Growing Beyond Hopes and Dreams

When I throw a party, I usually don't expect a lot of people to show up. When I have a few friends over, I'm happy if one or two show up at the door.

I try to be a 'glass-half-filled' kind of person, but I know the reality is that sometimes people have other things they want to do besides talking to me.

So, when I started finishingandcoating.com several months ago, I wasn't sure how many people would come to the site and have a look around.

If there is one thing I know about those in the finishing and coating industry, their time is very precious. Very few sit around a desk and look at computers all day and scan emails and news sites. They are usually out on the floor of the shop looking over projects or meeting with customers who may have an issue with a particular item.

Suffice to day, reading my articles and columns wasn't anything I truly expected people to be doing when they got to work in the morning before dark and in between when they left the shop later that night.

When I first started FinishingAndCoating.com, I showed it to a few finishers and coaters, whom I trusted and respected for their opinion. They all gave me favorable reviews on it, but one, in particular, gave me a bit of advice that I've never forgotten: be consistent and deliver the goods. That meant don't slack off on original content and make it worth someone's while to spend time reading what I've written.

I took that to heart, and when we launched back in July, I was happily surprised when readership started going up steadily. The first month attracted just over 10,000 page views over 1,500 unique visitors. Those two numbers are important because it tells me the general idea of how many "real" people are reading the site, and also how many articles and pages they are perusing once they get here.

The next few months saw a gradual increase as I ramped up the articles I posted each month, starting around 15 and then getting into the 20 and into the 30 article range. I saw the page views of FinishingAndCoating.com rise from 50,000 to over 100,000 very quickly, which not only took my breath away but also scared the heck out of me: it showed I had an audience, but that I also needed to continue generating the content needed to keep them interested.

In October, we posted 38 pieces of content and articles, and I could sense the visitors to the site was growing. When I checked the stats at the end of the month, I was blown away: 201,734 page views for October on the site  — up 37% from September — and the number of unique visitors was at 4,625 and up 41% from the previous month.

In six months' time, FinishingAndCoating.com has excelled past my wildest dreams; better yet, I am so excited to bring those in the finishing and coating industry the articles and information they want to read about.

I can't thank all of you enough for visiting the site and reading what we offer. And I am indebted to those who have let me write about them. I know it takes time to talk to me and even more time to gather photos. To let me present your stories to others in the industry is something I am so thankful for, and I know I have hundreds more I want to write about.

The advice that the finisher gave me — "be consistent and deliver the goods" — hasn't been lost on me. I try every day to "deliver the goods" to you all because I know time is precious. But thank you for sharing some of your days with me. I am forever grateful.