Staying Connected in Times of Weirdness

Filed Under Business Life, Community, SOB Business, Successful Blog | 2 Comments

I've been thinking . . .
Trackbacks coming into and going out of Successful-Blog have been mystically enchanted. I am unable to know where they go, when they go, or get word when they’ve been sent to me as well. A famous blogger is helping me sort out this mystery . . . film at 11 on the SETI channel.

Until then, please know that issues at Technorati — links are disappearing for no reason — and WordPress –trackbacks aren’t coming in or going out– have made it hard for me to know about your generosity. If you haven’t heard a word about a connection or gesture you’ve made, please email me — lizsun2 at gmail [dot] com so that I can drop by and properly ay, “thanks.”

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Great Find: Joseph Pisano on Trackbacks

Filed Under Great Finds, Successful Blog | 10 Comments

A Clear Discussion on Trackbacks

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Great Find: Trackbacks, ping-bud-a-bing!

Permalink: http://www.mustech.net/2006/09/trackbacks-ping-bud-a-bing/

Audience/Topic: New bloggers

Content: Not many folks will take the necessary time to write not only why bloggers use trackbacks, but also to explain how trackbacks work and how to build them. Joseph Pisano has done that in rare detail. He even adds why they don’t work in some cases. If you’re a new blogger and don’t know what trackbacks are or what they are good for. Click the title below and let this article show you.

Trackback, ping-bud-a-bing

Thank you, JP Pisano!

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Related Articles
Great Find: 2 Standalone Trackback Tools
Blog Basics 1: Comments and Comment Policies
Blog Promotion Basics [for Everyone]

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Great Find: 2 Standalone Trackback Tools

Filed Under Blog Review, Comments, Successful Blog, Tech/Stats | 22 Comments

Trackback Troubles

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A few months ago, I was having a problem with trackbacks. It occurred right after a server move. Everything seemed to be working, yet the trackbacks weren’t appearing. I found the situation somewhat distressing. What I was writing was important and incredibly cool — as everything we write is.

This week I am having a problem with my trackbacks again. It just started happening for apparent reason. I haven’t had the time to play detective, but I know the value of well-placed trackbacks.

Trackbacks show other writers that I’ve thought about what they’ve written. They offer my work on the same sujbect to another conversation. People notice trackbacks. Sometimes they even follow one home.

Being without my trackbacks is a lot like being without. Read more

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Stand-Alone Trackback Tool from WhizbangTech

Filed Under Business Life, Marketing, Successful Blog, Tech/Stats, Tools | 12 Comments

Good news for bloggers who work on platforms that don’t perform trackbacks to other blogs. Rather than hacking your template to do things it wasn’t meant to do WhizbangTech has a stand-alone trackback tool.

Trackbacks are a great way of building visibility for yourself, your business, and your blog. When you read a post on another blog and realize you’ve posted on the same subject, a trackback offers a chance to say, “Hey, I’ve had a few insights into that topic myself.” Without trackbacks, you’re missing out on another way to promote your business and your blog.

If your platform doesn’t offer trackbacks, bookmark this site and pull it out whenever you need to let that expert you read daily know you’ve written something that ties into the current conversation. If you do it with thought and not too liberally, you’ll find some folks will follow your trackbacks home to see what else you have to say.

To get the WhizbangTech Stand-Alone Trackback Tool, click the logo below.

WhizbangTech Trackback Pinger

Now you can let people know you were paying attention to what they said and add to the conversation too.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Related articles:
Blog Basics 1: Comments and Comment Policies
A Little More about Trackbacks
Blog Promotion Basics [for Everyone]

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Blog Basics 1: Comments and Comment Policies

Filed Under Basics, Comments, Community, Links, Successful Blog, Survival Kit | 18 Comments

I always remind myself that not everyone knows what I know, and how to post on a blog may be something the reader truly does not know. –Shirley George Frazier, Successful and Outstanding Blogger

Reading blogs is only one part of being part of a community. If you stop at that point, you are missing out of half the experience and half of the fun. Blogs are really intended to be part information sharing, part conversation between the writer and readers. As HART, a reader at Successful Blog said, “” . . .half the show is in the comments!”

Visiting a blog is much like stopping by a neighbor’s house. It’s cordial way to let the owner know that you stopped by. If you’ve stayed long enough to read something, leaving a comment is a nice gesture and a relationship-building act. It’s like leaving your calling card on a business call or leaving a note at the house of a friend.

How to Comment

  • Does the writer want comments? Rare is the writer who doesn’t. There are a few. They are easy to spot. They have removed the comment box from their blogs.
    OR
    A writer may have chosen a design that makes the comment box hard to find. If you don’t see it, look up near the title of the post. Some template designers think that’s a good place to put it. The designer was thinking of the design not the reader. Take the time to find the box and comment despite that, for the sake of the writer.
  • What do I write?

    • If the post inspired you, or made you think of something–a memory, a question, an argument, or a reason you agree–say so. If it didn’t, try “thank you.” That always works. You’d be surprised how nice just leaving a :P can be.

  • Can I leave a link? The biggest mistake I see is that occasionally visitors don’t understand that they are on another person’s blog, a space that someone has spent time and effort putting together, a place where a community has formed. This leads them to act in ways that don’t work in their favor. Whether it’s leaving a link or words that don’t sound right. Look around and see what others are doing. It’s a when in Rome kind of thing.
  • Are Trackbacks okay? Trackbacks are often good, particularly on business-type blogs where they are used to connect articles of relevant content. Be careful not to use them as your only form of communication, though, especially with blogs you’ve never visited. It can make you appear as if you are “too busy to be bothered” with actually visiting to comment in person.

A Comment Policy

Each blog owner can control whether a comment is posted to the blog’s comment page. That decision is made based on the blog’s comment policy. Have and state the comment policy for your blog.

The policy at Successful-Blog is simple–no spam, no profanity, and no disrespect for people who use this blog. Links that serve readers are welcome–though more than three, might be excessive. Harmless fun is always welcome.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Links from Outstanding and Successful Bloggers
Commenting on CTBizBlogs
The Comment Policy at Home Office Voice

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