Crash Course in Blogger Etiquette
This post is by Leia of HiFashion
I wish someone had given me a crash course on blogging etiquette when I first started blogging! Here are some tips I’ve picked up along the way. Please remember that these are all based on my personal opinion and not all of them are hard and fast rules.
Credit
Always, always, always give credit where it is due.
Pictures:
- If you are using a picture taken by someone else, make sure it’s okay to use it.
- Add a link to where the picture has come from.
- Do not steal bandwidth! Download the image onto your computer and re-upload it using your blog software or an image hosting site.
Ideas/text:
- As with pictures, make sure you have the right to reproduce text. Even paraphrasing ideas is a form of plagiarism, so always inform your readers if you have gotten ideas from someone else.
E-mails
Fellow bloggers love to receive e-mails from their readers. But there are a few things to keep in mind when writing to someone…
- Make sure you remember whom you have contacted and what you have contacted them about. I know it sounds elementary, but we once had an e-mail (addressed en masse) from a new blogger who wanted to be added to our blogroll. A month later, the same blogger wrote us pretty much the exact same e-mail! If he/she had taken the time to check our blog, he/she would know that we had already done so a month ago, when first asked.
- Don’t send mass messages. If you are taking the time to write to someone, make it personal, and address them by name or at least blog name. I know that if something isn’t addressed to me personally, I am much less likely to take it seriously. Also, you are probably less likely to send the same e-mail twice if you take the time to make it personal!
- Give and receive. I honestly don’t mind helping someone out – especially new bloggers – because I know how clueless I felt sometimes when I first started blogging. But sending multiple e-mails to someone asking for help and advice is a little bit too much, especially when it’s clear you just want them to help you with promoting your own blog. It’s fine to ask for help, but make sure you are giving something back, even if it’s just in a small way. That may mean just saying ‘thank you for your time and patience,’ or perhaps mentioning on your blog that someone provided you with valuable advice.
Comments
- Comment back: If someone comments on your blog, make time to visit their blog. It’s nice to get to know your readers. If you have time, leave them a comment, too (you know that warm fuzzy feeling you get inside when someone leaves you a comment? Rack up some good karma by doing the same for someone else!) If they ask you a question, see if you can e-mail them to answer it, or visit their blog and answer it there. I read so many blogs that I don’t always remember to check back to see if someone responded to my question – it’s much more efficient if you answer it in a place that they are sure to see!
- Spam filters: I hate them. If I have to go through a complicated process of filling in a word verification, I often decide not to leave a comment. And I really see no point in having word verifications as well as moderating comments! There are so many blogs that get thousands of hits and comments every day that do not choose to activate their spam filters. I recommend only using yours if you have already had problems with spam comments. Note from Editor: Wordpress’s Akismet spam filter is quite effective without using word verification.
- Make comments accessible to everyone. Again, if I am trying to comment on a blog and it only allows comments from certain people (for example, only people with a Google account), it can make me change my mind about leaving a comment at all. I have two Google accounts (a personal one as well as a blog account shared with my co-blogger, Sherin) and I don’t like having to sign out and sign in again or switch browsers just to leave a quick comment. This can also diminish your chances of getting feedback from readers who don’t have Google accounts. Again, I would recommend increasing your privacy only if you have had spam commenters or other problems in the past, but if not, you should allow as many people as possible to comment on your blog.
- Negative comments (giving them). I usually go by this rule: If you have nothing nice to say, don’t say anything at all. No one expects you to like or agree with everything you read in the blogosphere. We all have different tastes and styles; it is completely normal to dislike someone else’s outfit or post. That doesn’t mean you have to be hurtful. Constructive criticism and differing opinions are welcome, but there is a nice way to say something and a rude way to say something. If you can’t figure out how to say it nicely, don’t say anything at all.For example: You see someone wearing an outfit you don’t like because you think it’s too revealing. Here are some polite ways to deal with this:
- Don’t leave a comment at all.
- Is there anything you like about the outfit? Focus on that. You could say, “Nice shoes!” for example.
- Do you simply have to mention the short hemline? Try this: “Wow, you are so bold for being able to wear something so short in public! I could never pull that off myself, but it’s great to see people taking risks like that.”
- You may be tempted to say, “Ugh, how trashy. How can you leave the house wearing that sort of thing?” Please don’t say this or anything similar. It’s just not nice. You wouldn’t walk into someone’s house and criticise their belongings, so don’t visit their blog and leave rude comments about their attire or opinions.
- Don’t leave negative, Anonymous comments. If you are going to say something, own up to it. If you are too afraid of saying something that can be traced back to you, don’t say it.
- A person who writes a negative comment is usually just jealous. I know it’s hard to take a negative comment as a compliment, but if someone has taken the time to let you know how they feel, they must feel quite strongly about the issue.
- If you receive one, you should delete it or ignore it.
- If the commenter has left a name or a blog URL, you can try to track them down and explain that the comment was hurtful. If you receive yet more negative feedback, consider barring their I.P. address from your blog.
- If negative comments cease to stop, address the issue on your blog. Consider disabling comments altogether if the issue really gets out of hand.
Music
I don’t consider it good blog etiquette to force your readers to listen to your music (especially if it is loud or has vulgar language). Keep in mind that everyone has different tastes! If I click on a blog and am bombarded with music, I often close it without reading any further, and I know I’m not the only one who does so. There are multiple reasons why I do this:
- I am often listening to my own music or watching the news while browsing through blogs;
- My internet connection is sometimes slow, so the music comes through in broken bits and pieces, making it very annoying to listen to;
- I sometimes open multiple blogs at once. Imagine if they all played music simultaneously! This has happened to me before, and I assure you, it is not a pleasant experience.
Don’t get me wrong, I love music, and I see nothing wrong with sharing songs with your readers. But you ought to do this respectfully. You can share music by adding a music player which readers can choose to switch on; embedding YouTube
There you have it – my ideas on being a polite, respectful blogger! Do you agree with my points? Why or why not? What would you add to this list?
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i enjoyed reading the post as well as everyone else input – well put, xoxo
UnoCosa´s last blog ..LOOKING FROM BOTH NEGATIVE AND POSITIVE SIDES
I hate the word verification too, but it has stopped 98% of the vile comments I used to receive. Not just spammers, but angry anonymous-es don’t take the time to do a word verif.
The Clothes Horse´s last blog ..Modcloth Blogger Of The Moment
this was EXCELLENT!
Sherisa (L’elephant Rose)´s last blog ..228: love to listen – Jose James
thanks for the advice
Lauren´s last blog ..Rainy Day Comfort
Thanks for this, really helpful for us baby bloggers!
Great blog post Leia and definitely a must read for all those new to blogging/social media. You have some great tips and I agree with you 100 per cent, re: refrain from putting a music player on your blog.
Kimberly´s last blog ..Fashion bloggers rock the Dolce & Gabbana show at Milan fashion week
Thanks for this, really helpful for us baby bloggers!
design me a shoe´s last blog ..ESQUIVEL SHOES – HAND MADE IN LA
great advice! very helpful!
simplyleah´s last blog ..bargains!
this was so helpful for us newbies! thanks for putting it together in one place!
rosalita_fashionista´s last blog ..oh so freakin tired
These are really helpful tips, thank you for listing them. The blog I have is still relatively new, so I’m still navigating these mysterious waters, so any advice is always welcome and appreciated.
jaunty magpie´s last blog ..
This was really well thought out and informative so thanks for taking the time to write it all out!
Thanks!! This was great.
Fi Figueroa´s last blog ..“Lucy in the sky with diamonds” died.
Wow, lots of things i’d never even thought of, ta very much!
Styletastic´s last blog ..Accessories of the day: Golden Skans
Thanks for the etiquette crash course–very helpful indeed!
NickieSixx´s last blog ..Thank ya, Thank ya very much….
Thanks! I’ve not been blogging for long and its for my uni journal, this was really helpful info, thanks again x
Kate´s last blog ..Dazed and Confused
I have a questions for fashion bloggers out there. What is the proper protocol for promoting a product to bloggers? I have a new fashion software application that I want to spread the word about. I don’t want to be a pest but I also don’t want my messages to be cast off as spam.
Great post! Thanks so much!!!
i’m looking for a great 3 collumn blogspot template???
any ideas where i can find a great one xxxx
I was just directed to your blog from Project Pretty. I enjoyed the post and you made a lot of good points. I think I will check back more often now!
I found this article via One Pretty Thing and I have to thank you for writing it and I should thank Rachel for linking. There are things in here I have kicked myself a time or two for NOT doing. I haven’t had to eat crow yet (Praise God!) but I can see it coming someday if I don’t keep the basics in mind. It really is just common sense, isn’t it? Do unto others… and don’t steal? Again, thanks for writing the post!
This is great! My sister and I were just talking about this a little while ago. I’ll be adding a link to this on my next post!
Katie´s last blog ..So… how do you get a baby on a schedule?
You’re a genius! I started reading mostly to make sure you mentioned music (my pet peeve–especially because even if you can scroll down and shut it off quickly, it comes back as soon as you navigate to another page of the blog!) but I got some good advice for myself along the way. Thanks!
Thanks! Great tips!
Polly´s last blog ..Make Your Own Baby Ties (with Optional Matching Toddler Tie)
Good advice. I like nice bloggers, thanks for promoting it!
question re: the bandwidth and pictures — why is that bad? someone advised me when i started my blog to host as little as possible on my site and always use the image URL if possible. i always do that for flickr. (i used to do the “blog this” option directly from flickr, which i think also does the image URL reference, but stopped because i didn’t like that “blog this” resulted in it automatically posting a published post on my blog, with no opportunity for me to add text or anything else except after it was published…
anyway — just curious if you mean re: flickr and creative commons posts. thanks!
Hotlinking images can be bad both for you and the person whos server the images are on.
for the person who hosts the files: Some webhosts offer limited bandwiths, if the bandwith is exceded they either charge their client extra or no one can reach the site for a certain time. If you embed an image or movie or audio file that is hosted from their site you automatically increase their bandwith use and thereby risk that they get charged or taken off-line. So that is not very nice.
This of course is not a problem with using flickr like you described.
for you: Sometimes the original host deletes or moves the files you are linking to and there will be a broken pic in your blog – not very sexy.
There are even people who get so angry about hotlinking they dont delete but change the image to something bad – and suddenly you have porn pics in your blog.
I hope that helps!
Steffi Schütze´s last blog ..Balmain rtw Fall/Winter 2010
Thank you for the advice! I totally agree with you.
-The Trendy Fashionista
The Trendy Fashionista´s last blog ..Mango Autumn/Winter 2009-2010 Collections
Great advice! I totally agree with ll of them. And I think that bloggers should always be nice to each other, let’s keep the blogosphee happy:)
Thanks for writing this! This really gave me quite a bit to think about.
Caitie´s last blog ..Coco Rocha. Is. A. Goddess.
amen! (about the music part, especially).
i too have had the experience, when i open more than one blog, and they all have music gadgets in them, starting to play all at once.
and then i’m trying to find WHERE DOES IT COME FROM, because some bloggers have more than one music player thingy in their blogs.
if i can’t find it in, like, three seconds, i press that little cross and get out of there immediately, because it honestly feels like an attack from the bush, and not like welcoming chores as it might have been intended..
The Very Subjective´s last blog ..: The Thing About Photoshop
great article as usual. i really enjoyed reading it. i agree with everything you wrote in the context of getting and receiving negative comments and the music–i think it’s annoying if i am forced to listen to one’s preference of music while browsing their site. i am more like you; i listen to my own music while browsing around
vinda´s last blog ..pretty reckless.
Thanks for posting this, I agree with everything you have written here! so wonderful
Twila Jean´s last blog ..Back in the Saddle
thanks a lot…very interesting
this was very helpful. thank you
Great tips!!! This will make for a fun and respectful fashion blogging community!
Wonderful advice!!!
Style (R)evolution´s last blog ..The Style Lounge …..
Totally agree on the music player thing – is so annoying trying to decipher which of the many tabs is causing the horrible noise! And with comments as well – for some reason lots of blogspot doesn’t recognise my Typepad or Google accounts and so if people have security I just can’t leave a comment at all!
Mathilde´s last blog ..society for the advancement of people of ELEGANCE
only POSITIVE comments for this one
indihues´s last blog ..Kalapi’s collection is worth a look
Hey! thank you for this recommendations, I agree with you in many of them specially with the spam filter and music when visiting other blogs.
barcelonette´s last blog ..MILAN FW 2010 REVIEW
Great piece… and I’m just off to remove my word verification as I do approve comments and have hardly had any Spam. Thanks! x
ThatGirl39´s last blog ..And The Best Dressed Award Goes to….
Thank you! Good thinking and well put!
Love, Kate
OH! I forgot to say that I love – just love the picture at the top of this post!