A few weeks ago I launched my first-ever reader survey. I’ve been nervous to do one, and you lovely people showed me that I had absolutely nothing to be afraid of! A huge, heartfelt thank you to everyone who took the time to share thoughts and give me feedback. Every single comment was thoughtful and generous, and not once did I feel ashamed or like I’m doing something wrong here. Your encouragement and very thoughtful constructive feedback left me feeling lifted and energized about the direction this blog is going!
If you’d like to read more about where this survey grew out of, you can do so here. Basically, I started this blog as a place to document my journey toward simple living and pursuing travel, but it has evolved into more of a simple and intentional living blog, including lots of writing about motherhood, marriage, and other relationships.
Here’s a breakdown of the survey results and some ways I’m thinking about incorporating your feedback in the future. Spoiler alert: most of you are totally on board with the way this blog has evolved!
Readership and Vibe
- 60% of you have been readers for 6 months or more, and 35% of you have been readers from the beginning.
- 90% of you read a few times a month, and 65% of you read every new post.
- 44% of you are mothers to young children, and another 24% of you are hoping/planning to be moms soon.
- 25% of you are not moms and are not planning to have children soon.
- Words and phrases you used to describe this blog and why you stick around:
- Thoughtful, relational, relatable, genuine, authentic, warm, from the heart
- “Each post feels like you wrote it for me.”
- “It feels like we’re sitting on your couch chatting.”
- “You create ‘me too’ moments.”
What I’m thinking: I kind of felt funny writing down these positive things you had to say (insecurity issues run deep, friends!), but I also feel so honored and appreciated by your words. These words and phrases capture exactly the vibe I want to create here. These numbers show me that you find this space worth investing your time in over the long haul, and I deeply appreciate that. I know there are thousands of things competing for your time and attention every day, and I’m grateful that you choose to use some of your precious time to read this blog and connect with me. (I’ve written about the motherhood stats in the next section.)
Current Content Preferences
- What kinds of posts are you excited to read? (You were able to select more than one, which is why these numbers add up to way more than 100%.)
- A whopping 94% of you like to read simple living posts.
- Marriage: 75%
- Motherhood: 68%
- Other relationships and life in general: 65%
- Of the posts you’re excited about, which is your favorite kind of post to read? (This was a single-response question).
- Simple living: 38%
- Motherhood: 24%
- Marriage and other relationships combined: 24%
- Which posts are you less excited to read? (You could select more than one.)
- Pregnancy: 35%
- Round-ups: 30%
- Travel: 24%
- Motherhood: 17%
What I’m thinking: I had no idea that you guys enjoyed the simple living content so much! I have to be honest, I feel pretty excited that your favorite posts are the ones about simple living, motherhood, and marriage, because these are far and away my favorite posts to write. These are the topics closest to my heart, the content I live out literally every day, and I imagine that the passion I have for these areas comes through in these posts—much more so than in other types of content.
Many of you are moms or are hoping to be soon, and that gives me the courage to keep writing about motherhood. I also recognize that many of you are not in this life stage, and I want you to know that I value you and want to provide content that connects with where you are now. I’ll continue to provide a healthy mix of content that focuses on relationships, motherhood, and simple/intentional living, maybe with a few surprises and experiments thrown in! More on what may be coming in the future below.
Content You’d Like to See in the Future
I’m combining a couple of questions here—content I’m not currently writing that you’d like to see and burning questions and concerns you have at this stage in your life.
- My home! You know, for a simple living blogger, I’m a little embarrassed that I’ve never blogged about my home (you know, besides the ones where I describe how I keep it minimal). I did a whole series on house hunting and then never told you what has transpired in the year we’ve lived here! I guess I thought that since I’m not a DIY or home-project blogger, this didn’t have a place. But many of you asked, and I’m happy to oblige. These won’t be DIY posts, but rather about the heart of my home and how I’m creating intentional spaces.
- Work-life balance and working-mom content
- Seasonal and holiday-themed posts
- More personal growth and development posts, on topics such as developing patience, cultivating joy, being present, growing emotionally and spiritually in relationships, and raising loving and grateful kids
- Newsletter: Many of you expressed interest in subscribing to a newsletter. About 40% said once a month was the right timing and about 40% said once a week. 84% of you want to see those newsletters include quick simple living tips. I likely won’t start a newsletter for another few months (and when I do start, it will be monthly), but I’m so excited to have your support and direction as I think about this next step!
What You’d Like to See Change about The Nested Nomad
Again, I was really surprised by how many of said you wouldn’t change a thing. Those of you who made suggestions did so with much grace and humility, and I’m thankful for your gentle guidance. The most popular suggestion I received was to post more often—and gosh, how I would love to!
I’ll be honest that it’s sometimes a struggle to keep up with just one post a week. As many of you know, I work full time as a copyeditor (my dream job!), and now with my new role as Mom, it’s hard to prioritize time to do other things well. I don’t want to churn out content that isn’t meaningful just to post more often, so for now, I’ll keep posting about once a week. If the day comes when I feel ready to take on more without sacrificing quality, I will do so wholeheartedly!
Overall, your feedback, favorites, and suggestions align pretty perfectly with where my heart is now, and I’m so encouraged to know that you enjoy the direction this blog is going. As I think about the name and the foundation of this blog, however, I realize it just doesn’t quite fit anymore. I’m almost exclusively “nested” these days, with much less emphasis on “nomad.” I still love to travel, and I still want to give my kids roots and wings—but I just don’t love to write about it. I’m still mulling this over, but I’m thinking a new blog name and domain may be in order. If you have ideas, send them my way!
Thank you again for being the most thoughtful, encouraging, and supportive readers around. I even feel weird calling you “readers,” because you feel much more like friends! I love this little corner of the web, where I get the chance to connect with you as if we’re two friends just chatting on the couch, and where I can be myself without fear.
(Also, congratulations to Kelsie Kleinmeyer! You won the $10 Starbucks gift card. I’ll be emailing you details!)
