We Want Media

Yes, I know it's incredibly high-school ... err ... or middle-schoolish, but I have, manage, and update a Xanga account, which functions as my personal blog. For shameless plugging (and your viewing pleasure), here it is: xanga.com/po0pie.

One of the enjoyable parts of my day is stalking the stalker. I use the term "stalker" very loosely and almost positively, because it's fun. Don't lie. Who hasn't compulsively checked the AIM profiles of friends or even people you've never spoken with? Yep, that's the kind of stalking I'm talking about, not the serious kind.

I receive 1,000+ hits per week depending on how often I post. I'm pretty sure 10% or less are people actually know in real life. I rarely link out to other people (usually businesses, wiki, or Google). So I have a counter on my site that also sends me inbound links, a.k.a., what people click on that gets them to my site.

Xanga is pure fun for me -- not a serious analysis of my mind or art, or any source of revenue. But I'm curious. So I click on the inbound links -- which are often Google keyword searches.

My boyfriend is a technology technician, and we agreed that what I discovered is a Google fluke. Keyword searches by users are kept anonymous. In fact, Google (defended it as privacy infringement) refused to hand them over to the U.S. government when asked (whereas Yahoo! and AOL did without complaint). Think about it -- you might look pretty twisted if someone judged you entirely by what or whom you searched for.

To sum this post up, another method of possibly gaining exposure for your blog apart from finding specific niches, I say, is to write on a variety of things. I'm completely random. Apparently, in-bound links have had search words of "Lolita", "pumpkin recipe", toenail fungus" and tons of other fascinating words I might use in an entry. Oh, I've also uncovered which logged-in users Google-search my friend's names ... so there're tons of love triangles and trysts you might stumble on.