Entry: Plugging Your Own Posts on BlogsMalaysia: What's Your Opinion? Monday, March 13, 2006



This post is for those big on blogs. Quite big. Okay, pretty damn big.

If you've never heard of Blogs Malaysia, it's a site where you plug posts that you find interesting and would probably interest others. And I've always liked that concept. I mean, it's like a filter. You automatically know it's worth reading and there's a short 'synopsis' with the link.

But see, I always thought that the concept involved plugging other people's posts, NOT your own.

I'm not talking about the editors plugging their own posts, because duh, they're EDITORS. I'm sure they know what they're plugging on Blogs Malaysia. But is it right for ordinary members to be plugging their own posts?

'So whatever you have read and think is notable regarding anything and everything under the Malaysian and global sun, please do rekomen it here.' BlogsMalaysia's About page.

I don't know. Is it right to think what you have written is notable and to plug it in a site like Blogs Malaysia? Its concept is of course different to Petaling Street, where everyone pings their own blog and your main attraction could be your blog name or title of your post. So why, in my opinion, is it evolving into another Petaling Street that is different in that it might just be a little bit more exclusive? Just a little.

Is there really any difference to plugging your own post on BlogsMalaysia and going to any other blog in the blogosphere and leaving messages to visit your blog? Or, I daresay, pinging your blog on Petaling Street?

No, I'm not plugging this in Blogs Malaysia. It's going to Petaling Street. :)

 

(11:01 am, GMT +10)

P/S: I hope I didn't offend any of the Blogs Malaysia creators/editors/etc. and if I did, please accept my sincere apologies. This post was written purely due to curiosity, and we all know what curiosity does to the cat. :)
   9 comments

Alynna
March 14, 2006   03:27 PM PST
 
Milly: Vain's right. And I do have nothing against the BM. :) I love that site myself.

Lainie: Hehe, that's what I was wondering. Promoting their own blog that way just seems kinda fishy to me. And I'd love to read some local poetry. Maybe I'll find some on your blog? :)

Swifty: Most of us blog for an audience. Wanting traffic isn't a sin. :) But what are your thoughts on people pinging their own posts on BM specifically (PPS is a completely different story)?
Swifty
March 14, 2006   03:10 AM PST
 
It depends, I know pretty well Blogsmalaysia doesn't really draw me a lot of traffic (and this comes from a guy whose numerous entries were featured there), but occasionally, I would write stuff that fits Blogsmalaysia readers and editors more than the masses (... like my er, suggestions for Blogsmalaysia).

I am frustrated to know that many things I've suggested will never become reality, but hey, at least things featured in Blogsmalaysia don't get bumped off like PPS does, thus I would rather post something like Michael Guillen's entry about Amir Muhammad at Blogsmalaysia, hoping that the all-powerful editors can do something about that article, instead of letting it disappear from public view in half a day at PPS.
Lainie
March 13, 2006   02:53 PM PST
 
hahahah...yeah...They ARE supposed to be pinging other people's blogs, to recommend to others - we provide the platform say if your blog does not get enough readers to pimp something, or if you don't have a blog, or if you just want to show it to a (presumably) different audience.

self pinging is...well, acceptable, we have had some decent stuff come through, though not exactly what we're aiming for.
We've also had those who ping it the way they'd ping PPS, which isn't the idea. So the editors just filter stuff :/

i mean, I've pinged quite a lot of pages that got rejected (i'm apparently the only editor there who likes local poetry), it doesn't matter :) Better to try than to be afraid.
Milly
March 13, 2006   02:08 PM PST
 
I have no problem with people plugging their own posts as long as it's good. However they do leave an impression of being vain :P

I visit BM, Tomorrow, SpyMy and Digg regularly and I must say BM is my favourite with Digg as a close second. Somehow the editors' taste in BM is similar to mine and most of the articles approved were a great read ^_^
Alynna
March 13, 2006   10:57 AM PST
 
SpyMy: You can pay me later for advertising. :P

Justin: Agreed. Anti-spam. :)

Lainie: Haha, yeah. I do think that BM is a little intimidating (think: job interviews *wince*), so it does surprise me that people go ahead and plug their own posts. Bravery? ;)

Minishorts: But... my question was is it right for people to plug their OWN posts?
minishorts
March 13, 2006   10:25 AM PST
 
trust spymy to come along with THAT thing... but the thing is there's concepts like spymy which is great and concepts like blogsmalaysia which is by no means a competition for spy my or petaling street. pinging your post to petaling street is NOT plugging a post in petaling street--it's
pinging', spying a post to spymy is NOT plugging a post, it's putting up something for the masses to vote, plugging a post to blogmalaysia IS waiting for the editors to rekomen something...it's like your local boingboing, and you CAN't say that boingboing is the same as digg, can you?

Lainie
March 13, 2006   03:53 AM PST
 
uh...editors actually don't submit their own blogs -_-"
the idea being, our links are already in the "About" page, so never mind lah. But if someone else submits an editor's blog post, then we vote on it like any other.

i can see how BlogsMalaysia would intimidate people, it is, after all, a question of a user's taste, vs that of a team of editors who are by all means a bunch of strangers, on whether a post is good or not.

*shrug*

I wish BM would be updated more frequently too. Sigh. SpyMy is...hmm. a bit too....crowded for me. Reminds me of PPS, actually.

Ah well.
Justin Wong
March 13, 2006   02:01 AM PST
 
In my opinion, plugging your own posts is fine provided that you don't spam. Because those posts are going to be reviewed by the editors anyway, go ahead and plug your post if you are confident of its quality. Just don't do it so often.
SpyMy
March 13, 2006   01:43 AM PST
 
SpyMy is best of course, user submitted and user voted, no need to wait for a bunch of 'editors' to approve what you submit. If it's good it'll float.

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