It’s become a habit of mine in recent years to do a post in early January on the site’s traffic stats over the previous twelve months so it’s time for me to do the January 2015 one. Here it is.
As the chart below shows, 2014 was another bumper year traffic-wise, with the 2013 annual hit count of just over one million page impressions exceeded comfortably enough as 2014 topped out at 1.4 million hits.
Mayo GAA Blog, annual page views
Source: Statcounter
The strong numbers for 2014 also mean that the cumulative hits number rose sharply during the year, passing two significant milestones in the process. Back in April, the three million mark was passed and then, just before New Year, the four million counter was exceeded. As the chart below shows, it took all of six years for the first million hits to be racked up but then less than two years for the next three million to be added.
Mayo GAA Blog, cumulative page views
Source: Statcounter
In terms of the year just gone, it’s no surprise given the yearly total that the daily, weekly and monthly all-time highs were all surpassed during the year. Equally predictable is the fact that the busiest day of the year (and of all time so far on the site) was the day after the Kerry replay when a grand total of 17,389 hits were recorded. (By way of contrast, back in 2007 a sum total of 12,293 hits were logged in the nine months between April, when I first set up the counter, and year-end). On only two days in 2014 did the total daily hit count fall below 1,000. These were Christmas Day and St Stephens Day, when the daily log topped out at 996 and 962 page views respectively.
The all-time weekly record was also smashed in that emotion-laden final week of August last year, when a total of 96,875 hits were logged. As a consequence, the month of August – weighing in with 248,504 hits – was the busiest ever month.
And what of the future? Onwards and upwards, I guess. With every passing year, I keep asking myself how much longer I can keep this going but I renewed the hosting for 24 months just before Christmas so I suppose that’s the decision made for the next while.
In terms of sustainability into the longer term, the more of a communal effort it becomes, the better this will be from my perspective and it’s good to see that the trend appears to be firmly set in that direction. The figures outlined here represent the sum total of everyone’s interest in the passion we all share and, now that we’ve created something special, we need to work together to sustain it into the future. And hopefully record the return of Sam to the county at some point soon.
WJ,
It’s little wonder the site is so popular. Keep up your good work and hopefully you’ll have a computer meltdown in September 2015, followed by a hangover the day after.
Wow!
Well done WJ. It’s a credit to you. Keep up the good work. It obviously means an awful lot to a great many Mayo people myself included.
You’d never know our day might come soon and like Dave I wonder what will happen to the stats then! I suspect there would be a smell of burning off the auld phone wires connected to the Internet that week…………that’s if lads and lassies could sober up enough to log in at all!
Ah well here we go again…….another go on the merrygoround!
This place will live on WJ, it must be a source of great pride to have created something which is loved by so many.
W J, the figures speak for themselves and for your contribution to keeping us all informed. It cannot be overstated the value of the site to those of us based outside the county, esp. for a long number of years. Another huge advantage of the site is its role in quashing unfounded and often potentially very damaging rumours. Regards a possible meltdown when we win Sam, I don’t think we will complain.
Thanks and good luck to you and yours.
I’d say the week after we win Sam will be lowest traffic recorded for years until we have all recovered and are able to log back on again.
Fair play to you willie joe , you keep the fires lit for us all
Congratulations WJ. Site has taken a life of its own. Just heard that Dan O Neill passed away. Unaware of any details. Dan was a wonderful player, winning National League with Mayo in 1954, a Connacht senior title in 55 before adding an All Ireland with Louth in 57. He was a football immortal .
Well done WJ!! Keep up the great work. #mayo4sam2015
Well done WJ.This site is a great credit to you and your efforts. It is well organised and open to all genuine supports of the green and red, and I can only see it flourish in the future. The shape of that curve comes as no surprise. You are leading the charge and the army will follow.
Good man WJ, some man for one man. The site is a credit to you and has a great therapeutic value to all us head the balls who love the green and red. Great to hear you’ve signed a 2 year contract extension. Well done.
Happy New Year Wille Joe and congrats on those numbers. I hope your getting great satisfaction from all this cos the odd drink bought in Bowes is not nearly enough thanks for this fantastic resource.
Congrats Willie Joe! And thank you, you provide a great service to the GAA people of Mayo! I’m sure with those amounts of web hits you could make a tidy amount for throwing in the odd sly advert if you were that way inclined 😉
Is there any comparable website anywhere in the country?
Excellent site and a credit to you WJ, a must for Mayo supporters everywhere.
Those numbers just reflect the quality of the product WJ. Your success is well-earned and well-deserved, and the site is a marvellous resource for any Mayo supporter. it’s hard to imagine life without the Mayo GAA Blog (and I hope we never have to)!
Well done and thanks Willie Joe.
Thanks all for the kind remarks. It’s not just for show that I’m saying this site is a communal effort (and, Andy, there isn’t anything remotely like it in any other county – only us lot could be this insane) because without the input that everyone makes (be it reading, commenting on or writing pieces for the site), it wouldn’t be anything like it is. My hope is that it will become increasingly so into the future, as this is the best way to ensure the site’s long-term survival.
Good man Willie Joe. Keeping the Faith can be difficult at times, but this blog greatly assists in the ongoing pilgrimage.
Savage site, keep up the good work Willie Joe.
Love this site. Everyone very genuine and knowledgable. You get the odd troll but WJ is a great policeman 🙂
Much better than some of the tripe talked in other national Gaa forums
A very necessary, informative site. Keep up the good work Willie Joe.
There are not many sites out there that you can truly feel you belong, this site is the exception to the rule, a site that belongs to us sports mad Mayo people. A site of great quality and genuine contribution. Thanks Willie Joe for giving us the chance to share in this journey we are all on and hopefully many more records will be broken in 2015.
Congratulations Willie Joe on the great success of this site, and I’ve no doubt it’s much appreciated by Mayo fans everywhere, and I for one never miss a day without popping in for a gander. Were it not for you giving it your undivided attention it might not have lasted, and that to me is the secret of it’s success. We’re all prone to stray a bit from time to time, but you have that abality to allow us a bit of leash, so long as we don’t pull to hard. And here’s to another great year !!!
Congratulations WJ. Impressive numbers indeed! I know this is a labor of love for you, but you could probably monetize this rather easily.
Btw, do you have any data on where your hits are originating from…a “heat” map like!
I don’t bother much with blogs, facebook, twitter etc., but I could not survive without this website. Maybe “Mayoman of the Year” would be a suitable reward for Willie Joe!
Wj, the numbers speak for themselves. Your site is a credit to you and the hard work you put into maintaining it. Thanks for all your work which is greatly appreciated
Its in a league of its own this blog, i love it. In the heat of battle it can be heated and i dont always behave but if i got banned id be devastated . Maybe thats why its so good because youre nearly forced into a cooling down period before commenting, what i mean is i doubt there are many football supporters who havent said stuff they dont mean that was impulsive reaction to a defeat but in here we wait (most of the time).
Well done WJ,
Fantastic amenitie you have created. Keep up the great work.
Congratulations, WJ and everyone else who contributes to the blog. I rarely comment but am at least responsible for a fair number of those hits at this stage 😉 The site is indispensable!
Stats just confirm what everyone knows. Not to mention the archives, a fantastic repository and growing in importance with passing time.
Keep it up Willie Joe. You are a credit to the green and red.
Brilliant site for us Mayo people. Congrats and thanks WJ and long may it continue.