Day 102: Transparency Shouldn’t Be This Difficult

Day 102.

Earlier today, I posted something on NielFlamm.com/blog that I think connects directly to this entire Nextdoor journey:

My own numbers.

Not just the flattering ones.

My latest 30-day website metrics show approximately 2,500 visits, 2,500 unique visitors, and 2,700 pageviews. Visits are up 537% month over month, unique visitors are up 554%, and pageviews are up 320%.

Sounds fantastic.

Then there's the 97.31% bounce rate.

Not exactly something I'm putting on a trophy. 😂

And I'm showing that number too.

China? Apparently, I’m Huge in China.

The geography surprised me even more.

Of the traffic shown in my analytics:

China: 2,025 visits — 80.1%
United States: 312 — 12.3%
Brazil: 27 — 1.07%
Vietnam: 21 — 0.83%
India: 12 — 0.47%

Do I completely understand why China represents 80% of the traffic?

Nope.

Could some traffic be automated, routed strangely, or otherwise not represent 2,025 people sitting in China eagerly awaiting my next blog post?

Absolutely.

That's the point.

I don't know everything happening behind the numbers.

So I'm showing them, asking questions and asking readers for feedback.

,

Why Is That So Difficult?

This brings me back to Nextdoor.

I've asked about WAU—Weekly Active Users.

I've asked for the detailed Insights reports that Nextdoor itself told readers were available upon request.

I've asked questions about methodology, engagement, communication, and other metrics.

And after 102 days, what have I received?

Links to information that was already publicly available and responses that, from my perspective, haven't answered the underlying questions.

That's not the transparency I'm talking about.

Transparency isn't:

“Here's the number we want you to see.”

It's also:

“Here's the number. Here's what we know about it. Here's what we don't know. Here's how we calculated it. Ask us questions.”

I Don't Know Everything

That's an easy sentence for me to write.

I don't know why my traffic suddenly jumped.

I don't know exactly why China dominates it.

I don't know how many visitors read every word versus those who accidentally land on the site and disappear.

And I certainly don't know what's going on inside the minds of my readers and viewers.

So I ask.

What are you reading?

What isn't working?

Why did you leave?

What should I change?

What would make you come back?

That's useful feedback.

And if a guy running NielFlamm.com can publish both the pretty numbers and the ugly ones, ask questions about them and admit what he doesn't know, I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a publicly traded neighborhood platform to engage seriously when a shareholder asks questions about its metrics and research.

I'm not asking Nextdoor to know everything.

I'm asking it to explain what it does know.

Day 102.

👉 See the metrics and follow the continuing case study:

NielFlamm.com/blog