March 01, 2012

You Can Lurk, But You Can't Hide!

The blogging experts I listened to at the Relevant Conference back in October advised against checking your blog stats daily unless of course your blog is a business.  Then you kind of need to look at stats to analyze what brings people to your blog so you can bring more people to your blog and make money.  If you blog as a ministry or just for fun as a hobby...checking your stats can start a vicious addiction.  It can get pretty demoralizing, too, if the numbers stay small.  The advice I took to heart was that if you're blogging for God, put it in God's hands.  Pray about the blog, about what you write, about who reads it....and trust Him to bring whoever needs to see it to you.  If you never know they were there, it doesn't really matter.

That said, I still check my stats, but not as often and not to see how many people are reading.  I just think it's fun to see where all you people come from and what brought you here.  Do you ever look just for the fun of it?

Just this week I've had visitors from:

Maryland
Iowa
Tennessee
Michigan
Georgia
Oregon
Oklahoma
Nebraska
Texas
Alaska
Alabama
Maine
Ohio
California
Virginia
New York
Arizona
and Illinois.

As well as:

Germany
Dubai
Bangkok
Australia
Netherlands
Stockholm
Wilayah Persekutuan (????)
London
Holland
Moscow
Hanoi
New Zealand
and West Bengal.

And the searches that brought them:

Okay/It's okay  (and really it is, usually)
Bored (Consider yourself lucky...if you're bored then nothing horrible is happening)
Bucket List (Good for you! Life is short, get out there and do something!)
Giraffe Neck (I happen to have a funny picture on the blog related to this.
I found it when I was looking for something else.  Why are you actually searching for giraffe neck?  
You aren't an international smuggler of rare animals are you?)
Banquet Centerpieces (Wow...you were really disappointed when you ended up here, huh?)
Irish Blessings (I don't know about blessings, but I dare you to say "Irish Wristwatch.")
Road Trip America (I must say, America was built for road trips.)
Where have you been?  (Right here.  Why, where have you been?)
Beach Bonfire (I think we could be friends.)
Have a Coke and a smile. (Love to, but I'm cutting back on the Cokes.)
Girls Who Are Gossiping. (Are you looking for dirt or have you been dished on?)
Round-faced preteen girl. (Okay, this one just scares me.)


One little aside.....someone out there in Norman, Oklahoma keeps visiting my blog.  Admit it, it's YOU, isn't it Toby?  I know you're checking up on me.  ROFLMBO!!

Source


9 comments:

Tracy said...

I'm afraid I'm your Norman, OK visitor. I'm not Toby but I know where he lives and my husband tagged him out during softball years ago.

Is that close enough for you?

Stacy said...

Hi Tracy! I didn't know it was you, but I have a couple of friends who could show up as Norman, I think. Just indulging my Toby crush for a minute. LOL Tagged him out in softball...great story to be able to tell.

Ellen aka Ellie said...

I have a Norman OK too, so if it's not Tracy, the TK is coming to mine, too.

Maybe he does so to compare an incredible blog (yours) to one just taking up space (mine).

Unknown said...

And of someone from Salem, Oregon...that's me! :)Sorry, no TK here but if I see him, I'll be sure to send him your way.

I check my stats sometimes but not often. I feel that whoever comes to visit my blog must've needed to visit because when I first started blogging, I never imagined anyone wanting to read my off the wall thoughts and musings.

enthusiastically, dawn said...

What about Narragansett, Rhode Island? I know I am trying to cut down on computer time but I am a lurker for sure and can't avoid my favorite blogs! I also love to see where people are coming from- sometimes places I have never heard of and I google the place and learn something new about a place I never knew before! I think I found your Blog while you were attending that Relevant Conference, if I remember correctly! Thanks for sharing what you took to heart...I need to let go with the stats. Mine just don't compare with the many Biggies. And that should not even be a consideration ...yet, well ya know I am flesh and blood (ie. ego) after all. ;)

Chatty Crone said...

And Georgia too! sandie

Beth Zimmerman said...

Oh ... you are good for my heart! :) And who knew that it was impossible to say Irish wristwatch! I've been trying repeatedly ever since reading that little gem! :)

marygems said...

And even down here in stormy New Zealand, we feel right at home in American Christian blog-land- I've made quite a few online friends- and am so grateful to you and others who are good at writing- because the words you write often put things into words for me and I go _ YES~! That's how I'm feeling.

Don't know any Norman's of Toby's- but the fun you are having will entice some to come along, for sure!

Stacy said...

Ellen...you kill me. Your blog is wonderful. :)

Simone...It's getting easier to trust that God brings whoever needs to read what he's given me to write. About the time I find myself getting discourage someone I didn't know read the blog will leave a comment or contact me and it's just...well, WOW!

Dawn...Did I miss RI?? Sorry! The numbers used to bother me a lot, but as the speakers said...even if you're writing for an audience of one, if you're in God's will then that one person really needs what you're offering.

Sandie...I missed Georgia, too??

Beth...I love that little gem. I use it to keep the kids on the bus busy from time to time.

Marygems...Welcome! I'm glad you feel comfortable here. You can follow my links to some wonderful Christian bloggers.

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