The role of the roll
I’ve been reading more and more bloggers assert that the blogroll is a bankrupt idea and should be deleted from blogs. Back in November, Shel Israel noted in his Naked Coversations blog that blogrolls were once popular, but “That was then This is now.”
Back then, we were all struggling to discover new writers who appealed to each of us. It seems to me that now, we are each struggling to keep up with the overwhelming abundance of things we have discovered and enjoy, but don’t have the time to loyally follow.
Several comments to Shel’s post suggest blogrolls have become irrelevant. Steve Rubel, PR A-lister, has removed the blogroll from Micro Persuasion.
Those arguing against blogrolls, though, have been around the blogosphere for a while. For instance, one of the comments to the Naked Conversations blog notes that the author doesn’t pay attention to blogrolls “any more.” It’s the “any more” part that’s worth some thought. As I travel and speak, I find one of the most common recurring questions from audiences of communicators is, “How do I find blogs?” Of course, I point to Technorati and other blog search engines. But those who have not yet become regular readers of blogs are usually most intrigued by the blogroll. All they need to find is one blog that addresses a subject they’re interested in; the blogroll will direct them to more. In a recent talk I gave to a PRSA chapter, one communicator in the audience said, “Oh, I get it. It’s like saying, ‘If you like this blog, you’ll like these.’”
Exactly. Perhaps those of us who have been blogging for a while find blogrolls irrelevant, but it’s a bit jaded to think they serve no purpose since research makes it clear that most people don’t yet read blogs...and that includes members of our own profession. I’d like to think this blog attracts new readers—including those new to the blogosphere—all the time. So I’ll keep pointing them to other PR bloggers. It’s premature to pronounce the blogroll’s demise.
Absolutely, one of the things that irks me most about blogs and social media is the assumption that what the early adopters are doing is right. What better way for new people to be introduced to a wider range of blogs than by personal recommendation by someone they already know.
Although the BlogCode that I talked about the other day might provide a similar useful service if enough people can be bothered to use it.
Posted by Stuart Bruce, BMA PR on 02/18 at 11:36 AMBlogrolls are very important in the long tail. Tools like technorati and to a lesser extent the meme trackers are biased toward the more popular blogs. Blogrolls on the other hand only reflect the bias of the blogger. When you find a blog that shares your sensibilities, that blogroll is the best place to start looking for other blogs you might like.
Posted by Susan Getgood on 02/18 at 03:41 PMBang on, Shel. Someone who is totally plugged into blogs might not pay attention to blogrolls, but there are millions of people who don’t even realize they’re visiting a blog, and lots of folks who are just getting their feet wet. Blogroll on, I say.
Posted by Eric Eggertson on 02/18 at 10:08 PMAgree.
I think blogrolls should stay as they help your visitors to find in a FOF basis more relevante blogs.
Best.
Posted by Octavio Isaac Rojas Orduña on 02/19 at 06:07 AMI’ve chosen to keep a blogroll, but I have some pretty hard-and-fast rules for it.
Last year, I trimmed it way back. I was trying to make it a representation of what I read, which wasn’t particularly meaningful.
Now, people are added to it when I feel that we have engaged in some degree of conversation, either on my blog or theirs. It’s not rocket science.
I’ve come to see it as a demonstration of respect, really.
Posted by Phil Gomes on 02/19 at 09:35 AMMr. Holtz,
In fact, I had only asked the question about blog rolls and never reached a conclusion. Like you, I get to travel around and talk with people who are struggling with the blogging phenomenon. I’ve concluded that blogs are very useful for people who are new to blogging, in part because the search tools to find people and topics of interest are still difficult and take time to master.
Posted by shel israel on 02/19 at 05:38 PMPhil, take a look at Neville Hobson’s new blog (http://www.nevillehobson.com). He has a very limited blogroll on his home page, but he’s planning on adding a bunch to his “links” page. This is part of a new approch to design that I like—similar to what Allan Jenkins has done.
Shel (Israel—I’m not talking to myself), I hope I didn’t give the impression that you did anything other than start a conversation. But the more blogs I see without blogrolls, the more I was reminded of that post, so I used it as a launching point myself! And, hey, great party the other night…
Posted by Shel Holtz on 02/19 at 06:14 PMindeed, i value the blogrolls of blogs i like. it gives me a snapshot of what the blogger likes, as well. often, i find that when i like the blog, i also agree with the selection in the blogroll. it’s always a new adventure to find new networks and it’s definitely very different from the quite impersonal mix you can find through blog searches. so i say, please keep the blogrolls.
Posted by Tessa San Diego on 02/19 at 06:19 PMI found Rubel’s post offensive and hypocritical, and hope that others take my lead in just dropping him from your blogroll.
He went around begging to be included when he started, built up his traffic with posts on everything but PR, and now that he’s attained his level, he doesn’t want to allow anyone else to get any traffic from a blogroll.
So, yes, drop just certain blogs from a blogroll. Let’s see how the Technorati rankings are then.
Posted by Jeremy Pepper on 02/20 at 11:08 PMThe blogroll *still* has a purpose. Rubel’s recent hiring by Edelman proves it, to a degree. The ‘roll’ was - in part - crucial to his rise to the ‘link summit.’
Seriously. Do you think he would be anything more than another Livejournal / MySpace blogger without it. I don’t. He worked the links. He is proud of them. Told me so himself.
And, Shel Israel is the same person that pounded Edelman for ... wait for it .... NOT LINKING. So, I’m sure Shel Israel sees value in it. Remember all the trackbacks (and perhaps new blogroll links) he garnered with that post?
Out there in blogworld - for some it is all about the link. Sure, I like them, too. But I’d take a good learning experience in one blog post in trade.
Posted by Robert on 02/20 at 11:17 PMMy readers are pretty new to this stuff - ie they’re only just getting into the blog concept. And even then I’d say 95% of the potential audience doesn’t even know this medium exists. Having a blogroll (what an awful expression) provides readers with way marks. That’s a value add IMHO. For me? Yes/no. they’re all in RSS anyway - which is kinda where I ‘live’ these days.
Posted by Dennis Howlett on 02/23 at 09:24 AMI completely agree that long-time bloggers have become somewhat jaded. That’s what being on the forefront is all about, moving onto newer things. I think we need to keep blogrolls alive as a beacon for newcomers. I’m really into RSS, so I’ve recently started a “feedroll” on my blog (http://www.voiceoftech.com/swhitley). It even dynamically displays the latest post so folks can pickup on current conversations.
Posted by Shannon Whitley on 02/24 at 06:00 PMGlad you like the design, Shel. One of the discussions I had with my designer was “what to do with the blogroll”. I insisted that it stay, aesthetics be damned.
Why? Well, if you trust me enough to read my blog, then (I believe) you won’t be disappointed reading some of the blogs I read. I’ve discovered many of the blogs I read simply from browsing through the blogrolls of people I trust.
Sort of like asking a friend whose tastes you like “Hey, what are you reading these days?”
Posted by Allan Jenkins on 02/26 at 03:27 PM