Why Size Matters & Smaller Is Better


One frustration I hear from a lot of small business bloggers is that they feel like no one’s reading. They see the big subscription numbers of pros like Darren Rowse or Brian Clark and they’re discouraged that their numbers are just nearly breaking into the hundreds. And then they stop blogging completely. Because, if only 100 or so people are reading your blog, what’s the point?

The point is the 100 people!

As a local business, you don’t need to become the biggest, most well-read blog on the Internet. You just need to connect with your audience and the people on the Web who could become customers. If you’re a local hardware shop in Detroit, Michigan and you’re able to connect with100 people who live in your area – that’s a pretty significant number. There are lots of benefits to being a ‘small-time’ small business blogger. Here are a few more.

More Intimate

Yeah, so you’re probably never going to have the readership that Darren Rowse has at Problogger, but a smaller audience allows you to really get to know the people who are in your community. You get a better understanding of what your customers want, who they are and you can form real relationships with them in a way that bigger bloggers have a difficult time doing. You can reach out to the person who comments regularly on their blog and get to know them on a more personal level. You may even be able to tie the online person with the real-life customer so that you’re better able to target them. Playing to a packed stadium may feel great, but it’s those coffee shop environments that introduce you to your real fans.

More Engaged

At my other blog Outspoken Media last week I encouraged all the lurkers to leave a comment and tell me why they lurk instead of participating and how I could help bring them into the conversation. The response I received from people who had never commented before was amazing. And while reading over their replies, I noticed that many feared commenting on posts that had tons of comments or where they didn’t feel a connection with the blogger and the audience. They were looking for a place where (a) their comment would be heard and (b) a place they could establish a connection. Niche small business blogs are where many commenters enjoy hanging out. It allows them to get to know the blogger and really feel part of the community. Rather than feel like an anonymous person, now they know their voice will be heard and they feel more invested.

Better Signal

Having a smaller audience that you can get to know allows you to target content directly to their needs. There’s no trying to please a bunch of people who will never impact your business – you only have to worry about being useful to your customers. You can write content specifically designed to answer questions they’ve asked, respond to trends you’re seeing, and really talk to the people who matter to your company. It’s a lot easier to get to know your community when it’s made up of tens of dozens instead of tens of thousands. And the matter you know them, the more relevant content that you can create. Content that will get them off your blog and into your store.

As a struggling blogger, I know it’s hard to see the A-listers with their tens of thousands of readers, but for a small business, getting the attention of 100 of your most interested customers is nothing to turn your nose at. Imagine if you had 100 people in your store asking you product questions. Your blog is your customer service desk on the Web.

10 Comments ▼

Lisa Barone Lisa Barone is Vice President of Strategy at Overit, an Albany Web design and development firm where she serves on the senior staff overseeing the company’s marketing consulting, social media, and content divisions.

10 Reactions
  1. Thank you Lisa for emphasizing this very important point. A primary objective of social media is making an emotional connection with others who have common interests. Being part of a community means developing a level of “intimacy” and trust which will only bear its fruit once that has been established.

    Sometimes, we forget the basic principle of quality over quantity. Once again, thank you for reminding us.

  2. The numbers don’t matter; the readers do. Good point.

  3. Hey Lisa,
    Love the pictures of the fish…
    As an emerging blogger, I have found that I have needed to go out to readers by email as well as having them come back to the blog. Building a list of people who will accept an email from me is just as important as having the readers come to the blog. It’s kind of like two way communication. I can’t expect them to always come to me. I sometimes have to go to them as well and coax them back to the blog.
    Simplest way to do this is by a newsletter which contains some of the blog posts. If your readers would like to see how we do this
    http://www.onesherpa.com/news

  4. Lisa,

    Thank you very much for this inspiring post! I will use your post as a positive example in my next course on social media.

  5. I agree…smaller is great for me (for now). I love being able to connect with people, and do connect with everyone who leaves a post or emails me, or tweets me. I guess at the beginning of your business it’s more about building relationships…