Hey everyone! It’s been a fantastic journey running Financial Samurai for the past two and a half years. It’s the perfect time for some creativity, given how the world’s been lately. While I’m a bit cautious about making changes (don’t want to break anything!), I’m really looking forward to your suggestions to make the site even better for 2012 and beyond.
Let’s Dive Into Your Thoughts:
1. Home Page Posts: Do you prefer seeing more or fewer posts when you visit the homepage? Is there anything specific you feel is missing that you’d like to see added, like certain widgets or plugins?
2. Ease of Navigation: Have I got too many categories? I removed the tag cloud because it seemed cluttered and not very useful. Do you think that was a mistake?
3. Content Preferences: What topics do you want to read more about? Is there a gap in the personal finance content that you’re eager to have filled? My personal favorite topics to write about are Career, Relationships, Real Estate, and Government policies. Which topics do you find least useful or interesting?
4. Community Contributions: Would you be interested in sharing your own stories and solutions here? It’s been rewarding to see our community come together to solve complex problems, like helping a long-time reader navigate tax issues related to disability.
A Few More Queries:
5. Post Frequency and Length: I’m currently posting about 3.3 times a week. Would you prefer more frequent or less frequent posts? What about the length of the posts—should they be shorter or longer?
6. Content Style: Should I simplify the language of the posts or keep them detailed and insightful? The site has always had a direct and candid tone, which seems to have worked well since we’ve had very few negative comments. Would you like this to change?
7. What Else?: Is there anything else you think I should be asking or considering?
A Quick Look at Our Growth:
Since starting, we’ve seen the site grow significantly, peaking at 1.5 million page views a month. Even with changes in Google’s algorithm affecting those numbers, I’m still thrilled with how engaging the blog has become.
Blogging Insights:
Managing a blog is quite like running a small business, especially once it gains traction. I try to keep the business aspect from overshadowing our content. External contributions are welcome, especially if they’re educational and mesh well with our style.
Since launching, we’ve published around 450 posts and received over 21,000 comments, showing just how much lively discussion we’ve fostered. And guess what? If my old English and Journalism teachers could see the 382,000 words I’ve written, they’d probably be pretty proud.
So, what do you think? How can we make Financial Samurai even better? Your feedback is invaluable, and I can’t wait to hear your thoughts and suggestions!
