As you can see on the sidebar, my feedburner subscribers count is up and alive. In one of my previous post 8 simple ways to increase RSS subscribers, one of the ways that i mentioned is to show your subscribers count. The suggestion is to actually have a few hundred subscribers before you show it live. The idea is of course to attract new subscribers.
So far my subscribers numbers has been fluctuating. It can go as low as 7-8 subscribers and sometimes a maximum of 19-20 subscribers. It depends on my posting dates. The days when there is no new posts, the subscribers count will drop tremendously. Why am i showing it now while i am having such a small amount of subscribers? There are a few reasons in me doing this.
1. Transparency – Since i am publishing the monthly traffic report and most likely the income report if i am able to create a revenue out of this blog in future. I like to be as transparent as possible. Therefore i decided to show my feedburner count on the sidebar. There is no reason why i should hide it. I don’t see any problems if i show how many subscribers this blog has attracted so far.
2. No worries on traffic – I don’t have any worries this little amount of subscribers will have any effect on my blog traffic. Findmyblogway is a fairly new blog, just 2 months old. I believe a true subscriber will click on the RSS button if he can find true value in the post. Likewise, by letting my readers know how many subscribers i have will not turn them away if they have been reading and supporting this blog all this while.
3. Most of you are reading through feeds – That’s right, most of you like to read this blog through feeds. Looking at my traffic source, feedburner take up almost 15% of my overall traffic lying in 3rd position. I think you should know how many people are with you supporting this blog together.
Conclusion
Is there any advantage in showing my subscribers count this early? I can’t really think of one. In fact i just want you to know how this blog is doing, whether it is going forward or heading backwards. This blog is set up to provide value to you. There is nothing i need to hide from you. Even my subscribers count is 1, i will still leave it on the side bar from now. I wouldn’t expect you to do the same for your blog as this is solely my choice and way of running findmyblogway.
Share Your Thoughts
Meanwhile please share with us what do you think is the ideal amount of subscribers you have to show it to your readers. Is there any effect on your blog traffic? I would like to hear from you.
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Hi Lye
Like I said earlier having your modest subscriber list could turn readers away as they may think not many people like this blog .Ditto not showing your subscriber list. I think in this early stage of our blogs we are ‘damned if we do and damned if we don’t.’
Nevertheless, your decision to show your subscribers is tcommendable and I think it will work in your favour.
Talk soon,
Michael
Michael recently posted..The 10 Best Selling Headlines This Week- Did You Make The Cut
Twitter: Findmyblogway
Hi Michael,
I understand your concerns. But since this blog is fairly new and the traffic is not that huge at the moment, i think it’s fine to put up the subscribers count. I can’t control whether this will turn visitors off. What I can do is to focus on producing quality content consistently over here.
Thanks for the feedback and the support bro.
Well said Michael!
ummm…ditto to that Lye
I just added mine when it hit 100, but then I took it away again because I thought it was still too low. Your post is some food for thought most definitely.
Alex recently posted..Geez- I wish I knew THAT when I started Blogging!
Twitter: Findmyblogway
Hi Alex,
I don’t think it really matters that much as you are doing a really good job with your blog. You have been putting up quality content consistently and i believe it’s just a matter of time your subscribers count flies like rocket.
Thanks for dropping by and sharing your input. I really appreciate your support.
Lye
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Findmyblogway, lickshunmewah. lickshunmewah said: RT @findmyblogway Why I Am Showing My Subscribers Count http://bit.ly/bR360K [...]
HI Lye
You need to make your decisions about the way you want to run your blog and you have decided early on to put it all out there. Brave man as what Michael says about people being put off could be true. It is what I have been taught by experienced bloggers.
However, I do think it depends on your site and your readers. You seem to be building a great community around you and I for one look out for your posts and visit regularly. So good on you for walking your own path and all the best for October.
Patricia Perth Australia
Patricia recently posted..Growing Lavenders-Your Favourite Gardening Tool
Twitter: Findmyblogway
Hi Patricia,
There is not much consideration from me to put the subscribers count this early. One thing is for sure, i am still building this blog and will concentrate at making it a success.
Thanks for the best wishes Patricia. I really appreciate your kind support to me as always.
Man, there’s nothing bad in displaying you blog feed stats! Yea the real readers of your blog will subscribe! All you need to do is just to keep providing quality content. That’s what i just want you to know. Thanks for sharing.
Twitter: Findmyblogway
Hi Samuel,
That’s how i feel when i decide to put this up.
Thanks for being with me and i appreciate your support.
I predict that in about a decade 20 subscribers is going to be a very big number
Slava recently posted..Dolina Zeleneho Plesa
Twitter: Findmyblogway
Hi Slava,
Maybe you are right. Ten years down the road, competition will be getting stiffer so to attract one subscriber will be more difficult.
Thanks for voice your opinion. Talk soon.
hey lye,
it doesn’t matter if you have less readers after not posting a few days. It happens to me also. I think the numbers there serve as a motivation to better improve your subscribing rates
Bryan recently posted..Staying Motivated to Master Your Goals
Twitter: Findmyblogway
Hi Bryan,
It will definitely be a motivating factor since i am showing it openly. Lets hope it will work in my favor.
Thanks for the support and feedback.
Lye
Twitter: onlinejobreview
I think you should show the subscribe count if there are sufficient subscriber in your list as many of the readers would turn away by seeing the count even if the contents are great.
But I like your decision to show this in the side bar even if this is very less.
Twitter: Findmyblogway
Hi Pritam,
I know there is such a concern that readers would turn away. I always encourage bloggers to be different, we should not be affected by the number of subscribers. Take a look on the content before we decide whether to leave or stay to become a loyal visitor. We need to decide ourselves not others decide for us.
Thanks for voicing your concerns and showing your support. I really appreciate that.
Lye