Do the numbers tell the story?
Frequently I read posts about how many followers a blogger has, and I am impressed. But sometimes the numbers do not tell the whole story. Are those followers of the blog, or Twitter followers, or visitors?
Does it matter?
Since I have eleven blogs, my numbers on each individual site tell only a partial tale. Like the 314 followers here, or the 247 followers at my Serendipity blog. And these are only the e-mail subscribers, not the Bloglovin’ followers.
Who knows? And who cares?
But I was curious, so I added up the numbers of e-mail subscribers (not Bloglovin’) for all my blogs and came to the whopping number of 1,350.
Again, what is the significance of that figure?
What matters most to me is interacting with other bloggers, through comments. Those build slowly, I have noticed. The largest numbers of comments come on the memes, but I am gradually noticing a slow growth in comments on other posts. Which gives me pleasure.
I love communicating, and those comments are part of a conversation. Sometimes I even see a back and forth interaction, as if the conversation is more like a chat.
Aside from the numbers or the comments comes the pleasure of creating a post, complete with images, and then waiting for that first lovely comment to pop up. Sometimes there are only a handful, but that’s okay. A connection has been made.
And I can go on to blog another day on another post.
***
AN INTERIOR JOURNEY 
I am a fairly new blogger and slowly learning about blogging. I was surprised to see I have over 250, 000 views on my Google+ site. Most are coming for my husband photos but I probably reach a new group of people. My blog numbers are low but seem to be increasing.
LikeLike
Thanks for stopping by, Betty Louise…I don’t often check “views,” but they are astounding, aren’t they? I am afraid I don’t often interact on Google +, probably because that site confuses me…LOL.
Enjoy!
LikeLike
It confuses me too. There are so many you can’t check them all. I used my Kindle and not often on my computer.
LikeLike
OMG…you said this beautifully! If I cared about numbers I would stop blogging right now…I think I have 3 followers…lol…what is so special to me is that the people who are meaningful to me comment…and they comment as though we are carrying on a conversation! It means the world to me!
And doesn’t it sort of go both ways? When I comment on someone’s blog…it would mean so much if every once in a while that blogger would hang out on mine…give me a teensy weensy piece of a comment! Lol!
LikeLike
I totally agree, Patty, and I knew you would get what I am trying to say. The whole point of it all is to connect, whether that is with one person or a thousand. Thanks for stopping by.
LikeLike
What a lovely post and I can’t even imagine how you manage so many blogs. When I started I was keen on my ‘stats’ but now I love seeing the comments, particularly from those who visit me on a regular basis so that conversations and the feeling of ‘knowing’ someone have time to grow.
LikeLike
Yes! The conversations and the sense of “knowing” other bloggers is the whole point, and is a validation of what we are trying to do. Thanks for stopping by, Cleopatra.
LikeLike
I agree Lauren, it is the interaction that counts. The personal posts are my favorite even though the memes bring more visitors.
LikeLike
Definitely! I am trying to reach out with other posts, since sometimes people who visit during memes will return to really connect when we post about our thoughts and feelings. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts, Nise.
LikeLike
I think that with all the different ways of following nowadays it is very hard to understand what the numbers mean.
LikeLike
I completely agree, Abigail…it is confusing. Which is why I feel so strongly that focusing on the connections and the conversations is the most important thing. Thanks for stopping by, and enjoy your day.
LikeLike
I like your point of view and agree with it. I used to have another book review blog and had many more followers than I have now on this new one, which I’ve had for about 14 months. Do I care? No, because on my present blog I have a multitude of wonderful bookish friends who stop by to comment, chat, offer book advice, even blogging tips. I wouldn’t trade it for the world, even for a thousand followers, lol.
Part of the discrepancy was that previously I had a suspense-only blog, so people knew when they visited me what they would get. My blog now is a hodge-podge of genres and that is because I have stretched as a reader and want to share that… just like with your own many blogs you are able to stretch and grow and address different topics in different places. Thanks for giving a boost of confidence to some of us who aren’t the most well-known, followed and imitated blogs around.
LikeLike
I’m glad you liked this post, Rita, because as I wrote it, I hoped I wouldn’t seem to be picking on the people who LOVE their numbers….but I also wanted to express what moves me and what keeps me posting. I enjoy having my numerous blogs, even though it might seem a bit obsessive and even fragmented. But I blog for fun and for the connections, just as you apparently do, too. Thanks for stopping by!
LikeLike
Personally… I have never tried to focus on numbers. I have a large “number” of followers (well to me at least) but I would say maybe 10% of those people actually comment and really follow my blog. I don’t even know how to check the number of people who follow my email. I don’t even pay attention to twitter followers. I just go on there a couple minutes a day and then I am done on there. Great discussion.
LikeLike
Thanks, Angela…glad you also enjoy the comments and conversations. To me, those interactions are valuable.
LikeLike