Why Is My Traffic Decreasing?
Most people who run websites tend to keep a steady eye on the statistics for their site, as this is a good way of knowing how well it is being received. It is not at all uncommon for traffic to fall off over time, and when this happens it can be bruising to your confidence as well as mystifying to figure out. Keeping an eye on your traffic can tell you what you are doing wrong, but if you are still confused it is worth bearing in mind a few questions.
Have you been updating the site recently, and have there been large gaps between updates at any time over the past few months? With many sites, it is the up-to-date nature of their content that makes them a must read for their visitors. If the site goes without being updated for a long time, the content will read a little stale – especially if there is topical content involved. The writing may be perfectly good, but if the last post is a bunch of jokes about a news story that left the front pages months ago, people won’t be impressed.
Has there been a change in the focus of your writing? It is eminently possible to become a bit more insular as time goes on, under the impression that because people read the other stuff they will read whatever you write. Keeping a broad enough focus to interest readers is important, if traffic is what matters to you. If either of the above is the case, a relaunch – with a publicity push and an explanatory article – may be the savior.