When you own a website, you want more traffic, regardless of how many pageviews you’re currently getting. You could be getting millions of views and you’d still want more. Partly because it’s a challenge. You reach a milestone and then want to reach the next one.
But then there’s that feeling of self worth that comes with getting a large amount of traffic. We all want to be liked and in some small way, seeing your pageview count increase is validating that. Not to mention the greater your site traffic, the more opportunities you’ll likely have. Want to sell thousands of dollars a month? You’re going to need a steady stream of traffic. Want to be well known. Again, traffic.
So then why did I delete a blog post that was providing me with on average 5,000 pageviews a month (30% of my site traffic)? Sounds stupid, right? I mean, hello, traffic! I’m sure there are some of you that are working like crazy just to get 5000 views a month and here I am throwing it all away.
But here’s the thing.
Site traffic is nothing but a number.
Sure, by having more traffic you’re setting yourself up for greater success, but if it’s the wrong type of traffic it won’t matter.
More traffic often means greater success, but if it’s the wrong type of traffic it won’t matter.
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And that brings me back to my reason for deleting a post bringing in 30% of my monthly pageviews. It was bringing me the wrong traffic. Deleting it didn’t make a difference in the long run.
The post was about how to save money at Target and it went viral on Pinterest. It was originally published on my lifestyle blog and then transferred over to this site when I decided to switch directions. Although it didn’t quite fit with this site’s goals, I didn’t delete it because of the traffic it was bringing in.
I quickly realized though that the post was a dead end. Sure it was driving traffic to my site, but people were clicking over, reading the post, and leaving. They didn’t care about anything else I had to offer. They were here for tips on saving money. That’s it. They didn’t care about my blogging tips or web design tutorials. And they sure weren’t going to shell out hundreds or thousands of dollars for any of my design services. They weren’t my audience.
Once I realized this, I deleted the post. It was scary seeing my site traffic drop, but honestly, it didn’t make an impact at all in my business. I didn’t receive a decrease in inquiries. Comments on my new posts remained constant. The only difference was that my daily page view count was a lot lower than I was used to.
And you know what? I survived. My new daily site traffic count became the new norm. I focused on creating content that my target audience would like. I’ve yet to build up my traffic to that point yet, but with each and every targeted post, I’m getting a bit closer.
So what can we learn from this?
A small, engaged audience is more important than a large, uninterested audience.
End of story. Your site traffic is just a number. It doesn’t mean much. Sure, it can give you an idea on how you’re doing, but it’s not a true representation of your audience.
A small, engaged audience is more important than a large, uninterested audience.
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Focus on quality, not quantity.
Strive to build an audience full of people who love what you do. Who find each and every post, podcast, or video helpful. Who leave comments and share your content with others. That’s who you want. Those people that just stop by to read a post and continue on their way? Not important.
Why I Deleted a Blog Post Bringing in 30% of My Site Traffic was originally posted on Allyssa Barnes.