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6:48 am
February 19, 2014
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UberSteward
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Hello everyone,
…in bit of a slump here.
I started my PF blog about 9 months ago and I'm struggling with making further progress.
I came across an article which provide some tips on blogging and one of tips that resonated with me was "Give the people what they want", and I couldn't answer that for myself.
What do they want?
Have you guys that about that? What do PF blog audience want?
Comments have completely dropped out and my traffic is going nowhere at this point and I'm not sure what to do.
Some veteran bloggers encourage me to stay on course because this is usual first year of blogging, but I see other PF bloggers chugging their way through making awesome progress thats making me jealous. (i.e. frugaling.org)
Somebody, throw me a bone here.
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12:51 pm
February 19, 2014
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Pauline
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You can start by narrowing down your popular posts in G analytics, which one got the most pageviews? that means people liked it so you can expand on similar topics.
Then you can check the best keywords driving search to your site and expand on those. Or the posts with more comments and do a follow up.
Asking questions is a good way to get people involved too. Replying in a post to a good post that brought your attention with a link back to it will drive the author and maybe more people to check it out.
Everyone is looking for different things, from frugal recipes to investing tips so just do what you're most comfortable with and try to get the people from that niche to read it.
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1:24 pm
February 19, 2014
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UberSteward
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| Member | posts 69 |
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Pauline said:
You can start by narrowing down your popular posts in G analytics, which one got the most pageviews? that means people liked it so you can expand on similar topics.
Then you can check the best keywords driving search to your site and expand on those. Or the posts with more comments and do a follow up.
Asking questions is a good way to get people involved too. Replying in a post to a good post that brought your attention with a link back to it will drive the author and maybe more people to check it out.
Everyone is looking for different things, from frugal recipes to investing tips so just do what you're most comfortable with and try to get the people from that niche to read it.
Thanks Pauline, that really helps. However, most of the comments I received was through other PF bloggers who were nice enough to pay me a visit like yourself. I even thought about turning my PF blog into a lifestyle blog for that reason thinking that more people would relate with me. Blogging is not easy thats for sure.
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1:36 pm
February 19, 2014
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annielogue
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I've been paying attention to the most popular posts and writing more about those topics. It's the closest thing to market research, yes?
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Low Finance. High Finance: Spend less than you earn, get a return that beats inflation
The Root of All: http://www.therootofall.com @annielogue
Chicago on the Cheap: http:www.chicagoonthecheap.com @chicagocheap
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4:08 pm
February 19, 2014
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First Million is the Hardest
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I've found posts where I speak about my personal experience with a given subject do really well. I think people tend to enjoy reading that sort of thing more than "10 ways to save money on bacon" which might get clicks from Google or Twitter but aren't going to keep people coming back to your site for more.
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7:53 pm
February 19, 2014
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The College Investor
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Better question – what are you doing to market your blog in your niche? I'm a big believer that you should be spending at least 50% of your time marketing your content – if not 80% of your time. How else will people find you?
You need a blog marketing plan like this one I put together.
Finally, stop thinking like a personal finance blogger. Who cares if other PF bloggers read your stuff. Instead, find Christians! That seems like your target audience. So, where can you find them? Where can you connect with them? Then you will start seeing growth.
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12:21 pm
February 20, 2014
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Financial Samurai
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How about guest posting on Bob Lotich's site, ChristianPF?
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Regards,
Sam
Financial Samurai - Helping you achieve financial freedom sooner, rather than later.
Yakezie Network Founder
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12:33 pm
February 21, 2014
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Barbara Friedberg
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9 Months is nothing. All of the above advice is awesome, but figure out why you are blogging?
Do you want an outlet for yourself (It doesn't sound like it).
Do you want to share your expertise?
Do you want to start an online business?
Keep the blinders on and don't focus on other's success, we all have our own trajectory.
Re comments, if you comment, you get comments back!
Do you want other pf bloggers to read your stuff or other people? Other people don't usually comment.
Good luck.
Keep at it if it's fun and fulfilling a need for you. If not, there's no shame in moving on.
One final word, and pardon the repetition. 9 months is nothing. It's too soon to expect much outstanding progress. Most bloggers take years to gain traction.
Best regards and thanks for bringing up the subject that we all think about no matter how old our blog is!!!
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1:41 pm
February 21, 2014
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FrugalRules
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Like Barbara said, I agree with all of the above comments. I especially liked the point that we all have our own trajectory that we should be focusing on.
In regards to comments, one thing I have seen over time is that just because you're not getting X # of comments doesn't mean people aren't reading your posts – there are many ways they can still interact that may not be seen. Take a look at GA and see where people are landing on and spending time at and that'll make a little clearer what is hitting home with readers.
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1:43 pm
February 21, 2014
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Larry @ The Skilled Investor
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Post edited 1:45 pm – February 21, 2014 by Larry @ The Skilled Investor
In addition to other excellent comments above, what do you really care about and what do you know that would help others? This really is a marathon. Without the passion, the metrics will never be enough. With the passion, the metrics really do not matter.
If you focus on what you care about and what you know, then you might consider writing more in-depth posts. You get to define the shape of your hamster wheel and whether you like the exercise. You could experiment with less frequent posting with perhaps one long post a week that you enjoy writing and then compare the results. PF blogging is not a road to riches, but it can be a personal outlet that a growing number of readers might appreciate.
This is just a suggestion: From you website, it seems to me that the "earn all you can" and "save all you can" themes are generic. However, very few PF websites deal with the "give all you can" theme from a personal finance perspective. That might be a theme to develop. Make a list of giving subjects for posts to write about that include a financial flavor. Do that for six months. See if an audience comes to you.
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7:25 pm
February 23, 2014
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Renée @ NickelbyNickel
| | Canada | |
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What everyone else has said already +
Write what you love.
Whatever you do, don't start throwing posts out there just to have something to post or rehashing the same thing everyone has already done.
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