The Rules They Are A Changing For StumbleUpon Users
Not that long ago, it was acceptable to stumble one’s own post to get the ball rolling in Stumbleupon. However, the rules of the game are changing as detailed here:
StumbleUpon Has Updated Its Algorithms
If by chance you have been found wanting by the SU team, never fear there is a way to get back into their good graces. Here’s just a few excerpts from the post (linked above):
Cease and desist from discovering your own website.
Install the SU toolbar, if you have not already.
Use the “send to” method ONLY to increase the traffic to the specified url.
Use the Friends/Subscribers method, to have your website discovered.
Review websites when you genuinely have an opinion on said site. Good or bad.
Cease and desist from “power stumbling”. Spend an appropriate amount of time on each stumble, instead of systematically “thumbing” through the index at the fastest possible rate.
Cease and desist from thumbing-up, and or reviewing parallel urls in a sequential manner.
Stumble text websites, videos, and photos equally.
When reviewing, add tags to the review, in addition to the ones already in place. If you feel a stumble is worthy of others viewing it, but not a review, use the tagging option on the SU toolbar to add tags along with your “thumbs-up”. Increasing your tag cloud is a must.
Do not consistently thumb-up every website. [Diane note: See my input on this below] Be genuine in your dissection of the stumble. If you dislike the stumble, then thumb it down. The community was designed for an honest usage and discussion of likes and dislikes.
Use SU’s search and tag options to find your preferences, and implement your preferences in your profile. Use SU’s resources to seek and find, as opposed to outside, or “third party” resources.
Fill out your profile, interact with groups, and become an active member in the community, as opposed to a narrow stumbling of “Friends/Subscribers” only.
Stumble through SU’s index of stumblers. Concentrate on using this method to seek and find new friends/subscribers first, as opposed to only befriending a narrow group of users you are acquainted with, or using third party or outside resources as your first choice.
You’ll still want to visit StumbleUpon Has Updated Its Algorithms for complete information on why the feeling is that SU has already changed. Knowing the finer points is always a good thing.
I have just one tiny bit of trouble with this… Typically, I’m impressed with every website I visit using the bar. Most are just amazing, and one’s I would not have found using any other method than the Stumbleupon toolbar.
However, once in a blue moon I might see a site that I just don’t agree with – does that mean I should give it a thumbs down? I personally don’t think so. Just because I might disagree doesn’t mean the owner of that site has done a “bad job” and deserves a rousing thumbs down.
When I see a site that just doesn’t resonate with me, I just move on.
So… who knows… I might be guilty of only handing out thumbs up. I’m not cheating a system, I just chose not to dissent.
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What do you think about all this? Please leave your input and comments below – and remember commenting is excellent and free and a great way to market yourself and your website or blog!
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September 21st, 2008 at 2:23 pm
Excellent post as usual right on top of the changes in social media marketing. Thanks!
September 21st, 2008 at 3:02 pm
[...] Read the rest of this great post here [...]
September 21st, 2008 at 7:17 pm
It is my favorite social bookmarking place. That other one is the one I won’t mention, but I’m not crazy about. I hate to see Stumble change. I liked it just the way it was!
September 22nd, 2008 at 7:02 am
Thanks for the good “heads up,” Diane.
I just need to get into SU and study up on all of its ins and outs.
It’s obviously contributed to my traffic picture and I’m sure would do even more if I was using it to its fullest potential.
September 22nd, 2008 at 8:53 am
@Scott – thanks!
@Barbara – I think the key thing here is the difference between just clicking and running versus stumbling, reading, maybe commenting, voting, then choosing Review and tagging and reviewing on SU itself about what you’re voting on. My trouble is I really hate to give anyone a thumbs down. Even the worse page means someone worked as hard as they could on it (hopefully). If I disagree does that mean it’s must get a thumbs down? I think just skipping it for the next is the polite thing to do. But maybe that’s just me.
@Brad – lots of potential with SU. Lots of new people to meet and see what they like as they Stumble (or I guess, too, what they didn’t like while using StumbleUpon).
September 22nd, 2008 at 6:01 pm
Wow.
Sounds like next, they’ll be building a big wall around their site, and posting armed guards on top, preventing us from going anywhere else. LOL
But thanks for the post, its good to know which sites to leave out of my future tools list.
September 23rd, 2008 at 2:47 pm
@GoogleWealth – while I understand where you’re coming from, I disagree. Leaving Stumbleupon out of your marketing toolkit could be a mistake. We receive 100s and 1000s of visitors per post in many cases all coming in from our networking using Stumbleupon. Having to adapt to new rules can be a pain, but for some services worth the extra effort
October 15th, 2008 at 9:24 am
Nice post. I’m feel the same way on the thumbs down. Just because it doesn’t work for me doesn’t mean it warrants a thumbs down. That just seems kind of rude to me. When I run across these I don’t give them a vote at all. Feels more reasonable.
Clyde Denniss last blog post..Search Engine Optimization Tools: Website Builders Daily Digest
October 30th, 2008 at 9:06 am
@Clyde – I so agree! I wish instead there was a “I have no opinion one way or the other” thumb LOL!