Lame Feedburner Counts

One of the first things I notice on a blog is the little RSS Feed subscription icon. On some blogs it is just a generic icon, while other blogs have a little Feedburner icon that displays the number of RSS subscribers the blog has – and this is where serious lameness can occur.

Think about it. If you have more than say, 500 or so subscribers, that’s pretty good, so you might as well show the world. On the other hand, if you only have a few, then publishing the number is just like shouting to the whole world “MY BLOG ISN’T VERY POPULAR!!!” It’s human nature for most people to want to associate with people and things that are popular, so why would you want to give people a reason to prefer associating with a different blog? This especially makes no sense if you’re trying to sell advertising space on your blog. Do you think potential advertisers are going to prefer your blog with 300 (or less) subscribers, or another blog in the same niche with 1500 subscribers?

The solution is so simple – just don’t advertise the number. Let it be your little secret. No one has to know except for you, and you don’t have to tell anyone unless a potential advertiser asks you (in which case you should answer truthfully). Until you build up a good number, just leave it left unsaid and unpublished.