Why Numbers Are Important to Pet Bloggers

by: Carol Bryant

Pet bloggers can and do make a
difference. How many of you feel that way? Better yet, how many of you have a helluva
hard time trying to explain that to friends, co-workers, family, and folks who
aren’t in the pet blogging community?

For a lot of people, accountants
aside, numbers tell a story. Does any of this sound familiar:

• How many Facebook
  fans do you have?
• What’s your latest
  follower total on Twitter?
• Of all your blog
  posts, which ones receive the most total impressions?
• Do you know the
  click through rate of that recent ad on your blog versus industry standard?

Here at BlogPaws we know that
this is a very numbers-oriented world and that pet bloggers must be creative
in what and how we write to keep that traffic flowing. Well, imagine our
delight when we get to show results of how we are making a difference.

Pet parents rely on pet bloggers
to share accurate, valuable, funny, introspective, and educational information,
right? 

The ASPCA recently launched a
campaign wherein industry standards were blown through the roof. How’d they do
it and what can pet bloggers learn from this example? Read on…

As defined by Google, a
click-through rate (CTR) is “a ratio showing how often
people who see your ad end up clicking it.” So basically, you land on a
webpage, see an ad, click on it and wha-la: There’s one person added to the
click through rate result.

The ASPCA engaged in a campaign to encourage website
visitors to click, learn, and help pets in need. Within the first few days of
the campaign, click-through rates were significantly higher than industry
average. This is a huge accomplishment in this day and age of banner and footer
ads, sidebar ads, sponsored posts, and a whole sea of “look here, click on me”
ad placements.

The power of the pet parent and pet blogger
are not to be underestimated. When it comes to being passionate about animals,
pet bloggers are some of the most enthusiastic and giving people on the face of
the planet.  So let’s crunch some numbers
based on this campaign:

* The industry average click-through rate for
U.S. display ads is about 0.09 percent.

* The ASPCA reached a whopping 0.73 percent
click-through rate, with almost 3,000 visits alone in the first two weeks of
the campaign. The bottom line is that as a pet blogger working on campaigns, you
want as high of a click-through rate for the sponsors with which you work as
possible.

What makes for an engaging ad, especially
with a heartfelt topic as pet adoption, pet rescue, and helping pets in need?
There is a formula:

• Working with the right
  vendor (i.e. BlogPaws and its community of pet bloggers)
• Employing strategic
  marketing so that display/banner/text ads, etc are positioned in the right
  place, at the right time, to complement the right blog posts, and targeting the
  right audience.
• Not being obtrusive but
  becoming a part of the meaningful landscape that is a page upon which a visitor
  lands (i.e., we’re all busy these days, so having someone land on your blog
  post or website is a gift… pepper it respectfully and appropriately where ad
  placements fit).

These are the types of displays that worked
for the ASPCA, and why pet bloggers are so very important. It is Adopt a Pet
Month here at BlogPaws, but this is a theme we celebrate and promote year-round
as those who give a voice for pets who otherwise would have none. We blog, we
encourage folks to read us, click through on what we have to say, and yes,
visit the banners and ads that appear on our interface.

Saving lives is at the heart of this
campaign, and judging by the click-through rates, hopefully those numbers are
converting to lives saved.  Personally, I
love being able to show someone proof of how what I do makes a difference: Behold the power of the pet blogger and pet
parent: Our voices are loud and our numbers speak volumes.

It
makes me feel good knowing I’m a part of a community focused on helping
animals.  How about you?