Nothing like a post or two about web traffic to get a conversation going.

When we last left our story, I'd noted a November-to-December drop in unique visitors to startribune.com (37 percent) and MinnPost (19 percent).

I've subsequently corresponded with the Strib's Digital Media Executive Director Jason Erdahl, who adds these data points:

♦ Despite the unique visitor drop, December pageviews were up over November, and up 96 percent over December 2007. (I know some readers will scream that the Strib's every-10-minute page refreshes might goose the pageview numbers, but wouldn't affect the November-December comparison, at least.)

♦ December 2008 was the paper's best traffic month ever, pageview-wise. The paper has doubled page views per visit since last year. (Again, see the refresh caveat, but this is still what you want to be doing. I should've asked how much the Cutest Canine contest goosed the numbers, but I view that as the digital equivalent of the comics page.)

♦ While the November visitor spike was nice, it was due mostly to one-time out-of-market readers who don't frequent the Strib's higher-revenue local advertisers. Writes Erdahl of the out-of-towners, "We will never see them again. They are not the kind of users that we can base a business on."

Shortly after Jason's email came one from Chris Clonts, the PiPress' online senior editor, letting me know his pageviews were also up — 9.5 million in November, 10.4 million in December, according to SiteCatalyst — "due largely to interest in our tireless, thorough recount coverage."

The PiPress' December year-over-year pageviews grew 16 percent (9 million to 10.4 million). And unlike MinnPost and the Strib, the PP's unique visitor count rose 3.5 percent from November to December, Clonts says.

Any other local news webmasters want in? Let me know. Web-savvy readers? Comments welcome.