Because I've seen various conversations around the blogosphere lately, I thought I'd offer my own personal five tips for being a friendly blogger on this here Friday. If you do these things, we most likely will be friends in the universe de Blog.
1) Join the Conversation and Leave Comments.
In this day and age of Google Reader it seems that comments are becoming fewer and fewer. I know that it's not possible to leave comments on every post you read. I have blogs in my reader that I never visit. But encourage the bloggers who encourage you, who give you ideas, who are sitting down at the keyboard and sharing the bits and pieces of their life with you. Comments make a blogger's day.
2) Respond when people leave comments.
Okay, I am not always the best at this (though I try!), so if you are really interested in me responding to you, make sure that I can see your email address when you leave a comment (this is done by selecting show email address in your profile). I will occasionally respond in comments, but in this day and age of google reader, I've found that most commenters never check back.
3) Be Generous with Your Linkage.
If you see something on someone else's blog and decide to write about it, be sure to acknowledge them. Point out posts that move or inspire or teach you. Blogging is all about reciprocity. If people are linking to you, find a way to thank them. Don't hoard your linkage! (I know, I know too many outbound links and you leak search engine placement) Support what other bloggers are doing especially in your niche. It builds community and will also build your own readership.
4) Enable Full Feed.
The truth is, there are some big time bloggers whose feed I subscribe to, but I rarely click through to read their whole post. If you are doing this, you better have the best titles and first few sentences. You are sacrificing some of your readership if you do not enable full feed. So you really have to weigh what's the most important to you...
5) Don't be a Lone Ranger Blogger. Participate in the blogging community.
Yes, that means memes and carnivals. Maybe not every day. :) But sometimes. This can be such a fun way to get to know other bloggers. It supports what other bloggers are doing and it's a great way to learn.
Some of my favorites are:
Booking Through Thursday
Music Monday
Thursday Thirteen
But there are about 14 million others.
So there you have it. What are your tips for being a friendly blogger?
Friday, July 18, 2008
5 Tips for Being a Friendly Blogger
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22 comments:
Thanks for the tips! I'm new to this whole blogging thing, and I'm finding it a bit of an uphill struggle!
One thing that puzzles me is how to find out what other people are doing? There must be loads of other people doing stuff that ties in with my interests; is there some way to find like-minded blogs and build them into some kind of network (so if I like their blog I can also find out what blogs they like)?
Anyway, thanks for the user-friendly tips!
John
Great Post of useful tips. Keep up the great Work!!!!!!
I think this is a great post. So many times I see that I have had a ton of readers on my blog, yet I have so few comments. I wish there was a way to bring out the lurkers.
Keep up the good work!
I totally agree about the full feed thing.
I have a few feeds that I'm just about to unsubscribe from because they don't give me everything. I think some people think it will bring more traffic to the blog because people have to click through to read, but mostly, I think people will just pass it by.
I have been thinking these same things lately, Amy. One reason I don't use a feedreader is because I want to keep up with the conversations and not just the headlines. It limits the number of blogs I interact with, but that's okay by me.
these are great tips... :) Because so many people have ads on their pages, I try really hard to pull every blog I want to read that day, out of the reader. If I am going to read it anyway, why read it in a reader. you know? I use it mostly to keep me updated on who posted...
John...I see you're living in Japan? I think there's a really great directory of expat bloggers out there. I can't think of where to find it at the moment.
Alexis...aaargh! yours is one that I rarely click through because it freezes my computer at work. I don't know why. Sorry. :(
Sarah..exactly. Unfortunately that happens a lot with the compassion blog for me. They really have to grip me in the first few lines.
Euphrony...I go back and forth. I still visit the oldies the old fashioned way to check for more comments.
Misty...that's a great way to use it!
Oh I just love this post! Would you mind if I post it on mind too? Like a meme? Promise to do #3 and be generous with my linkage...lol! :)
I'm fairly new to blogging, so every suggestion helps. Good tips!
Great post Amy. I do have to improve on the replying to comments. Next week Thursdays needs to get here faster. I read on crossdrivenradio.com that Charley had interviewed you for an upcoming show. That is so cool. It will be nice to put a voice to a person.
Thomas
Hi there! Here by way of McMommy's POW . . . LOVE this post! So true. I've been blogging for almost 3 months now, and I have really enjoyed both leaving and receiving comments. I also always try to reply when someone takes the time to leave my a comment, but you hit the nail on the head - PLEASE enable your email address so I don't get that no-blogger-reply thing - it makes me crazy and it's hard to go back and reply on a comment and then wonder if the reader ever even saw it! Great tips here - thanks for sharing!
I think that the best thing you can do is "respond when people leave comments." After all, isn't that what blogging is all about? Building and engaging in the conversation(s)? What's the point of it all if you're not going to be present in the discussion(s) (i.e. the comments)?
Really good points!
I think I score an A+ in blogging etiquette!
Rach..I know! It can be so frustrating..keep up the great work!
Ricardo ..I agree. If nothing else at least by being able to email the commenter I can ensure them that I'm reading their comments!
Thomas...aack! You'll get to hear me say um like 14,000 times!
Carol...good for you! :)
It looks like I'm on the right track, thank goodness! I've wondered about #3 before...so that is good to know! I've posted links a few times, but I wasn't sure if I should ask them first or if they would just appreciate the "link love" if they came across my post.
* I may post a link to this one. Good info!
Happy POW!
Keep up the good work Kelli! And yes, bloggers definitely love the links!
Thanks for the great tips. I hope I'm a friendly blogger. I try really hard but it is time consuming. Also, that means less time for stalking Ryan, so I find it a hard balance. ;)
This is a great list of tips!
As someone whose whole blog is dedicated to Lists of 5 (www.paulaslistof5.blogspot.com - Holy shameless plug of my blog, how does that fair for blogging ettiquette??) I really enjoyed your 5 tips! Thanks Amy!
I can't believe I've been blogging this long and haven't paid attention to blogging memes. Thanks for the heads-up.
Just recently started blogging. Thanks for the tips! I've done a couple of memes but what is a carnival?
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