Ask Questions Here.

Can I be first? :D
I was writing a really long question but then in the process of writing it I answered it myself. So I'll go with something else.

I've been trying to get feedback from my readers on random things - asking me questions, doing a survey to find out what they like and who they are, writing blog posts with questions, etc. However, people don't tend to respond. Most responses come via Tumblr reblogs, but that's limited to people that *have* Tumblrs. And that's just a small group of loyal friends.

How else can I find out who my readers are, asides from the people that regularly reblog me? A lot of web marketing things I read talk about how connecting with your fans is important, that a great way to reach out is to do a survey and find out what they like, etc, but my readers tend to be the quiet sort. How do I get them to respond more?

(and tangentially related: I really suck at fund-raising for anything. My last few attempts haven't managed to garner much. It's partly because most of the people I connect with don't have much money, but even those with more money tend to spend it on other stuff. How do I get better at asking people for support?)

You are the first. Yay! *fanfare* *and more fanfare* Thank for
participating, Tiara.

Your question: 'How do I get my readers to respond more?'

My answer: Most readers don't comment. I think that it's like 99% of
web users who don't comment. Personally, I hardly ever comment myself
on sites that I am reading and I am engaged by. So, I'd say comments
aren't that great of an indication as to whether people are engaged by
or see value in your content. And I'd also say that the value of your
content matters a lot more than if they are commenting or not. Saying
that, I've found the most engaged and talkative readers are those that
I've communicated one on one with. Through communicating directly via
email, phone, Skype video, or other means it fosters a deeper
connection and encourages conversation. And if you sincerely want to,
offer your readers support and from that you'll likely find they are
more committed to supporting you.

Your use of a poll is a good idea for finding out info about your
readers, but if you're finding they're not answering it, perhaps you
need to incentivize it, by say, donating to charity for every
response, or giving away something. It's also good to clearly indicate
that the poll is short and doesn't require a big time commitment, and
to stand by that.

Your Question: 'How else can I find out who my readers are, asides
from the people that regularly reblog me?'

If you want to explore who's reading you, try installing google
analytics or setup a google webmaster account and observe who is
linking to your site. You can also track your mentions in all social
media through the tool Social Mention.

Your Question: 'How do I get better at asking people for support?'

My answer: Provide them with a compelling reason as to why they should
support you and then make it easy for them to do so. And consider that
them giving money might not be the best way they could support you
anyway. Perhaps they could help more in other ways?

Thanks for playing, Tiara!

Hello Tara - I stumbled upon your site and it really engaged me. I'm so proud to see another young Canadian woman who is brave and bright and willing to take the chance to be yourself and embrace the love of not 'having to conform'. It can be a lonely road sometimes, and a heavy burden, but the trip is so worth it in the end.

Since this is titled 'Ask', I will indeed ask. What do you do to keep yourself motivated when the weight of conformity continually presses upon you?

Jennifer, so nice to meet you, thank you for the kind words.

You've posed a great question and a tough one... here's what I 'think'
keeps me motivated: I keep myself motivated by reminding my Self that
no matter how I might doubt myself, at my truth, I know that I know
what's best for me. Like Gertrude Stein once wrote, "Let me listen to
me and not to them." I suppose at it's root my motivation stems from
my optimism -- my belief that I can make a difference and that my
choices do matter. My hope inspires me to follow my own path, honour
my truths and not feel trapped by what 'most people do'. I also think
asking a lot of questions helps, as it provides evidence for why 'the
standard' is not necessarily something I need to subscribe to.

Yay!

I didn't know about Social Mention, so I'll go check that out, thanks :)