How do you know if your blog is successful? Do you judge by traffic? The number of Twitter followers or Facebook fans you have? The number of comments?
I’ll be the first to admit that I’m obsessed with stats. After starting another blog this week (you know, because I have so much time for a new one!), I’m now keeping up with social media, posts, and comments for THREE blogs. Yet I’m never too far from my stats - I just can’t help it. I have an obsessive need to feel like people are reading and my posts aren’t just languishing alone on the interwebs.
I think most bloggers enjoy (and stress out about) the various metrics and rankings, but what do they DO? Here’s an explanation of the 3 most popular blog ranking systems and what they mean for your blog.
PageRank
PageRank (PR) is a ranking assigned by Google. Blogs are rated on a scale from 1-10, with 10 being the highest possible (and hardest to attain). Most blogs rank between 2 and 4.
PR is a measure of a site’s relevance and quality compared to other websites, so it takes time to build it up. No one knows Google’s exact algorithm, but it’s widely known that links from quality sites help your PageRank increase. It’s kind of like networking - if someone in a position of power (i.e. a site with higher PR) is willing to recommend you (or your site in this case), it makes you look better.
If you just started blogging and you don’t have PR yet, don’t fret! Google updates PR a few times a year, and we don’t always know when an update is coming. Sometimes your PR will remain the same for a long time; my personal finance blog went from 0 to 3 and has been stuck there for nearly a year.
How to improve PageRank: The more high quality links you can get, the better the result for PR. But don’t be a snob - everyone has to start somewhere - and don’t be spammy in your link-building strategy. You might ask to guest post on other blogs, though it definitely helps to engage with the bloggers before you start sending requests.
People will link to you naturally as they discover your content. Anything you do “to get more links” is a potential red flag. Link to the blogs and content you enjoy, and talk to the bloggers you like to read. Don’t waste time worrying about PR because Google’s algorithm is magic - I’m being serious. They can tell if you’re building links in a way that doesn’t make sense. For example, if you are a brand new blogger and you suddenly have a thousand links from PR 7 sites, Google will smack you down.
Why PageRank matters: Everyone wants to have a high quality blog. When your PR improves, you get the joy of feeling like you’re good enough and smart enough and doggone it, people like you! Your online reputation definitely improves along with your PR.
If you choose to accept private advertising on your blog, PR is one of the most common stats advertisers look at. However, keep in mind that Google frowns upon some types of advertising - your PR could be stripped if your blog is deemed to have less than kosher advertising or linking practices. Then the advertisers run screaming. (Believe me, I speak from experience.) More on this in a future post.
Alexa
Alexa is an independent company that provides information about most websites. A blog’s Alexa Traffic Ranking is supposed to measure its popularity compared to other sites on the web. However, a big flaw with Alexa is the fact that their rankings come solely from the online activity of people who use the Alexa toolbar. In other words, all Alexa measures is the number of people with their toolbar who visit your site. And the only people who use the toolbar are (usually) other bloggers.
No matter what type of blog you have, your Alexa rank will improve over time. At first, you won’t have any ranking at all, then you’ll start somewhere in the millions. (My personal finance blog started at over 10 million.) The lower the Alexa rank, the more fantastic your site is supposed to be. As of this writing, Curiosity Killed the Blog is a little over 200,000, which is pretty good for a 2 month-old blog. But since it’s a blog for bloggers, many of whom use the Alexa toolbar, its ranking is badly skewed.
How to improve Alexa rank: Write amazing content and interact with other bloggers in your niche. If they’re visiting your site on a regular basis, your Alexa rank will start dropping like crazy after awhile.
Why Alexa rank matters: Honestly, it really doesn’t. (Sorry, but it’s true!) Alexa can be a good way to see how your blog is progressing in popularity among people with the toolbar, but it doesn’t have any huge implications. Obviously if you started at 5 million and you’re still at 5 million after a year, you’re not too good at getting other people to visit you, and you should work on interacting more.
MozRank
MozRank is a ranking from another independent company (SEOmoz) that rates your site’s popularity and quality. MozRank actually consists of 3 different numbers: MozRank, page authority, and domain authority. MozRank is measured on a 1-10 scale, while page and domain authority are measured from 1-100.
Much like PageRank, MozRank rates websites based on the number and quality of incoming links. It also takes awhile to get a MozRank - you have to wait for one of the incremental updates. Unlike PR, though, your MozRank will not be a nice round number. Ranks like 4.12 or 3.88 are common.
MozRank is becoming increasingly favored as a ranking system because it is independent. Since PR is owned by Google, there is some question regarding its relationship to your use of other Google products such as AdSense, Analytics, Webmaster Tools, and even your ranking in search results. Even if you end up with a PR penalty from Google, your MozRank won’t change.
How to improve MozRank: Build those links! Participate in blog carnivals, promote other bloggers’ posts that you enjoy, and interact with bloggers in your niche. Don’t focus on quantity - sure, you want lots of people to link to you, but quality is more important. One link from a reputable site is better than 3 links from a spammy site.
Why MozRank matters: MozRank is quickly becoming the best way to determine a website’s popularity. Whether you’re negotiating with advertisers, looking for freelance work, or just promoting your content, MozRank can help prove that you write good things that people want to read. All rankings are just ways to compare your blog to others, but I would recommend taking MozRank the most seriously because it’s the most accurate.
How Does Your Blog Measure Up?
You can check your PR, Alexa, and MozRank (among other stats) by entering your blog URL at the Check Domains Web Analyzer. Remember - numbers are just numbers! Don’t let obsession with stats prevent you from writing great blog posts and getting more readers. The longer you work on your blog, the better your stats will be.
