The conclusions of this article ring true, but I am not certain that changes to the Google algorithm, or the introduction of AI answers to Google queries explain the changes that are reflected in the above chart.
Here's the article:
Take a look at the traffic going to the SolderSmoke blog over the last year (see chart above).
Something bad happened to us around April 15.
What do you guys think? What happened?
Hi Bill:.
ReplyDeleteAside from the domination/influence by 1 particular search engine.
I think it's a complex entity. It's hard enough for amateur radio to stay relevant. So much total content now. Pure dilution of time.
Consider music -- There are 100 million + songs on Spotify. I stopped listening to new bands in 2001 or so. I still buy music from my old favorite (aging) artists -- and perhaps the odd new thing.
So many are monetizing or trying to monetize their hobbies. I feel staggered by how many people produce music for online distribution -- or write about producing music, or, go over the products to produce music with such as MIDI controllers, mics, DAW's interfaces, VST plug-ins, etc.. on YouTube. Many are really just hobbyists ( e.g. not pro musicians) . Some are excellent. But who is making money selling music? It's practically worthless now. Some creators find a niche and get revenue from their sponsors -- and subscribers from Patreon-type sites.
Talking + watching people talk about making music and all the latest gear seems more popular than actually listening to music? Consumerism? Passive hobbyists? Chasing the rainbow? Sloth and torpor?
Back to amateur radio -- Some days I seemed to find more action in Ham Radio forums/chats than on the air. Passive hobbyism again?
Most of my Google hits go to old web articles which are unique and focused --- and have relatively few commercial or mainstream equivalents.
These generally provide niche, original and in-depth content --- People also seem to occasionally link these pages in forums and occasionally mention them in videos. Especially in Eastern Europe.
For example:
Some Analog IC Gilbert Cell Mixer Notes
Regenerative Receiver #4
Inverter Crystal Oscillator
Another Look at the LM386
Some writer/creators are moving to alternates to social media -- For example, Mighty, Substack, Ghost, Convert Kit. etc. to try to build subscribers. Find a niche and cater to your subscriber’s stuff.
On or off social media, I think it would be stressful + difficult to constantly create new content lest you lose subscribers. Also -- your content must be good + fresh to attract subscribers. Some have hired dedicated video editors and have amazing production standards. To survive in modern times -- we might learn something from all these creators cited above. Notwithstanding algorithms, clickbait and sheer luck
--- make good quality content that people like
--- find a niche where you excel and offer insight/expertise/interest above that of competing creators.
p.s.
Use, plus encourage alternate search engines [ this will help E^-32 percent ---- but it's a start]
YouTube ranks as the most popular streaming site of all - I plan to focus there- although now, I 100% don't care about getting followers or likes. No pressure that way.
Wish you success! Best!
Todd _QRPHB
Thanks Todd. Unfortunately YouTube is owned by the same company, so I wouldn't be surprised to see a similar dynamic there. I do notice that people like video, so we have been doing the podcasts as audio only and as video. 73 Bill
DeleteHi Bill . You may find data on this. I’ve spent weeks reading on this topic.
DeleteIf I need help with my car’s key fob, the new lawn mower --- and want to learn how to do a task – I and most everyone in our family and friends circle go on YouTube and search. This is how people learn today.
The YouTube algorithm may actually help you. If you TEACH SOMETHING, are credible, choose careful titles-- and keep targeting a specific audience with relevant videos – you might do well.
The algorithm will figure what you do authoritatively and suggest your content to others. This may happen without many likes and subscribers.
If you are covering amateur radio topics -- & your audience is mostly 65-80 year olds – and not attracting new and younger viewers, you might have a concern. Most YouTube authors also seem to post on Instagram and Tiktok as well to grow their audience.
Todd
The [l]ord giveth, and the [l]ord taketh away.
ReplyDeleteGoogle search had been very disappointing for a while. One has to spend a lot of time searching and digging trough "the internet" to find the information or inspiration one is looking for.
ReplyDeleteI find dedicated forums / bulletinboards with a good community much more helpful then asking some search engine.
You might want to start a discourse community. And I would love to see a community curated page with an organized list with link to websites related to our niche interest.
With regards to Ai search, I resist to use Google's as I cannot trust them to infect it with paid search results and other BS that invades our privacy or puts the user in information bubbles.
Recently I stumbled across https://www.perplexity.ai and so far found it very helpful. For example I needed to replace a Dewalt impact screwdriver. So I asked it to make a list with a comparison of the currently available models with their specs. It spit out immediately nice overview with all the information I needed. Rather then trying to find it on the mfg website where the spect are hard to find and spend a lot of time creating a list. It was now done in a matter of seconds by just asking what I needed.... Great start so far.
These days everybody is busy scrolling through material. I catch myself doing it even though I don’t want to.
ReplyDeleteGoogle search tends to be an immediate “Page Down” twice to skip the sponsored results to get to the “proper search results”. Whether AI will make this worse or better who knows.
Would prefer a curated library of links to stuff and would be happy to contribute to it.
Uh, I don't know. Look at the chart: People weren't similarly busy back in February 2024? Also, the BBC article provides some useful context. 73
ReplyDeleteOne factor for the decline in April might have been the completion of your 15 - 10 Transceiver project that was ongoing for a while and had a lot of homebrew meat on the bone.
ReplyDeleteBut reflecting back ten years ago when I returned to the hobby of ham radio after a 30-year layoff, what I found then was the 40M band hopping morning, afternoon, and night with lots of chatter and net activity. Also 75M had loads of nets on in the early morning and again after dark. On Field Day all the HF bands came alive with tremendous activity.
What you have now is 40M dead (I still manage to check-in to the Sunrise CW Net once a month but I can barely hear anybody) most of the morning and afternoon, and the net activity and ragchews on 75M are drastically reduced.
The only real daytime SSB and CW action here in 2024 is 20M POTA, so that is where I operate 90% of the time. If it were not for Parks On The Air, the only activity to put real juice into ham radio in years, weekdays during the daylight hours on 20M would be silent also.
This past Field Day, during the day, except for 20M which was jam-packed, I heard almost nobody on any of the other HF bands, either SSB or CW.
Additionally, I am now 76, my doctor visits and health maintenance activities have skyrocketed since 2014, I have built all the 20M radios I need for SSB and CW, so therefore my energy, time for building, and motivation have declined due to the Law of Entropy.
However, Soldersmoke will continue to be the first website I visit each and every morning and I hope you can keep it going.
Things would be different if there had been a high school kid who responded to the $500 homebrew prize I offered some time ago, as you would have gained a new regular participant and maybe opened a path to get more.
I think you are right Walter. When I got back into the hobby in 1993, there was a lot of interest in old Boatanchor rigs. Today, you can barely give them away.
ReplyDeleteIt woould have been nice to pin the blame on Google, but I don't think they are responsible for this. Taking a closer look at the Google stats, I see no real change in the number of searches that send people to the blog. So the reason for the decline lies elsewhere. Too bad. It would have been comforting to blame Google. But the truth is that interest seems to be waning. 73 Bill
One of my main reasons for checking the blog is to see what interesting projects you are either working on or came across.
ReplyDeleteAnd lately it has been less interesting homebrew and more general aggregation, mostly links to various youtube videos instead of articles that can be read.
Not that I can complain too much. I have not done any proper writeups of my projects lately either!
-OH2FTG
One other thing that might be asked in addition to the downturn in April is what happened to cause the upturn in November ? It might be useful to see a longer term chart if available - maybe there is a seasonality to the searches ?
ReplyDeleteIt looks like the activity is higher, year over year.
Best Regards,
Chuck, WB9KZY
Is there a correlation to the number of comments with each blog post before and after April?
ReplyDeleteSome comments on the general falling off of people showing homebrew projects. Several of the long term Youtubers have said recently, including Dave Jones and Fran Blanche (FranLab), that their videos where they talk about electronics do much better than those in which they actually do electronics. Similar themes with Van Neistat and other makers. Is it the cult of personality, or the demands of the Youtube algorithm for a continuous stream of content? Making has always been about inventive use of what's at hand. The future is less soldering and more combining, a kind of mixed methods and multi skilled assembly craft with a rich and entertaining narrative.
ReplyDeletePaul VK3HN