As bloggers, we can often get caught up in our stats. Pursuing better Google Page Rank, Technorati ranking, Alexa Rank, etc. can consume us, and when we achieve higher and higher numbers we may feel as if those numbers are a real indication of our place in the blogosphere. As it turns out, that’s not true. What those stats are unable to measure is what’s really important- influence.
There could not be a better example of this than the recently published “Top 100 Female Bloggers” list published at Enkay Blog recently. Randa Clay Design came in at #10, which is very nice and I’m always honored to be named among any list of this nature. However, if you take a look at the list, you’ll see that #11 is Liz Strauss. The idea that I would rank higher than Liz, and some of the other women in this list of top bloggers is just silly, and goes to show that while achieving high stats is great, they do not tell the whole story. Spend more time building your blog into an influential site- the numbers will follow and they’re not that important anyway.
I often fret about rankings and how the search engines are treating my site and blog. But as another post points out, if you give your readers and subscribers what they’re expecting, everything else falls into place.
Post, Post, Post! Love the blog!
Your right bloggers are always stressed about stats, I think a blogger for a change should get people addicted/in love with what he/she is writing, or get inspired or something. It’s not just about PR and links.
When I got all caught up in watching my page ranks, it drove me nuts. If you have a post that is ranking high, or page its great to leave what you have. Stop worrying so much… then none of this would be fun, would it?
I too get “wrapped up” in my stats, I am always trying to find new ways to get higher rankings. Who does’nt? The higher the rank, the more traffic.
Thank you very much It is enough knowledge
Firstly congrats Randa – you have a great blog, and I am a huge fan of your talent.
I find it difficult not to get caught up in the ‘rankings’ war. Every morning as soon as I wake up, the computer is switched on, and I check for any changes/stats etc. But I suppose at the end of the day it is all about providing a quality service, and page rank should be secondary to that.
I just thought I’d say. Checkout ‘Numbers Don’t Mean Everything‘ on the Randa Clay Design
I believe if you write with your heart and passion instead of just thinking about the stats, you can truely write some quality articles.
the “you” as in us in general, not targeting you Randa
finally congradulation on making top 10.
i never knew you were a female, infact i am browsing a female designer’s blog for the first time and i must admire your technique’s watching your design and reading your clients testimonials. and you are so true that numbers dont really means everything. i noticed many websites not in top 100’s but earning more than which are into 100’s. just like 2 of my friends one having pr4 blog and one pr3, pr3 earning 600-700$ monthly and pr4 half of it. many many other reasons involved when it comes to digits.
I’m obssessed with numbers too. Everyday I check for slight changes in ranking – I love the feeling when a page I’ve worked on achieves high ranking for specified search terms, it’s addictive!
The old adage is true though – quality content is key, and this site certainly has that.
I took this posting in a different context. My feeling, and what should be reflected in my blog-roll, are blogs that give me more then just an advertisement for a vendor, or company. I also enjoy a good personal blog from time to time, but in general I’m trying to gain insight to industry trends, or an analyst’s view on a topic.
Lately, from what I’ve been reading, blogging has just become another marketing medium, rather then an open communication method. Not sure if you agree?
I did a short write-up recently in regards to how I qualify “good” vs. “bad” Company sponsored blogs.
http://thesantechnologist.com/?p=121
I believe in your post because numbers really affect specially the stats. Pagerank numbers also affect your blog…
Its really disappointing when your blogs pagerank drops…
After hardworks on making your blog informative they only make the pagerank lower…
I will visit your blog more often to have more of this infomative post…
Thanks…
Unfortunately, in some cases, factors like PR and SEO rank play a direct role in how influential a blog can become. I do agree that with good content comes a base of readers and subscribers. However, without good PR rank, it can be difficult to reach your target audience.
I think that all these blog racing is just a stupid thing. If all these numbers are so important for you – i can’t even add something…
don’t care about numbers..
the important thing is your willingness to share the good tips, info and every good thing to us, your readers.
Interesting title and post. I have to say though, the comments are the best of all. It’s amazing what you find in comments these days.