My initial response to the massive traffic increase was not exactly professional.
"HOLY FREAKING CRAP BALLS!", I blurted out. I searched the room for a fellow nerd to share my e-thusiasm with, but only found a room full of strangers eating sandwiches.
Over the course of the next few days, the post received more than 600,000 unique visitors. If you segment the traffic to only include visits from Singapore, the number of unique visitors is equivalent to 10% of the entire population of the country (although admittedly this metric is a bit inflated due to people reading the post on multiple devices.)
Some context
I support myself financially as a storytelling consultant. On a day-to-day level this means I work on marketing strategy, creative writing, and web development. Admittedly it is a weird mix, but I enjoy the lifestyle.
I am currently living in Vietnam, but recently spent two months living in Singapore.
Like I do with all of my travels, I penned a blog post about my experience living in Singapore and hit publish. You can read the entire post here, but the quick summary is:
- Singapore has accomplished a lot in a short amount of time.
- I am deeply concerned that the societal and cultural costs of these accomplishments are harming the populace (I cited concerning data points related to stress).
- I have limited time and resources, and will not be returning to Singapore.
My blog is fairly well read, so I was surprised that this post started out as one of my least-read posts. After a few days the post was, for most intents and purposes, just another link in the archive.
Last Wednesday, I grabbed my normal Vietnamese breakfast (a local sandwich called a Bánh mì and a coconut milk-based smoothie) and went into my co-working office to start on my to-do list for the day.
I have been trying to convert bad online habits into good ones, so when I found myself craving a peek at Facebook, I clicked on my Google Analytics shortcut instead. It opened up my real-time report, and I practically dropped my meal.
Marketing lessons learned
The next few days were the craziest marketing adventure that I have ever had. The following are the key lessons I learned from this experience:
1. Honesty is power
I think the key reason that this post resonated with people was that it was uncommonly honest. (This is a trait I picked up from Rand when I worked at Moz. It isn't a marketing trait, it is a life trait.) This post was published on my personal blog where I don't have any ads or up-sells. I write posts there solely because I enjoy writing. In this case, I thought I had some interesting insights about Singapore and wanted to share my honest thoughts. The power in this was that when people read it, they too wanted to share my thoughts (along with their own!) with their online friends.
2. Be conscious of the clickstream
In the post I cited some suicide statistics that were quite alarming. As the thousands of comments about the post came in (mostly via Facebook), I continually received the criticism that my data was incorrect. I triple-checked my sources (they checked out) and tried to reply to as many of the false claims of bad data as possible. It wasn't until two days later that I realized that people Googling the statistics were taken straight to a Wikipedia article that listed outdated data. After I updated the Wikipedia article to include the most recent data, the data criticism comments immediately stopped. I could have saved myself a giant headache if I had just viewed the situation from the readers' perspective and found the misinformation on Wikipedia earlier.
3. Be a first-responder
As the comments came in, I was alerted (rudely and repeatedly) that I had erroneously cited a date as 2011 rather than 2001. My first thought was just to subtly update the number but was worried this might start a backlash. For this reason, I called Jessica Dover. Jessica has worked on social media strategy for many of the world's most well known celebrities and has solved more social media problems than I have followers. (Disclaimer: She also happens to be my sister, but I honestly think that has hindered her more than helped her :-p. Her success is hard-earned and her own.) Without hesitation, she told me exactly what to do.
- Publicly thank the readers for all of their feedback.
- Acknowledge that you are listening to them.
- Acknowledge the error and then actually fix it.
If you don't have your own social media mentor like Jessica, Moz's Q&A can be a great source of information.
4. Patch the holes in your net
At the onset, I was receiving a lot of traffic but none of it was converting (my conversion events were email captures and social follows). When I couldn't fix this myself, I called another member of my marketing SWAT team, Joe Chura. Joe runs an agency called Launch Digital Marketing. I think they are the most underrated team in the industry. In no time, they had a plan. Following their advice I installed two WordPress plugins:
- MailChimp for WordPress Lite: There are lots of plugins that add MailChimp to a WordPress site but this is the only one that I know of that adds an opt-out check box below your comment reply box. If your readers are already entering their e-mail address in order to leave a comment, they might as well be asked if they want to sign up for your newsletter. For the text box, I used the text "I want to be kept up-to-date on Life Listed and receive free resources!"
- Flare: This is my favorite social media sharing plugin (there are countless other options). This version is technically no longer under active development (they are building a new version to replace it), so I had disabled it on my site. Launch convinced me to re-add it.
After I added these plugins, it doubled the size of my mailing list and started what eventually became a viral spread of the blog post on Twitter. These were huge wins. (Hat tip to Dan Andrews for being at the forefront of that Twitter storm.)
Again, if you don't have your own marketing SWAT team, Moz's Q&A can be a great resource.
5. If you have to think about server optimization, it is too late
Throughout the entire process my server never went down. I credit this to two things:
First, props to WPengine (my host) for being seamless. They handled the spike without any hiccups or annoying interruptions. I will likely have to pay an overage fee but that is a MUCH better option than having a site outage.
Second, I credit preparation. I have long been using a tool called https://gtmetrix.com/ to diagnose speed problems on my site. (Hat tip to Jon over at Raven for introducing this tool to me). I love this tool because it combines the Google Page Speed tool and Yahoo's YSlow into one convenient and easy to understand interface. Luckily, I had implemented all of the recommended fixes well before this traffic spike. I am kind of a speed optimization nerd. :-p
6. Take comfort in the negativity slope
When I first posted the blog post, no one cared. When it started to gain some traction, I was immediately told how stupid it and I were. As it gained momentum the amount of naysayers increased. It wasn't until the post reached full velocity that the supporters started to outnumber the naysayers. This has been a trend that I have observed with all of my successful content. I now take comfort in knowing that it is going to get worse until it suddenly gets better. Negativity online is a slope, and luckily it does have a peak.
7. Facebook's walled garden is much worse than it was before
Facebook once offered a tool called Facebook Insights for Domains. This tool allowed you to get valuable information on any traffic that was referred to your verified domain from Facebook. Unfortunately, Facebook has killed it off. When my post went viral on Facebook, I had no visibility other than that the traffic was coming from Facebook and Facebook mobile. I had no idea what pages or groups the applicable conversations were happening on, and thus had no way to respond to conversations happening behind the wall. This was a huge frustration throughout the whole process.
8. A rising tide…
When people came to my website to read the Singapore post, many of them checked out my other posts as well (this is to be expected). In response to this, I published a post that I thought would also be applicable to the new readers. Due to the increased visibility, this post (on useful money philosophies) subsequently went mildly viral. This in turn drove even more conversions.
9. Be aware of parallel universes
Stories exist in parallel universes:
- What the storyteller experiences
- The story the storyteller shares
- The story as the audience members understand it
These are all very different stories!
Many of the comments, compliments and criticism that I received about the Singapore post had absolutely nothing to do with the words written in my article. For many, it was their personal experiences, not my blog post, that drove their responses. At first, this was a major frustration point for me. It wasn't until I mapped out the perspectives in the above list that I calmed down and started to appreciate the storytelling experience.
10. Listen first, then wait, then react
When the responses came in, I was vastly outnumbered (it was literally 500,000 to 1)! The only way I was able to deal with that amount of volume was to listen, learn from an expert (see lesson 3), collect data, process that data, and then react. I let the first several dozen comments come in before I started to respond. I think this was critical in me being able to follow and supplement the large-scale discussion.
11. Titles are 60% of the battle
The click-worthiness of the blog post title was a major contributing factor to its success. (Second only to its honesty). Admittedly it was an attention-grabbing title but at the same time it was true. I actually will never be returning to Singapore. I didn't perform any keyword research or A/B tests when picking the blog post title. Instead, I just picked something that I figured I would want to click. The best titles are always that simple.
When I look back on this marketing adventure, I feel thankful. The world, not just Singapore, is in an amazing state of change right now. I am glad that my little voice was able to contribute a little bit to the global discussion.
If you would like to hear about other marketing adventures, feel free to connect with me on Google+.
Usually I find these sorts of articles hard to follow due to the terminology, but this article I read and understood with no problem. Lots of great suggestions and ideas, thank you
Epic start to this post Danny. Thanks for sharing the tips. It's always startling (in a good way!) to check out GA reports and find such a big boost in traffic. Congrats on being prepared for it ahead of time.
Fantastic post, Danny. As I said on Twitter: brilliant title - made me laugh out loud! It's definitely one of those where you think: "hmm, I'm gonna read that later...!"
As some of the other commenters have said, I commend you for your honesty - not only in your original Singapore post but in this one as well. I wrote a blog post on my blog recently titled "My First Ever Online Marketing Campaign (Was An Absolute Failure)" - I'm pretty sure one person called me mad for publishing something like that, but a lot of people congratulated me on it.
I also think #9 is really, really important - something that many bloggers (especially myself included) forget: when we tell a story, we may think of it one way, but other people may diagnose it in a completely different way. Even on a more day-to-day level (i.e. a normal, less controversial level!) this is important, as not bearing it in mind may lead to confusion or - in the worst case - bad storytelling.
Also, I don't think you mentioned this (unless I missed it)... Why did the post suddenly become popular a few days later? What was the cause? E.g. was it shared on a popular site, in Singapore or elsewhere? Were you able to figure out and pinpoint the sudden spike in traffic? I'd be curious to know! :-)
> Why did the post suddenly become popular a few days later?
I was never able to pinpoint the exact cause but it the traffic came from Facebook. I have a theory that it came from a prominent tweet that then caused the sharing on Facebook but it is hard to be sure.
It's always interesting to see the "butterfly effect" of a piece of content going viral by the right person tweeting or sharing it at just the right time. Then you check your traffic reports a few hours later and.....BOOM traffic has exploded!
It would be nice to know that as well - I have never had a post take off like that but certainly wish it did!
Danny - thanks for the sharing - I have always enjoyed the transparency/honesty that Rand illustrates through MOZ over the years - and it is something - I myself, try to duplicate. Letting people in behind the scenes - showing the numbers etc.
Great stuff and much blessing with travels.
your pal,
Chenzo
Hi Danny,
First of all, it’s really nice to see personal case studies like this on MOZ.
After reading your post on Singapore, I think the subject and furthermore the reactions are extremely sensitive. It’s a powerful post no doubt, but what I learn here is, you don’t ever know how your content will do and it’s a big difference for a personal blogger/writer and for a company. Honesty and Controversy are great marketing tools but the context is even more important. I think the ramifications would be so much more different for a brand. But I think you handled it really, really well, especially after reading some of the comments, which is why as a marketer point No. 3 and point number 10 are so important in this post.
I do commend you on your honesty.
Thanks for providing two thought provoking reads and a valuable marketing lesson.
> Honesty and Controversy are great marketing tools but the context is even more important.
Excellent point. :-) I am certainly not advocating controversy as a marketing technique. As you pointed out, it is the context (and/or conversions), not just the amount of traffic driven that is the success indicator.
A really nice case study post. It's an impressive feat to enrage 10% of the population of a country! And it shows how controversy can, in the long term, be a great marketing tool (even if it's one that only gets handed to you accidentally).
I really like point 8, and I think that's something many people forget; they are happy if one post goes viral and starts pulling in traffic, don't plan for or can't react quickly enough to its success by getting suitable follow-ups out, and so lose half the opportunity. And you've also highlighted a very good point: get a second round of traffic by posting about your experiences on Moz!
Points 6 and 10 taken together are also really powerful and show how you took negativity and turn it into opportunity, which is a very good lesson for any marketer to learn. I can imagine that the initial negativity of the comments could really get you down, so taking a step back and waiting to see the general pattern is very important. There are probably a number of people who would either have run into a corner and cried when they saw what was happening, or lashed out.
Any plans for an encore? Maybe aiming for 10% of Australia or Vietnam this time? ;-)
Hey Ben!
Glad you found some value in this incident :-p
It is important to note that I didn't intend for the post to go viral. It just happened naturally and the above steps are how I dealt with it. I don't recommend writing a controversial post for the sake of being controversial. Many people do that with success but for me it creates a brand image that I am not interested in. (Does the world really need another Perez Hilton?)
>Maybe aiming for 10% of Australia or Vietnam this time? ;-)
Doesn't the mainstream media do this everyday? #OhSnap
I think there's always something to be learned and something positive to take out of these kinds of incidents - but maybe that's just the project manager in me talking ;-)
I completely agree - aiming to always be controversial is not going to be a good long-term strategy. But it does show that if managed properly then controversy can help get people talking about you and turn into a slew of positive comments and conversions, which is a lesson that brands who may keep their content very safe and (dare I say it) sterile could take a few more risks and profit from them. As long as they don't tarnish their brand image.
Hello,
Thanks for narrating your informative experience here. Honestly speaking your this post straightaway grabbed my attention because of its interesting title apart from your name. :) So your last point is perfectly fit in my case.
I think you invented the successful formula of popularizing the post here and that is"Write with honesty". When you apply this philosophy, it keep you intact from the heart to the stats that you put in, with your readers and your responders.
Thank you for telling us these great lessons Mr.Danny.
P.S Especially for the forula :-)
Awesome. I friggin LOVE number 9: Be Aware of Parallel Universes.
I feel like this three step process to understanding the perspectives of a story told can and should apply to every aspect of day-to-day life. If we could harness that knowledge and understanding into our beings the world would be a better place.
But for now I'll just work to make my content-world a better marketing-place. (...that potentially made no sense unless you happened to be in my parallel universe while reading it.)
Hey Danny,
I just started off with moz and I loved reading your blog, mostly because you used simple words that I could actually understand (not that my vocab is low...I meant the techy savvy words people use).
Your marketing points were easy to understand and follow.
A great lesson learned to be filed in the "think before you act" category (in regards to your response). As a blogger we always hope our content will catch a wave, but few of us know what to do when it happens in a negative light. I have always had a "SWAT" team on standby, and some have me on standby because it's impossible to always know what to do in a certain situation. Great advice that I'm sure to follow!
thanks for your very helpful article ..keep on
Hi Danny,
Original content is the best on SEO, this example is a best practice for best content, good job and amazing article. I apply a similar strategy in my blogs for increase the traffic and unique users.
Thanks for all!
Great post guys, I second that it's always good to have a "first responder" available. Especially if you're worried in the slightest that something will happen to the post.
i seem that your saying right.....
Danny your idea is extraordinary; you have placed a good informative and attractive post with the more attracting name of the post. The best thing from my eye is your last and 11th point and I agree what you have pointed out here. If you are a good performer and you want the best results for your writing by applying these 11 points on your techniques you can get what you want.
Great article! I implemented the 2 plugins you mentioned straight away. One issue though. When I implement flares it starts too high at the top, so it overlaps some content in the left sidebar. On your site it only starts at the same position as the comments. How can I achieve that for my site? I'm using the same theme as yours (old thesis)
Hey Danny!
Why the negativity-turned-positivity slope on your successful posts? Is it because of the topic, your position, something else?
The reason varies by post. Most of my big posts are not controversial but still get some negativity because my association as a marketer.
Danny, this is a wonderful article! I'm definitely sharing it.
I heartily agree and like numbers 6, 9 and 11! It's very nice to know the comments are usually always negative first before they get better. It's also interesting you say that there are more stories than the one told. I've learned this to be true myself. And a good title definitely matters! If it's not good, you're guaranteed to lose 99 percent of readership. (The other 1 percent is accidental clicks.)
> It's also interesting you say that there are more stories than the one told.
Yeah, that took me too long to learn :-) It is hard to be actionable with this point but it is extremeley important for morale :-)
Great articles! I do agree with your blog about Singapore. I have been there and worked there. It is an incredible, vibrant city. But the perceived stress level of the inhabitants there seems to match that of New York. And congrats on the attention that you received.
I wanted to also thank you for sharing your sister's feedback. That is good feedback for all of us in all aspects of business. Acknowledge feedback, tell your readers/customers you are listening, and acknowledge your mistake. Things are always so much worse if you are caught trying to cover up a mistake later; you just lose credibility in the end if you are caught.
Great success Danny. :) Once again, it proves that it's all about content (and its real value) and nothing else. Writing a quality informative content, sharing it on a platform where it can grab eyeballs is all we need to do. If your content has that thing in it which can make it viral or a hit for you, it will definitely gonna do wonders for you, same as in your case.
Thanks for sharing your story.
>Once again, it proves that its all about content (and its real value) and nothing else.
I feel that I am continuing to learn this every day. It is true, it just isn't easy. :-)
Waiting for a few comments to pile up before responding is a good strategy. Some times comments can be just a personal opinion or a group one and you can not determine that until you see what more people say about than you can have a scaled response.
Sounds like you have great connections that really helped turn the payoff of this blog from great to epic. Thanks for the plugin tips!
Really informative. really need to continue.
yes this is nice blog