Update:
StumbleUpon folded in July of 2018. Mix, another content curation site, replaced StumbleUpon.
More information about Mix:
Alert: Do You Need More Sites Like StumbleUpon?
Itâs been 18 months since I started the Mostly Blogging StumbleUpon group.*
Iâm happy to report the group is still going strong.
Can the site that was once called âthe darling of the industryâ still bring massive blog traffic?
Absolutely! Furthermore, this post will explain how I did it in just one day.
This data-driven post, presented in case study format, will show you irrefutable statistics that StumbleUpon works for bloggers to effectively raise their page views.
What is StumbleUpon?
StumbleUpon is a popular content curation site that has the potential to bring massive traffic to your blog. Millions of articles can be found there.
According to Quora, the site boasts over 15 million members.
According to 2017 statistics, StumbleUpon is used by 0.4% of all websites.
The content youâve already written gets promoted at the site. You have the potential for massive exposure leading to mega traffic for you. However, there is one catch: Other people need to stumble your links in order for you to receive the mass traffic.
Whether there are penalties if you stumble your own links is debatable. Some people say as long as you promote (stumble) other peopleâs links, you can promote your own there.
I heard the ratio is 30 to 1. For every article of your own you stumble (share to SU), you need to stumble 30 articles written by other people. The LivingForNaptime blog recommends stumbling 10 others for every one of your own you share.
You stumble by clicking the thumb up button. This is equivalent to liking the article. On the contrary, the thumbs down doesnât mean you necessarily dislike the article. It simply means you donât want the site to show you articles like this again. Youâre not interested.
However, there is evidence (articles Iâve read) that say the site actually penalizes you if you stumble your own links. Whatâs the penalty? Why a loss of traffic, of course!
Stumble Upon Case Studies
Consider these comments from Barbara, a blogger:
I would like to ask you about StumbleUpon. Is it still worth it to use it for the promotion of a blog? Because in some of your older posts you mentioned it as a good source of traffic to your website. However, after I have signed up recently, I didnât really get any traffic from there, only spent a lot of time by stumbling and liking lots of posts and articles, without any reciprocation. Do you have any advice on how to use it the right way? Thanks for your help ?
My response:
Thanks for writing me and reaching out. You asked how to get traffic from StumbleUpon.
Step 1. Someone needs to stumble your link. I stumbled your âVeniceâ link.
Step 2. You need to stumble other peopleâs links. Please stumble my link for me: https://www.mostlyblogging.com/social-media-attention/
Additional ways you can get traffic from StumbleUpon:
There are Facebook groups designed to stumble your links and like your links already there. They are reciprocation groups, just like the reciprocation I described in Steps 1 and 2. They have very strict rules, so make sure you follow them.
I have had the most success with this group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1078584682183900/
Follow those steps and then let me know if you start seeing traffic!
Notice: I requested Barbara stumble my post 6 Ways to Easily Get More Social Media Attention.
This conversation occurred on November 12.
Look what greeted me on November 13, just one day later:
Letâs see what caused the booming spike in my page views on November 13:
It is not likely that 6 Ways to Easily Get More Social Media Attention would have picked up an additional 93 page views almost 48 hours after publication. I believe the cause is StumbleUpon.
Letâs look and see.
17 of the hits were coming from StumbleUpon. That seemed low to me. I explored another theory:
The fact that my newest article about evergreen content was included in the total was not surprising. When people give a thumbs up indicating they like an article at StumbleUpon, it kicks off an avalanche of similar topics. Since both were written by the same author, me, it is not surprising that both articles were getting page views.
Look at Barbaraâs comments that greeted me on November 17, just five days later:
Thanks, Janice!
Wow, itâs really working, I have never had such high traffic, ?terrific, thank you for your help.
I stumbled your link.
Regards
Barbara
Note: First, when Barbara admitted to stumbling the link to my post, the speculation ended. She explained she stumbled the link to my analytics post which was getting the traffic from StumbleUpon.
Next, and more important, the post started with Barbara concerned she wasnât receiving traffic from StumbleUpon despite her best efforts. I stumbled her post, and within five days she reported receiving traffic from StumbleUpon to her blog.
I have heard, and my experience supports this, that sometimes it takes years for pins to get visibility after being put on Pinterest. The upside is that Pinterest pins have a long shelf life.
The downside is that people who like to see immediate rewards may have to wait years.
Not so on StumbleUpon. I waited one day to see traffic! Barbara let me know within five days that she had received high traffic. The results were quick.
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November 25, as the screenshot shows, I received 108 hits to my blog from StumbleUpon. Iâm pleased! These results are routine for me.
On March 12, I received 55 page views from StumbleUpon to my blog. You may not think this is a huge amount of traffic. It isnât, but itâs consistent. Consider these comments from the Traffikd blog, âStumbleUpon can send traffic for months and maybe even longer. The initial burst of traffic from SU may not be as big as with some other sites, but it will last much longer.â
Note: If you are a subscriber of MostlyBlogging, Iâd be happy to stumble your links like I did Barbaraâs. Leave me your link in the comments section of our StumbleUpon group page.
How to Receive Blog Traffic from StumbleUpon
- You can ask people in my Blogger Collaboration group to stumble your links.
- My StumbleUpon group exists just so you can ask people to stumble your links.
- Join Facebook groups with reciprocal threads where you can get your links stumbled. StumbleUpon Blogger Adventures will stumble your links for you if you reciprocate by stumbling the links of everyone in the daily thread.
Iâm sure there are many other stumbling groups on Facebook. Just check the Facebook search bar. Type in StumbleUpon + group. According to blogger Anna Nuttall, reciprocal threads are responsible for all the traffic sheâs seen.
- The Post and Share group on Facebook stumbles my links when I ask them. You ask to have your post shared, and you share someone elseâs.
- You can stumble your own links and then stumble 30 other links that are not your own.
- Have a StumbleUpon sharing button on your site. This will encourage people to stumble your links by making it convenient for them. They can stumble your post link right from your blog instead of copying your URL, going to the site, and manually adding it.
- Look what Mainy, a blogger, does:Â
Does posting a request at the top of all your blog pages work? Look:
Mainy already received 56 stumbles to this article January facts and figures written just two days before.
How to Use StumbleUpon
I find itâs fun to connect with readers away from the blog. We find each other and follow each other there.
Do you have directions for following people? Apparently, I am not following anyone! GASP!! From Jen, Practicalbydefault
Kesavan offered an explanation as to how people can follow each other on StumbleUpon.
Mostly Blogging StumbleUpon Group Updates
Famed blogger and author Ryan Biddulph joined our StumbleUpon group.
Testimonials
Blogger Matt recommends StumbleUpon so highly, heâs blogged about all the reasons why in his post, StumbleUpon Referrals. Matt calls StumbleUpon easy and important. According to Matt, âI have been very happy with the traffic generated so far.â
Author and blogger Gary Jefferies reports SU is his #1 traffic referrer.
According to the Batches of Beauty blog, âStumbleUpon is definitely an amazing traffic resource. Itâs something a lot of bloggers underestimate.â
Tots100 claims, âAs a blogger, if your content is being stumbled, then Stumbleupon can be a great source of traffic.â
According to Anna Nuttall, âStumbleUpon has been a brilliant source of blog traffic.â
The Traffikd blog claims receiving traffic from the site isnât just fast, itâs easy. âWith StumbleUpon, you donât have to have an immensely popular submission to get a few hundred visitors. Just a few users giving you a thumbs up [liking your post] can cause a significant amount of traffic to follow.â
The strongest praise came from MarketingCharts.com when they observed a few years back, âStumbleUpon refers more traffic to publishers [of blogs and websites] than Reddit, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Google+ combined.â
SearchEnginePeople agrees that the site not only drives more traffic than Reddit, but provides three times the blog traffic than Reddit provides.
Additional Benefits from Using StumbleUpon
In closing, using SU has additional benefits. Bringing traffic to your blog is just one of them.
The additional exposure in front of such a wide audience can establish you as a thought leader in your niche according to blogger Kathleen Maclean.
Also, you can find new blogs to read. If you are a blogger who researches before writing a post, SU is a valuable site to find blogs to cite in your articles. The site is definitely a resource for you for these reasons.
Readers, please share so other bloggers know StumbleUpon is still a viable site for blog traffic and about its other benefits.
What are your experiences with StumbleUpon? Would you recommend the site? Has it generated traffic for you? If not, do you plan on giving the site a try and having other people stumble your links?
Note* I started the StumbleUpon group with Michael Riosâs help. He promoted my StumbleUpon group while I promoted his Reddit group.
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