If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
VizuAnswers.com has released a report detailing the results of a blog readership poll they recently performed. The information they gathered actually caught me by surprise.
Here are some highlights:
- 67.3% of respondents stated they found the blogs they read regularly through links from other blogs.
- Readers choose the blogs they read regularly based on both the quality of writing and topical focus equally.
- The quality of an author’s writing is more important than his reputation.
- Writing quality and reputation is shown to be twice as important as the design.
- 65% of respondents read blogs for ‘entertainment purposes.’ Only 12% report reading blogs for business reasons.
- Spanish speakers read more blogs, and their responses are nearly identical to English speakers.
You can download the full report here.
What should we learn from this report?
- Exchanging links with other bloggers is vitally important. Find writers you admire and comment on their blog, link them on your blogroll, you can even contact them asking for a link back to your site. Bloggers are generally happy to oblige, especially if you actively participate on their site. The worst that can happen is they will say no, right?
- Improve the quality of your writing. Use a spell-checker, edit and read your posts critically before you publish them. It takes a small effort to polish your posts.
- Make your posts entertaining. Show your personality. Readers are coming for your opinions and to hear your ‘voice.’ Deliver.
- Install translation software on your blog. Google Translator works well enough for non-English speakers to get the gist of your posts.
I’m surprised that more readers aren’t visiting sites for work purposes, since there are so many business-related sites out there. I also find it interesting that the author’s reputation isn’t nearly as important as the quality of their writing.
Did anything about the report surprise you?
