I really enjoy the blogstat pages on the dashboard of Word Press, which list the most visited posts on your site and tell you what sites referred visitors to your blog. Among other things, their features tell me what readers want to know about astrology. It shows what search terms they’re using and which of the links on my site they click. If you’re a new blogger–or one whose blog is languishing for lack of visitors–paying attention to the blogstats on your dashboard can accelerate your learning curve.
Apparently, without blogstats, I wouldn’t have a clue what readers like and what they couldn’t care less about. The posts I think are throwaways, they visit in droves; the ones I think are incredibly clever and astute, they hate! Go figure!
The top two on the list below are a total puzzle to me. #1: The last of four transiting Mars-Uranus conjunctions in Pisces was over in April, and yet people still visit that piece every day. (Was the transit that memorable?? Or that traumatic? You tell me.) #2: Pluto and the transiting Antiscia? If you follow this blog, you’ve heard me recently on that conundrum.
(If you haven’t subscribed and need an incentive to do so, have a look at the subscriber freebie here: NEW: FREE BOOKLET FOR SKYWRITER SUBSCRIBERS! Also free to new subscribers: a $5 discount coupon toward one of my ebooks.)
Here are my readers’ favorite posts, in order of their ranking:
- The Transiting Mars-Uranus Conjunction,
- Pluto and the transiting Antiscia–not Over til It’s Over
- Planets Squaring the Midheaven—How They Affect your Career
- The Moon Signs and their Emotional Habits
- PLUTO IN CAPRICORN: A Laugh and a Half, by John Marchesalla
- PLUTO IN THE CAREER HOUSES-THE POWER TO MANIFEST OR FAIL FOR SPITE
- Eclipses and Their Effects
- Why Saturn has as much to do with Luck as Jupiter
- Relationship Patterns of Venus-Neptune Aspects
- The Astrology Chart as a Portrait of the Soul
- Positive Thought Forms–Can They Limit Us? by Dr. Deborah Bier
- Mercury Retrograde Projects–Use the Energies Constructively
- Awful Things Astrologers Say to Clients
- Venus-Saturn Aspects—Waiting for Love
- Spotting Themes in a Birth Chart: the Rule of Three
Bloggers: Would you like to reprint one of these pieces on your own blog–other than the two written by my colleagues? I’m generally delighted to be asked to be a guest blogger, so long as the source, my copyright, and link to this blog are maintained. Read about how that works on the Free Website Content page. As examples of what an asset a guest post can be, see the excellent articles that have been posted on Skywriter under the category Guest Bloggers. I love to feature top quality content on topics I don’t write about–not to mention what it does for one’s stats! Note that two of the top posts listed above are by guests.
Who are the bloggers who refer people to my site? Buried about 3 clicks down on the stat section is a list of the referral sites, and here are the top five who’ve sent readers my way, all fine and informative sites in their own right. A number of them are blog catalogues or digests, compiled by selfless people like ElsaElsa who review a long list of astrology blogs and list the best posts of the day.
- astrodispatch.com
- ElsaElsa.com
- neithnet.blogspot.com
- www.donnasfreeastrology.info
- floweressencemagazine.com/blog
Are you a new blogger? You can learn a great deal about what’s working and what isn’t by paying attention to your own blogstats. As long as we’re having a link fest today, if you’re a blogger or thinking about becoming one, here are some of my articles that you may find useful:
- Can U Blog? What to Look for in the Birth Chart
- Blogging Tips for Astrologers—Retooling your Posts to Keep them Fresh
- What Website Visitors Need to Know First
- How to Add Impact to Your Site with Pictures
- Internet Find of the Week–Compare Blog Tags and Website Keywords for Visitor Appeal
You’ll find other hints in the categories Creating Materials for Websites & Blogs and The Skywriter’s Apprentice—tips from my writing seminars.
I am really loving being part of the blogging world. Thanks, readers, for sharing this adventure with me. And, don’t forget, if you decide to subscribe, you’re eligible for this freebie: NEW: FREE BOOKLET FOR SKYWRITER SUBSCRIBERS! Also free to new subscribers: a $5 discount coupon toward one of my ebooks.)
Art Credits: The gorgeous dahlias on this page are grown and photographed by my friend and personal assistant, Lynne Herlacher. Blessed with both solid earth and splendid air placements in her chart, Lynne can do anything! Her job description when she works for me (as opposed to us spending hours of these hot days at Borders scanning books and getting wired on iced coffee) is: “Make it stop doing that!” Lynne and her friend Linda maintain GarageSails.com, a website about garage, estate, and rummage sales in and around Portland, OR. See it at http://www.garagesails.com/index.html.
Congratulations, Donna! I find stats fascinating. I have been doing the Concord (MA) website (http://www.concordma.com) for years now. One of my earliest articles in the ezine (which is now a blog) was on New England Transcendentalism. Since 1998, that article has been in the top 10 accessed articles every month. I think there must be only about 5 people on the planet who have not yet read (and re-read!) that piece. It also led to a book deal for the author after it was read by a publisher. So you never really know what will catch on for the long-run!
By: Deborah Bier on August 18, 2009
at 12:20 pm
Dear Donna: Thank you so much. As a new blogger on astrology for business I will refer to this post again and again. I plan to work my way through the entire post! Your insights about what readers like as compared to what you thought was good was particularly heartening. And although I check my Google Analytics, I never check my WordPress stats.
Thanks again. Great, supportive post.
By: Ellen Longo on August 18, 2009
at 1:56 pm
Thanks, Ellen, I did mean to pass along what I’ve learned–really amazing technology behind blogs. Donna
By: Donna Cunningham on August 18, 2009
at 5:14 pm