It's not something we like to talk about because those numbers are important, whether we like to admit it or not. It means someone is interested in us and what we have to say and let's face it, that is gratifying.
That said I have recently quit following a number of blogs. The good thing is those folks will probably not notice since they haven't blogged in over 6 months. That's half the reason I quit following them. They weren't saying anything anymore. The other reason is that if I can manage better the blogs who are actually saying something then maybe I'll have have more time to check them out. Anyhow, that's the plan and that's why I quit following.
Do you ever quit following blogs? Same reasons? Different ones?
I follow everything in Google Reader, which lets me organize blogs into folders. Some folders I watch closely, some I don't. And since I use Reader, I don't actually show up as a follower or (I suspect) even a page hit. Though I'm not sure about that.
ReplyDeleteI do go through and clean out dead blogs now and then, but it costs me very little effort to keep a blog in a folder.
I think I need to learn how to do this.
DeleteUsually the only time I unfollow someone is if I've followed and commented and they haven't returned the follow.
ReplyDeleteI think there might have been one blog I did that with but not until after I'd commented many many times. Plus I found I didn't enjoy the blog as much as I had.
DeleteWhen people stop posting on their blogs for so long, that's a good reason to stop following. I tend to stop following blogs or only read them occasionally when they have few followers and never follow back. There are some popular ones that I enjoy that never follow back but I still follow them because I like them.
ReplyDeleteYes, there are some I like and follow regardless of whether they follow back or not.
DeleteI haven't cleaned out the list of blogs I follow, although I bet if I went through them, I'd also find ones that were inactive. However, I don't have every single blog I follow listed on my sidebar -- just the ones I am currently interested in reading, and I use my side bar to navigate to them.
ReplyDeleteyeah, I think I need to make sure that all my faves are on my sidebar so I can keep up with them.
DeleteI go through stints of unfollowing to clear up my reader when the backlog gets too much. It's kind of refreshing.
ReplyDeleteagreed!
DeleteI've not unfollowed anyone and probably won't simply because I'm so lazy! LOL!! Mind you there are a few bloggers who haven't posted in a while and I just hope they're ok! I'd love it if they started blogging again out of the blue - that would shake my blogging activity up no end!
ReplyDeleteOverall however, I'm pretty lax with my blogging these days. Oh dear! Take care
x
yes, if those peeps start posting again I'd probably follow again because some I really liked.
DeleteI'm not sure I'd know how to unfollow...
ReplyDeleteThere are a lot of bloggers I've stopped visiting however for one reason or another. I follow far too many blogs to keep up properly - and I always feel guilty when I don't get to people often. Unfollowing those 'dead' blogs would probably help me stay more organized too. :)
Unfollowing is easy, go to your dashboard and look at the bottom of the page where it says manage blogs you follow. You can unfollow from there.
DeleteThe only blogs I've unfollowed are the one who, like Alex said, never followed back even after I left comments on posts and tried to connect with them. I have noticed, however, a large number of blogs in my list that are no longer active. . . inlcuding mine lately. Ha!
ReplyDeleteyeah, but you still come around to say hi which means that while your blog may not be as active as it was, you still are!
DeleteI have unfollowed one or two but only if they haven't blogged in a LONG time. Like at least a year.ha It's so hard for me to give up. But it does clean up my reading list and make it easier to concentrate on the really great blogs that I love.
ReplyDeleteyep. Those are the ones I unfollowed, altho I wasn't as generous; I think I used 3-6 months as my guideline.
DeleteI don't keep tally of "I commented and they didn't" because I figure, hey, they have a life. But I try to follow only blogs that I find inspiration or kinship with. I like bloggers who try to build up others. If any of these things is no longer true, I quietly unfollow.
ReplyDeleteI agree. I wouldn't unfollow just because someone didn't follow me back, especially if I enjoyed their blog. Only if their blog became offensive to me or seemed to go dark for a long period of time.
DeleteI'll stop following a blog if they stop coming by my blog and commenting, even occasionally. For me, it always has to be a two-way street. :)
ReplyDeleteI guess I feel that if a blog is interesting I won't not follow or quit following just because the blogger doesn't follow me back. For example, I follow Janice Hardy's blog and get her posts emailed because they are so informative but I don't think she follows me back and I don't mind because of what I get from her blog.
DeleteI know I have lost a few followers because of not being able to post more regularly/frequently at the moment. Lots of personal chaos happening in my personal life that I can't/shouldn't blog about (let's be honest, I don't even want to be dealing with it at all!!!) but I hope that when it's all over (please, please let that come soon!) that I can get back to a regular posting schedule and see my follower numbers climb. Or at least not lose any. :}
ReplyDeleteI'd love to learn about the folders thing in reader too. That sounds like a good idea! Though knowing me, I'd still manage to lose track of what I put where. :)
Not posting frequently is one thing but not posting at all for 6 months is another - imho. The folder thing is something Alex has posted about before. Maybe he has a link on his blog to that particular post because it was quite helpful.
DeleteI stop for those reasons, too. I've also learned that as writers and bloggers we often move on to different interests. I have links to many blogs on my sidebar, and it's getting time for another semiannual clean up.
ReplyDeletethis is true also. Blogging can be a lot of work and take time away from writing. But I still enjoy it too much to give it up :)
DeleteMakes sense to me. Periodically, I try to go through my list and see which blogs haven't posted new content in a year or so.
ReplyDeleteThere were a couple I was reluctant to stop following because I hoped they would come back. Alas...
DeleteYes, I've quit following before, for the same reasons you say. Or for other reasons, like I just can't relate to their blogs anymore and I try to keep my Google feed manageable since it's how I see who has posted most recently. People unfollow me too for the same reasons I'm sure.
ReplyDelete