How I Went From 100+ Page Views A Day to a Whopping 5 a Day

I think it might be time for me to throw in the towel and loudly proclaim that I just don't "get it." What I'm referring to here is the process of developing web site traffic.

I'm looking for feedback from any SEO types out there - or anyone who might link to any of my sites out of good will or genuine interest.

Three weeks ago I developed a new site called The Sudoku Challenge. The idea is simple. Every day 10 sudoku puzzles are posted. Solve a puzzle and if you solve it quickly enough - you get your name on the scoreboard. The scoreboard starts fresh every morning. Sound simple, right? I mean, LOTS of people like Sudoku, so you'd think it'd be relatively easy to attract visitors and keep them coming back! Not so, batman.

Initially, I posted links to it on del.icio.us, reddit, digg, and netcape. After getting 100 page views a day (that's not a lot, I know) traffic has all but died. NOBODY is coming back to play.

I have also sent emails (individually written, not templated) to several sudoku related sites letting them know about The Sudoku Challenge. So far, no response.

So I ask you, what is it that I'm doing that is apparently so uninteresting? Is it time to throw in the towel with this idea? Is it time to resort to begging for links (like I'm sorta doing now)? Should I wait, is a month too short a time to decide if an idea is viable?

Any feedback or links would be incredibly welcome! Please comment or email me at john at todotoh dot com so I can thank you personally.