A business has really made it when the customers will ask, unsolicited, how they can best support it.
That's us, and that's you, and we're blessed that it's been that way between us for nearly a decade now.
I've been meaning to do this for a while and, with football being done and a bit of breathing room at hand, I've put together a handful of ways our readers, viewers and listeners can help DK Pittsburgh Sports keep growing, all without spending a single penny. And I'll express appreciation in advance for anyone who helps in any of the following:
1. LEAVE A REVIEW
This is a massive one, actually, if you listen to any of our podcasts on an outside platform, whether it's Apple or Spotify or any other. Open either of those links on the corresponding mobile app, drop some stars and a few words, and that's that. We've only had 699 of these to date on Apple, for instance, whereas we've got 20K listeners through that medium every day. It takes but a few seconds and makes a massive difference when it comes to reach.
2. 'SUBSCRIBE' ON YOUTUBE
Despite that word, there's no cost attached to subscribe to our main YouTube channel, which is where we house our Steelers content. We're almost at 30,000, and the ultimate goal there is 100,000, where we'd get verified and then hit a whole new stratosphere for reach. That'll take a while, but it'll be worth it. We also have smaller, separate channels for Penguins and Pirates, and the next meaningful goal for these two is 10,000. In all cases, there's a great big SUBSCRIBE button near the top of the page. One tap, and it's done.
3. SUPPORT OUR ACTUAL APP
Our actual DK Pittsburgh Sports app, whether it's the Apple or Android version, also has a place that accepts reviews. This allows us to move higher on searches for terms like Steelers, Penguins, Pirates, even just plain old Pittsburgh.
4. GOOGLE US UPWARD
This one's especially for those of you who've visited our Downtown HQ/shop. It's our official Google listing, and it comes complete with a dedicated link for you to leave a review. This has only 43 reviews, including one really nasty one from some dude named Benjamin, who was mad about a column I wrote so he described Dali's shop as being 'overpriced junk.' Well, out of only 43 reviews, that dude hurts us. Out of a couple hundred, he doesn't.
5. SOCIAL MEDIA
This one probably goes without saying, but I'll add it, anyway: If you see us link to our articles or promotional fare anywhere on social media, free to give us a like, a share, a comment ... anything that multiplies the engagement. We don't pay for advertising, so this is how we get the word out. With your help, it expands without any of us investing money into it.
Truth be told, if we wanted, we could redesign our budget to include tens of thousands of dollars toward conventional advertising. But our preference has been to spend on coverage -- meaning reporters, travel, etc. -- and tech to keep our app/site ahead of the curve. We'd love to keep it that way.
Thanks again, so much! I'll let everyone know in the next Site Stuff how these numbers grow over the next seven days!
INSIDE THE WORKS
• Reminder: José Negron, new to our full-time staff in covering the Pirates, will start here Feb. 3.
• I'm not going to write as much the next couple weeks. Really, really need to get some business stuff done, and this is as dead a time as any for our teams.
• I really enjoyed the Steelers beat all season long. I wasn't sure how it'd go, and the flying back and forth to L.A., Las Vegas and Seattle was no picnic, but I'll definitely do at least the same amount in 2024. Hope you liked the coverage.
• I'll also be taking Dali along to Winnipeg next month for the annual pilgrimage there. The Penguins and Jets play there Feb. 10, the day before the Super Bowl. Don't ask me how long ago I bought these plane tickets because it'll only disappoint you.
• Everyone still loving being ad-free? If you're not there yet, it's only for paying subscribers. If you aren't subscribed yet or if your subscription's expired: this is our new subscribe page. Make sure you're logged in, tap on the link, and thumb down to the bottom for the SUBSCRIBE button to buy/renew at the monthly or annual level. We also have discounts, as ever, for student subscriptions and senior subscriptions.
• For anyone asking -- and we still get lots of questions on this -- yeah, there's still a subscription level. It's the level where there are zero ads, first and foremost. It's an infinitely better experience. It's also the level at which readers have access to our Live Qs, our commenting platforms, our in-person meetings and many other perks. We feel it's a really good value.
BACK TO BUSINESS
• Our page-view numbers for the past week were 999,778, with 37,502 unique users over the most recent full seven-day span, Jan. 12-18. Our five most-read original pieces:
1. My column from Buffalo on Mason Rudolph: 26,842
2. My column from Buffalo previewing the game: 20,820
3. Alex Stumpf's all-Pirates Friday Insider: 14,805
4. Chris Halicke's Chalk Talk on the playoff loss: 11,084
5. My column on Sidney Crosby being good: 10,468
As an aside and FYI, our Steelers-Bills live file from Buffalo obliterated our previous record, set just a week earlier, with 99,904 page views. I'm not sure where that ranks all-time, but I can't recall a number higher.
• On the multimedia front, our podcast downloads for the past week were 109,322, and our YouTube video views for the past week were 250,903.
• Our company social media accounts are at 52,113 followers on X, 40,373 on Facebook, 28,514 on YouTube, 14,961 on Instagram ... and already 3,759 on the new Threads!
• We make mistakes. If you see one, email: Typos@DKPittsburghSports.com
• We're often asked about our HQ/shop merch being available online, and yes, it's right here.
• Anything you need, email: Help@DKPittsburghSports.com
