Most Viewed Blog Posts of the Year

As 2010 draws to a close, all of the media seems to be doing a "year in review" and I thought it would be interesting to see what blog posts on LongLostRelatives.net had the most views during the year - at least since the time that Blogger began tracking this information in May.

It was no surprise to me that the posts that were most popular with my readers were not those about my family or my discoveries or success stories, but rather those posts that were of more general interest to the genealogist-at-large. Product reviews seemed to get the most readership on this blog.

Coming out at the top of the list, tied with the same number of views, were the two-parts of my review of the Flip-Pal Mobile Scanner. About one fourth of the people who viewed these posts were referred via the link to this blog from Flip-Pal's official site.

Flip-Pal Review - Miracle in Minutes - Part 1

Flip Pal Review - Part 2

Several weeks ago, I changed the focus of my Follow Friday blog posts to what I call "Around the Blogosphere." Each week, I label my favorite posts in my Google Reader, review each of those posts on Friday and select the ones I enjoyed the most to share in this feature. The post receiving the most views in this category was from the December 24 edition. This was clearly due to the fact that Randy Seaver of Geneamusings took the week off from his "Best of . . ." series and referred people over here and to Greta's Genealogy Blog. Thanks, Randy! I also appreciate it that Randy always spells my last name correctly! A good trait for a genealogist!

The next two most viewed posts had to do with my enthusiasm for using the Kindle e-Book reader for genealogy:

The original post, Kindle for Genealogy appeared in September and last week, I posted Kindle for Genealogy Redux when I discovered another use for the Kindle so that I can carry my charts and family group sheets - and photos - on my Kindle.

Another Follow Friday post that received a lot of traffic was my review of five of Family Tree magazines best free web sites. That was a fun task for me - to test drive some web sites I had not visited before, see what they had to offer and share my findings with blog readers.

Next on the list was an article I wrote about managing and organizing digital files. I need to re-read that one myself because it seems like I have files and folders all over my various computer drives the last couple months. I need to take my own advice!

Another in the most visited list was my post on the first blogiversary of LongLostRelatives.net. I worked on this post for several weeks because I knew it would be a one-time post and I really wanted to include the highlights of the year. So many incredible things have occurred this year in my genealogy and blogging world and I wanted to share my excitement and enthusiasm with my new found friends. My thanks to everyone who read the post and left their congratulatory comments. Those really meant a lot to me.

A post I wrote called Why Do Singles Do Genealogy? also created some great discussion among blog readers.

Where do readers of LongLostRelatives.net live?

Don't worry. Blogger doesn't tell me WHO you are or specifically where you live. It just provides statistics on the countries of origin of site visitors. Also not surprising is that the overwhelming number of blog readers reside in the United States, followed by the U.K., South Korea, Russia, Germany, Australia, Netherlands, Slovenia, and Malta.

I get by with a little help from my friends

Many blog readers wind up here by clicking on a link from another site. Topping the list of referring URLs is my own domain, LongLostRelatives.net - no surprise there.

Next, I once again give a tip of the hat to Randy Seaver of Geneamusings for sending visitors my way. I appreciate that Randy includes a link to my Around the Blogosphere list each week, but even more exciting is when Randy selects one of my posts for his "Best of . . ." lists. I've made that a time or two this year, so getting Randy's seal of approval is always a thrill. Thanks, Randy!

I've already mentioned that the Flip-Pal mobile scanner web site's link to my review of their product brings a lot of traffic to the blog.

The next site that sends readers my way is Geneabloggers. I am forever grateful to Thomas MacEntee for all he does for the growing community of people who write genealogy blogs. He is always available to answer my questions - especially those having to do with his area of expertise - technology and social networking. He is also a lot of fun in person. Thanks, Thomas, your support has really meant a great deal to me this year.

Last, and certainly not least, in the sites sending traffic here is Family History Expos. I was honored to have been selected as a blogger of honor for the Midwest Family History Expo in Kansas City in July. It was an amazing opportunity to meet my fellow bloggers and make new friends. Holly Hansen and her team do a great job with these regional genealogy conferences and I'm looking forward to meeting up with the gang again in Overland Park in 2011. Thanks, Holly, and FHE!

2010 has been a wild ride and I am thankful for everyone who reads LongLostRelatives.net - whether it be on a regular basis or for that one post that strikes your fancy. It's truly a labor of love and I'd do it even if I was the only one reading it. Knowing that something I've written has helped inform or educate another person makes this truly rewarding. And, of course, there were those numerous long lost relatives with whom I connected this year. That was the best part of all.

Thanks again to readers of this blog. I look forward to another eventful 2011!