BlogHer - Dropping the A-List Mentality - Comments

blog tarts

Liz Henry — Tue, 02 May 2006 11:26:34 -0500

I know that my long rambling digressions won't make me popular or A-list and I don't care! But since writing for Blogher I have learned a few things and am applying them somewhat inconsistently.

The main thing I do differently for a more "polished" blog is to have an informative first paragraph, specially aimed to be an excerpt visible before the "read more" link. So, just not starting posts (on here) with "I was thinking the other day as I clipped my toenails that (and this is super important) it might be a good idea to, but oh, that reminds me, ...(read more)" Heh!

Tagging also seems slightly blog-tarty, but it's a great, useful idea so I try to do that too.

Photos are great. I'm down with that part and my new cameraphone and Flickr make it incredibly easy to add photos to all my blogs. It used to be a painful, clunky, boring process and now it's just zip, zip, zip, photo on my blog. I'm all about the instant gratification.

About Technorati, I have found that in the last few months there have been pinging problems. My blog didn't update its pings even when I went in and did it manually. I'm not sure what the problem was, but other people were having it too, and the issue was fixed without explanation when I wrote to Technorati support. I suspect that if other people are not having their pings update, then Technorati might not be indexing their incoming links either. In a nutshell, if Technorati isn't "seeing" (because of ping problems) the blogs linking to you, then your ranking won't go up (or down).

-----------------
Liz Henry
lizzard@bookmaniac.net
Badgermama - personal & mommyblog
http://liz-henry.blogspot.com

girly insults

Liz Henry — Tue, 02 May 2006 11:12:29 -0500

I use "circle jerk" for any gender, but I suppose "daisy chain" or "circle jill"...

-----------------
Liz Henry
lizzard@bookmaniac.net
Badgermama - personal & mommyblog
http://liz-henry.blogspot.com

Violating every rule.

Rita Arens — Tue, 02 May 2006 09:14:37 -0500

Okay, so I'm feeling a little mortified to admit that I asked you not so long ago how to get more traffic. I realize that I'm being a traffic whore. I think blogging reintroduces a lot of the popularity bullshit we thought we'd left behind in high school.

For me, though, it has a lot to do with wanting to get my real, off-line writing out into the world, and it seems that the publishing industry needs me to be famous BEFORE I write the book, not after I write it. Hence, here I am, back in high school, wondering if the cool kids will ever add me to their blogroll so that my traffic will look good in the query letter. Or so the national magazine will look at my regional magazine clips and give me a second glance. Or so that I can earn some money freelancing instead of toiling in corporate America only to come home and toil again at home to get the traffic, write the regional magazine articles, and dream of a brighter tomorrow.

For many years, though, I thought it was all just that - a dream. Blogging, at the very least, has provided "normal" people with a platform from which to speak that never really existed before. And so, hey, here I am. Good thoughts, good post. It's so hard to decide if you're being a whore or following your dreams. Or maybe they're linked inextricably.

Hi, I'm new.

Marti — Fri, 03 Mar 2006 11:52:43 -0600

Hi, I'm new.

Actually I'm old LOL

I commented at Robert's post. I thought it was clever, speaking in a Mae West voice, "Is that a link in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?"

LOL

I don't think anyone responded or even bothered to visit my blog from it.

So I guess it's back to the lab with Pinky and the Brain to find Plan B for world domination (and upward blog mobility LOL)

I suppose part of the problem is that I fall into that dreaded category of "Mommy blogger". I am a storyteller. I don't write about politics or technology. I talk optimistically about real life. My "business" is me. I hope to sell books I write. Being an author takes discipline and PR skills, but few writers seem to want to acknowledge the business of advertising and promotion. They're the one who don't sell many books - LOL

I don't blog-post every day, sometimes not even every other day. My posts are huge, much longer than the "rules" say they should be to keep the short-attention-span audience reading.

If traffic and links improve, that's swell. If not, I still got to write, which is what I love.

I'll keep on hustlin'. I'll comment at the A-List sites, and network the people I've made connections with (waves to Jeremy LOL).

Thanks to all of you for sharing your opinions - it is always a pleasure to read the thoughts and reactions of others.

i know denise

connie20062006 — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 18:22:51 -0600

i wasnt talking to u lol.

Carnival of the Mundane

Liz Rizzo — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 12:24:28 -0600

With all this talk of carnivals, I thought I'd point out that Neil over at Citizen of the Month is hosting "Carnival of the Mundane 5" on Friday.

It's for personal bloggers, hooray!!! Submit posts about everyday, mundane stuff. :)

Carnivals are useful for more than traffic

Leslie Madsen Brooks — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 12:00:03 -0600

Oh my. I never thought of Carnivals this way, and despite this new information, I'll still read them, link to them, and submit to some.

There are some really high-quality carnivals out there. I'm thinking especially of the Teaching Carnival that focuses on higher education. That carnival consistently has some terrific insight and advice; it introduces me to new academic bloggers and has improved, I think, my teaching.

I also enjoy Carnival of the Feminists, though sometimes I'd like to see a greater range of feminist voices contained within it. And I love Tangled Bank for its science-y goodness.

As an educator, I'm interested in all the different ways people collect and exchange knowledge, and carnivals strike me as one way for people with similar interests--and in particular women whose voices are heard too infrequently--to get together and share their insights and knowledge.

So yay for carnivals. I'll continue to support them.

Leslie

BlogHer Contributing Editor, Research and Academia
Proprietor, The Clutter Museum

That's very cool, Connie

Denise — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 06:02:20 -0600

Personally, I think it is one of the nicer reasons to blog.

Welcome.

~Denise

Blogging couch is good

Denise — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 06:01:34 -0600

I like that - a blogging couch, a small circle of friends, a small group of people coming together to share thoughts on a topic ... birds of a feather-like?

When I said it isn't about the traffic, I meant that it isn't about the traffic solely for the sake of boosting traffic, increasing page views and somehow improving technorati ranking.

~Denise

One reason...

Denise — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 05:58:27 -0600

One reason why she waited might be because I wanted to murder her in her sleep once she opened her mouth. ;-)

~Denise

I'm intrigued...

Koan — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 05:21:29 -0600

*Why* did you wait for someone else to mention it, before making me aware of the offence I'd caused? If you'd told me sooner, it could have been dealt with sooner. If you were offended, you were offended - surely it didn't need someone else to validate your feeling? If you didn't want to mention it in a comment, you could have emailed me - I'm not an ogre.

Blog: Multidimensional.Me

Avoiding offensive language

Koan — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 05:17:43 -0600

For the record - I do not set out to use language which I know (or suspect) will cause offence. I didn't set out to cause offence in this instance - but I patently did (because TW says she was offended). So, I didn't debate the point - I didn't attempt to justify the offensive phrase - I did the appropriate thing, which was to apologise, completely, unreservedly and immediately - and I mean it. I won't use that phrase in the future. I am human - I err, I'm made aware of my error, I adapt, and hopefully I do better in the future. I'm going to break a self-imposed rule, here, and link to one of my posts on my personal blog - because it's absolutely relevant here - *especially the comments*. I do not set out to offend - and if I'm made aware of it, and a non-offensive alternative exists, I'll use it, no argument.

So, *this* problem won't arise in the future, because I won't use that phrase again. But, what to do about the present? I've given offence, and apologised unreservedly. Is that sufficient? I *could* edit the comment in which I used the offensive phrase - give me an acceptable alternative phrase (e.g. "mutual ego-stroking") and I can do so. I have two concerns with doing so - firstly, it rather invalidates both your and TW's comments, so for my edit to make sense, you would have to edit yours, and arguably TW would need to delete hers - and secondly, I think that "rewriting history" in this way is wrong, because there's a learning point here, and if we cover up this incident, then isn't it more likely that a similar incident will occur in the future?

For that latter reason, I'd prefer *not* to edit my comment - let it, and my subsequent apology stand. But, if others would prefer I edited it, using an innocuous phrase, I'll do so - my point didn't rely on being offensive - *if* you and TW will both amend yours accordingly. Keep in mind, however, that if I do this, I will look you firmly in the eye and request that you do likewise with your use (or pseudo-use) of Twisty's catch-phrase. Because, let's be clear on this - I didn't set out to cause offence. You used (or pseudo-used) a catch-phrase that you expected to cause offence - and it did. I have to say, I find it somewhat ironic that the person who suggests looking for an alternative phrase in this instance is the same person who supports the offensiveness of the other phrase.

Blog: Multidimensional.Me

wo

connie20062006 — Tue, 28 Feb 2006 22:25:25 -0600

im new k
so i jus write to see stuff in print
i dunno
isnt that cool?

Oh boy

Denise — Tue, 28 Feb 2006 18:06:49 -0600

It's so easy to offend people, intentionally or unintentionally.

Is there a female equivalent we could use instead?

~Denise

In which case, I apologise

Koan — Tue, 28 Feb 2006 15:51:57 -0600

In which case, I apologise unreservedly for using a phrase that you found offensive. It was not my intention to offend anybody.

Blog: Multidimensional.Me

Dropping the A-List Mentality

Jory Des Jardins — Thu, 23 Feb 2006 14:33:51 -0600

The overwhelming feeling I got from last year's BlogHer Conference was that nobody planned to put their highest Technorati ranking on their tombstone.

But then, why do we care so much about traffic?

It's different for everyone. Some want ad revenues, some want credibility, some want what all of us want when we bother to throw a party--people to show up. There's often a childlike fear that bloggers--fine, that I--have that all of our heart-rendered outpourings will fall on deaf or criticizing ears.

Still, I gather that women overall, even "A Listers," would rather forego pageviews for the freedom to write what they are passionate about.

I self-flagellate for being a "bad" blogger. But, thinking this through a bit more, I think I'm a bad A-List Blogger. Don't go running to Technorati to throw my middling traffic numbers at me--I don't mean to say that I'm an A-Lister, I mean that as much as I would love to have a huge audience I don't want it enough to alter my blogging habits. I must not want it enough, anyway, because whatever it is that I'm supposed to do I haven't done it.

I read Jeremy Wright's tongue and cheek post about how to get on the A-List, written from the perspective of a recovering A-Lister, and found a lot of my underlying sentiments about blogging echoed. Jeremy wrote the post in response to Robert Scoble's in-earnest post on how to increase your profile in the Blogosphere. Scoble offers well-meaning advice, such as use conflict as a storytelling device in headlines, use visuals, and tag often.

All of this advice is useful for people who want TRAFFIC, but not so much for bloggers who just want to write good stuff dammit. We don't question our loyalty to blogging, but to being traffic-building machines.

I read Jeremy's piece a week after it was written--another A-Lister no-no, and had to laugh at the ploys he mentions as ways to boost your traffic:

10. Talk about what everyone else is talking about, adding your own spin, and linking to everyone else who is mentioning it.

Is it just me, or does anyone else have an aversion to talking about what everyone else is talking about? I can only read so much Katrina, TomKat, Apple Nano, Iraq coverage before moving on. While some bloggers thrive off of providing their take on popular news/issues, I prefer to riff off the pale underside--the part that doesn't get much light. So sue me!

9. Disagree with A-Listers. If you have the balls, "challenge" them to prove they are right.

On occasion I have something pertinent to say in the comments section of BuzzMachine. But other times I really don't. And though I can get eyeballs for no other reason than telling an A-lister that they are full of it, I'd rather wait until I mean it.

8. Use A-Listers' names in your posts. Name dropping is good.

I think I did this once and felt like a whore, like I invited Paris Hilton to my party, knowing full-well she'd ruin the good time everyone else was having by imposing on them throngs of paparazzi and bad taste. I got traffic, but I also felt cheap. And Paris only stayed long enough to see her name in hyperlink text.

The other form of this is recalling all of the drunkening people you spoke with at industry parties. On occasion I mention these shindigs, if I've had so much freaking fun and good conversation that a decent blog is conjured, but otherwise it feels like a social media circle jerk. When it's over I'm wet and drippy, and my readers are shaking their heads at me, wondering, "Was it really that worth it to sell out?"

Skipping a few...

6. Blog. A. Lot. 4-5 posts a day is a minimum.

I'm not sure I should get started on this one. Lord knows I've agonized over my output, but it can't really be torturing me like I purport it is, because I still insist on writing posts that rival the Bible in length. Going on two years of blogging I haven't found the secret to churning out copy several times a day AND having a personal and professional life. Maybe once a day, but then I better be getting paid for it, because it can take me hours to get out what I want to say in any adequate way.

Traveling with Susan Mernit I saw her method, of squeezing out quickies before bed. Not those kinds of quickies, I assure you, but considering what our Sex & Relationships Contributing Editor is reading these days you never know ;) I'm amazed at how she can eek out quality so quickly. Then there's (don't even get me started on) the NonBlogger Elisa Camahort (Non, being Latin for NINE!)

4. Talk about controversial topics. Say that the FireFox memory leak IS an issue, and that the team's response to it is the EXACT SAME THING as Microsoft would say about similar issues in IE.

Yep, this one resonated because, for someone so ensconced in social media, I could give a rat's behind about OS/IE/Insert name of technology here, IMHO. For that matter, I don't get excited discussing politics, unless it relates to career issues, or about sex, or American Idol, or any other hot-button memes or keywords that would get me clicks. To this day I get Google search traffic for my rants on Dell--probably more than I do my most heartfelt posts about Entrepreneurism and meaningful work. But, like, what am I supposed to do?

For some, the answer is write about what's hot. But that's like going blonde because more blondes get TV gigs. And, well, I'd make an ugly-ass blonde.

3. Make up lists. Top 10 lists are great. Funny top 10 lists are better.

An acknowledgement that we are desperately seeking readers with the attention spans of four year olds. Yeah, I know, people are busy. But if we took their time to give them something substantive they may not mind. As it stands, short and linky trumps long and introspective. I've got nothing against links, but they shouldn't replace READING other blogs.

Yep, Jeremy gets kudos for having the cajones to write this list. The comments that followed were even more interesting. So many people feel similarly--some commenting bloggers even altered their blogs purposely, knowing they would cut their page views in half but wanting to enhance the reader experience.

And all of the commenters were Men! I'd like to get a women's dialogue on this one. I feel like Wright's comments speak to where women inherently gravitate with their blogs, more toward personal expression (even in business-related posts) and less with traffic strategy in mind. Sure, we'll use the fun traffic-boosting tools we need to get our work out there, but will we strain our voices to make it into an A-list choir that's singing some other tune?