I realized this weekend that I’m getting lazy. I’ve become reliant on my Google Reader to navigate me through the many blogs I read on a daily basis. The problem is I never visit the actual blog sites anymore! In some cases I’m losing the connection with the author because I don’t take in the look and feel of their site. My whole point in starting the Lonely Marketer was to share my experience and network with people in my field of expertise. Well, how can I connect if I don’t make the effort!?
Is this about partial or full RSS feeds? I don’t think so. Honestly, I prefer the full feed, but I’ll click through on a partial if the story interests me. Mark Goren had an interesting post on that topic if you’re interested. For me, it’s more about not taking in the personality of the blog author in the feed reader.
Lee Odden had a post that kind of alerted me to my new trend. He posted about Technorati and being added as a favorite. It dawned on me that I’d never pegged Lee’s site as one of my Technorati Favorites even though I’ve been reading his blog for over a year now! I think at that point a blog deserves to be a Favorite.
So, I’m vowing to get back on track. I’m going to join more MyBlogLog communities, add more Technorati Favorites, make more LinkedIn connections and contact more of the authors I read each day. I’d encourage you to do the same. In fact, I’m kicking off this week by offering up ways to connect with The Lonely Marketer. If you don’t want to leave your Reader of choice, here are a few ways to connect with me and learn more about my site.
Why did I name this blog The Lonely Marketer
If you would like to connect with me via LinkedIn, either comment on this post or send me and email via my contact form.
I’m hoping other bloggers do a similar post so it’s easy to learn more, join more communities, and make more contacts - right from our feed readers. Care to join me?
Patrick: I think Mike at ConverStations said it best when he made the point about commenting. If you’re reading full feeds, you’re more likely to comment. Stick with your feeds and visit the blogs you want to comment on, I think that’s a great recipe for gaining insight and staying in touch with the blogs that really interest you.
Patrick - I made sure to leave Google Reader and visit your actual site!
But here’s why:
I don’t feel guilty about hanging out in the reader using the full feed feature - it allows me quicker access, and thus the ability to rapidly determine the quality of a post…and whether or not it’s worth the time to visit the actual site and make a comment.
Shay/Mark - thank you for visiting and offering your insights. I appreciate it.
You both made a great point about commenting. The better the post, the more likely you are to click through and comment. I completely agree. As I stated I’m in favor of the full feed feature.
Whether it’s commenting or making an effort to contact an author, I think it’s important we all find reasons to visit sites if the content draws us in.
I read everyday online and i do not use any feeds reader. I believed it is better to interact directly with the original sites. It takes up more time but definitely worth the effort.