3/16/2016

You are More Than Just Numbers: Followers, Likes, Pageviews ...

Photo by Cassandra (aka @thisgirlwithcamera): S Miss J Contributor
 Recently there has been some chatter among my blogger friends about the blogging and social media community. It almost seems that the community is growing exponentially every day. Some of my blogger friends felt pressure to increase their follower-ship and blog page views in order for their respective blogs to be taken more seriously and of course I had to chime in to share my views.  Needless to say, that is what prompted me to share my thoughts on the subject and hence, the inspiration behind this post.

Most of us blog for ourselves and started our little space on the internet in order to share our love of "something" with others. Eventually, things like followers, engagement, and views become important as they are the measuring stick for how a blogger stacks up against other bloggers and how successful their blog is perceived. Sometimes this causes us to begin to obsess over numbers. We begin to compare ourselves to others and sometimes to those that are not our peers.  There are some very successful bloggers out there and when you compare yourself to them it may make you think your thoughts and opinions are not important.

I will be the first to admit that I go through periods of frustration from time to time where I pay more attention to my numbers than my actual content. In the end that only helps to distance me from the reason I started the blog in the first place. It's important to keep track of those numbers because ultimately higher numbers usually equal more opportunities to grow your blog and find opportunities for some awesome collaborations. However, it is important to keep a healthy balance and not compromise your self, your integrity or your quality. You don't want to reach the point of buying followers and likes.

Ultimately, you can have all these amazing  numbers but if your content is not very good your numbers become less important to brands, companies and the readers that you want to reach. Therefore, continue to focus on building your brand organically and focusing on pushing out great quality and creative content.  If it's great someone will notice. Gaining confidence in your work regardless of your following and getting out there is key to really starting to build your brand. Don't allow numbers to dictate your value or de-value your content. Always go back to why you started and if it's sincere, your passion will continue to let you grow, improve and master your art.

Until next time,
Sincerely Miss J

What are your thoughts about the numbers game in blogging? Is it all about the numbers?

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