What do you like best about EC? What attracted you to it in the first place? What do you NOT like about it?There have been several posts about EC on various blogs, pro and con, over the past few weeks. I thought I would see how many people think the same way I do.
First of all, EC was envisioned as a way to advertise. Everyone is always interested in increasing traffic to their blog. I think most of us realized early on that EC was not really that great of a place to advertise, and we quickly saw that, rather than advertising, EC was becoming a great social networking tool.So, if I were to choose the number one reason I am glad I joined Entrecard, it would be because of the new friends I have met because of it. It has helped me find many blogs I would not have known about otherwise, and to become friendly with many of those bloggers. From what I have read on other blogs, this is many people's top reason for liking Entrecard.
The biggest thing I do NOT like about EC? Dropping cards. Which is weird, because I absolutely LOVE visiting new blogs, and visiting the blogs of my friends to see their new posts. But I am the kind of person who likes to take his time and look over each blog, including the ones I visit every day. The pressure of needing to drop many cards doesn't let you spend much time on any one blog. So what I usually do is drop on my "drop list" and then go back and visit the blogs on my "friends list". I may not be alone here. Some of you might also dislike dropping cards - at least the pressure of dropping many cards.
There are other reasons many people like or dislike Entrecard. For example the forums are enjoyed by many.
But the bottom line is that I like EC because of being able to meet new bloggers, and making new friends; and I dislike EC because of the pressure of dropping many cards fast. And, I guess, the fact that you pretty much have to do it over and over every single day.
Are these also YOUR main reasons for liking or disliking Entrecard? Please comment to tell if these are also your own reasons, and also to add other likes and dislikes, or to point out other features of Entrecard that you like or dislike. Thank you.
In the beginning, I dropped the most I could daily. Now I hardly drop at all. It's been great meeting new blogs through it too.
ReplyDeleteI do hate the person who comes to drop only, that's the most irritating thing for me about EC.
I feel Blog Catalog is a much better way to make friends online. :)
What do I like best? Meeting people and making friends.
ReplyDeleteWhat do I like least? It's a mix between the dropping and the rubbish blogs there are. I don't expect to enjoy every blog I see, but they can at least be well presented, have more content than ads, and not be a repetition of a thousand other blogs telling you a)how to blog or b) how to make money or c) how to blog and make money.
Chica, you like BlogCatalog? I haven't got to grips with that at all.
Like Best? The new blogs and bloggers I have met.
ReplyDeleteLike Least? It lead me here!
Yep, meeting new people and discovering new blogs is the best thing.
ReplyDeleteThe worst... the blogs that make my eyes and ears bleed, the ones that a hawking products that 200 other blocks are also promoting, the ones that talk only about EC, the ones that only talk about making money by blogging. There's a lot of crap out there.
Oh, and I learn something new about Max every time I post on my Blah Blah blog. Did you know he works for the Ghana Chamber of Commerce and is a virgin? Fascinating!
The Slap & Tickle is hardly the place to get serious, but I do have a reason for making this post - I am not just trying to take another EC survey like everyone else. But before I say anything, I want to find out if most people like and dislike the same things about EC that I do. So please make comments. EC is first. Then blog catalog. Then others. Stick with me - there is an actual destination at the end of this road that might please us all.
ReplyDeleteSo far you seem to have agreed with my personal likes and dislikes about EC that I put in the original post. And Chica mentioned that she liked BlogCatalog as a social network more than EC. I agree. But I have reservations about BlogCatalog as well.
As I said, there is a reason I am trying to gather a list of all the good things and bad things of the various social networking sites. Since this blog is read mostly only by my own friends, I hope you will contribute to these lists. Thanks again.
And wouldn't it be great of one of you would actually DO something about my embarrassing virginity instead of simply making fun of me. Yes, it would. Sigh. :)
I am in agreement with you (for once) mr maxie - about EC, not about people helping you out with your virginity status. I actually haven't even been out a dropping for quite some time. I'd rather read the blogs I do visit than try to drop as many cards as I can - and it hasn't really mattered much, as I haven't been posting on my own blog that much lately.
ReplyDeleteOk fine here I'll lay it out to you Mr. Serious.
ReplyDeletePros: Entrecard, has the social capacity of a monster, leading to great amounts of hits, raising your page rank, and getting your blog more exposure. Also good for finding blogs in specific genre's although you can't tell everything by the card. It's also extremely easy to earn credits for advertising, and who doesn't love free advertising?
Cons: 1 out of possible 20 people who visit through entrecard actually comment or read around on the blog. If you'll pay close attention to your site meter, you'll not that their stay is less then 2 seconds every time. Those people are just their to earn credits, most likely not caring whether you see their blog or not. The credit system is also shit. They recently changed it, which I'm not so sure was the best idea. People can earn credits, like maniacs, and make it seem like their blog is popular, deceiving the advertiser unless their smart and actually check the blog before purchasing on ad.
Great, Chica. Now tell me why you like BlogCatalog so much. I like it too, but I am a newbie there, so I haven't discovered the bad parts personally yet. I have heard the bad parts are that it is "clique-ish" (not sure what that means, exactly) and rather large and impersonal. Like EC isn't. I love not having to drop cards, of course. But I find the "friends" thing a little top-heavy (can one person really have 4000 friends? I have only about 25. And I wouldn't have even that many if I hadn't felt sorry for you and Petra. So tell me why you like it better than EC?
ReplyDeletePS-put your old "Goth Chica" avatar back or stop trying to look so damn cool and sophisticated when you take pictures. :)
ReplyDeleteJust kidding. You look more or less ok. I guess.
Caroline? No way. Is that really Caroline back in town for a few hours? How chuffed I am. So....your secret to success is that you don't drop and you have stopped posting? Hmmmmm. I have a feeling you are holding something back. Other than that, I mean. Something to do with blogging. I will stop dropping and posting if you think it will help. "The Anti-blogger: play hard to get."
ReplyDeleteI don't think so Caz. Let me know how it works out for you. :)
Debbie? Oh, I forgot - I'm supposed to be ignoring Debbie. :)
ReplyDeletea. -That is for sure the best thing-meeting people and making friends. It occurs to me that I wouldn't have met any of the people commenting on this page (especially you!) if it were not for Entrecard. Except for maybe Caroline. I met Caroline when she was selling Girl Scout cookies, I think. Maybe not. Hard to remember everybody.
ReplyDeleteAnd, while I respect your opinion, there is really no need for you to be calling BritishSpeak a "rubbish blog". K?
But I find the "friends" thing a little top-heavy (can one person really have 4000 friends? I have only about 25.
ReplyDeletemake that 24
Debbie? Oh, I forgot - I'm supposed to be ignoring Debbie. :)
as if....
I personally do not like EC. I think EC is a popularity ploy,and judging by my "price" I apparently do not rank. That right there shows me its rigged cuz anyone who has visited my blog knows that I rule while others drool....
ReplyDeleteI do however like that by "dropping" my card I can let certain blogs know I visited in the event I do not comment, but thats about it.
It's my avatar, if I wanted to change it I can, and if I choose to use a little dog avatar on red, then I would. *muahaha*
ReplyDeletenow about Blog Catalog..
I thought it was pretty lame until recently when I really started to get into the groups and join the discussions and whatnot. There are some really amazingly funny and intelligent people there. Yeah there is some of the cliche, but none that really bothers anyone I don't think.
People do tend to add a lot of friends, and I did add a lot of people in the beginning, but I'm due for a sweep of "friends" list. I believe the friends list for at least 70 percent of the people there, is just a number game.
I enjoy it a lot though, because it's brought me to more awesome blogs then I could have imagined. I would never have been able to find that many photography blogs without it. And like I said I have a ton of fun on the discussion boards. Probably a bit too much fun... :)
I wouldn't say that was the key to my EC success... its just I don't seem to be very motivated at the moment... Which isn't really very good.
ReplyDeleteI think it may have something to do with the fact that it is finally sunny here in Portland, and I want to be outside.
Perhaps I am an unfair weather blogger.
Caroline, of course I know that isn't the secret to your success. I am only being stupid again. Still. Whatever.
ReplyDeleteAnd although we all miss you (or at least I do :) ) I do understand that it is easy to "play hookey" these nice sunny days. Better to be outdoors.
We want our Caroline back! Can't wait for winter to come. :(
With my fair skin I have to pop inside every now and again, so I'll try not to be too much of a stranger.
ReplyDeleteDid you know I found you through EC?
No. I thought I was the one who convinced you to go with EC. But you were already with them for Caromie I guess. Well, that's cool. It would be evern cooler if you would use EC to find me again. :) (Kidding. Not.)
ReplyDeleteKeep your fair skin out of the sun then. And the sun sceen out of your eyes. K?
Come blog wid us. And stuff.
I found you via Aerten Art on EC... :)
ReplyDeleteso there.
Is there a reason that you chose to remind me of the horrors of sunscreen in ones eye?
Yes, there's a reason: I want you to be careful.
ReplyDeleteAerten, eh? Really? Well that makes me happy and sad at the same time, I guess. Happy because I met you.
Chica of course means amazingly funny people like me on BC, right?
ReplyDeleteSo I will be lazy and agree with Chica about Blog Catalog and Petra about EC.
Half the people I am meeting up with are from BC.
rM-
ReplyDeleteTo paraphrase a classic observation about England, "A man who's tired of EntreCard is tired of life". WELL, ME TOO, BABY! I really don't feel like putting down "monetizing" blogs, but 98% of them are boring as Hell [I think I finally get why most women don't want to hear men talking about money]. Is it possible the entire Blogosphere is burned out at the same time?
EC Thumbs Ups: exposure to a variety of writers, writing on a variety of topics. Friendships [even you Weasel Boy]. Publicising our efforts [if we did this just for ourselves, we could get a notebook, and save Internet and computer costs, now couldn't we?]
EC Thumbs Down: Dropping cards [a bore, under the best of circumstances. How do people committ themselves to dropping 300 cards per blog, per day?]. The recent spate of contentious posts on EC forums [there ARE problems there that need to be addressed (Graham, aisle 7, with a mop), but getting ugly with one another is hardly a solution]. Blogs that clearly violated EC rules, yet are still running [how many non-English blogs have you run into? I hit a good 3 or 4 a night while dropping my 50. And no, I don't think it's my responsibility to police EC. We join a group for the benefits that group membership provides. Enforcing the rules is the group's responsibility]. Blogs without EC widgets [am I the only person who runs into this? It seems like 10 out of the first 50 or so I try to drop at each night have no widget. And yet, they are picking up credits for dropping on my site. Yeah, it's petty. I'm petty. Deal with it].
Max, I don't know what you're hatching in that intense canine brain of yours. But I'm curious to see it...
-MR
Well, max you little puppy dog you, I am here trying to catch up. I love EC and I have stated more than once why. I have met the BEST folks there. I so enjoy making my hopefully witty and charming, never ever nasty comments on my fave blogs. What I find is though I have several blogs I put on my faves, I have problems keeping up with them all. Mostly because I am a sheep following other sheep. I will drop for days in a row and get one or two back. My fault I guess for not ingratiating myself and sticking to the ones I really like even if my comments are not answered or drops are not returned. It is not about the drops is it? I like commenting almost as much as I do blogging.
ReplyDeleteThumbs down to all you guys have stated. Takes forever and I refuse to drop 300. Hell I barely make 60!
Blogcatalog when I first started was ok. I find more and more non english blogs are wanting me to be their friends. Why? I also think it is about the same bloggers making the same post over and over, or hogging the chat. ( not claire or chica of course) I would love some serious discussion without pissing off a little dog who shall remain nameless! LOL