fri, 07 Jan 2011 07:00:19 +0000

Free giveaways help a lot with subscribers, and a good guest post on a popular site may help as well!

Betty Kincaid on What are we doing wrong?

Thu, 06 Jan 2011 13:54:55 +0000

Wow! Thanks you guys for the great insight and advice. As you can see, we've already made some changes based on your suggestions and we're feeling a lot better about what we're selling (book vs. blog) and how to structure the site.

Thank you for sharing your time and expertise.

If you're just reading this thread, feel free to add your comments. The site is a perputual work in progress.

freeby50 on What are we doing wrong?

Thu, 06 Jan 2011 13:22:20 +0000

You have over 300 twitter followers and over 200 facebook followers. Those numbers don't seem bad at all to me.

What are your feedburner subscriber numbers and general traffic volume?

You say your site is 2 years old but you haven't been serious till the past 1 year and past 6 months followiing conventional wisdom. What has the growth pattern been for those periods?

Sandy @ yesiamcheap on What are we doing wrong?

Thu, 06 Jan 2011 10:21:54 +0000

The landing page is much improved with a good mixture of selling the book and the blog. Adding the Twitter feed in the sidebar was a good idea and better than the categories. I see what people are saying about the posts being long, but I get into the stories so I enjoy them. What you might need to do is break them up a bit with section titles. Sam does that with his posts when they are long and I think that it works.

mbhunter on What are we doing wrong?

Thu, 06 Jan 2011 06:45:57 +0000

If your goal is to get more readership for your blog, then it's fairly obvious why you're not getting a lot of readership: Your book reviews is front and center on the main page, above the fold. You have one post excerpt on the main page, and it's below the fold. Someone visiting the site for the first time would get the impression that you're selling a book rather than running a blog.

I'm not saying "don't sell your book," but just be clear with yourself what your goals are with the site. If your goals are sell books and get RSS readers, in that order, then what you're doing is just fine. If it's the other way around, then put the book and reviews in the side bar and put more posts on the front page. If it's a little bit of both, then do a little bit of both.

Also be sure to mention the blog in your speaking engagements. Promote your online activities offline.

uhnw on What are we doing wrong?

Thu, 06 Jan 2011 02:09:47 +0000

Thats looking better. Its a lot clearer to me now that whats important is the appearances and the book. I like the book excerpt comment - made me laugh. (but ive not yet bought the book - soon, I promise)

Betty Kincaid on What are we doing wrong?

Wed, 05 Jan 2011 23:57:21 +0000

I made some changes based on all the great advice so, if you get a chance, take another look and let me know what you think.

uhnw on What are we doing wrong?

Wed, 05 Jan 2011 20:58:42 +0000

Post length is fine, I just think it needs breaking up a little. I'm with crystal on this one - I skim quickly and don't really read unless it catches my attention.

Otherwise all good.

Try some book give aways to attract more people to you RSS feed.

MyJourneytoMillions on What are we doing wrong?

Wed, 05 Jan 2011 19:20:07 +0000

I haven't been back to your site in a while but it is 1000 times better than what I remember.

1) I am with Crystal - I would take away the blog category

2) I kind of would like dates on the posts you have on the home page (let me know that you 2 are fresh with content)

3) Acts of God Category shouldn't really be there nor should other categories. You don't need to list all of them.

4) I have no idea what you are doing in the back end but have someone read yoast's guide - http://yoast.com/articles/wordpress-seo/

Betty Kincaid on What are we doing wrong?

Wed, 05 Jan 2011 18:21:49 +0000

@Crystal

The "is it a blog" vs. "is it a website" debate rages on. We started out looking like every other Wordpress blog, then our book publicist recommended more of a website look which got us to where we are today. I like the more professional look of the site and we still have a blog that looks "bloggy". It's just not on the first page.

Yes, the blog posts are in 2 places. Current stuff on the front page and, as I wrote above, the more traditional blog is under the "blog" tag.

I'm definitely getting the message loud and clear that our posts, while not too long per se, are too text intensive. We'll have to work harder on creating smaller chunks of information (for the scanners :-)) that's easier on the eyes.

@Sandy

The comments are open! Blab away...(and, oy that tenant!)

We're working on our first contest right now and we're putting together an email giveway per Freddie's suggestion.

What kind of navigation buttons do you want to see on the sidebar?

Thanks for the great suggestions. Keep 'em coming.

Sandy @ yesiamcheap on What are we doing wrong?

Wed, 05 Jan 2011 17:40:52 +0000

Oh! You know that I read you guys' blog all the time. Here's my feedback:

COMMENTS ARE CLOSED. I want to comment on your posts, but you won't let me. Open the comments. When people comment they might come back to see your response etc. It makes your site more sticky. Comments please!
As mentioned above, give something away.
More navigation buttons on the side bar. Categories, meh.
More colors! Colors are our friend

You know that I love you. Waiting for the update on the crazy tenant too. :)

Budgeting in the Fun Stuff on What are we doing wrong?

Wed, 05 Jan 2011 17:11:43 +0000

Okay, I just took a quick (2 minute) look, here's my absolute first impressions:

1) It looked like a business site instead of a blog. BUT, that could be a great thing since I knew right off the bat that you are selling a book that Len Penzo likes. :-)

2) I'm a scanner but everything is written for in-depth readers.

3) I thought I found your blog posts on the left side of the home page and then was slightly confused by the "Blog" tab up top. I clicked back just to make sure they were the same. Thousandaire does something like this too - drives me crazy, lol.

4) I like your writing style but would also suggest some headers in between to break up the length.

Cool beans though! I'm sorry you are feeling frustrated. Blogging is so subjective that it is hard to figure out which side to lean towards (in-depth vs scanners, super anti-ad readers or the more laid back ones, etc). Good luck!

Betty Kincaid on What are we doing wrong?

Wed, 05 Jan 2011 16:59:58 +0000

Jim,

You bring up some great points, namely what are we selling,our book or our site? Ideally, the site should focus on selling the book but we'd also like to begin to monetize the site, maybe get some ads or affiliate programs,ec.

I'm going to take your advice and move our guest posts off the front page.

Are the posts too long in general or do they just need sub-headings to break up the text?

Thanks for your input,