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Recipes for nature lovers, city slickers, & constant travellers
Video Lighting Comparison – See For Yourself!
Video Lighting comparison with and without the Continuous Lighting Set I recently ordered from Amazon, as mentioned in this post.
As you can see, there's a HUGE difference. I'm using the ePhoto 3200 Watt Digital Photography Photo Video Continuous Light Kit. It's inexpensive, super easy to set up (no tools required) and very portable.
Best,
Credit goes to Monique Johnson of Both Sides of the Camera for the lighting setup recommendation. (Thank you!)
The Pros and Cons of Blog Comments
Copyblogger recently announced they removed blog comments, giving three reasons they made the decision.
Following the Guest Blogging Penalty discussion, some have wondered if this was a preventative or protective measure - if it's a sign they believe Blog Comments may be targeted by Google next.
I don't believe the two are related. Their objective seems obvious: to get more engagement on Google+, and to get more natural backlinks (and buzz) to their individual posts. That would be my guess at least, based on the three reasons they gave for making this (BIG) decision (which is actually an experiment)...
An interesting experiment indeed!
Here are the three reasons they gave in the post:
- They're moving the discussion to Social Media instead.
- You should post your response on your own blog, instead of theirs.
- To eliminate the hassle of blog comment spam.
Point #2 is working, as I'm blogging about this (and linking to their blog post). I'm also writing much more in this post on my blog than I would in a comment on theirs, given I'm writing about the topic and adding more context for you - my readers - instead of just commenting to the author of that post.
(That is a great way to come up with EASY blog content ideas, btw!)
Perhaps instead of being the "preventative measure" that some people fear, it's simply a new Content Marketing strategy for getting natural inbound links that don't require the nofollow link attribute.
I agree with Point #3 that blog comment spam is a very time consuming hassle. It's one we've all had to deal with from day one, and it's going to be an ongoing battle. Unfortunately there are still people out there teaching that a blog commenting marketing strategy is a smart one. (It's not.)
Hello- Social Media spam is an issue too! And I imagine it will only get worse from here. Will it be as easy to manage/control? At least you can moderate Blog Comments. With Social Media you have to delete them AFTER they've been publicly posted. Something to think about...
Point #1 is the one I find most interesting though. Instead of leaving a comment on a blog post, they want you to leave a comment on the social media update for that post instead. Obviously you could have done that before, but now you don't have a choice.
On the actual announcement post, the only social media links offered are the profiles for Google+ and Twitter, as well as the author's profile links for those two social platforms. Unless you clicked on those links the day they published (and shared) that post, you'd be hard pressed to figure out where to respond to it - other than starting a new conversation.
What if you read that post six months later? If you fail to link to the post you're "commenting on" will they be able to figure out the context and source? As a blogger myself, that would drive me nutty! I get emails, social media questions, messages, etc on a weekly basis where I have to hunt down the source in order to respond appropriately. It's madness - and way too time consuming.
Obviously not every blog post is read the day it's published. People are searching for information all day every day. If you check your own blog stats, you'll likely notice many of your older, archived posts still getting consistent traffic.
From a usability standpoint, that sucks.
Since then, I see that they link to a specific social media update in newer posts. In this post for example, they link to the Google+ update so you can comment there. It's not overly obvious as a call to action, but it IS there.
Looking at a few more recent posts, so far they are ONLY linking to Google+ updates - instead of giving you an option of where to comment - which seems like an obvious (very strategic) move. Right?
What about their archived posts? Will they go back and edit every post to include a link to (at least the Google+) update so you can comment in the right place easily? I doubt it. They've added a site-wide box way below the posts that encourage you to come comment on Twitter or Google+ if you want to respond.
Question: How would YOU feel if you wanted to leave a comment on one of their posts, or read the discussion about that topic, and there was no direct link to the conversation about it anywhere in the post? OR, if Google+ was the ONLY option? I'd love to hear your thoughts.
Are you curious why they seem to be leaving Facebook out altogether?
I am.
As an "experiment"... my guess is that they will indeed see a dramatic increase in natural inbound links and social media engagement.
But is it worth it? AND - does this mean you should follow suit?
As a 10-year blogger myself, I totally understand their points and their strategy here. But from a usability perspective, and as a community leader, it seems... RUDE.
Let's say that you DO want to leave a comment or ask a question...
What if your website is about your local ballet dance school and all of your social media channels are highly topical (about your business and for your clients). Do you really want to have marketing or business building conversations via those channels? (The answer is NO.) So what option does that leave YOU? None. (= Rude.)
Likewise, as a blogger yourself in the ballet/dance school market, what if YOUR readers don't want anyone to know publicly that they are interested in ballet, or that they're taking classes? Maybe they are shy, or embarrassed, or just prefer to keep the their personal hobbies/interests less public for whatever reason.
Give that some thought for a second. I'd love to hear what you think from both the perspective of a blogger AND a blog reader.
Note: Do Not Enable DoFollow Blog Comment Plugins!
While we're on the topic of blog comments and comment spam, one thing you should never do is use a dofollow plugin on your blog. What this does is remove the nofollow link attribute from outgoing links in your comment section.
The nofollow link attribute was originally intended to protect bloggers from being "judged" based on links left by people commenting on your posts.
If you have installed a dofollow plugin, deactivate it and delete it - today. Regardless of how you feel about the nofollow attribute. It could cause your blog to receive a penalty for linking out to questionable sites AND it puts your blog on lists for even more comment spam. It's useless.
The Benefits of Blog Comments
Building a loyal readership - and a community around your site/business/blog - should be a top priority. It's what makes a blog thrive. Not only does it give you an opportunity to interact with your readers on topical discussions, it gives them an opportunity to interact with each other and discuss topics among themselves.
Blog comments are a huge part of creating that sense of community.
Personally I WANT engagement ON my blog. It gives me insight into what my market thinks, feels or wants. Thoughts & questions arise that give me the opportunity to write new tutorials, or new topical posts. It gives me a chance to get to know some of my more regular readers on a deeper level, which I've really enjoyed. Many of which I've gone on to follow & keep up with via Social Media. How would I have ever met or known them otherwise - well enough to want to "connect" more personally?
When I publish a blog post, some people comment right here on ClickNewz. Some comment on Facebook, others on Twitter or Google+, and some even email me directly. ALL of those comments/responses are valuable to me, and to my business.
Is comment spam a hassle? Yes. So is email spam, social media spam, and even the spam mail I get in my P.O. Box and the "phone spam" on my landline. When you find a solution for ALL of that, please let me know.
I "get" the reasons that lead Copyblogger's team to their decision, and it's certainly an interesting experiment with a very obvious objective. Hopefully a few months from now they will post their results, and let us know whether the experiment was a success - and whether they'll continue to "herd" their readers.
Best,
p.s. Enjoy this topic? You CAN leave a comment below! Be sure to subscribe by email below too, to get notification of new tutorials and important discussions. I look forward to hearing your thoughts...
Google Takes Action Against Guest Blogging
You've likely heard by now that MyBlogGuest.com was penalized by Google in their "War Against Guest Blogging" - specifically to set a public example. This particular penalty was basically a scare tactic (and PR stunt).
Sadly, it's working. This is not the first instance of "manipulation" by Google, btw. In this particular case, they went about it all wrong (in my opinion).
Let's look at ALL the details here so you can see just how far beyond ridiculous this particular case has been taken (so far). After you've seen the facts, I would LOVE to hear your opinion - and your thoughts on Guest Blogging going forward...
It all started with a Tweet by Matt Cutts:
While Matt doesn't identify the Guest Blogging Network that was penalized, it quickly became obvious that he was referring to MyBlogGuest.com. He links to his post titled The Decay and Fall of Guest Blogging (which he later edited to add "for SEO"). The most quoted bit from that post being:
"So stick a fork in it: guest blogging is done;"
The biggest concern being that Guest Blogging is used for paid linking, or for "spammy" link building. The real issue (to Google) is that those links are being used to pass PageRank in order to improve search engine rankings. Matt clarifies in his post that this penalty (er, public example) is the result of "a bunch of low-quality or spam sites have latched on to “guest blogging” as their link-building strategy."
Of course, Matt also says:
Ironically, Matt Cutts decided to follow up on this topic... in a Guest Blog Post at SEO 2.0 which you can read here: Matt Cutts on Spammy Link Building.
In that post, Matt clarifies what he (they, Google, ?) considers "spammy" about Guest Blog Posts. The key indicators being:
- Outgoing links to one domain
- Rich anchor text links
- No “nofollow” attribute added
- Shallow thin content
Even MORE interesting is that he does NOT use the nofollow link attribute in all of the links in his Guest Post and he DOES use "rich anchor text" links:
I call bullshit. How can we even take this seriously?!
Personally, I find it odd we're still talking PageRank at all at this point. Or link building as an SEO strategy, for that matter. To catch you up, be sure to read:
Linking: To Follow or No Follow? regarding the Nofollow Link Attribute
...and Google PageRank: Tool or Marketing Gimmick?
That last link is an OLD post, and PageRank is OLD news - or should be. I stopped taking it seriously a long time ago. As a metric WE should watch that is, given actual PageRank has never been shared publicly (only "Toolbar Pagerank" - or what they want you to think the PageRank is for any given web page).
But I digress. Take a look at what Matt says at the end of his Guest Post:
What does it all mean?
It’s about cleaning up the Web. We have to remove spam one link at a time. Ideally webmasters would stop linking out completely. Then we could rebuild our algorithm from scratch based on Google+ and authorship markup. Until then we have to clean up this cesspool link by link. Join us in the fight against spam.
don’t accept guest posts from strangers
don’t link out to strangers
don’t talk to strangersIn case you do we at Google have the means to determine you do it and to act manually or algorithmically. Ever since we launched Google Books we know that hypertext is way overrated. Books worked for hundreds of years without hyperlinks. So why can’t the Web? Please follow me on Google+ to get more insights on how to make the Internet safe from spam again. Use only Google approved ways to link other sites. Did you know that you can embed Google+ posts on your blog?
I choked on my coffee when I read that part at the end.
I literally LOL'd.
Is he even serious?!
I counted THIRTEEN LINKS in that "GUEST POST" leading up to his ... conclusion.
???
"Don't Talk To Strangers"
Hello. Everyone is a stranger until you meet them. If I took this advice, I would have never met anyone outside of my immediate family. I chose NOT to teach my children that one even, given it would be hypocritical and confusing. They saw me say hello to "strangers", offer to help someone, speak to the cashier at the store or the bank teller, etc. I can't even believe Matt would resort to talking to us like we're children, much less think anyone would take that seriously.
As for "Cleaning Up The Web" - I'm all for less spam, less junk, higher quality content and connections, and less spammy guest post pitches in my inbox even (which I ignore/delete). But not linking out? That's ridiculous. By it's very definition, the web is nothing more than a collection of interlinked files. -source
Google's Action Against MyBlogGuest.com
With no warning, and as a public example, like burning a presumed witch at the stake without trial, Google de-indexed MyBlogGuest.com. They simply removed every page on that domain from Google altogether. Not including the "jobs" subdomain, which remains in the Google database.
What purpose did that serve, exactly?
None, other than "a warning" and to make an example in the industry as a means of scaring people out of Guest Blogging. Removing the site from Google search results doesn't stop writers and publishers from networking there - as they already know how to find the site. And if anything, MyGuestBlog has gotten more publicity (and links! ohhhhh, lol) over the last week than it ever had before.
A Better Solution
If Google really wanted to "clean up the web" and "encourage people to use Google approved linking practices" they certainly had the means to do so in a positive way.
They could have easily collaborated with Ann Smarty, owner of MyBlogGuest, in a positive PR campaign to educate the market. Knowing Ann personally and what she stands for, I imagine she would have been thrilled to work with Google on a project with the potential for such positive impact!
Sadly the "shock factor" and "we're watching you and we know what you're doing!" are more Google's style. It always causes a big stir on the web, which is the response they're really going for: manipulation, swaying the herd.
Did MBG Deserve To Be Completely De-Indexed?
No. Or not any more than a million other sites at least. MBG was singled out and punished for the purpose of making a point, and "going viral" with their message.
The message is all wrong, though.
You can slap a nofollow attribute on any link. You can link to multiple crap sites. You can use obscure Anchor Text. It doesn't make bad content any better. That alone will not "clean up the web".
EDUCATING people on how to write great content, how to run an online business, and how to market their business online - THAT would actually clean up the web.
Maybe they should de-index the SIX MILLION PLUS results for "how to make money fast on the internet" and replace those results with a page that educates people on what they should consider (and search for) instead. Or de-index the TWO BILLION results for "buy links" even.
*sigh*
Google is in a position to be SUCH a positive influence on the web. It's a shame they don't make better use of that position. They also have the tools to create better algorithms. Again, PageRank is old news. Link Building (for SEO purposes) is old news. Google should simply update the way they determine relevance and rank pages.
Ann Smarty, owner of MyBlogGuest, responded to the action taken against her site in this post:
Guest Blogging, the Fork and My Take
She also posted an update here on what they're doing moving forward.
The Bottom Line on Guest Blogging
I recommend you read this post by Marie Haynes:
Yes, high quality guest posts CAN get you penalized!
While I'm disappointed in the way Google chose to "make their point" it is their business and they can run it how they please. I do wish Google were more of an asset to the community (versus taking on the persona of a bully), but they get to choose how they position their brand in the market...
I like what Ryan Biddulph said in response to this story:
"Only fools or those with no vision panic in moments like these."
There is nothing wrong with Guest Blogging. Even if you don't use the nofollow link attribute, according to Marie Haynes (see her comments on this at link above). There IS a problem with content spam, comment spam, link spamming of any kind, and obvious link building - such as getting too many of the same types of links to your site to the point that it's obviously unnatural.
Variation is the key to a smart, organic marketing strategy.
Don't stop linking (that was just plain comical!).
Simply forget Google exists.
Market your website and business like it's 1997. Which, sorry Matt!, means "talking to strangers" and getting out there and interacting with your market.
And yes, that includes Guest Blogging as a means of gaining exposure by getting in front of an established audience with something of value for those readers.
My advice: Pretend like your site has already been penalized or de-indexed by Google. Stop for a moment and ask yourself what you would do to continue running a thriving online business. Now... go do that.
Best,
p.s. I would love to hear your thoughts - and any questions you have.
Also, CONGRATS to Ann Smarty of MyGuestBlog for all the awesome FREE publicity! I have a feeling this will be a turning point and stepping stone that will take her business to a whole new level.
p.p.s. Links are obviously an outdated way of assigning rank or authority to web pages. The obvious next step up from PageRank is Social Media Rank - at least as part of a smart ranking algorithm. You'd be very wise to incorporate a strong social media strategy in your overall organic marketing plan...
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