Where Have All The Blogs Gone?
Did you see this blog post by Rachel @Stitched in Color, she comments on how quiet Quilty Blogland is these days and I agree that things have changed drastically since the rapid rise in the use of Instagram. I read with great interest the comments on her post - to date all 301 of them!
I believe there's still a place for blogging; my blog continues to grow currently averaging 70,000 visitors each month from all over the world and that tells me I must be doing something right! Blog post comments have fallen off vastly as have, I'll sadly admit, my responses to comments. There was a time when my blog following was small enough that I replied to every comment and developed numerous internet friendships but the growth of the blog and also of myself as a teacher, designer and brand has changed that. I do make a point of replying to questions posed in the comments, though it's not always as immediate as it once was.
I've adapted how I use the blog to suit my readership - creating a newsletter allows me to share snippets of news, info and ideas with you and then point you to my blog for more detailed info and tutes. Judging by how fast my newsletter subscription is growing I think it's a format that's working for us both.
I have my own dilemma arising from this - the blog is free for me to use but, due to the size my newsletter subscription has rapidly grown to, in the next 2 weeks or so the newsletter email subscription service will no longer be free. The service is free for up to 2,000 subscribers and when I started the newsletter in May I thought this was a goal only to dream of yet after only 4 months we're already at 1,700+ subscribers. The paid-for email service certainly isn't cheap and this means I'm now having to think about covering my expenses which haven't been an issue for me previously. One possible solution for me is to create patterns to sell - don't worry, my plan is to still include free tips and tutes via the blog also - and I'm quickly trying to think of other ways to monetise what I do without changing anything drastically for you.
Unfortunately, the newsletter doesn't allow reader responses that are instant, as on Instagram and Facebook, or to open a discussion as we can in blog comments but we do have email and I'd love to hear your thoughts and suggestions on this, click the button to get in touch - Chris :D |
