Some Basic Rules for Running A Blog Contest
Blog contests can bring in some good traffic, but you need to run them correctly, or they can be a total pain. I’ve run countless blog contests, some more successful than others. When I first started holding contests at my blogs I made some pretty dumb mistakes. The good news is that I can tell give you some tips about what you should and shouldn’t do if you decide to hold a blog contest.
Make the rules simple. SIMPLE. I just had a blog contest at one blog. We had 215 or so entries. At least 80 of those entries were disqualified because the people didn’t follow the very basic rules. And believe me, they were really simple. If you get too tricky with your rules, you’ll end up with about five decent entries.
Make readers work a little. While I don’t think you should make things too tricky, it can be hard work to snap up cool prizes for contests, so I’m not normally a fan of having readers simply “leave a comment” to win. If I don’t have a good simple plan, I’ll use an old standby, like, “Visit our prize sponsors website, and tell me an item you like.” NOTE: This is way too tricky for some people, but seriously now, if they can’t read and follow something this easy, well, maybe they don’t really want to win.
You don’t have to pay shipping. I always ask sponsors if they’ll send prizes to my readers, vs. the sponsor sending me a prize then me having to pay shipping to send one or more prizes off. I’ve never had a sponsor refuse. If you have a prize yourself to send, and work for a network, you can always ask if they’ll pay shipping. One network I work for will do this.
Always ask your sponsors where they’ll ship to. I used to forget this little step (back in newbie days), and I could have gotten into a lot of trouble. I didn’t, but that’s just luck. If you don’t ask, you won’t know to note something akin to, “Sorry folks, but this contest is only open to U.S. residents.” Then when someone from Australia wins, and the sponsor has to pay loads of shipping they didn’t count on, that’s trouble. If you’re paying shipping yourself, make a decision about where you can afford to ship as well.
ALWAYS have a notification disclaimer. Note somewhere in your post, “I will draw winners names on June 5th. I will email the winners for their addresses. If you don’t email me back in 5 days, I’ll draw a new winner.” If you don’t put a disclaimer in, you may wait, and wait, and then most likely wait some more. This means you’re tied up with a contest that should have been over ages ago. Also, contest sponsors expect a somewhat timely response. It’s not cool to make them or the winners who respond wait.
Send a quick thank you to your sponsors. Nothing fancy, but it’s nice, and it keeps you in their head should they feel like offering another prize at some point. I always send off a quick email thank you, along with links to any posts I did about their product / company. Often times this works in your favor too, because a company will add you to their press page, giving you an instant link.
There are many more ways to make a contest a success, but these tips above can help you avoid a lot of the obnoxious stuff that tends to come along with a contest.
Also check out: Where To Get Blog Contest Prizes
10 Ways to Let Your Competition Be Your Guide
I’m always hesitant to use the word "competition" to describe other bloggers in my niche. I always like to look at them as colleagues in which to share ideas and community rather than the person whose traffic I should be stealing. For the purpose of today’s blog post, we’ll allow it just this one time.
If there’s one thing I learned with Freelance Writing Jobs is that if you have a popular blog, others will want to do the same exact thing. It used to frustrate me, but I decided to use this to my advantage. Rather get frustrated with all the other job listings blogs, I look to them to see how I can do things better or different.
Some of my network blogs are in competitive niches as well, my blogs on saving money or beauty tips certainly aren’t the only ones out there. How do I stand out among the rest?
Here are 10 ways I let my competition be my guide.
- I participate in their communities - It would be silly to expect no one else to have the same type of blog, wouldn’t it? My philosophy is, if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. The great thing about the blogosphere is that there’s room for everyone. If I’m not going to be the only blog re-listing freelance writing jobs or offering tips for finding said jobs, I’m going to welcome the others into the neighborhood. By participating in the other blog communities I’m offering my insight, learning and gathering new ideas from others, and maybe even gaining a reader or two.
- I look to see what they’re missing - When I look at another blog like mine I wonder what they’re missing. What do their readers have questions about and what topics aren’t they discussing? Offer something your competition doesn’t have and people will respond.
- I define my niches. When I visit other blogs in the same niche I wonder how I can do things differently. For instance, with Freelance Writing Jobs I became more than a "relisting" blog. I began offering advice for finding and getting jobs. At this blog, Jennifer and I target bloggers who work for others rather than the usual make money online blogging blogs. At the List Maven, my beauty blog, I offer all tips and product reviews in list form, and at Simply Thrifty I offer stories from my youth and updates on home DIY projects. Even my celebrity blogs are different - I have one featuring celebrity role models and one featuring celebrity lists. Now when people visit me it won’t be the same old thing they see on other blogs.
- I continue to evolve - This holds hands with point number 3, by continuing to evolve I don’t get stuck in a rut. I don’t have to talk about or do the same things over and over. It’s ok to change your blog’s focus now and then to adapt to your readers’ tastes. Sometimes that’s by widening a narrow niche, other times it’s by changing a blog’s design.
- I look to see what my competitors do right - When I see other blogs in my niche, I want to know what they’re doing right. I’m not going to copy them, but I am going to use them for ideas for bettering myself and my blog.
- I investigate the most and least popular articles - What topics do their communities respond to most and least? This will give you a good indication of what your readers might like to learn about. Don’t copy, but do add your own point of view.
- I investigate their traffic - Knowing how the competition is faring can be a great kick in the ass. How many comments do they get? What is their Alexa, Technorati or Google ranking? Are they at the top of the search engines? Where does a lot of their traffic seem to be coming from? Do they get lots of track backs from other blogs?
- I investigate to see who is linking to them and why - Other other blogs and communities responding to my competitors’ posts? If so why? What makes one post more popular than another? Is controversy or negativity such a good thing? Knowing which posts get the backlinks might give you some good ideas of your own -and might also give you an idea of other communities to target.
- I offer to trade guest posts - By trading guest blogger posts with your competitors or fellow niche bloggers you’ll be sharing ideas and traffic.
- I keep them on my radar - Even the bloggers with the most popular blogs keep their competitors close. Even if you only visit the blogs or feeds once a week, know what others in your niche are talking about as well as the reaction of their readers. This way if they start to all of a sudden gain a lot of traffic or comments you’ll know why…and know what to do to use it to your advantage.
Dealing with Trolls and Negativity
Yesterday I put the question out on Twitter: How do you deal with trolls? I thought I might share the advice and expertise of other bloggers in the twittersphere, but mostly I got a bunch of smart assed replies. “Fight them off with Dwarves” was one, “Add a little salt and cook until well done” was another. There were more but I’m sure you get the picture. Dealing with trolls, or people who comment on your blogs in a negative manner for the sole purpose of stirring up trouble is really no laughing manner. I have one regular troll who likes to visit all of my blogs and troll in the comments or through email, plus several occasional trolls. All are dealt with in matter befitting the individual troll. The truth is you don’t want that kind of negativity to spill over into your community.
Don’t Feed the Trolls
If there’s one thing I learned in nine years of writing online, it’s that trolls dig controversy. In fact, they come by for the reaction and hope it’s negative. Indeed nothing makes their jeans tighter than to create dissension. Still, there are ways to respond to trolls. Here are a few of the more serious answers received from Tweets:
- “Feed a fever, starve a troll” @YatPundit
- “Delete/Ban/Block, for the most part. Sometimes, turn them in to a “cathartic humour piece”. @ShaiCoggins (who has my thoughts this morning.)
- “I’ve found ignoring trolls tends to starve them out more than anything. Responding or deleting both seem to just feed them” @Tekaran_Lady
- “the best way to handle troll is to ignore them.. .they need the attention, deny them that” @banji
- “Annoying comments that add to the conversation stay and I may or may not respond. Rude and unproductive = delete. It *is* my blog” @berrybrewer
- “you ignore trolls. Makes them crazy” @searchguru
The most common advice for dealing with trolls is to ignore them and they’ll go away. This is true in most cases. Because trolls live for a reaction, silence causes them to die out or move on. Some of the more adventurous trolls need to be dealt with differently.
Calling Out the Trolls
Sometimes I give the trolls the attention they crave. I take their negative emails or comments and post them on a blog with my very nice response. I don’t engage in name calling, vulgarity, or rudeness, I just address the remark in the sweetest manner I can muster. Using what I call the “sticks and stones” method of dealing with rudeness, I never, ever let them see me get angry or upset. Then I let my community have at ‘em. They don’t get angry or rude either. It’s my hope that by posting the comment or email for the world to see, I’m showing the troll how ridiculous he or she comes off. Usually trolls have such a high opinion of themselves they don’t get it, either that or they’re just too dumb to see what’s going on.
Dealing With Negativity on Your Blog
If you have someone coming to your blog and leaving mean or vulgar comments, you have several recourses.
- Delete the comment - I’m surprised at how many bloggers disagree with this as they feel deleting rudeness is somehow messing with free speech. I disagree. People are welcome to disagree on my blog but they have to be respectful of others in the community. Once they cross the line, they’re zapped. Besides, it’s my blog and I say what goes. (My troll loves when I say that as it gives an excuse to say I’m bossy.)
- Ban the troll - WordPress allows you to log the trolls IP number or numbers so their comments are held in moderation or immediately sent to the spam filter.
- Put all comments into moderation - I don’t like this idea because it doesn’t encourage conversation among your commenters to flow. By making everyone wait until you have time to moderate doesn’t give them incentive to participate. The blogs with the worst participation are generally those that put all comments into moderation.
- First comment moderation - This is a more workable solution. Whenever someone new posts, his comment is held in moderation. After the first approval he’s free to actively participate.
- Disallow comments - I wouldn’t even consider it for my blogs. It totally defeats the purpose and isn’t what blogging is about.
- Ignore the negative comment - Easy for you to do, not so easy for your community. If you don’t want flame wars it’s best not to keep a negative comment around.
- Let it become part of the conversation - You can leave the rude comment up to become part of the conversation, but don’t be surprised if comments take a nasty turn and commenters start attacking each other or get turned off by the negativity.
Must.Not.Engage
When it comes to trolls, consider your community first. How will they feel about a bunch of negativity and mudslinging? If this is the constant atmosphere, you’re going to turn off many visitors and even some of the regulars. Ask yourself if you’d rather have a hostile community or a productive community. It’s my experience that the best blog communities are those where the regulars are helpful and respectful and the trolls are few and far between.
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One Last Post About Comments: Become Part of Another Blogger’s Community
This week on Twitter, someone mentioned how he was getting a little tired of seeing everyone blogging about how to comment and how no one is saying anything new. At the risk of getting his dander up, I’d like to offer up one more post about commenting. Thanks for indulging me…
I’ve been remiss. I’m always talking about the importance of commenting to build traffic and I haven’t been doing it enough myself. My problem is as I get busy with my own blogs, I don’t have as much time to visit other blogs and drop them a line. This is a big mistake. Every blogger should visit blogs within his niche and become part of the community. Here’s why:
Hey Look at Me!
Every time you comment you draw attention to yourself. People remember your name. Soon they’re going to want to click on the link to your blog. More and more people are going to visit and become part of your community as well. This is a good thing.
Yeah.. I Know a Little
By participating in the discussions you’re showing off your expertise. Granted, if you come off as a know it all you won’t be very well liked, but if you’re an upbeat, enlightening part of the discussion people will remember. Commenting at other blogs is a good way to show off your expertise.
So Did Anyone Watch Lost Last Night?
Many bloggers work at home alone during the day. Commenting at other blogs is sort of like chit-chatting with your co-workers at the office. Even the shyest people need to socialize a little bit. Visiting other blogs and interacting with the regulars can be very therapeutic.
Here’s the thing…
When you visit other blogs, you learn:
- Who are the movers and shakers in your niche. Trust me on this, you want to have friends in this business.
- You get your name out there.
- You spread the word about your blog.
- You gather ideas based on others’ blog posts and comments.
- You meet lots of new like-minded people.
- You learn about new blogs in your niche.
When I began Freelance Writing Jobs three years ago, I spread the word by visiting other blogs and commenting. Though I did a few other things as well, this is the one single thing that made the biggest difference. People don’t just up and visit blogs. They have to know they exist. If you want that to happen you have to get out and toot your horn…often.
Why Bloggers Love Twitter
It’s no secret I’m addicted to Twitter. This virtual water cooler makes me feel like I’m not working alone - even when I am. I can send out a Tweet and receive advice, answers to questions and drink orders. Plus, I can let everyone know when a new blog post is up. Really, what’s not to like?
Darren Rowse recently asked Twitterers why they love Twitter and then put the response in this clever video:
Why do you love Twitter?
Don’t Forget Your Sense of Humor
Before I forget, happy Blogger Appreciation Day! Show another blogger how he or she is appreciated by offering encouragement and support.
Yesterday I chatted for a bit with another network blogger who was a bit down about the direction her blog was taking. As a health blogger who discussed a chronic condition she felt her posts, and her community’s comments about their health issues, was bringing the community. She felt her blog was so depressing she didn’t want to do it anymore. A couple of other bloggers chimed in and we discussed ways to add positivity to the blog. Especially through humor.
I think as bloggers we feel our primary goal is to teach, but it’s also to entertain. There are people who come to read our blogs not to learn something new, but to read and interact. Humor is a great way to encourage positivity and get some great comments rolling.
The benefits of using humor in your blog posts:
- Humor makes people smile and laugh. It makes them want to show your post to others and encourages them to come back for more humor.
- Laughter is contagious. Laughing makes people positive and upbeat.
- Humor shows a human side. People like to see you’re not perfect or that the same things happen to all of you. "Slice of life" humor is always well received.
- Humor helps others to forget about their problems for a while.
- Humor lets us all stop taking ourselves seriously for a while.
- Humor breaks up the day.
How to use humor in your blog posts:
- Tell a funny story or anecdote.
- Find a funny video.or
- Ask readers for their own funny stories.
- Look for humorous cartoons or articles and bring them to the attention of your readers.
I think bloggers forget they don’t always have to be serious. Bloggers who discuss topics such as illnesses or sad topics especially have to be careful not to become too depressing. Don’t forget to inject a little humor in your blog posts. Watch and see the difference it makes with your community.
Why I’m so Liberal with the Link Love
If you’re a regular visitor to my blogs, you know I like to end my weekly blogging with a link love post featuring news, tips and ideas from my favorite bloggers. I do this for several reasons:
- To turn my community on to something I feel will be of interest
- To show another side to a story
- To highlight another great blogger
- To learn something new
- To share something fun
- To start a discussion
- Others might discover my blogs through my linking to them
I was once asked why I like to send my visitors to my competition. I responded that I don’t see other bloggers as competitors. I see them as friends and colleagues and we all share ideas together.
We all appreciate when other bloggers link to us, won’t you do the same?
Image: stock.xchnge
Comments: Your Blog’s Lifeblood
Have you ever noticed how some blogs have more comments than others? I hear from a lot of new bloggers asking about how to encourage comments and get the conversation flowing. Indeed, building a community should be the second most important mission for your blog. The first, of course, is establishing yourself as an authority in your niche. While it does take time to get traffic and conversation flowing, comments are important.
Why do you need comments?
No one wants to hang out at a party where everyone is just standing around. In fact, half the fun of visiting a blog is reading comments and participating in the conversation. Here’s why you need comments:
- To build community - Comments are the lifeblood of your community. Without them you may as well be writing an article for some web content site.
- To meet others - Want to talk with other like-minded folks? You’ll find them in the comments.
- Gather ideas - Sometimes the best way to come up with ideas is by reading the comments. Not only do commentators have suggestions, but they’ll ask questions and offer insight.
- Find new blogs - Bloggers love to drop their links in the appropriate spot in the comments. This is a great way to find and subscribe to new blogs.
How to encourage comments
Ok. So you know it’s important to have an active discussion, but getting people to comment is often easier said than done. How do you get people to respond to your post?
- Ask a question - When you pose a question, your readers will want to respond. Ask your question in the title and again at the bottom of the post to encourage discussion.
- Inject a little controversy - Too much controversy scares people away but to post a thought-provoking discussion on a controversial topic gets responses every time.
- Ask - Ask your readers to comment. "I’m really interested in your opinion on this. Please tell me how you feel in the comments."
- Have a contest - Every now and then I like to have a contest. The most prolific commentator receives a gift certificate. Trust me. It works.
- Respond to comments- It’s hard when you receive 50 or 100 comments, but do try to participate in the discussion often. Your community will appreciate this gesture.
Basic Comment Etiquette
Sometimes comments are scarce not because of the subject matter or lack of traffic, but because of other commentators. A hostile or negative environment can keep others from joining in. Many bloggers feel moderating comments stifles free speech. I’m of the opinion that vulgar or abusive comments or comments made by trolls have no place in an intelligent discussion anyway. Moderate at your discretion. If you feel a commentator is being rude or insulting, feel free to do what you think is best. You won’t have a lively community if folks aren’t comfortable visiting.
Visit blogs with large communities. What do you notice? Commentators who are pleasant, helpful and know how to respectfully disagree. The key to a successful blog is a successful community. Be sure to encourage participation and a loyal community will follow.
Image: stock.xchnge
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