John Cow dot COM: Dear RSS Subscriber, Should We Really Care About You?
Lori
· 1 year ago
If I can't read a blog through a reader, then you don't get read. I manage 6 blogs of my own, 3 kids, a ranch, and me. I don't have time to go around blog surfing so reading updates through my reader is really best for me. Maybe you should think about monetizing your feed to it's full potential.
I'm here by way of Google Reader if that tells you anything. Honestly, I stop by sometimes when I just happen to think about it, but I'm following so many blogs that my Google Reader is my gateway to most of the content I read online these days. In short, yes... you should care about your RSS subscriber numbers, IMO.
I don't think I've ever visited the number of blogs I need to without using Google Reader. What I hate are blogs that don't display the full post in their feed. I just bypass those.
I have 50+ blogs in my RSS reader. Over 90% of them offer a full-feed RSS.
I do read more blog posts than news items, with most news items getting just a look at the headline. If that doesn't interest me, I skip it. Blogs are similar, but I tend to read the majority of blog posts in my reader. I would say that I at least skim through 90% of blog posts, and I thoroughly read maybe half of those.
If the blog does not have a full-feed RSS, I usually don't subscribe. I have only a handful of sites in my reader that do not offer a full-feed. Of those that don't offer a full-feed, I probably only go to the actual blog to read content 25% of the time.
While it's frustrating to not get visits to your website--I frequently have more feed subscribers than I have daily visits to my blog--those are readers you would not otherwise have. At least if they have you in their reader, you have a shot at getting their attention. If you're not in their reader, they are more likely to forget about you. It's rare that I visit a blog (except for new blogs) that I am not also subscribed to in my reader. I may not visit as often, but I possibly wouldn't visit at all if they are not in my reader and I forget about them!
The first month the first what I did when I woke up was reload my blog to check how many subscribers I got, just like you said. But know my blog will be 3 months old and I really don't care about it. I have +100 subscribers daily and I feel good when this number increase but is not a priority right now. Actually I'm focused on my SEO and get more traffic through search engines.
I use google analytics to track how many people click on my subscribe to link. That way I know that I'm getting subscribers, rather than search engines etc etc picking up on my RSS feed.
Very interesting thanks. I wondered why it only updated once per day. I still like seeing the number go up but I also know it is not the end of the world when it goes down.
I put a lot more stock in comments and am trying to get that beefed up these days.
Cow, you bring up yet another great point. It's true that subscribers stop visiting your blog because it's all in the feed, but people like me do not stop. I love checking feed subscribers and any type of layout change, so I actually look at my feed just to open the post in a tab. I know it's pretty pointless to subscribe to feeds, but I also want to help out :)
I will unsubscribe any blogs that doesn't offer full feeds, it's like a waste of time. Besides, having the right to brag for having high number of subscribers, it should somewhat determine how loud your blog's voice is. I'm coming via FeedDemon btw :razz:
It's Google reader makes easy.I somtimes read hundreds of blog in a day and it's not suitable to check the website for each one rather than read all of those site using Google Reader. :evil:
I read a few blogs that are not a full feed. If the first paragraph is interesting, I will go to the blog. For the most part, they are. :wink: If I want to react to a post and leave a comment , I will go to the blog.
Commentluv may also encourage people to leave comments and be discovered by others. I should look into it.
Monetize the footer too even if that don't bring much money(cheap advert. or affiliates). You did it before.
I cant read through a RSS reader either. I have my fav RSS's added to my toolbar in firefox. I then look at the title and if I am interested, I will visit the blog....
I never really considered how many readers can be just looking at your RSS feed and not your website. That is definitely a problem for monetization. But as it seems, you definitely need to be keeping pace with all of those loyal readers.
What about the money, have you noticed a relative increase in blog income as subscribers increase? Whilst my RSS count fluctuates I've never noticed my number of RSS subscribers have any influence on my income.
Ahh , there you go .. I think your blog has gone totally off topic. You blog about your RSS reader , reviews and no tips and tricks of Make Money online. But by cutting off the full feed feature, I think you havnt done anything good for your blog. Anyways, c ya sometime later.
I'm like Mike Huang, I use my feeds to remind me of my favorites and usually go to the post on the site. I manage about four sites now, work and have a family and it's a great way to keep track. The ones I like best I put on my homepage - like JohnCow. :mrgreen:
I like to experiment and I was thinking of trying the same thing. You have more subscribers to lose so YOU experiment and report back to us how it went.
I don't want to be the Mooron that screws it up.
:twisted:
notjohnchow
· 1 year ago
I only use the RSS to remind me to check out some blogs every now and then. I don't usually read them in the feed.
Perhaps you might want to try monetising RSS feeds like the Big Beef? I usually let posts store a few days before using Google Reader to pore through all the sites I subscribe to. Imagine the amount of clicking I would have to do if just John Chow went partial-feeds!
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I do read more blog posts than news items, with most news items getting just a look at the headline. If that doesn't interest me, I skip it. Blogs are similar, but I tend to read the majority of blog posts in my reader. I would say that I at least skim through 90% of blog posts, and I thoroughly read maybe half of those.
If the blog does not have a full-feed RSS, I usually don't subscribe. I have only a handful of sites in my reader that do not offer a full-feed. Of those that don't offer a full-feed, I probably only go to the actual blog to read content 25% of the time.
While it's frustrating to not get visits to your website--I frequently have more feed subscribers than I have daily visits to my blog--those are readers you would not otherwise have. At least if they have you in their reader, you have a shot at getting their attention. If you're not in their reader, they are more likely to forget about you. It's rare that I visit a blog (except for new blogs) that I am not also subscribed to in my reader. I may not visit as often, but I possibly wouldn't visit at all if they are not in my reader and I forget about them!
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I put a lot more stock in comments and am trying to get that beefed up these days.
good post.
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Commentluv may also encourage people to leave comments and be discovered by others. I should look into it.
Monetize the footer too even if that don't bring much money(cheap advert. or affiliates). You did it before.
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I have my fav RSS's added to my toolbar in firefox. I then look at the title and if I am interested, I will visit the blog....
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I always love 2 go and click rss button..and subscribe its a normal practice for me.i love it no need 2 login 2 the sites...
regards
anil
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I don't want to be the Mooron that screws it up.
:twisted:
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