Marketing Just Got A Whole Lot Easier If You Are Careful
For anyone in the Entrecard system, you should have received an email sometime in the past 12 hours notifying you of their new toolbar. This new toolbar makes surfing your favorite Entrecard categories and blogs so much easier! It truly is a dream come true 
However, a word of caution. Surfing faster is always great, but neglecting to use any marketing tool properly can be your downfall.
The Entrecard Firefox-only toolbar is an easy install and even easier activation. Once you’ve followed the instructions, presented here:
To download the EntreBar, visit this page:
http://entrecard.com/page/ec_toolbar
be sure to also take the time to read all about the various features of your new toolbar here:
http://entrecard.com/blog/?p=493
Yes it is wonderful, and yes we are thrilled, they’ve done an excellent job!
But here’s the “other shoe” that I’m sure you will want to read, it really will help you help yourself.
When you market online there is a huge difference between being a sheep and following the crowd, and being a leader – doing your own thing (based on good “scientific” data that says you’re on the right track).
I speak of commenting.
While card dropping may (or may not) ensure a return visit from the blog owner, taking full advantage of the other bloggers website by leaving your comments, thoughts, opinions, viewpoints has always been the mainstay for encouraging their readers to investigate you and your blog (or website if you don’t blog, yes you can still be commenting your heart out even if you are not a blogger and you should be).
Our stats prove without a shadow of a doubt that the act of commenting drives visitors from the “I’m reading it here” blog over to us.
We can even pinpoint the specific post that lead to that visitor. Now the only way they are coming off of someone else’s blog is through the COMMENTING section. That’s the only thing we have “control over,” the only way we can put our name, our link, and our input on someone else’s site.
Stands to reason they are reading the comments, find something that intrigues them, and they head over to see who good ‘ol Diane Scott is…
You want this to happen for your website, your blog, too.
So getting back to Entrecard…
The temptation will be to drop, drop, drop and call it done.
If that is your mentality, trust us, you are sorely losing out on much more potential.
Dropping may get you one visitor.
Commenting can get you hundreds if not thousands!
Use your resources wisely and see the difference!
Marketing Just Got A Whole Lot Easier If You Are Careful…
With the advent of the new Entrecard toolbar, online users may be tempted to “hurry up and get it done.” Learn why this can be a poor objective when marketing online….
you are so clever!
@Linda – thanks LOL, not sure how LOLOL!
yup, u got that right. one of the basic principles of online marketing, indirectly, that is often forgotten.
You’re right, there are so many out there that just drop and run. Some don’t even look at the content to see if it’s something that may interest them and that they may want to comment on.
I’ve never been into the ‘dropping’ game at entrecard. I just integrate it into my usual bloghopping. If a site happens to have one, then I drop but it’s usually not the main draw to a site.
Which is also why I’m not downloading the toolbar. Besides, my viewing area keeps getting smaller for all the toolbars. lol!
@imran – thanks for stopping by! Left my two cents on yours
@JMom – I did use it today, got a whole 50 cards maybe dropped, but I like to stop and chat which slows the process down to a decent speed. I do like the bar though, since you can select a category right from your browser. There are categories in there I sort of don’t focus on, so this way I won’t miss any! Used responsibly, I think you’d like it.
Well written and extremely important information you have written here Diane. I must confess I have been guilty of dropping and running and will focus more on quality comments in the future.
@Capy – thanks a bunch, what a great compliment to end a long day with
Like Capy, I’m also guilty of drop and run habit. Your post makes a lot of sense and no wonder, I find myself making my first comment here.
Cheers!
@Apol – well I will tell you the first thing I’ll do when I’m done here is visit your url
And, once you get into the commenting habit the only “downfall” (which isn’t a downfall at all) will be allotting the proper amount of time each day to comment. I’m a comment addict LOL! So I really have to watch myself.
Make a commitment to post X number of comments a day (1, 5, 10, what have you) and see how this impacts your website visits stats and rank
Your absolutely right, but I’m afraid some of us – not pointing fingers or anything – take short cuts sometimes and end up not commenting on otherwise really good posts that sometimes get lost.
The day is planned on a piece of A4 – 1. do this 2. do that etc., each of the numbers represents a time and obviously some tasks take longer than others. Once you get into the habit of doing certain things – it gets easier and easier. Sounds boring – but it really helps to prioritize the tasks that blogging has. I should get a life – sorry for the long comment
Your absolutely right, but I’m afraid some of us – not pointing fingers or anything – take short cuts sometimes and end up not commenting on otherwise really good posts that sometimes get lost just disappear into the nothingness of cyberspace.
The day (my day) is planned out on a piece of A4 – 1. do this 2. do that etc., each of the numbers represents a time and obviously some tasks take longer than others. Once you get into the habit of doing certain things – it gets easier and easier. Sounds boring – but it really helps to prioritize the tasks that blogging has. I should get a life – sorry for the long comment
@Sal – agreed! Setting up some sort of daily guidelines is critical! Then, you have to be able to roll with the punches so to speak. For instance, my day today was ALL mapped out only to turn to complete dust. In self defense, I’m trying to create tons and tons more “help guides,” videos, etc. What I run into is the fact that I do answer my phone. However, getting calls asking questions when the material is right there on the website is really frustrating. People need to slow down, and learn to read again. They’d be happier in the process, too, and gain valuable insights and advantages.
Sorry coming down off my soapbox LOL!