Thank you for that thoughtful comment!

I know what you're talking about regarding not getting the numbers you want. As far as I'm concerned, all of my articles are of a pretty consistent quality, yet some perform well and others don't. In fact, some of the articles I don't think are as good have outperformed the better ones.

You're right, there's a large element of chance in what draws in an audience. The writer can't control everything. In fact, the only thing the writer can control is whether or not s/he keeps swinging.

My advice is to keep swinging, and ask for a raise!