Just to test this out I'm going to include a sexy picture first. 😆
@Paulxx001 recently had an interesting post where he mused about the difference it makes if your post has a sexy picture that shows up in the feed as a preview pic. Sex, Sexuality And Gender Preferences... An AFF Mystery SOLVED... Go check it out!
My curiosity was piqued and I proceeded to do a little geek-out on my own posts from the past few months.
Some major caveats.
-I often include YouTube links which results in NO preview picture showing up in the feed.
-I rarely have a first picture that is a sexy picture (basically, I'm the opposite of some other bloggers in that I actively avoid that). In fact, in this analysis I only found four posts where I would classify the preview picture as sexy and even those weren't "clickbait" sexy. The Ropesters had a picture of me tied up, but I was fully clothed. How to Comment on a Sexy Picture had a photo of the red light district in Amsterdam, with women posing in windows. True Confessions of Safer Sex had a person wearing latex underwear, but it was a guy - not exactly catering to the demographic here. HNW - M&N did have a picture of me, but it was a black and white pic of my moley underboobs. 😂
So I guess I'm not a good person to test the hypothesis (or theorem as Paul says). And I do recognize it's a different story for me as a woman - I get a certain number of views no matter what. Oh, and did you know about how views work here? If someone looks at your main blog page - even if they don't actually click into any of the posts to read them - every post currently showing up on your first page records a view from that person. You might notice if you scan down your main blog page, the older posts probably are showing more views - because of the cumulative effect from people navigating to your main blog page over time.
Whereas with the likes (or other reactions) - people can record those directly from the feed without ever navigating to your blog page.
Enough blathering, here is a summary of my results:
There aren't really enough posts for it to be valid, but I would say I should be including more memes and cartoons as first images.
And there does seem to be a difference between no preview pic at all, vs. even a non-sexy preview picture. But it's not significant and I don't plan on stopping the inclusion of YouTube links. 😊
Basically I think I have a cadre of followers who faithfully follow and a smaller cadre who faithfully comments, and I thank all of you. ❤️
90
39 comments
Oh and I divided the comment count by two, assuming that around half of the comment count was me responding to other peoples' comments.
@mnmufdvr69 heavens, no. That is not why I’m here to blog.
I think it's pretty clear where I fall on the idea of having a click-bait first image! 😁 But understand:
And how’s that working out for you? (thinking about the guys who assume the sexy chick in the pics is the one who made the blog post 😂 )
@smartasswoman Well...see #1
There's one other factor to consider. The main dating page highlights a couple of 'trending' blog posts (whether they're actually trending or not) Those bring in a lot of non-followers - especially if there is a picture. I've seen you and @Paulxx001 on there.
True, but THEY highlighted those posts long after the fact, and I hardly noticed any impact.
The key to all these numbers we're talking about — besides those pictures — is timing. The post has to stay in the active feed long enough to get noticed, and it has to be posted at a time when there are many members online. All the posts in mid-afternoon today garnered low views.
As I mentioned to Smarty, was everyone at church?
Blogs posted four hours later were generating numbers in the hundreds; what changed? I wonder who does the counting over at AFF HQ.
Yes, I think being featured on the home page does make a difference and might be why I had some posts that had more traffic.
I agree with @Paulxx001 about the timing. I've noticed that CS sometimes takes long breaks where no posts or comments are being reviewed. I don't know if that's because they get busy, or if there's a shift changeover, or if they specifically have their work shift scheduled to spend a block of time dealing with customer issues rather than blog approvals. Anyway, I think I submitted this post at the beginning of one of those breaks. And then when they get back at it I'm guessing they approve the short & easy posts first. So by the time mine appeared, it was WAY down in the "New" feed.
But I feel like most of my traffic is from followers who are getting alerts, anyway...
@smartasswoman Most of my traffic is from followers. Most of my comments are from the loyal cadre. But I do notice a difference if there is no picture.
@smartasswoman
I average about 55 of my fictional 1,048 Followers who visit any one of my blogs; the rest are random guests. In my Sex post, that means 3,500 were NOT Followers.
Out of curiosity, check out the Last Visit on your followers. Maybe I'm an anomaly.
@Paulxx001 how the heck did you figure out that only 55 of your visitors were followers? Wouldn't you have to cross check every single person on the visitor list against your follower list? Unless there is some other trick I don't know about.
As you know, a lot of my followers aren't really legit due to the way that they were acquired. But, I would tend to assume a higher percentage of my visitors are followers than what you experience.
@Paulxx001 OK, now I've realized that the full display of the "Recent Visitors" list shows whether or not they follow you. I didn't do a calculation but it looks like it ranges from 1/3 to 1/2 followers for my visitors. And I was surprised to see a fair number of people who I think of as regulars, who don't follow me. So don't assume someone is a random just because they're not followers.
@smartasswoman
Go to your Main Blog page.
Click Followers.
Click Last Visit
It's listed by the last date they visited. Simple math after that... can you add? Better yet, it's listed by rows of four; can you multiply? 🙈😲
Do I have to show you everything ? 😲😂😎
@smartasswoman
You have 36K followers. If half visited, you'd have 18,000 views per blog post; check your math again dear. 😲
@Paulxx001 Now Now ... you know darn well the site will create followers who really aren't following.
@Paulxx001 No, I wasn't saying half of my followers had visited. I was saying that among the people who visited, one-third to one-half were followers.
Ahhh... Gotcha.
i get 55
i musta pissed off the other1,000 ... somehow... 😥
@superbjversion2, @smartasswoman
The log-on process for NEW members obliges a person to follow three bloggers. Andrew (by default) is one of them; that is how he has amassed 485,000 followers. If you want to know how membership drives are going, watch his blog followers.
Then, the 'newbie' tributes have to choose two other bloggers. They don't have the patience to scroll, so they'll usually pick whoever pops up first with a profile that appeals to them.
Usually, their lifespan on this site is about two months... then they turn gray-scale. 😲🙊
@Paulxx001 I am aware. Which is why I've been taking my numbers with a giant grain of salt ever since the new Community site was created.
@Paulxx001 This Pick-a-Blogger thing surprises me since most people - even if they aren't new - can't even find the blogs.
@superbjversion2
They pic their bloggers from a list, like a menu. After the newbies pic their 'bloggers', they rush to complete their profile, and many don't leave enough breadcrumbs on the trail to find their way back. They have no clue what it's all about.
@Paulxx001 yes, something I’ve often wondered is how many people think ‘hey maybe I should check that out’, they go through the signup process where they have to follow a few blogs, and then proceed never to return again. 😂
Pictures help. But, for me, those nasty up close pics, I just keep moving.
Yeah, I have no interest in them either, but I suspect they're not targeted at us!
Two hours and 23 views? 🙈
Looks like my "theorem" is being blown to bits. LOL... 😲😂
I should have mentioned that the exception to my "theorem" is Sunday afternoons. Give it time; by tomorrow morning, you'll see that thousands will have visited.💕
Nice pic, though, and who doesn't love spreadsheets? 😎
... and the way they count views is also true... strange way of jacking up the numbers...
Yes, I noticed this post seems to be in the doldrums! 😂
I think you were the one who clued me in that someone viewing the main blog page results in a “view” of every post on the page.
@smartasswoman
Lol... True, I did. I'd forgotten where you got that.😲
Oh well, you tried; it's Sunday and everyone was at church. 😶
I liked that pic. 👍💕
@smartasswoman
What did I say? 😎😂😲
@Paulxx001 what? 🤔
@smartasswoman
"... Give it time; by tomorrow morning, you'll see that thousands will have visited.💕"
@Paulxx001 Ah! Yes, you were correct! Well, 1300 at least (when I looked first thing this morning). Maybe not "thousands" haha.
@smartasswoman
ItZ up to 2,230 as of 3:15 PM. 😎
I didn't write MY theorem out of thin air. 😂
@smartasswoman
You can send your check in the mail.
Oh wait... we're not monetized here... F##K ! 😶❗
@smartasswoman
Ten minutes later itZ up to 2,284... Now 2,317 ... 2,446
More views than ANY of the posts on your spreadsheet.
And YOU posted on a Sunday afternoon, of all things. 😲🙈🙊🙉
Although, it might NOT get as high as the 2,900 for"Weekend Update" — from 2 mos. ago — that one featured YOU.
@Paulxx001 Remember, the numbers that I showed above were the averages, not individual posts. But yes, now this post has more views than the highest one I found in the past few months, which was the one about Hygiene.
In my experience a photo definitely gets more views than text, especially on this site. It's true on Faecebook too. On Literotica few posts are "Illustrated" so it's not as much of a factor.
When I post here now I'm not really looking to draw new readers. If that happens I'm pleased but I'm mostly writing for friends now.
I would go so far as to say that a lot of my posts are more for myself, sort of a daily diary. Now of course I probably wouldn't do it if I were getting zero comments or reactions. The interplay is what makes it appealing. I'm glad to have my little band of regulars along for the ride.
I am biased. I always prefer Black And Whites, they seem timeless. Ansel Adams Landscape B&W's for instance could of been taken just recently. Like wise for other B&W Photographers who take the time to catch the best light of the subject.
I agree, they look timeless - although this lady's hairdo is not. 😉
Personally I pay attention to the photo. I move on from Dick pics since most look alike. I do enjoy the cartoons, and depending on the picture, I will read the posting or not! Keep 'em coming!
Thanks! I go right by the dick pics too. 😊
@smartasswoman I don't mind them in person though! Giggles...
Why a casino particularly? That caught my eye!
Anyway, good post, but I think the whole thing is complicated, and as you say, you have a following no matter what. One of the reasons I am part of that following is the total absence of clickbait in your posts. Or "comment bait" for that matter, which puts me off even more.
I like the way you write what comes into your mind, and sometimes it catches my attention, sometimes it catches someone else's. Of course we all like to get comments - apart from anything else it is the feedback and sharing of different viewpoints which makes it interesting to me. Other bloggers might only be interested in how many responses they get, rather than then quality / content, and maybe they find that the inclusion of a sexy picture boosts that. That's completely up to them. But although I like a sexy picture as much as the next person, if all it is is clickbait, then as soon as I realise that, they've lost me.
In my recent trawl of blogs to see if there were still interesting ones out there, I did find one, to which I admit I was initially attracted by a sexy picture. But it was one which particularly appealed to me. "Maybe this woman is on my wavelength sexually," I thought. But then I found that despite a few interesting blog posts, she had never replied to any of her comments. And not all of them contained "wanna fuck "phrases! Suddenly I lost interest. What would be the point in leaving a comment if I knew I would never get a response? Do we know she even reads them?
Yes, that casino invite was weird. Not that I would ever say yes to a random invite from someone I'd never talked to before, but the casino sealed my "no" answer haha!
I think it's nice to have the freedom to write about whatever is on my mind. And if someone finds it boring (AI travel plans or home improvement reports) I'm fine with them passing it by and only commenting on the posts that pique their interest.
Sometimes it's surprising though - some of the posts that are only for my own venting that I assume will be boring, attract a large number of comments. 🤷🏻♀️
I too, came across one of those people who rarely or never replies. She caught my attention because her profile had kind of a punk rock vibe (pretty rare here!) but alas, she didn't hold my interest.
Come over I think we should talk
Yes a lovely picture...
Great photo. Classy
I follow you so I turn up, pic or no pic. I am way more into words than pics.
To add a wrinkle, I have actually unfollowed a few blogs when they became so picture heavy that the words were overpowered. I'm weird
Hugs!!
You're not weird at all! I feel the same. Unless someone is posting extremely interesting pictures, like travel pics or whatever - but I assume that's not what you're talking about.
I'm thinking my numbers are fairly consistent because I have a nice core of readers who operate as you do and don't care if there is a preview pic.
Not too weird... I've done the same thing.
Often, there’s no rhyme nor reason as to what posts get attention. I stopped trying to figure it out but am not going to compromise by adding porn pics. I post, what I want, when I want. Views, reactions and comments are a bonus.
You have a solid base of readers and commenters, so there is no need for you to chase views. 😊
I guess I have to also acknowledge that some of the people who post those pics aren't doing so in search of more views, they just really like porn pics. 🤷🏻♀️
@smartasswoman I am not sure I agree with your statement that I have a ‘solid base of readers and commenters’. It often feels like a closed circle. And realistically, it’s impossible for me to ‘compete’ with others who have 30K+ followers. I also know people can fall into a sense of obligation to read, react or comment simply because they follow someone. I prefer to have what I post stand on its own merit and apply the same approach to others.
Funny or sexy, both catch my interest!
The profiles that confuse me are the straight males that choose a sexy female picture for their profile picture.
I don’t think I’ve seen that but it certainly sounds confusing!
It did seem at one point, posts with pics of sexy chicks got approved quicker and easier than other photos. The recent slew of cam girls getting their posts approved kinda proves that theory.
Although this one was slow to be approved and by the time it appeared it was buried underneath a bunch of more recent posts.
The reviewers were probably confused by the spreadsheet. 😂
For what it's worth, I've scanned all your posts up to here, and this is what I'm commenting on. If you're keeping score.
Ha! Point taken. 😊
Beautiful!!!!!
It's delicious 🤤🤤
Hot
You look like blow up doll, sexy
You think that’s me? 😂 isn’t it pretty obvious that the picture is from the 50’s or 60’s?
Also, gross that you think looking like a blowup doll is sexy.
@smartasswoman I know it is not you, but I did get your attention. Blow up dolls are people too! LOL, just kidding.
Looking good!
Holy fuck! She's really pretty...
SEXY 😍