Written on January 25th, 2007 at 05:01 pm by David Shawver
Digg Traffic vs Referral Traffic - Which is Best?
Digital Inspiration has a post on Getting Noticed by A-list bloggers vs Getting on Digg Front Page which makes a few worthwhile observations.
It fits pretty closely to a comment I made last week in an interview with Jeremy when I was asked which social networking site I’d prefer to get traffic from. My response was (and I’m paraphrasing here) that while I don’t mind the rush of traffic of traffic that a site like Digg can bring in that I’d prefer a link from another blogger because it brings a different type of traffic.
Digg Traffic - While Digg brings a rush of traffic - it does so from a site with a very broad focus in terms of topics. It also sends the traffic largely from a link with little context around it and in most cases a link that comes from a largely anonymous person.
Blog Traffic - Traffic from another blogger is different on a number of levels. While it might not come in the same numbers - it will generally come with commentary and context, from a site that usually has some sort of a single focus, from a person who has established some level of trust and/or profile with their readers.
As a result - in most cases the Digg traffic comes and goes quickly and doesn’t usually hang around for dialogue - whereas referrals from other sites is more likely to ‘convert’ either as a longer term viewer, RSS subscriber, newsletter member or comment leaver.
Of course Digg traffic isn’t completely useless - in fact if you harness it you can grow a blog over time. It comes in such high numbers that even if only a very small group stick around it can be worthwhile.
It also brings a round of secondary links - which can be good for SEO and lastly it doesn’t hurt the old ego and can give a rush of motivation to a blogger. The key with Digg traffic however is to work on converting readers into loyal ones.
More reflections on different types of traffic at:
Written on January 25th, 2007 at 04:01 pm by David Shawver
DEVONthink Pro and Scrivener - Tools for Writers
Over the last few days I’ve been playing around with a couple of writing tools for Mac OSX users that are really excellent.
While they are not blogging tools specifically they do offer writers some useful resources and for larger writing projects I think both would be invaluable (although you probably wouldn’t use both of them).
DEVONthink
The first one is DEVONthink (I’ve been testing DEVONthink Pro). I found it after a recommendation over at Lifehacker (where Gina talked about using it to write her book) and am quite staggered by it’s power. You can import all kinds of documents (including importing parts of and full websites) then organize it in all kinds of different ways for printing or exporting. In essence it’s a database of content and I can see many applications for bloggers including the writing of books (as Gina did), having a version of your website on your computer (when you’re offline) or for drafting post.
One of the most useful parts of DEVONthink Pro is it’s concordance and ability to show you potential links between your different documents. There’s still a lot more for me to discover in it - but I’m seriously considering paying for the full version once my 150 hour trial ends.
DEVONthink is great for web users too - with RSS integration (I’m yet to fully explore it) and the ability to quickly clip information into your database as you surf. It also lets you export ‘as a website’ which is pretty cool (although I’m yet to do it).
Scrivener
The second application that I’ve been testing is Scrivener - a program that has been getting quite a bit of attention in the last few days since it’s 1.0 release. Again it’s a Mac OSX application and again I can see many applications.
I’m still exploring this (having only just downloaded it) but there are some similarities with DevonTHINK as it gives you the opportunity to import documents, edit them and organize them for exporting in different forms.
Scrivener has a nice corkboard feature for organizing your different ideas (using ‘index cards’) and I can see myself using it if I were putting together a longer series of posts as it gives you a few different ways of viewing the information you’re compiling. Full screen editing is also very nice (a way of being able to fully concentrate upon your writing with no visual distractions).
My initial reaction to Scrivener is that it’s not as powerful a tool as DEVONthink Pro (and to compare them is probably not really fair) but I’m impressed by both so far and if I were about to start writing a book or some other larger project I’d definitely look to base it around one or the other.
Unfortunately there’s no direct or easy way of getting text out of Scrivener onto a blog without copying and pasting and a bit of messing around - otherwise it could well be perfect for bloggers.
Conclusion
Both DEVONthink and Scrivener are great tools for brain dumping information from different sources - something I do a lot of - and I could see either being useful in a day to day way to full time bloggers looking to get themselves organized.
Particularly Scrivener’s cordboard/index cards could be useful. You could assign a corkboard to each category from your blog and then brainstorm topics - one with each index card - which could then be expanded upon with examples, illustrations and ideas over time.
Both have free trial versions. DEVONthink’s is 150 hours and Scrivener 30 days.
Written on January 25th, 2007 at 05:01 am by David Shawver
V7N Contextual Links - a First Impression Review
Updated - this post has been updated below with links to the responses from V7N Contexual Link Creators.
Today I took a quick look at a new contextual links program that seems to have been launched this week by the name of Contextual Links at V7N. I saw it in my RSS feed earlier in the week mentioned on a couple of blogs but didn’t think much of it (as a result I’m sorry but I can’t say what site I read about it on first). However a couple of days ago I was rung by John Scott (one of it’s creators) and asked to take a look at it and give my opinion - so I took a second look.
V7N Contextual Links is difficult to describe in succinctly - but what comes to mind is that it’s a program that is a cross between PayPerPost and Text-Link-Ads (as best I can describe it).
In short - it’s a way of advertisers to buy links (largely for SEO purposes) to their sites from blogs and websites that get paid $10 for posting each link. Links are placed ‘in content’ and need to be contextual.
I have a few concerns with the program to be honest (sorry John):
- From what I read, the posts don’t need to be new ones that you insert links into. As long as they are on a blog with a PR of over 3 and on the industry that the link is about they seem to be fine.
- Bloggers are not required to (or encouraged to) write directly about the advertiser they are linking
- Bloggers are not allowed to disclose that the link is paid for.
What concerns me about this program is that it seems to go against the basics of good ethical blogging (update - or at least my understanding of it). I personally believe in a style of blogging that is transparent to readers and where they are aware of what you get out of what you write. We’ve been over this ground with the PayPerPost controversies in the last 6 months and even they now have moved to a position where publishers must disclose paid reviews.
Some will argue that this is different to PPP because the blogger is not expressing an opinion about the linked product or service (ie it is not a review - just a link) but to me this still doesn’t sit well. In conjunction with these links being inserted back into old posts - it just doesn’t sit well as good blogging practice in my opinion.
It also could well end up being an illegal practice in some parts of the world with the recent statement of the FTC saying that ‘companies engaging in word-of-mouth marketing, in which people are compensated to promote products to their peers, must disclose those relationships’.
My desire as a blogger is to build a relationship of trust with my readers - not one where I try to slip by them links that benefit me but that offer them no real value.
My desire is to provide my readers with useful content - and useful links in that content to investigate that are relevant (not just contextual) to what I’m writing about and am trying to communicate.
While I can see why such a service would be attrActive to advertisers - I’m not convinced it’s in bloggers or their readers best interests to engage in it.
But that’s just my opinion - what do you think?
Update - Aviva Directory Blog points to my post asking if I’m ethical? What his post has to do with me being ethical I fail to see - his headline fails to match with his writing at all and doesn’t leave me feeling any more convinced to give V7N a second look!
The author of Aviva is one of the people behind V7N and defends the system as being like ‘product placement’ in movies (and other media).
This may well be the case and ultimately it’s up to each blogger to determine whether that is the type of blogging that they want to get into.
Product placement annoys me as a movie goer - the latest Bond movie was so full of it that I could barely concentrate on the plot at times. But again - that’s just my personal preference as a consumer of media.
My personal style of blogging is where I attempt to provide readers with useful information to them. In doing so I like to be upfront about what is an ad and what isn’t. That’s just my style (and looking at the comments on my blog the style of many other bloggers).
From that perspective - I can’t use V7N ads on my blogs - because they do not allow me to disclose that a link is a paid one. It’s not even an option (even the most controversial systems usually give the publisher the choice to disclose).
Ethical? I guess that’s something that each individual needs to come to terms with. All I’ll say is that it doesn’t fit with my approach to blogging. I’ve tried in my review above not to slam it as ‘unethical’ but presented my own view and let my readers add their own.
PS: As Nick points out in comments below - Matt Cutts from Google today had something to say on this topic here in his post on undetectable spam - might be worth a read before signing up.
Update 2: John Scott has posted about my upcoming review of V7N Contextual Links (he’d heard about it before I published it - interestingly I only told one person that the review was coming out). He then updated his post after reading my first impression review.
He writes:
“We do not ask for any opinions on the site. For example, if Google were the customer, the blogger would mention “search engine” and have it linked to Google. No opinion. No editorial. Just a link. Nothing to disclose.
Bloggers have to make a living like everybody else. AdSense pays a paltry wage, so why not supplement it with some V7N Contextual?”
I agree that posting a review of a product and being paid for it is different to just putting links in posts - but it still doesn’t sit well for me. I have nothing against making a living from blogging (I work my butt off to show people how to to do it) but I do want to do it in a way where my readers know where they stand with what I’m writing. When I link to something in my posts it’s like me giving it a vote of confidence (unless I do it in the context of giving it a warning). I want to link to quality sites that will provide some benefit to my readers.
Again - it’s just my opinion - something John asked me for when he rang asking me to take a look at V7N Contextual Links. It shouldn’t really come as a shock to anyone though that I’ve taken this approach as I’ve done it in previous reviews and interviews of other ad systems that didn’t want their publishers disclosing that reviews (with links in them) were paid for.
Ultimately though - the market will determine if I’m on my own with my opinions or not.
Written on January 25th, 2007 at 12:01 am by David Shawver
How to Think Outside of the Box and Develop Attention Grabbing Content
I’d like to welcome Glen Stansberry from LifeDev (feed) to enternetusers. Glen has offered to write a series of posts looking at how to use creativity, productivity and organization to improve your blogging skills.
With the blogosphere ballooning to gigantic proportions, more and more blogs are springing up in every single niche. While it’s great for the reader to see a wide spectrum of opinions, it makes the blogger’s job of standing out that much harder. Any blogger can read a bit of news in their topic, and regurgitate it on their own blog with little thought. But that doesn’t do anything to help our readers, other than give them one more reason to unsubscribe from Mr. RSS.
It’s quite easy to get lost in the sea of voices. However, there’s one often-overlooked way to instantly grab attention: thinking outside of the box.
Case Study: 37Signals
Lets take a look at a quick example of what we’re talking about here. 37Signals runs a great blog Signal Vs. Noise.
In this blog the software company’s founders spend most of their time writing about the 37Signals mantra: great web software is simple, fast and elegant.
But what makes their writing so compelling is that they hardly ever write about software.
Huh?
That’s right - What makes their writing great is that they are able to take pieces of seemingly unrelated topics and link them to their mantra, like how comics relate to web design. Or film concepts and branding. They know how to breathe life into a concept, to let the viewer see an idea in a different light.
Apply, Rinse, Repeat
This technique not only adds a new dimension to your writing, but it also shows how knowledgeable you are on your topic, Obi-Wan. The deep understanding you have of the concept means that you can show correlations previously unheard of. Can you smell the linkbait? :)
And the best part about this strategy: you can start using it immediately. And it’s really not that hard.
It all starts by changing the way you think about information.
Try reading news about topics that interest you but are completely unrelated to your niche. Or read less news, and allow your brain more time to think.
In short: start becoming more aware of how everything relates to your blog’s topic, in some way or another.
You may not get ideas from your feed reader either. That’s OK. Odds are it will be better if you don’t anyway. You’ll want to use as little “influence” from other sources as possible to help ensure originality and to get the creative juices flowing.
[One word of caution: Don’t get too abstract on your readers. Clarity is key in making this work. You never want to have your readers scratching their heads at your writing.]
There’s something that puts a well-crafted post ahead of the rest. By wrapping your posts in fresh perspectives, you’ll instantly improve your blogging, and your readers will thank you for it.
This is the first part in the series Cutting Above the Rest, a series focusing on how to use creativity, productivity and organization to improve your blogging skills. Check out Glen Stansberry’s blog LifeDev (feed) for more tips to improve your creativity.
Written on January 24th, 2007 at 06:01 am by David Shawver
Speedlinking 24 January 2007
- Akismet have launched a new plugin - version 2.0. It has some great new features which should enhance it’s performance including a search feature (something I’ve been testing the last few days - it’s great), the ability to to discard spam on old posts, a spam counter widget (so you can brag about how much spam you get), recheck moderation queue and a lot more (most of which is too technical for my little head at this time of night). All I know is that if it improves Akismet’s performance then I’m happy!
- Allen Heat does a little reflecting upon 5 aspects of blogs to revise in 2007 (part II) For someone so young Allen has some wise words to say.
- Andy Wibbels has put together a post that talks us through the steps that he and a client took in launching a blog - taking a website and moving it to be a blog. It talks through a number of important decisions that new bloggers need to consider when starting up.
- James has written a post titled How to Increase Blog Traffic with YouTube that will hopefully be useful for those of you experimenting with video on your blog.
- Forgetting to renew your domain name can happen to us all - even Google.
Written on January 24th, 2007 at 04:01 am by David Shawver
booBox To Help Bloggers Sell Stuff
TechCrunch report that booBox (a Brazillian start up) are getting ready to launch a service that will help bloggers and other webmasters monetize their sites.
It’s an interesting concept which is best understood by using their demo of it here.
In short - bloggers add tags to images on their blogs which adds a little icon to images (you can see the little red icon in the top left hand corner of the image to the left).
If a reader clicks the icon they are taken to a ‘lightbox’ which opens up above the page with some pictures of the item (and others related to it).
The lightbox is where any transaction will take place (ie they don’t really leave your site as the blog will remain open behind it) and it can be closed down at any time during the reader interaction with it.
Readers are asked ‘Do you want to buy any of these items?’ (see screenshot below - click to get an enlarged version).
If a reader clicks the image they are taken (in the light box) to Amazon (or another participating store) where they can buy the product.
If they buy something the publisher earns a commission via the affiliate program.
As TC points out - there isn’t heaps of information yet for bloggers thinking of signing up when it’s released (they are doing a closed beta at the moment).
There’s no mention of how the tags are added to images yet (it would want to be easy and seamless) and there is no mention of how booBox makes money from it (ie most programs like this will take a certain % of impressions for themselves).
They do mention on their site that to make money you need to have signed up for the affiliate program of the stores they use - but that they’ll use different stores for different countries. Sounds like it could get a little messy if you want to have stores for all of the different countries that your readership comes from. I’d like to see more clarification of that.
In terms of an actual concept - I’m not a huge fan of anything that interrupts the flow of readers on a site. This ‘lightbox’ is nicely designed but it is slightly ‘popup-ish’.
My only other concern is that the icon itself doesn’t really say or mean anything to the average user and I wonder if readers will click it and if they do whether they’ll know what it is. The key to get people buying things at Amazon’s Associates program (and other online stores) is to presell the product and to have them know what they’re clicking through to (ie an opportunity to buy). I personally find my conversions with Amazon are a lot better with text links embedded in content that say something like ‘get a price on XXXXX item’ or ‘buy the XXXXX item at Amazon’.
Found via B.L. Ochman
Update: in comments at TechCrunch one of the booBox developers shares that integration for those using booBox is as simple as adding ‘one line of HTML code’.
Written on January 24th, 2007 at 02:01 am by David Shawver
Do Full Feeds Increase Your RSS Subscriber Count?
Bouncing off Leon Ho’s post 0 to 12,000 RSS Subscribers: Ways to Attract More Subscriptions (a good read about how LifeHack.org grew it’s subscriber list)) Steve Rubel wonders out loud if someone should do some study into full feeds and if they are what makes a blog’s feed successful?
He wants someone to do the research - something I’d love to see it too.
I personally don’t think it’s as simple as a full feed or partial feed thing that determine’s a blog’s feed subscriber count. It definitely can help though. For example here at enternetusers when I moved to full feeds my feed subscribers did increase by 10-20% in the next month (although onsite traffic decreased a little).
However on Digital Photography School I’ve managed to get my subscriber count up to over 4000 in 9 months using partial feeds. Having said that - I’m close to moving it to full feeds also as I’m keen to see if I can boost it further.
Ultimately the biggest factor in getting people to subscribe to your feed is producing quality content that people don’t want to miss.
I’ve said here before that I’m still torn on whether to recommend full feeds or partial feeds. I think it depends upon a number of factors including the topic, the style of posting, how much time you have in dealing with content theft and whether you care or not if people steal your content.
Still - if someone does a study into full vs partial feeds I’d love to read it!
Written on January 23rd, 2007 at 08:01 pm by David Shawver
The Sydney Weblogger Ad-Tech Meetup - 7 Feb
If you’re in Sydney or will be there for adTech - Sara from the Bargain Queen has mobilized the Sydney Weblogger Meetup Group for a get together at the Arthouse Hotel on 7 February from 7.00pm.
Details of the Meetup are here. I’ve already RSVP’d.
Hope you can make it - should be a fun night!
Written on January 23rd, 2007 at 11:01 am by David Shawver
66 Successful Bloggers and What they can teach you
Bill Belew at The Biz of Knowledge puts together a list of 66 Successful Bloggers and What they can teach you (taken from a book by Ted Demopoulos titled What No One Ever Tells You About Blogging and Podcasting - aff). There’s some great blogs there if you’re looking to improve your blogging!
Written on January 23rd, 2007 at 09:01 am by David Shawver
Uncommon AdSense E-Book - Mini Review
I’ve been wanting to review Eric Giguere’s Uncommon AdSense (aff) e-book for a while now but after reading it then got crazily busy - to the point where I couldn’t do it justice.
Please forgive me - this will be brief - but having read it I thought I should at least give a few reflections.
Eric wrote this e-book on the back of his previous offering “Make Easy Money with Google: Using the AdSense Advertising Program” (Eric Giguere) which was, by his own admission, a very entry level introduction to AdSense as a way of earning income online.
Uncommon AdSense is Eric’s book which steps things up a notch and is aimed at beginners through to more experienced AdSense users.
My initial reflection on it is that he’s achieved that. Uncommon AdSense does step up a notch (or a few).
If you’re a very experienced user of AdSense you probably won’t learn heaps (although Eric managed to remind me of a few techniques that I’d forgotten and shared a few tips that I’d not used before) but if you’re at the beginning of your journey it is one resource to consider investing in.
What I like about Eric’s style is that he’s not into hype.
His resources have a much more humble and realistic presentation of what can (and can’t) be achieved with AdSense than many others writing on the topic. In fact at times he could probably do with a little more hype. I know he’s planning a revamp for his sales page - and I agree it needs a bit of a work over :-)
The other thing I like about Eric’s approach is that he doesn’t just include ‘AdSense tips’ in his book but shares a few of his tips on good website practices.
The book has 102 pages, 41 sections and comes with bonuses (including free updates - something Eric’s already done with the latest AdSense policy changes).
Lastly - Eric offers a money back guarantee - so if you don’t learn anything you can always get your $47 back.
Buy Uncommon AdSense here.
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