My feed reader is in perpetual motion (just like my girls- see right!).

I add and delete blogs regularly, keeping my number at just around 50.

I could add more – so many more. After all, there is no end to the brilliance, beauty, and eloquence that abounds in the blogosphere. But I must exercise restraint.

I typically subscribe to a feed if I have been reading a blog regularly for a few weeks or if I stumble upon a blog that WOWS me instantly.

Sometimes I subscribe and I become a “loyalist.” Like with Adventures in Babywearing.  I can’t imagine ever unsubscribing to her blog. Ever.

Other times, I get disenchanted.

Here’s what leads me from “cool” to…canceling my subscription:

YOU NEVER POST.

I subscribe enthusiastically, but then you never post. Days go by. Then weeks. Eventually, I give up. I assume that you’ve moved on to bigger and brighter opportunities. I click “delete feed.” Good-bye!

YOU POST TOO MUCH.

I spend an afternoon in the sweet spring sunshine, come back to check my RSS feed, and you’ve posted 10 times. An uncomfortable feeling starts to form in my stomach and around my neck. I have that horrible realization that I will NEVER be able to read them all. Gasp! Pant! Choke! It’s all too much. So I delete all of your posts (and breath a sigh of relief). Or – worst-case scenario – I delete your feed.

YOU’RE A DEBBIE DOWNER.

I live for authenticity. I delight in candor, in humor, in being real about the ups and downs of this glorious existence. But…can you please remember the ups? If your blog is ALWAYS about how your family is sick, you are exhausted, and people are mean…I will unsubscribe. Give me a little sunshine.

YOU OFFER A PARTIAL FEED.

Partial feeds are not at all reader-friendly. I can’t stand them. If I wanted just a headline, then I’d be following you on Twitter. Partial feeds may get you more “clicks,” but they won’t win you brownie points with readers. I almost always unsubscribe to blogs that don’t offer full feeds. MADE is the exception because I just love her blog to pieces.

YOU ARE A ROBOT.

I love your blog. You are creative and brilliant and you crack me up. I leave comments on every post. I tweet out your posts. I tell all of my friends about you. And then…you never say anything. Not a “Hey Steph, thanks for commenting.” Or a reply on Twitter. Or a comment on my blog. Nothing. Silence.

I become a little let down. I know that you’re busy and that you have a gazillion followers, but – still – nobody likes a strictly one-sided relationship. So I – sadly – say good-bye and unsubscribe. I’ll probably peek in at your blog from time-to-time, but my dedication will fade.

There are other reasons I unsubscribe too. Perhaps our interests just aren’t similar anymore. Or I HAVE to pare down on my blog reading due to life circumstances. By and large, however, my reasons boil down to one of those 5.

So, what should you do to GET & KEEP subscribers? Well, start with doing the reverse of this post:

1. Publish often enough that people don’t forget about you (find a posting schedule that works for you + your audience).
2. But don’t publish too much (multiple times a day, every day = exhausting for the reader).
3. Be positive.
4. Offer a full feed.
5. Interact with your readers. Someway. Somehow.

YOUR TURN: How many blogs do you subscribe to (and what are your top 3 favorite blogs to read)? Have you ever unsubscribed/stopped reading a blog for the reasons listed above?