How To Capitalize On Your Blog Statistics

49 thoughts on “How To Capitalize On Your Blog Statistics”

1. Pingback: Google Analytics vs Awstats vs Webalizer | Blogging Without A Blog

2. I’ve been paying attention to the bounce rate, and I found that bounce rate is significantly lower when they came from another site about puppet-building. I guess whether the traffic came from a site with relevant topics still plays a major part.
   .-= Check out Kelvin Kao´s awesome post: Different Stitches =-.

3. I have stopped looking into stats. I even went as far as de-activating the stats plugins from wordpress. My blogs are too humble for all that fuss, I think

4. Hi Barbara,
   The program I use the most is Google Analytics. I’ve used others, but seem to usually come back to the Google program. And reading here, I can see there’s really a lot more I could be doing. One thing I do is try to make a title that’s eye-catching to the reader. Of course, this only gets readers who have somehow managed to find the site. So…maybe more focus on ways to attract new readers would be good… Barbara, you’ve given me lots to think about today…thank you!
   .-= Check out Lance´s awesome post: Sunday Thought For The Day =-.

5. Hey, Barbara… great question! Like Lance, I use Analytics for the most part, since it’s so comprehensive. The stats that interest me the most these days are things like “time on site” or “pages viewed” from any given traffic source.

   Since I have very limited time to spend on the internet (as I’m usually home schooling or playing with my son) I have to pick and choose where I can visit and leave comments. There are SOOOOOOOOOOOOO many great blogs that I personally love to read, but if time is an issue, I comment on those that send me readers who stick around. In other words, blogs with readers who would also love my blog. I figure this is a win-win for everyone.

   Oh, that I had world enough and time to comment and guest post all over the place… but such is not the case! I look forward to reading the rest of your comments to see what other programs and stats are helpful. 🙂
   .-= Check out Lisis´s awesome post: Adventure: Remixing Your Perspective =-.

6. I too look at bounce rate and where traffic comes from. I still find some items confusing but I am slowly figuring them out. I am just amazed at how fast blogs climb when using SEO techniques in posts and/or blog setup.
   .-= Check out Linda´s awesome post: Endless Sustainable Summer =-.

7. Janice, I love how you described that… “For every thing I figure out that raises my spirits, there’s something else that worries or saddens me.” It’s exactly the emotional roller coaster I go through. 🙂
   .-= Check out Lisis´s awesome post: Adventure: Remixing Your Perspective =-.

8. Barbara, you’ve given me a lot to think about with this post! I don’t look at my stats that often, but when I do I’m just happy to know that there are some people out there checking out my site. 🙂
   .-= Check out Positively Present´s awesome post: 5 ways to leave your fingerprints on the world =-.

9. We use Google Analytics, SiteMeter, and ClickTale mostly. ClickTale is nice because they show you a video of what people are doing on your site. You don’t know who they are, you just get to see how they interact on your site.

   I also use a Firefox add-on called Ghostery. It pops up a small window for just a few seconds showing me what each website I visit uses for analytics. It’s a great way to discover new and different programs (and if I’m being watched).

   I mostly look at Google Analytics. There’s a lot there . . . too much, I think. I still don’t have every part of Google Analytics figured out. Just remember everyone to filter out your IP address so you don’t record your own visits.

   I look for traffic spikes. It shows me what might be popular or what I might need to work on. If something’s popular, can I build on it? Do I need a second post? etc.
   .-= Check out John Hoff – WpBlogHost´s awesome post: New Regulations For USA Bloggers May Be Around The Corner =-.

10. What a brilliantly useful post, Barbara. Thank you! I’m a newbie – today marks three months exactly since my blog launched – and this is a great learning checklist. The comments I find here are always helpful, too. I have Google Analytics and the WordPress one, but they scare me. For every thing I figure out that raises my spirits, there’s something else that worries or saddens me. But it’s all learning, and the signposts are there for what I need to do. The main thing I’ve learned is not to spend so much time blogbuilding, analysing and learning that I’m not leaving enough time to write well or really enjoy the connections with folk online.
    .-= Check out janice´s awesome post: Take Time to Treasure What’s Important =-.

11. Barbara,
    I don’t alllow statistics to control my peace of mind. I don’t think one can ever have enough traffic. Eric Hamm said one time no matter how far he got the more he realised it’s never ending. Kind of an ego thing eh?
    .-= Check out Tess The Bold Life´s awesome post: My Father Died Last Week =-.

12. Hey, Barbara! The point number 4 about changing our posting schedule is something to consciously plan and analyse. Be interesting to see what my stats show, if I post say 15-times a month instead of my average 11. Maybe do it 2 months in a row.

    I get major traffic spikes when I post those “Funny SEO Keywords” and “Funny Typos.” People are Stumbling those. Strategically, I’m going to go back and edit the ‘Funny Typos” so the first few will be killer ones, to get new readers hooked from the first line! Maybe do the same with the Funny SEO Keyword posts.

    And Pansy Poems – if I could write some killer pansy poems I’d be in gravy, I get a ton of searches for those!
    .-= Check out Jannie Funster´s awesome post: Five Little Lightbulbs =-.

13. I use Google Analytics. I find it offers me way more information than I need!
    .-= Check out Vered – MomGrind´s awesome post: Truth In Advertising =-.

14. I use Analytics and I do find it’s more information than I need. During the day, I’ll check the wordpress stats a few times, just to see what’s going on.

    I think it’s important to get a feel for what works well for your blog by looking at your stats rather than what other bloggers say works for them. For example, Stumble upon works fairly well for me – I don’t get the huge numbers, but for some reason, SU visitors look at 3-4 pages on my blog on average vs. other social media sites where it’s more like 1.01 pages, so I call it a success. Others in a different niche might not have the same result, and you’d miss out on a valuable way to connect if you based your ways of promoting based on what works for other people.
    .-= Check out Tracy´s awesome post: I am so ready for a 3 day weekend =-.

15. Pete’s the statistician. I look at MyBlogLog to get a feel for page views and the more popular posts from time to time. And I check Feedburner for subscribers a couple times per week. I could be doing a better job at this, I know.
    .-= Check out Betsy Wuebker´s awesome post: ADVENTURES IN CUSTOMER SERVICE: WELLS FARGO DUMPS ON A GRIEVING MOTHER =-.

16. I use Google Analytics as well. More accurately stated I under-use it as a tool.
    I mostly check keywords because SEO adjustments seem to be one of the easiest to make where the benefit can be seen. I love your thorough list of questions, especially the one of differentiation. That’s very good to do as much as possible.
    .-= Check out Tom Volkar / Delightful Work´s awesome post: To Hell With What They Say =-.

17. Hey Janice,

    I work for UserTesting.com, and we compliment stats packages as well. We give audio and visual feedback of a user browsing your site. Our service would be complimentary to Clicktale’s feedback, as they tell you where and we tell you why.

    Check out UserTesting.com, I’d love to hear your feedback.

    Barbara, great post! I particularly enjoyed the questions about “getting our name out there” and how that can impact stats.

18. Very interesting Barbara. I usually just check how the traffic is doing, which content is getting the most attention, keywords, and bounce rate.

    One thing I make sure to check are referral. I keep an eye on which website is sending me the most valuable traffic (Low bounce rate and more average time spent on the site)
    .-= Check out Samar´s awesome post: How to be interesting: Your opinion wanted =-.

19. I like the frame and the questions you ask.

    For getting a quick sense of “the numbers”, I try to start with at least knowing my monthly unique visitors, page views, and my subscriber count. That gives me a real quick ballpark from month to month whether I’m growing or dying.

    From there, I try to get a quick sense of where my traffic is coming from. While I get a lot from the search engine, I tend to get more from referrals and especially StumbleUpon. I’m starting to pay more attention to headlines and optimize more for SEO relevancy than clever. Otherwise, readers land for the wrong reason and relevancy is queen, if content is king. That said, I still sacrifice a post title now and then if it’s stickier … I just accept that I’ll potentially get the wrong traffic.

    I check my stats once a week and I don’t think I’ve simplified them enough, yet. I know I need to start doing more SEO analysis and usage pattern analysis, but for now, I just need the basics in place, while I figure out a blog growth plan.
    .-= Check out J.D. Meier´s awesome post: If You Miss the Train, Catch the Next One =-.

20. Thanks for this. It’s gotten me back on the issue of whether my posts are easily accessible to first-time readers. I’ve been avoiding this in the past because it would require me to learn more PHP, but it’s time to bite the bullet. 🙂
    .-= Check out Chris Edgar | Purpose Power Coaching´s awesome post: 10 Motivational Metal Masterpieces =-.

21. Google Analytics has been my main stats engine now for some time. Though, I’ve given consideration to moving over to Mint. One thing with GA that I do like is that it’s pretty easy to get a handle on where my visitors are coming from, what keywords they use to find me, how long they stay, and what sources they used to find me. This is powerful stuff – and information any web promoter needs to be using.
    .-= Check out Kevin Sandridge´s awesome post: How Orlando FHA Home Loans Can Help You =-.

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23. Hi Barbara – I use StatCounter for real time info and look at Google Analytics now and then for longer term info. I do find keeping an eye on stats useful for discovering links in I didn’t know about – I’ve long got over checking them addictively! One thing I’ve noticed – my subscriber numbers have gone up while I have hardly done any blogging in the past 2 months! – R
    .-= Check out Robin´s awesome post: An Eventful Month =-.

24. I’ve tried to not look at stats, but I do. I use Get Clicky and love it. I get all the data I need. I’m also experimenting with keywords, and have had some success.

    By far, my Metro posts are the leaders in the SEO arena, plus one or two of my “touristy” type posts.

    When I haven’t had as much success is with link traffic. I could be because I’m in a small niche; I’m not sure. I do know my traffic is increasing, and more importantly, the time spent on the site is increasing.

    I try not to look at them too often, but I must admit, it’s usually the first place I go after I look at my blog.
    .-= Check out LisaNewton´s awesome post: Metro Monday’s Tour Maps =-.

25. I have not been checking my stats. I guess I should at least have some sense of where my traffic is coming from. I doubt I am doing enough as I have been spending less time on the web. Time to look into my Google Analytics account. Thanks for the reminder!
    .-= Check out Evelyn Lim´s awesome post: How to Prevent H1N1 Flu Naturally =-.

26. Every once in awhile I get worried, I now get my stats once a week from Analytic. I get so excited when I read one of these posts, and then just don’t seem to be able to figure out how to apply it or translate what I want to my IT person.

    I finally got a twitter button, but lost my facebook button? I get most of my readers from referrals from – well mostly Vered, Jannie, and then when I was the Not So New Blog of the Week.

    I just keep thinking one step at a time, one step at a time…and I rejoice that so many people read my words every week…how awesome it that?

    Another great post Barbara…Thank you…I am so happy you have an archive section and I can keep going back and reading and re-reading.

    Thank you
    .-= Check out Patricia´s awesome post: Agenda for a New Economy: From Phantom Wealth to Real Wealth ~By David C. Korten =-.

27. Hi Kelvin – That’s true. When visitors arrive from a relevant site or via a search engine (where they searched for what we’re offering) chances are our bounce rate will be much better.

    Hi Lance – You’re welcome. Yes. Catchy titles are great, however, we also need to think of our current as well as prospective audience. Asking “who” we want to attract is a great question to ask when we’re constructing our titles.

    Hi Miguel – I think you’re underestimating your blog and your writing talent. Although you may have deactivated your stats, you may be surprised to learn the amount of traffic you’re receiving, as well as how they are finding your blog.

    Hi Lisis – Being short on time, the strategy you’re using is actually a good one. It’s giving you the most exposure for the least investment in time. I do agree, there are tons of great blogs out there. If only we could clone ourselves and read they all, hey?

    Hi Linda – Learning how to use statistics can be time consuming and confusing. Then, if we use more than one, we have to learn their matrix, as well. I do agree, using SEO is very beneficial to getting our blogs found not only by search engines, but by readers who are typing search strings for that which we’re writing about.

    Hi Positively Present – *smiles* Glad I got you thinking. When you start digging deeper into your stats, let me know what you find.

    Hi John – Thank you for the heads up on ClickTale and Ghostery. Those are both new to me. That’s a great idea about watching for which posts are getting spikes. Often it is an indicator we can expand on the topic with another post, or even a series. Good pointers!

    Hi Janice – Thank you! Congratulations on your 3 month anniversary. For any age blogger it’s easy to get caught up looking at “the numbers”. Instead of letting them scare us, we can learn from them by asking some of the questions I posted, and then move on to our writing and visiting activities. Just remember, stats are only a small part of the whole blogging adventure.

    Hi Tess – LOL. That’s true. We can easily get hooked on wanting more and more. It is an ego thing, so if we can just let that go, we’re in good shape. I love your attitude about not letting stats control your peace of mind. It is what it is.

    Hi Vered – Yes. Google Analytics does offer a lot. Like you, I don’t use all it offers.

    Hi Tracy – You’re getting great Stumble conversions. You’re right. What works for one person may not work for another. Knowing what you know is good ammunition to continue doing what your doing and attract the right kind of audience.

    Hi Betsy – How lucky you are to have a statistician in the family. You get to delegate that task to him and concentrate on that which you enjoy.

    Hi Tom – That’s true. By looking at which keywords others are using to find us give us a better idea of how to word future posts. Like you, I also feel we need to differentiate ourselves from others. It goes back to being true to ourselves and daring to be different.

    Hi Asleyf – Thank you for stopping by and sharing your stats website. Yes. By getting our name out there, the impact can make a huge difference if how fast and if we get found.

    Hi Samar – I agree. It is very important to see where our referral traffic is coming. It amazing what a comment or link can do to draw more readers to our blog, isn’t it?

    Hi J.D. – Thank you. You’ve raised a great point. If we look at our monthly totals, it give us a basis to work off of. Ideally we want to see growth from month to month. If we don’t, it’s often easy to analyze why we might have a decrease, such as some months has less days, more posts may have gotten Stumbled, we may be posting less, visiting less, or….

    With regard to your statement about post titles, I’ll be discussing that in a future post.

    Hi Jannie – Yes. Being aware that our stats may change if we reduce or increase our posting schedule is very wise. Having our numbers drop (or spike) can be a shock if we don’t stop to think of what we did differently.

    Hi Chris – You’re welcome. Thinking about our readers reaction when they land on our site is very important. If we can learn to think like a new visitor, we’ll often spot the weaknesses of our blog.

    Hi Kevin – I’ve heard of Mint, but never tried it. I agree. GA is very comprehensive. I’ve been testing others, but some (like Webalizer) also count visits by bots, so the numbers are inflated. AwStats doesn’t, nor does GA, or Woopra.

    Hi Lisa – Get Clicky is a new one to me. With regard to link traffic, with your niche I would suggest trying to connect with others in your area who may be a similar niche – even travel agents or Realtors who have a blog. Your site would be a great one for them to refer to.

    Looking at our stats is not a bad thing. What ends up being a problem is when we get so obsessed with the numbers it stifles our creativity. Take it from me. I admit to being an ex-stataholic (Plus, I’m testing different stats programs and use the information for blog post ideas.)

    Hi Evelyn – You’re welcome. One thing looking at our stats tells us is if what we’re doing is working. Although it’s not essential to watch them, they certainly contain information that can help us grow our blogs.

    Hi Robin – StatCounter is another one I’ve heard of, but haven’t tried.

    Isn’t it amazing how our blogs will grow naturally even if we’re not watching our stats? You’re right. The links into our site can tell us a lot, as well. Sometimes they will also tell us if someone has plagiarized our content.

    Hi Patricia – You’re welcome. I’m happy my archives are helping you find what you’re in need of.

    Trying to do it all can seem daunting. Thinking “one step at a time” will get you there. It doesn’t happen overnight. Enjoy the journey and all who are reading your fabulous words of wisdom.

    Hi Davina – The blog stats in your WordPress dashboard are your “WordPress stats”. Keep in mind, those are page views and don’t reflect “new visitors” or “returning visitors”, but like you said, they do tell you where your visitors are coming from, how others found your blog (search strings) and who is linking into your blog. (inbound links). If you click on the “weekly” and “monthly” tabs, you can see how your blog is progressing from week to week (month to month). Those stats are actually pretty good, however, not as comprehensive as some of the others.

28. Hi Barbara. This is embarrassing — I don’t bother too much with stats. Um, you know when you’re in your WordPress Dashboard and you click on the “blog stats”… is that Google Analytics? Really, I don’t know 🙂 Seriously.

    Whatever it is, I do check where my traffic is coming from; usually from Stumbles and referrals from other bloggers. Recently, I’ve been getting a lot more referrals from Google searches too. Just for fun I do the same search and in many cases, I come up on page 1 of Google. However, I try not to worry too much about my stats; at this point, I’m content just posting and commenting… for now.

    This is a lot of great information you’ve pulled together, BTW. I know it will come in handy for a lot of folk.
    .-= Check out Davina´s awesome post: Guest Post: Three Shades of Happiness =-.

29. Definitely check out where the people are coming from. Maybe some website is linking to you and you don’t even know it – it might be smart to write them.

30. Hey Barbara!

    Great tips and observations.

    …def gets confusing with all the stat algorithms (and i’m doing a degree in statistics).

    for me, the best indicators are decreases in traffic. there are way too many variables that can account for increases but decreases are usually something specific that caused the decrease.

    also, do you know what exactly it is that causes stumbleupon to decide to send traffic your way?

    keep well and in touch
    alex – unleash reality

31. I use both GA and a simple WordPress stats counter. I’ve been playing with Bounce Rate — trying to see if small changes make a difference. It’s a lot of getting inside the head of your visitor.
    .-= Check out Lori Hoeck´s awesome post: How our intuition warns of danger =-.

32. Hi Barbara,
    I look at the bounce rate and where the traffic comes from.I have a lot to figure out with the graphs yet.
    Great article.
    .-= Check out Bunnygotblog´s awesome post: 17 Sexy Commercials: Advertising Towards Dummies =-.

33. I think that you touched on some very important points. The first of which is how user friendly is your site? Is your page appealing to the eye and easy to navigate. People will not visit if they can’t work your page.

    secondly, content! In my opinion it is more important to have less frequent informative and well thought out posts that ones that are thrown together just to have new content. i dont mean once a week, but maybe every other day write a new post. This way your readers know that you’re not just slapping any old thing together and that they’re getting quality material.

34. I’ve only been using Alexa and Technorati – thanks for all this information…

35. For my first blog, I was just looking at numbers. Then eventually I got bored and ceased to care. However, for my new site, I actually want to learn from my stats. Which makes this post very handy!!! Thanks 🙂
    .-= Check out Eliza´s awesome post: Empty Nest Syndrome is very real =-.

36. I haven’t really focused on my bounce rate on my blog. I guess I haven’t even considered it on either of my sites! Most of of my traffic comes from search engines; and its mostly the older posts, not so much of the newer ones. I pretty much use the stock WP plugin for my stats, I haven’t though about branching out yet!

37. Hi Nieruchomosci – That’s true. We can see who is linking to us. Often a Google alert or other stats may not show that information.

    Hi Alex – Thank you. Good point. Decreases in traffic are often the sign of “something” specific. Sometimes it’s something as simple as a decrease in our blog posting schedule, but if the cause isn’t obvious, it definitely needs to be investigated.

    Re: StumbleUpon traffic. Simply put, in order to get traffic from StumbleUpon, someone needs to “stumble” your post (and they may also write a review). Those who spend a lot of time on StumbleUpon will be alerted to the thumbs up and may come by and pay you a visit. There’s more to it Stumbling than just this. By joining StumbleUpon (it’s free) and playing around with it you’ll get the gist of what it’s all about.

    Many don’t find Stumble traffic to be more than just that – traffic, however, depending on your website, Stumble can become a large contributor to your numbers and can result in subscribers. Hope that helps.

    Hi Lori – That’s true. We do need to get inside the head of our visitors. Unfortunately what we think they may be thinking could be far from the truth.

    Hi Bunny – Thank you. I hear you. There is a lot to the statistical programs. Just take it one item at a time and go from there.

    Hi Sunglasses Man – Very true. Content remains king. If we aren’t producing quality material even loyal readers may leave. And yes, our blogs do need to be easy to navigate.

    Hi Paul – You’re welcome. I use Alexa and Technorati, however their information is limited compared to Google Analytics or some of the other statistical programs.

    Hi Eliza – You’re welcome. That’s a good point. There’s a huge difference between just looking at the numbers and learning from our stats. I’m happy to hear this post is beneficial.

    Hi Carla – It sounds like you do know which posts are popular. If you have a chance check out Google Analytics or one of the others the previous commenters recommended, These stat programs usually give us more information than we ever thought we needed.

    And as an added benefit – most are free.

38. Barbara,

    I go through Stat phases. Sometimes I look at my analytics every day, and there are times when I’ll go a week or two with nary a glance.

    I love stats but I find it frustrating that my awstats are almost always 30% higher than my analytics. I don’t know why.

    I do love to drill down and see what is going on. It does help me with titling and with focusing my efforts in terms of which sites are referring traffic.

    George
    .-= Check out Tumblemoose´s awesome post: Is your writing blog a success? =-.

    1. Hi George,

       As I mentioned on “The TnT Bloggers Lounge forum, I’ve read that Google Analytics does not or cannot count visits from those who have java script disabled. I’m guessing that’s why you’re seeing the difference. I also use AwStats and actually feel it might be a more accurate count. (or at least I hope it is since it’s higher. 😆 )

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40. Hi Barbara. Thanks for confirming my question about Google Analytics vs the WordPress dashboard. I see that I do have Google Analytics installed; just not activated. It would be to my advantage to get this done. Thanks again.
    .-= Check out Davina´s awesome post: Guest Post: Three Shades of Happiness =-.

41. I’ve always been using Google Analytics as so far it has taken care of all my needs.

42. google analytics is what i always use, i too get different results with awstats

43. For most pracatical reasons, either Google Analytics or sitemeter will be an appropriate solution. Awstats and webalizer are probably good enough only to understand how much of raw hits (visits, pings, bots) a site receives.

    Google analytics makes it easier to analyze the realistic visits that we receive and it’s even logically grouped into referral, direct, keywords, search traffic categories. They are also pretty much up to date when new search engines are introduced. And all this without much performance issues – Awstats probably consumes time at the server where as the javascript based analytics is client based without taking any toll on the server.
    .-= Check out Ajith´s awesome post: 10 Innovative & Interesting Search Engines =-.

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45. Hi Barbara .. your posts are always so interesting and it’s so useful to see everyone’s comments. I enjoyed this and have printed pages 1 & 2 out – as that’s the way I work, and made some notes from the comments.

    A bit late – but gathering knowledge is part of the process!

    Back to the latest post – 24 Jan 2010 – Numbers a Love Hate Relationship ..

    Thank you – Hilary Melton-Butcher
    Positive Letters Inspirational Stories
    .-= Check out Hilary´s awesome post: A bet on the Eleven Cities Tour or the Winter Olympics being held? =-.

46. Hi,
    Thanks for writting a great post. I surfed the web looking for alternatives to Google Analytics. I also use Awstats and Wassup. Google give me different stats, so after reading your post (also the first one who linked to this), I installed Sitemeter. At present I got a popular post bringing in clics from a major newspaper. Sitemeter´s free version seems to corespond with the stats I`m getting from Wassup.Clicks, ip-adresse etc. If you read this and have not heard of Wassup; great tool for realtine stats. Only problem is that is a bit addictive..Awstas are not showing fresh results until next evening, so I´ll have to wait and se what it says. Hopefully it will agree with Wassup.

    Anyway..thats what I use. Hope that Google are a day delayed or someting, or else they are missing a huge amount om my blog trafic.

    Regards
    Magnusg
    .-= Check out Magnusg´s awesome post: Har du lyst til å fly F-14 over Oslofjorden? =-.

    1. Hi Magnusg,

       Thank you for stopping by and letting me know about Wassup.

       Another great one to check out is Woopra. I’ve been using it since it was in beta and enjoy the real time features. They have both free and paid options. Like you, I enjoy the real time feature, but try not to spend too much time watching. I agree, it can be addictive. 🙂

47. Great information Barbara. I really like your site, and what you are doing with your blog!

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