Have you noticed our little blog community has changed a lot in the past few years? I have. We all used to post a bit more and were posting more personal ideas (I think!) So what has changed?
First I decided to look at . . . why do bloggers post? For comments and communication of course! The more comments and discussion the more inspired we are to post. Less comments=less posts. Why don't people comment as much? Because they are "pinning" instead! I feel like our blogs are starting to become more of a scrapbook of ideas then a larger community of art teachers sharing and discussing. Don't get me wrong there are still a core group of people who are community creators, but there are definitely more "pinners."
So, if you want to find out what posts people are truly interested in, you won't find out through the comments or even page views. You'll find it through their pins.
Simply type this in your browser and all the pins of your posts will come up!
http://www.pinterest.com/source/WEBSITENAME.COM
So there you have it. The reason we have more readers, fewer discussions, fewer comments is because people are too busy pinning. I do miss the old blogger, but instead of being sad about how things have changed, I think I'll roll with it, pin it, whatever we are doing nowadays! Happy pinning!
Totally true! I have one post in particular that was pinned hundreds of times (literally) but under 10 comments. I think you are right with the grabbing ideas for s virtual scrapbook. Pinterest has brought in a lot of traffic to my blog so I guess that's a benefit!
ReplyDeleteI had/have a personal family blog. I loved interacting with friends and family through that site. Facebook killed it. :( I agree that Pinterest may have been part if the reason, but I also think the sheer number of art Ed blogs makes it harder to have a community through blogs. There are SO many that I can't keep up!
ReplyDeleteI started out a pinner as a first year art teacher last year. I admit it, it saved me and helped me find blogs to follow, but I never commented. Commenting at that point was outside my comfort zone. I wasn't sure my opinion would matter.
ReplyDeleteI went to NAEA this year and met so many great artist and educators and was inspired to connect and build a PLN. I restarted my blog with the help of Mr. E and now feel more comfortable reaching out to other art educators. I am still very green, wet behind the ears, a baby blogger and art teacher with a ton to learn! The good news is I am eager to learn and not afraid to try!
awesome Rebecca! Where's your blog at? Thanks for getting involved wish more people did!
ReplyDeleteI know WHY! Everyone is reading blogs on iDevices now and from my experience it is very difficult to get through the "prove your not a robot" on the various iDevices, maybe I am wrong!
ReplyDeleteI love that Pinterest trick. It's always interesting to see what people are interested in. I've found that my bulletin boards are one my most commonly pinned theme.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you. I came to the same conclusion myself. I LOVE Pinterest but I feel sad that people don't comment so much any more on our blogs, just pin your ideas and leave.
ReplyDeleteSusan! That is so true!! Never occurred to me, but yes it is hard to comment on a mobile device.
ReplyDeleteAnne it is kind of sad. . . wonder what's next?
Sigh.. It's a change that I don't like. The personal touch means a lot to me, and Pinterest is awesome but just doesn't have it. I still don't have a smart phone, so I do all my blog reading on my iPad, my laptop, or my PC, so I still can comment OK.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing - when you read a blog on an i-device, or using some sort of reader, you don't see the sidebars and other important gadgets on the blog, which is a shame because they contain so much valuable information.
Being a dinosaur here, I'm struggling with the change. I post something new, and nobody reads it, but my damn toothpaste batik post, written 3 years ago, has had over 15,000 visitors, and 27 visitors just today! And ironically, I've posted about that process at least three times, and I think that is the least informative of the 3 posts! But it's Pinterest...
My Jackson Pollock post - almost 5000 visitors, but just 5 comments. Again, Pinterest.
Maybe what I (we) should do, is pin something from a post that we want people to read, and see if it suddenly gets a bunch of visitors! Worth a try, no?
Update - the grand experiment - I just 'pinned' images from 8 totally different posts from my own blog, and I'm going to check back and see:
ReplyDelete1) how many times they get repinned, and
2) whether I get any more comments on these posts.
Then I will write a post about it!
Ohhh pinterest... how it has DRASTICALLY changed the blogging world. I've only been blogging for a few years and pinterest has ALREADY changed the whole game! I love all the projects and how immediate you can search for ideas on there, but I like the "old fashioned" way of blogging where we DID talk to one another and share ideas that way.. instead of just some teachers searching "line lesson" and copying away. Where's the feedback?!
ReplyDeleteAnywho, I can't complain, I'm guilty of being inspired off of pinterest, and I do find it more helpful than hurtful..
Phyl, can't wait to see your results!
So true!
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see the results of Phyl's experiment.
So true. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteSo true! It's certainly been a trend over the past year that I don't see as many comments on art lesson posts. I do, however, see lots of great discussions on topics (like this one!).
ReplyDeleteI agree with Susan though...the captchas are a bit annoying and hard to get through on mobile devices, so that deters people.
It's interesting to read all the comments here! I know change is hard, I have been using Bloglovin and I have to say I do like it. And to speak to Phil's comment....regarding not reading the actual BLOG (when you read in a reader)...if you use Bloglovin in you browser, not the APP, it takes you to the actual blog in a new tab. I am enjoying using it! Give it a try.
ReplyDeleteOK Phyl what were your results with the pining experiment? I am really really losing the motivation to post when no one comments.. I started posting to get feedback and be part of a community of art teachers since I am so isolated in my district. Honestly I rather have 5 comments and fewer pins because they feel more meaningful.
ReplyDeleteThank you all! I am trying to look at the bright side. . . but have really missed the community around the comments and I'm glad I'm not the only one:) Every little comment about a project or how an idea was changed or transformed or added on to in another art room or relating to a particular struggle or triumph really was a bright spot in my day! I actually get a thrill whenever one of you shows up in my inbox with a comment. We've had some fantastic debates, exchanges of lessons and ideas, and through everything a respect and support of one another. I DO MISS THAT! PINNING IS NOT THE SAME! Selfishly I haven't posted so many awesome lessons I've done this year. . . mainly because it seemed like I'm just throwing them on pinterest. I love the whole lesson. Not just the image and result. I often have people come in my room and say that's nice and replicate a lesson but I wish I had time to tell them the point of it all. That was what this blog stuff was great at! Thanks for commiserating with me!!!!!! Maybe if you all feel the same and post something our readers will again engage in a dialogue and this will no longer be a monologue on our blogalogue!
ReplyDeleteI agree wholeheartedly with everyone here. I want to keep "blogalogue" alive for sure!! I think my biggest problem this year is sheer lack of time. I love to post on my blog, but I rarely have time to look at others' posts and that makes me feel bad :( Maybe as part of blog etiquette and to keep everyone interconnected, we should try and make a personal goal to make a comment on another's blog if they have been so kind as to do the same. Just an idea :)
ReplyDelete