Friday, May 13, 2005

How Do You Do It?

As I am fairly new to blogging (only a few months now), I am curious to find out how the rest of you approach your blog.

I started mine for myself, just as a place to rant and rave since I spend my days with a 17 month old who doesn't understand why mommy is ranting and raving. I didn't think anyone would read the things I was writing. But then, people started reading me. People I didn't know. And I liked it. They would leave comments and that would make me smile and often laugh.

Then, I learned there were ways to track how many people were actually viewing my blog but not commenting. You know, those dastardly lurkers. That's when it got interesting. Because what was a more successful day? A day where I got 30 comments and 35 page views? Or a day when I got 60 page views and only 10 comments?

So what is more important to you? How many hits you get or how many comments you get? What makes you de-lurk to leave a comment? And what do you do when someone leaves you a comment - do you answer them in email, visit their blog to reciprocate and leave them a comment, or do nothing? What do you prefer people do when you leave them a comment?

And do any of you use BlogExplosion? Do you actually read any of the sites you visit through there, or do you just wait the mandatory 30 seconds and move on?

Today would be a LOVELY day for you to de-lurk, leave me a comment, and say hello. I visit everyone who leaves me a comment, and that's how I have made most of my blogroll into my friends. Be brave and just do it already!

42 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for stopping by my site earlier! I love your blog, and will be back around again to read more of it!

This post I can actually relate to. I began blogging in 2001, and I feel like such a loser because I don't have that many readers or commenters.

I began writing *mainly* for me, but hoped to meet others like me out there somewhere on the big world wide web. I don't feel like I have much in common with other moms IRL, but as much as the web covers, surely I could find and forge bonds with similar folks out there?

I love comments; hits are nice, but you know someone took the time to read if they left a comment :)

I used to respond to comments and send an email (in case the commenter never came back, you know?) as well. Then I stopped taht, and just started posting return comments in my blog. Now that I have found a way to make emailing a bit easier on myself, I have begun once again to email copies of my response comments.

I do use blog explosion. For a while, I was leaving comments all over the place, but quit when I never got any responses or return visits or anything. Every now and then I will see a blog that I just have to comment on, but for the most part I skip over them. I've found some amazing blogs there, but the majority just didn't strike a chord with me.

This whole blogging thing operates a LOT differently than livejournal, which I have used (and still use) for the past five years. Everyone over there loves return 'friending' or linking, and leaving comments and getting comments. Here in the blogosphere, it seems pretty common to not respond to comments at all...via a return comment or return visit or email or whathaveyou.

I can't get used to doing things that way, so I just do it my way and hope that I will find similar bloggers out there who like interaction as much as I do!

Walking Barefoot said...

Hey, Michell sent me. In answer to your questions. I check both comments and stats but I don't care about either. I write to keep track of my days and for no other reason. That said, I do enjoy feed back.

As for commenting myself; If something naturally comes to mind I'll write it but I don't do so if I have to force something there. That has much more to do with my state of mind than the person's writing though so no one should take that personally.

annie said...

I try to comment in my comments to each person. Then I also go and visit their blog and comment there. I think we all want to know we're not typing into thin air!
I would rather recognize others and BE recognized myself in the actual blog instead of e-mail, unless it's just a little private question I want to ask or someone wants to ask me.


I can flip through "blog explosion" forever and never see anything I like.
I have really liked everyone from Michele's (she is better than any "blog explosion") and now have so many blogs I want to read and so little time!

xtessa said...

as for me, i like it more when people leave comments, rather than just lurk... 'coz others may be just passing by and not reading your blog, so they really don't count.;)

i try to restrain myself from commenting a lot, though... sometimes, i feel liked i'ved commented to every entry on some particular blogs. :lol:

whenever i see someone left a comment for me, i somehow feel as unattached as i usually am. it's what's making me blog more often.;)

guppyman said...

Ya know... I never really thought about it. I started my little blog as an experiment... i kept seeing the word all over the place and I had no clue what I was doing. Then I discovered i could post some pics on there and it was an easy way to send them out to friends and family. But then, someone commented on the first group of pics I put up. I realized that there are other folks out there who may read what I have to say. So I started making posts on things that entertained me... mostly on my obsession with reality TV... and a few started comming... So now I'm trying to figure out what exactly I am doing with the thing. It's entertaining and kinda addicting really. I've been playing with links that I find on other people's blogs to drive traffic to me. I find something, I try it out... then I forget about it mostly.

I do love getting comments. Hits are great... but when you look at your counters and see that someone looked and moved on real quick, it's not so exciting. But if they took the time to comment, that means that they were actually half-way interested in what you had to say. That is cool.

The best way I found to drive up my own traffic has been to comment in other places. People tend to seek you out after you have left them comments...

Anyway.. I am rambling about nothing now... it's been one of those days.

Molly said...

I like the new look! I too just started my blog as a place to get out all those random thoughts and rants. I like to write and it seemed like a good way to vent.

Personally, I like comments over hits any day as it makes me feel like someone read it instead of just passing by. I usually go and visit the site if someone leaves me a comment and leave a comment back and stop by to check it out a few more times and hopefully have found a new good read.

I DO use blogexplosion and have found a handful of sites that I enjoy that I visit on a regular basis after blogmarking them. I don't like all of them but it is great when I am looking for something new to read.

Anonymous said...

I started because 1) my husband was doing it and 2) I wanted a journal type thing for writing about my family. Now, here I am with readers that give advice, joke around or share anecdotes. I love this experience!

As for comments, I definitely love getting them, but my blogging does not depend on them. I like to respond via e-mail. There's nothing like making new friends. Through e-mail, I have some great new aquaintances, one I've actually met in person. along with e-mail, I post my response in my comment section so people can feel included in the comment conversation.

I don't expect people to respond to my comments, although it is nice when they do. It keeps converstaions going sometimes.

Anonymous said...

I enjoy comments. I look at my overall stats but rarley care about hits. I do use BE, and many times I will make a point of reading and commenting on the sites that come up.

Came via Michele.

christina said...

Hi! Michele sent me. I'm really new to blogging and I'm always pleased when people comment, but mostly I'm doing it for me, just getting some thoughts down on "paper". I have no idea how to check my stats. Next on the list of stuff to learn.

Charlie Mc said...

Most of all, you have to write for YOU! Don't worry too much about what WE all like. Write what's on your mind or how you are feeling. People will appreciate that more than writing to appease. In the end, you'll look back and be happy you wrote for you also. :)

I started this because I was always writing anyway and I thought this would be a good forum to hear other people's views on everything from asses in handblowers to work frustrations. I am grateful for the regulars that come on my site and for the folks who pass through.

My site has really taken off in the past 3 weeks. I've linked many other blogs to my site and have been linked on many also. My comment numbers have gone up too and I love it. I enjoy it when people relate to my stories or humor. I put a hit counter on my site about 6 weeks ago and it just passed 10,000.....so there is a great deal of traffic out there! Keep the comments and the visits coming! :)

fakies said...

I started blogging at the suggestion of a friend. It's partly for me, and partly for the friends I know regularly visit it. I'm not a diary person, so this is a fun way to get a few thoughts out there. I try to respond to blogs I'm interested in, and I make an effort to reply to commenters or at least check out their blogs as well. I've never checked stats.

Angela said...

Hello Jersey Girl!

I read your blog often, and I believe I have commented before... Sometimes I do not have something to say in return to your post, but I always enjoy reading. This maybe what others do.

I started blogging for me. I was dealing with a very stressful situation due to roommates- see I am a college student waaaaay out in Oregon. I feel funny leaving comments because I am a college student. I don't have any children (yet), I am not married (yet), but I work with 3mo.-2 years, so I feel I can relate some. Anyway- I want to thank you for you lovely posts, and a great bit of entertainment!

p.s. LOVE the new look!

mcgibfried said...

i too started blog in feb.. comments and emails are nice.. good for us new parents to communicate with other "sentance making" adults!

and the hits just let you know you're interesting to someone.. which is nice to feel validated.

Angie said...

I don't care much about hits, though I do have a stat counter that I look at every once in a while. I do like comments, but I don't expect everyone to comment on every post. I will admit I am a bad comment responder. I try to visit my commentors blogs so I can comment there.
I love blog explosion because it gives me a chance to see so many different blogs. I usually stay longer than the 30 seconds unless it is someone I have read already that day or a business blog or extremely political blog.

Anonymous said...

HI- I started my blog because I wanted something that I could do just for myself. With 4 kids, a husband, a dog, and a full time job... I rarely get time for just myself. So this is my ME-Time!
Your blog design is so cute. I'll definitely stop by again.

Anonymous said...

I am fairly new also. And I too visit anyone who visits my blog. Good luck. I like your blog.
~K!

kismet.blogs.com

Loz said...

Hey there True,
I only just started blogging last week and found you through a link on someone else's blog (I've since added you to mine as well). I love stopping by to read your posts and the new look is great.
I post on here mainly out of boredom while I'm temporarily living interstate and if someone comments I'm really excited to see who they are, where they're from and check out their blogs as well. I figure if someone took the time to let me know they were listening the least I can do is the same - so I visit them and leave a little note - if their blog is interesting they get added to my BlogRolling so hopefully people reading me will want to read them as well.

JM said...

I started to blog only because "all the other cool kids were doing it" and it rapidly became an addictive pastime. Although I continue to do so simply for my own amusement, it's the comments that others leave on my blog that I value the most. It's a satisfying thing to find that you've connected in a way that causes someone to take the time to leave a comment. I usually lurk, since the comments that I would make add little to the discourse, but I occasionally break the silence and leave a comment....at least for the karma.

JanetsJourney.com said...

I'm a comment whore...I admit me! I hardly ever check my stats.

Love the new look BTW - it is fabulous!

Dawn said...

I started to blog for myself. I love love love comments!!!! I am so glad people read my blog:) :) :)

Kimberly said...

I was over here yesterday and could not leave a comment. My freaking jaw dropped when I saw your new look. This is perfect!! How come you didn't tell me you were all gorgeous over here?? I love it!! Good work:-)

Jenn said...

Hey "True"!

Just thought I'd give ya a little background on my blog. When my boyfriend broke up with me and I moved home to "recover", a friend sent me the blog her friend started soon after she moved to Hawaii. I decided it was a great way to pour out all the sad, conflicted feelings I was having about my whole situation. I kept posting the funny things that happened in my day, my thoughts about current events and used it as a way to write to all my friends about me without typing in all the email addresses! :) I don't have a spot to post comments, but have gotten email about the things I post. While it's nice to know my close friends read them, and I know they do, because they tell me. I really just write for me. I have enjoyed watching them write their blogs and their friends and family write ones too! While I may not comment often, I check in to your site every couple of days/nights and catch up on reading all the blogs I've missed! :) Glad to hear you're doin' well.

Anonymous said...

I don't know why I started mine - it seemed like a bit of fun I suppose. I like the conviviality of blogging and the fact that the people who do it are such a diverse bunch from all over the world. I don't really track my visitors so I have no idea if people are lurking. I love comments on my site - who doesn't - and it's particularly gratifying to see my regular readers come back. I tend to leave comments on sites where I feel I have something to contribute. I am often in two minds about whether to leave a comment if I don't think I'll ever go back, but I don't know why - that's a bit silly of me really, as there's nothing wrong with leaving a one-off comment. I hated BlogExplosion - there were some very, very strange blogs out there. Hope you are having a good weekend.

elle said...

Love the new look!! Very cool.

I blog, therefore I am.
:)

Shannon akaMonty said...

Actually, I found Michele through Blogexplosion quite some time ago. I usually scan the first entry while I'm waiting my 30 seconds, and if it sounds like me cuppa tea, I read on. I even blogroll some of 'em. :)

I still keep my first blog ever, on livejournal. THAT one is really for me, and has more...intimate stuff about my life. And only a handful of regular readers.
I made the one at blogger.com in hopes of getting a bigger readership, because I love love love getting comments. Even when they're disagreeable. I like to know what people think~~gives me a fresh perspective sometimes.

:) PLUS the added bonus of finding great and fabulous blogs like this one.

Shannon akaMonty said...

I forgot to mention...I LOVE what you've done with the place! :)
Outstanding!

Unknown said...

I started blogging for myself, and so I could share pics and updates on the baby with family, but of course I live for the comments. I totally understand why people don't comment on stuff like my cute pics of baby, so I try to throw in funny posts or provocative posts once in awhile. I always respond to their comment in my blog comments, and I always visit their blogs. Sometimes I comment on their blog just so they know I was there.

Nam LaMore said...

as you know, i blog to tip the power of balance over to chaos :-)

Anonymous said...

I comment 90% of the time. I notice that not even a third comment which is fine since at least I know people are reading.

Anonymous said...

I started mine in an effort to be more disciplined about writing. Ha! That exercise was a miserable failure, but I found that I enjoyed doing it even when I didn't write every day.

It took a long time before I told more than one or two people that I even had a blog, so I got very few comments. I like it when I do and try to email the commenter most of the time. I usually visit their site as well.

I don't use Blog Explosion, but there are a LOT of sites I visit regularly. If I could only figure out a way to make a living blog-hopping, I'd be golden.

Christine said...

Hits are nice (yes I check my stats) but it's the comments I enjoy - I get to interact with those people. The lurkers - I never know they're there.

I always try to reply to my comments via email (although when things get crazy I don't), and I always try to get to my commenters' sites to reciprocate.

I use to use blog explosion a lot. I do still use it some, but not much. I'd rather get my hits from people actually looking to come visit me, than from people just waiting through their 30 seconds. ;)

Anonymous said...

Hi,
I got my blog from 2 friends as part of a Christmas gift last year. Not sure if you read them, Laura & Deb, if you want their sites let me know via email.

In the beginning I had no real interest in this blogging thing, but must admit it has grown on me quite abit.

I have a blogroll and try to visit most as often as I can, but have my favorites that I visit more often. However, anyone that leaves me a comment usually gets an email returned and then I visit their blog site again.

I started with about 10 on my blogroll with the original gift and then just found other people, like you, by checking other peoples blogrolls.

Anonymous said...

Hi True, as you know I blog for myself. after my period of being obsessed with comments and traffic. I have a meter now but I don't really look at it, it's nice when people do read and nicer still when they comment, but I also know that my biggest readership is my nrowegian friends who are scared of the Internet and of commenting (not quite sure why) and so don't comment...

I think it's important to blog for myself and not worry too much about everyone else, but then it's hard knowing why reads my blog I suppose....

Bridget Unnel said...

I actually read most of the ones I click thru at Blog Explosion. Some you just can tell are not up your alley so you move on after 30 seconds... I built up my blogroll by checking out who people I liked reading were including on their own rolls...

Natsthename said...

I don't use blog explosion and I've found a few blogs by clicking "next blog" on blogger. I do find many by visiting Michele and clicking on links from commenters I've enjoyed reading.

I do comment in my blog comments but sometimes I just visit the other blogger's site and leave a comment in return. My blogroll is fairly short and I read MOST of them every day.

I've been blogging since April of 2003, but it was only occasionally until last year.

Denise B. said...

Well, I started my blog in order to empty my brain once in a while. Mostly because I hang out with a nearly-9-month-old daily, and he just isn't good at the conversation part yet. I had originally intended to keep myself anonymous, and not let my family/friends know about it. Then I started my son's blog, and that whole theory went out the window. I guess it's a good thing, since it keeps me in check. However, I do miss total freedom.

As for how I respond to other blogs: Usually, I will respond if something makes a connection with me personally. Sometimes I'm just not in the mood to comment, or don't have time. But I do like to interact and "meet" other bloggers, and so am thrilled when I get responses from either my comments or my posts.

Good Post, by the way!

Kim said...

Mine all began when I would visit someone else's blog for the Question of the Day, and then one day in March -- SHE STOPPED ASKING QUESTIONS!!!! Where would I get my daily QOTD fix? I started my own QOTD to fulfill that addiction. But then writing questions got to be not as "expressive" as I'd like, so I started another blog for writing about the things that happen to me throughout my life.

I absolutely love it when someone leaves a comment, it validates my thoughts. Don't get me wrong, lurking hits are nice too, but a comment makes my day. :-)

Anonymous said...

I started my blog for fun, waaay back in 2000. I remember thinking what fun it was to write down and publish all the crazy stuff in my mind and have people actually read it. It still gets me sometimes.

As far as your questions:

1. Hits vs. Comments - I think anyone who says that either don't matter to them is a big fat liar. LOL! We all blog to some extent because of the people we draw to our sites. I prefer comments. I think it's great I have lurkers, but I want to hear what you have to say and if you remain silent, then I'm sorry, but you don't exist for me. Kidding! Sort of.

2. What makes me de-lurk on other sites. Depends on if I'm having a good and if the entry is entertaining or not. Or if it strikes a chord with me. The latter is the most important to me. I tend to read and link to people who I feel I share something in common with. Like you Jersey Girl. I'm a recent new mom too, trying to balance out my old life with my new and connecting with others that are going through the same things as me, helps me feel not so alone in this crazy world.

3. How do I answer comments? I have a disclaimer on my blog saying that I don't have the time to answer each and every comment so unless someone specifically asks me to, I always answer back via my own blog comments. So far it's worked pretty good for me.

4. Blog Explosion - I actually do read some blogs I come across there. I have found a couple of new reads through BE, but I mostly surf to get my credits and my points.

I'm going to hell, aren't I? ;-)

Afe said...

I started blogging for family and friends... but the people I don't know are quickly outweighing the people I do know...

I don't even have a facility to check stats (because it doesn't really mean people are reading it) but I do love getting comments.

Comments rock!

LĂ©onie said...

I started my blog after lurking on so many for ages and then, after a while (I'm not so bright), working out that it would be FREE to set up my own.
And I love it. I think a lot of my friends read my site, but I love getting comments because I feel like I know who I'm writing to, even though I primarily post for my own pleasure. I am, however, truly crap at the links bit so I haven't set any up yet, and for that reason I feel like I'm being disloyal to those people who have linked me!
I love reading about other people's worlds and their perceptions of them, and I love presenting my own world in any way I choose.

J&J's Mom said...

Holy Moly! Well, I've done it all three ways, going back to those who visit, commenting to their comments and email. Email works best for me I think but takes a lot of time!! These are almost like friendships...you don't want to hurt anyone's feelings but at the same time show them the courtesy they've shown you. Sometimes it gets almost too personal ya know? ;0) Thanks for the stat info!!

Sleeping Mommy said...

I'll make it an even 50 comments for this post since I am just now getting over here to catch up on what has been going on un your life for the last week.

I always try to visit anyone's blog who has stopped and left a comment. Some days that is harder than others. If I can't get the time to really go visit and read then I will go ahead and make sure at the least that I send an email in reply to their comment.

I don't use BE or Blog Clicker anymore. Not for awhile anyway. I've found that by visiting people who visit me as well as visiting the blog rolls of my 'friends' I actually get a better selection of people to visit as well as a more friendly group.

At least once a week I try to visit everyone on my links list. Sometimes this takes me two days to get through. I do this because I like to keep up with everyone I have listed so I have an idea of who they are. My roll and recip links list have gotten a bit unweildy but I really try to poke my head in on everyone anyway.

There are those that I visit more often as time and energy allows. :)