Jun 8, 2010  •  In Blogging, Giveaways, Web

The Power of Social Media, the Invisible Line, and a Giveaway!

I am fully aware of the fact that in order for a blog to grow and become popular, I need to be proactive and “get out there.” Social media. Guest blogging. Maybe perhaps some advertising.

But honestly? I’m too lazy.

That is why I am so grateful for my internet friends who link to Geek in Heels from their sites. I love you guys — I really do!

And when power Digg/StumbleUpon/Delicious users link to my site, the traffic literally spikes through the roof…and brings with it more regular visitors and subscribers.


infographic via Smashing Apps

 

I always said that there is an invisible line that is to be crossed for all bloggers. A line, once crossed, will bring in organic traffic and continue to build regular visitors and subscribers.

This line is different for all. For me, it was the mark of 500 subscribers. For the longest time, it was the number I sought to reach and could never quite get there. The number continued to hover and plateau just below 500.

If you are a blogger, did/do you have an invisible line?

In my case, I was finally able to break through the invisible line with the help of Digg, StumbleUpon, and Delicious power users. To those users, I sincerely thank you!

Because there were days (okay, only two specific times) where I saw my number of subscribers go up by 100-200 overnight. And as I had predicted, the number of subscribers and regular visitors only continued to grow as soon as I passed the invisible line.

Geek in Heels now enjoys over 25,000 unique visitors a month. I know that number is small fries for most power bloggers, but I am quite proud of what I have accomplished.

While I certainly wish more visitors would comment (doesn’t every blogger?), I understand that a my posts do not always warrant comments. Just look at über-popular sites such as Boing Boing — millions of visitors a month with a strikingly disproportionate number of comments.

And since none of this would be possible without YOU, my readers…

What type of content would you like to see more of on Geek in Heels?

Is it pregnancy/babies? More geeky stuff? The sharing of random things I’ve found on the web? Personal, day-to-day musings?

And in order to get you all to really think about this question and leave pertinent feedback, I have decided to do a giveaway!

I will choose one comment for this post via a random number generator and that person will win a custom illustration!

The giveaway will end this Friday, June 11 at 3:00pm EDT. The winner will be announced as an addendum to this post, and I will contact the winner via email as well.

All comments without a valid email address will be disqualified (how else would I contact you if you won?), and only one comment is allowed per person.

Thanks in advance for your feedback, and thank you for reading Geek in Heels!

You may also like:

36 Responses to “The Power of Social Media, the Invisible Line, and a Giveaway!”

  1. Mar says:

    more random things you’ve found on the web and more personal, day-to-day musings

  2. Jam says:

    Thanks to google reader’s "play", I’ve found your blog a couple of days ago and been addicted to it since than.
    Funny random things, geeky stuff (I am getting those Mario Playing Cards for sure), and all that without losing friendly atmosphere makes this blog more readable.

    I can just say,
    Keep the good work! =)

    Jam

  3. Stacy Holt says:

    I actually decided I was going to post even before I got down to the part where you said you were going to give things away. I follow your blog via Google Reader, so I don’t often take the extra steps necessary to be able to comment. I appreciate your pregnancy posts, and your posts about Comang (as a fellow dog lover). I also appreciate the random "funnies" you come up with some time. All of your posts are really enjoyable, but seeing how you’re coping through pregnancy after miscarriage and your "real-life" points of view are really great. Keep up the good work. 😉

  4. Christine says:

    As the gf of a geek, definitely more geeky stuff! lol

  5. busylizzy says:

    I am with stacy… often to lazy to click over to comment, but I read every post1
    I love the day to day musings and the pregnancy updates.

  6. Amy says:

    I love the geeky illustrations you use on your blog. 🙂

  7. Amber says:

    A.) I have no idea how to find out how many subscribers/ new views per month, because I am a moron. 2.) BABY GIVEAWAY! D.) Do you know where the "A, 2.) and D.)" came from?

  8. Shell says:

    I love it all, but I would love more personal posts. I definitely read your blog to get to know you more as a person, than to look at nerdy things.

    And I think my invisible line is 50 readers 😛 I have only about 20 at this point.

  9. Teresa says:

    Like a couple of others said before me, I read mostly in Google Reader so I don’t always comment. In fact this is probably the second or third time I have ever commented on any blog!

    I like reading your blog because I think you have a different perspective than other that I read. As someone also trying to conceive, I enjoy your pregnancy posts. But I also love your day to day and personal writing.

  10. Opiboble says:

    I am a heavy user of Google Reader and that is where I have found most of the sites I keep track of (yours being one of them) and one of the things that keeps me from hitting the unsubscribe button on my monthly cleanup is the tech stuff as well as some of the random sites that you toss up every now and then.

    I do run my own blog for my character in the MMO game EvE-Online, for me it was easy to get noticed since all I had to do was put the blog link on my character Bio in-game and people started to keep tabs on it. It has been a long while since I have posted but I still get in-game chats commenting on my style if writing, manly because it is so heavy on the sci-fiction feel. I really should start it back up, the problem is I hardly play anymore so it is hard to come up with good stories lol.

    As for the prize: For the ones who do not win could we possibly buy one? I do assume you made your own and it is very good work, I would love to get one made even if I have to pay for it!

  11. Ashley says:

    I like the balance of things you have now. Geeky, baby, geeky, baby.

    I’ve been blogging for six years now and I still have a relatively small amount of readers. I like getting comments, but I also like the small community that I’ve built up. More comments means more people that I know less well. Plus, it’s kind of nice being anonymous. I don’t know how people like dooce and The Bloggess deal with all the "fame," for lack of a better word. It would stress me the hell out. Especially if I started getting trolls. Ugh, trolls. Do you have a problem with negative comments? I haven’t noticed any, but you probably delete them.

  12. Ann says:

    Hi, I’ve been subscribed to your posts for some time now and I love the way you write. Sorry for the lack of comments. I like to read more than write. Anyways, as a new mother to a 3 month old, I like your posts about your pregancy and baby. =)

  13. Rhey says:

    I really like the blend of posts you have. The geeky ones are great, but I also like to get to know "my" bloggers and what is going on in their personal lives. Please keep up the mix!

  14. I’ve noticed the more I post the more readers I get… which is really frustrating the months I have class because I don’t have the time to update as much and I don’t want to lose readers.
    As for what you post – I love the mix you have now 🙂 Just the right amount of everything.

  15. Amber says:

    I wish there was a way to comment while I am reading the blog in my google reader. I hate clicking over LOL. I read every post. What I love is that you are genuine. I don’t think you need to add anything. I haven’t even logged into my blog in weeks. I think I have resigned to just be a reader not a blog writer LOL

  16. I like the geeky stuff AND the personal stuff. And I think your art is awesome. 🙂

  17. Jan says:

    I like your blog the way it is. If I had to pick something, I would say more personal posts (which includes your pregnancy, babies etc) I also like the Koran, Chinese posts you do.

  18. Ashley says:

    I love the random web things (you are surprisingly one of the only geek blogs I read!) as well as the pregnancy/baby stuff.

  19. MrsW says:

    What I love about you is the combination of geekdom, random internet finds, and baby stuff. I can read about all three of those things separately at many other places online, but you’re the only one I know who is into all three. I especially love geeky baby stuff.

  20. Maya says:

    I love the day to day musings as well the random stuff you find on the web. I am a loyal reader, but Ineed to be better at commenting!

  21. Suzanne says:

    I read everything you post but I like the mix of daily ramblings and cool/geek things. I love showing my husband things I have found out from your blog 🙂
    I will try to be a better commenter 😉

  22. Jas says:

    I really enjoy your posts about baby. I too am a mom. Maybe more ‘geek’ stuff for kids. I eat that up.

  23. Palila says:

    I’m satisfied with your posting content- it’s definitely you, and what’s important/going on in your life and thoughts.

    My invisible line… I’ve been at 9 readers on google reader for a year. My dog’s blog has 9. So, I’d say 9 is my line (though I know my most frequent readers are my parents.)

  24. Palila says:

    I meant 7. I have 7, dog has 9.

  25. Jessica says:

    My invisible line was getting the attention of other bloggers I admire. I have a food blog and I was delighted when I first got comments from my favorite cooks.

    What I like best about your blog is how everything ties together, and even though I don’t know you, I feel like I understand why you post what you post. Some of my recent favorites were the bento boxes and the story about your car trouble in the tunnel. So, I’d say continue posting tidbits from the web as well as whatever is on your mind, whether that’s the pregnancy updates or things that happen in your life that would be interesting.

  26. Josie says:

    I love your day-to-day musings and also the things you find on the Internet. I’m always bookmarking sites you post. 🙂

  27. Erin G. says:

    geeky stuff, please!

  28. eileen says:

    another fan of the geeky/personal mix ~ was drawn in by the pregnancy struggles, and of course love the geeky stuff too 🙂

    lately I’ve noticed you’ve been posting lots… It is nice to see new items in my google reader every time I check it! I really need to work on carving out time to post more on my own blog, but it’s been rough. I know that lack of time is the reason I haven’t been able to grow my blog, but maybe one day things will calm down… in the mean time I can at least try to comment more frequently on my favorite blogs!

  29. Dude… I have about 10-15 people visit my blog every day, but I get little to no comments, and only 2 people are ‘publicly’ following my blog. So. I have very little to offer you. Then again, I am a bit lazy about blogging, and haven’t really found my niche yet.

    I like the nerdy stuff and the baby stuff. I also like random stuff and stuff about your faith.

    and stuff.

  30. I’ve only been reading a short while, but I like both the geeky posts (including random interesting links) and the personal / baby posts. The whole reason that I clicked over to your blog from my greader recommendations was the "not a typical geek" factor. I relate to that. 😉

Leave a Reply to Teresa Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *