We’re No. 5!

I was asked at the blog meet-up about how WE Blog ranked compared with other blogs. I have stats only for other papers in our newspaper group, but for January, here were the Top 5:
1. Miami Herald’s Dave Barry Blog
2. Kansas City Star’s Crime Scene KC blog
3. San Jose Mercury News A+E Interactive blog
4. Philadelphia Inquirer’s Blinq blog
5. WE Blog
Pretty darn good, especially given our market size (and we’re close to overtaking the Blinq blog). And as I mentioned, those other blogs aren’t about politics.
Posted by Phillip Brownlee

23 Comments

  1. JWink
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 6:11 am | Permalink

    Congratulations WE Bloggers!

  2. TRACY
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 7:32 am | Permalink

    So, is there any actual benefit to the Eagle?Is it just bragging rights or actual gain of some sort?Oh, Phillip?

  3. KSGolfnut
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 8:38 am | Permalink

    Tracy,I think maybe we should all get a coupon for a free DQ Blizzard or somethin’.

  4. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 9:41 am | Permalink

    More info please.

    Didnt we used to be number 2? What happened?

    Did the other blogs have a surge in participation and overtake the WE Blog?

    Did the WE Blog have a drop in participation?

    Did everyone’s participation go up, but the WE not so much?

    What happened?

    More info please!

  5. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 9:45 am | Permalink

    Just as a point of reference, my pal in Ellsworth posts these stats about her blog for the Month of January.

    “So, as a matter of explanation…all those 171,417 hits are NOT people looking for information about Ellsworth…they are, for the most part, looking for something I’ve written about that interests them.

    If you consider I’ve been at this since 2002 and covered almost every subject imaginable, you can see where that leads. With this many hits, my blog is at the top or near the top of a lot of search engines.

    There are ex-pats who like to keep up with what is going on in Ellsworth (nothing at the moment that I know of, but a couple of good things are on the horizon) and stay in touch with the pulse of the community. There are others who live in and around Ellsworth who like to stay connected. I hope I offer that to readers. I try.

    According to my host, MetaPros in Wichita, the December count was 79,112; November was 86,597; October was 101,365, etc. The average for the past twelve months is 103,756. I’ll take that and thank you very much and deal with it someway.

    It has been suggested that I should be selling something or have advertising on my blog to take the load off the costs. I’m resisting that as long as I can; however, I do have an idea for a mug I think would be pretty cool for Kansas, but I don’t know that anyone would buy it. Would you?

    All the people who hit my blog by design or accident touch “Ellsworth County Kansas USA”. They can’t avoid it when they hit on my blog.”

    She’s too modest to post this herself, but it gives some reference to local blogs and the idea that lots of hits on all blogs actually come from the google.

  6. Steven Davis
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 10:23 am | Permalink

    On the move from number 2, to number 5, I think the reason for that is since the Eagle was sold to the McClatchy newspaper chain, the WE is now comparing itself to larger papers (more circulation) than they did before.

    At the meet-up the Eds said that given there is not any advertising on the blog that there is not any real money coming to them from the blog. Phillip kind of hinted that at some point there may be advertizing here.

    The popularity of the Blog is a “bragging rights” thing for the paper. Phillip said that people in the Brownback office read the WE Blog and comment to the Kansas City Star that ours here is better than theirs.

    KFG,I have the Ellsworth blog bookmarked. It is a nice blog, but I would not have thought that it would have been so popular. Interesting.

  7. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 10:35 am | Permalink

    Me too Steven. I enjoy it ’cause I know the author and the players in Ellsworth, but when I read her numbers, I am stunned. She reads here too, but doesnt post. Maybe now is the time? :)
    She credits the January numbers to people searching for info about Barak Obama’s mamma. She blogged about it, and people are searching and finding her blog.

    Hell, some of my pals in Austin contacted me through her blog! Some of my old political buddies in Topeka have let me know the WE blog is widely read there too :)
    I feel a nose bandage coming on…..

  8. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 10:37 am | Permalink

    hee hee hee

    And “chuck” has let us know it is read in tiahrts office.

  9. TRACY
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 10:57 am | Permalink

    Shit girl.Does this mean I should be nice and include some substance?I hope not.

  10. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 11:14 am | Permalink

    hehehehe Tracy.

    You ARE nice and you DO produce substance.

    I’m still blogging in my bathrobe. I refuse to dress just because we have readers, and the trolls amongst us dont seem to care…

  11. Phillip Brownlee
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 11:21 am | Permalink

    Sorry about the confusion on the ranking. WE Blog has been No. 2 on the number of reader comments. This particular ranking is on page views. So the blogs at the bigger papers have more viewers but fewer comments (except for Dave Barry).

  12. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 11:24 am | Permalink

    Thanks Phillip.

    I forgot to include a link to my pal’s blog.

    http://kansasprairie.net/kansasprairieblog/

    Scroll down to “NIMBYISM has its virtues too”. heheheheheheheheh

  13. Steven Davis
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 11:29 am | Permalink

    Thanks for that link, KFG. The photos on that blog alone are worth the trip over there.

  14. J R
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 11:31 am | Permalink

    At the meetup, Phil told us that Sen. Brownbacks office in particular has told the Eagle they regularly monitor this blog.

    We should show them the love! Heh heh heh

    We’re 5th to an A&E and a “bling” blog? Sigh….I bet they talk about Survivor or American Idol….. Maybe we can trade one of their better posters for fleetwood or the Mac town duo…..

    And yeah they mentioned ads at the meetup too. Heh heh How does that work? Bloggers as pitchmen?

    Hi! J R here. When I’m facing down a troll or a particularly dull bushbot; I always use ACME sledgehammers. Why I’ve reduced grown men to quivering blithering embarrasments to themselves with ACMEs smashing power. So before venturing forth in the killing zone that is WEblog, pick up an ACME sledgehammer. You’ll be glad you did!

  15. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 11:38 am | Permalink

    Hee hee hee JR. Instead of “bassomatic” we could have the “trollomatic”?

    The “wingnutomatic”?

    Where is Dan Akroyd when we need him?

  16. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 11:39 am | Permalink

    Maybe we need Belushi in an episode of “Samori WE Blogger”?

    I know I had that troll sandwich somewhere…

  17. Julie
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 11:41 am | Permalink

    KFG -We could do our version of Iron Chef and then have a Gallagher wannabe sledgomatic our creations!

  18. Julie
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 11:42 am | Permalink

    But I think I’d rather do a version of Two Fat Ladies rather than the Iron Chef. More laid back.

  19. J R
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 12:01 pm | Permalink

    Heh heh

    And now a word from another of our sponsors….

    GSheirdan: “What’s this link?”

    Heckler: “It’s to little green footballs. It’s supposed to be good for us.”

    GS: “Are you gonna post it?”

    Heckler: “Im not gonna post it. YOU post it.

    GS: “I’m not gonna post it.”

    Heckler: “Lets’s get Paulie!”

    GS: Yeah! He’ll post it. He’ll post anything!”

    Heckler: “He posted it. Hey Paulie!”

    “When you post a link to a kook right wing website, don’t tell readers what’s in it. You’re the only one who has to know.”

  20. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 2:29 pm | Permalink

    Funny Julie and JR. Sure lots of nic changes or appearances and disappearances.

    And Julie, I prefer we call it “Two Hot Tamales” instead of fat ladies or iron chef.

    But I do like the Gallegher idea.

    Would watermelon be the secret ingredient?

  21. Julie
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 2:31 pm | Permalink

    Good idea on the name KFG. Watermelon as secret ingredient only if we do it in the spring/summer. If we wait until fall we’ll have to use pumpkin.

  22. Wiseman
    Posted February 5, 2007 at 8:43 pm | Permalink

    “Just how many bloggers are there on WE blog?”

  23. RD
    Posted February 6, 2007 at 12:15 am | Permalink

    Only two, Wiseman. One of the left, the other on the right. ;) And even they are one in the same person, afflicted with a multi-personality disorder.

    Phillip,Cool beans! And, again, if we haven’t said it enough and whine and complain constantly, thanks to the Eagle for giving us a place to…um, vent. :)