200th Post: Feedback Please!

So in less than four months I have written two hundred posts on eXtra for Every Publisher. That means thus far I have created around fifty posts a month, and I think that says a fair bit about my commitment to creating content in this niche.

I also think that my work has been well reflected in my stats thanks to all of you, my readers.

Since I started this blog, I have had 26,199 unique visitors, served 116,018 page views, and burned through 7.62 gigabytes of bandwidth. This blog currently has 183 RSS subscribers according to Feedburner, has a Technorati rank of 25,254 and an Alexa rank of 78,077. I am currently sitting in the 57th spot of 45n5.com’s Top 100 Make Money Online blogs list. Every one of these statistics are continuing to rise, making me a very happy blogger.

Now it is time for feedback though. What posts have you liked on this blog? What do you like about Xfep? What do you dislike? It is time to stop lurking. If you haven’t commented before, please do, and for those that have commented, please send your feedback my way as well.

This blog is about providing my readers with my knowledge. I know I haven’t been doing much in that respect over the last little while, but I am working on some great articles that should remedy that. What would you like to see me cover? What have I missed in my blogging? Have I gone too far with my advertising and monetization strategies or have you hardly noticed?

I am working on bringing in some contributors to this blog so that we can have more than just my views an opinions. Is this a wise move, or would you rather just hear from me?

Please speak up and comment today!

Originally posted on November 7, 2007 @ 2:29 pm

PageRank: Dragging Google Down?

So people are still reeling over the whole PageRank fiasco we had recently, and some are wondering when the next update will be. That is the biggest problem with creating a complex ranking system: keeping it up to date. PageRank epicycles are chinks in the Google armor. It allows others to work on creating ranking systems, and it allows people to exploit their PageRank for upwards of four months. If you build up a great site, all the way to a PageRank of six, you could then for four months abuse that by adding every advertisement under the sun, and basically selling your PageRank. This could line your pocket with a fair bit of money before Google comes back around and updates things (most likely penalizing you for the “horrible” thing you have done).

Are you already planning for the next PageRank update? Are there any other metrics that are now considered more accurate to the quality of a site? Let me know in the comments below.

Originally posted on November 11, 2007 @ 6:59 pm

Problogging Setup Mini-Contest: Closed

So it is the 7th of November, a week from my 25th birthday, and earlier in the month, I created a post about the technology I use to blog every day called My Problogging Setup, and at the end, to see if you were all paying attention, I included a quick mini-contest where all you had to do was comment. I had some great entries, and realized that I am about mid-range in technology when it comes to my readership. I also realized I need to get more monitor/desktop real estate, and will rectify that as soon as I find some way to afford it.

The Problogging Setup Mini-Contest contestant that really blew me away though was Char from Essential Keystrokes. She posted a great overview, much like my own, on her own blog. Her post was well thought out and understandably wouldn’t fit in “just a comment”. I love when people add to the conversation on their own blogs.

Thank you to everyone that entered. If you are interested in purchasing advertising on Xfep.com, please don’t hesitate to contact me, and we can always work out a deal. My rates aren’t set in stone.

Originally posted on November 7, 2007 @ 6:41 pm

Shylock Blogging Not For Sale

So it seems Alexandru is not selling Shylock Blogging for the $4000 he had sold the blog for. After the buyer of the site decided to make things complicated, Alexandru took a moment to think about what he was doing. He and I had talked over instant messaging about the sale, and he wasn’t feeling good about getting out of the make money online blogging niche yet, despite the great prices the blogs are going for.

My recent post, entitled Selling Your Readership, was salt in his wound, and also part of the process that changed his mind and has led to him keeping Shylock Blogging. I couldn’t be happier to see a great guy keep his blog and continue to compete in this niche.

Originally posted on November 6, 2007 @ 9:27 pm

Feedburner Frustrations: Google FeedFetcher Dropped Again

So for the second time in less than a week, Feedburner is showing about half of my normal subscribers. There is nothing like seeing a little green bar being half as high as you expect it to be to get your heart racing. For a second the thought that I had done something wrong and made you all leave, and then that moment passed and I realized it was Google messing with me, just like they had for Saturday’s RSS subscription numbers.

What really bothers me about all of this is not only that the reporting has gotten worse, but also that they don’t attempt to fix it, thus making my stats look really messed up, with huge dips in performance.

How does Google mess up so bad when it comes to reporting RSS subscriber numbers from its own service?

Originally posted on November 9, 2007 @ 9:46 am