How should one measure blog growth? Yuga, one of the most famous bloggers in the Filipino blogosphere, suggests the following indicators of blog growth:
- # of subscribers
- Technorati ranking
- Alexa ranking
- Ratified.org
Sure, rankings are good. It gives you an idea of how far up or far down you are with respect to other bloggers. And if it is indeed your goal to climb to the top – whatever “top” represents – then a quarterly or biannual evaluation would be in order.
Numbers are good. In fact, I deal with numbers everyday. In my field of work, I measure certain parameters in order to determine whether I’ve succeeded or not in my goals. I get measured myself. I am evaluated in terms of output, which in concrete terms translates to the number of publications, patents, workshops, conferences attended. It is a way to determine my efficiency and range.
I’ve only one complaint about this type of evaluation. Focusing on numbers doesn’t reveal who I really am. For instance, the number of publications doesn’t really indicate if I’m a good scientist or not. It basically boils down to the question of quality over quantity. There are Nobel prize winners who produced only a couple of publications in their lifetime, and yet they changed the world. Would my patents for some gizmos be worth anything if they didn’t make our lives better?
For me, blogging is a hobby. A way to unwind. A way to express myself. Now why the hell should I deal with numbers when it comes to something I consider as a hobby? Isn’t it enough for me to deal with all those numbers at work already? I’ve long deplored the fact that cold, hard evaluation of someone’s performance is a decidedly masculine way of doing things. You don’t get evaluated as a person. Just cold, hard numbers.
If I gave you my Alexa ranking, for instance, would that really tell you how much of an impact I’ve made on your thoughts? If I gave you my Technorati ranking, would that tell you about the quality of my blog?
What I’m saying is, blog growth should be measured based on an individual’s goals. I think every blogger should first consider what goals they want to achieve with their blogs. Evaluation should then be done in consideration of those goals.