Go out of your way to publicly (and privately) celebrate and acknowledge your readers and you’ll find the impact is twofold:
- The readers that you acknowledge will become more loyal to you. It’s pretty simple really – we like it when people value us.
- Other readers respond well to your acknowledgment of other readers like them and you create a culture where everyone feels valued even when they are not specifically highlighted. I find that readers respond really well when you take a break from writing on the news in your industry or generic tips and focus in on people.
Make your readers famous by linking to their blogs, highlighting their work, publishing their thoughts, sending your readers to comment on their work and praising them wherever you can and you’ll find the impact both upon others and your own blog to be significant.
That’s true, sometimes you give props to someone in a post, they will come back and sometimes they’ll bring a friend.
I am amused that there aren’t any examples.
You can link to me in any post you want, Darren.
LOL
That’s true….. Make your friends famous,while you will famous too…
I focus on how to make big money in secondlife, and i want to help
other people to earn money in secondlife, mean while help me too…..
You can link to me in any post about secondlife money if
want, and you are welcome all time ……..
Let’s we all become famous………
Another way I like to show reader appreciation is by talking to them via their comments to my posts. As you said, “we like it when people value us”.
Everyone wants to be famous…even for a few minutes…
It’s true. I have a special column once a week that is devoted to that concept. It’s called “What you’re saying…” It highlights a reader/commenter and we either continue the debate or discuss the virtues of their post.
It’s a great way for everyone to feel connected…
really, what you are saying is logical: if we are a community, act like it!
Very true, indeed — it does foster a sense of community to _interact_ that way with your readers. There exists, however, what I’ve come to term “stranger anxiety” among some members of the blogosphere. Should a user come along, and post a comment, or a suggested link and said user is not a part of the “in group” (I use this in the sociological sense), or a part of the “cult following”, the comment can either be met with deletion, or simply ignored, as opposed to being revered a a new addition to one’s readership.I’ve witnessed this in past and it gives me pause.
[…] Make your Readers Famous by Darren Rowse. I need to incorporate my readers more. You folks reading this blog are the most critical element of the blog. Without you it’s an academic exercise. Thanks for reading. I am grateful for each of you. […]
[…] Darren at problogger.net has really great article about acknowledging the readers of your blog. The article Make Your Readers Famous is very short, and well worth reading. […]
[…] OK. I have to admit that when it comes to blogging certain things can be very addictive. My current addiction came about from reading and article Make Your Readers Famous and installing MyBlogLog tool on my website. Now that I see the faces of some of my visitors, I find myself spending a lot of time trying to find out who they are, what kind of blogs they have and so on… Well if nothing else this addiction will keep me busy for the next few days, until some other ideas wonder into my mind. […]
Very interesting. It makes a lot of sense. I know if I were to comment on a blog and in return have my name mentioned in a future post or update, I’d definitely visit the blog more frequently and become a more loyal reader.
Don’t just make a post for the to link back to you…actually read and interact with the blogger. I find asking legitimate questions helps develop trust among bloggers building an unstoppable worth of knowledge!
To be famous can help you to get good jobs and more money.
But nothing is coming alone. You still have to work for it…
Good Luck! Heiko Grabolle.