It's time to post another WFMW tip. Not long ago, I experimented with linking within comments, so that readers could simply click on a key word or two and be taken right to my post or the website I was trying to use to illustrate a point. I was tired of doing a copy and a past of a big long website address or URL (which stands for Uniform Resource Identifier) into the comments section, you know like http://overwhelmedwithjoy.blogspot.com.
Well, it took some experimenting within my own comments section, but I managed to figure it out. I've noticed others have too but for those of you that haven't tried this yet, follow these easy instructions and let me know how it goes.
These instructions may be hard for you to see, so click on the image and it gets bigger. If you'd like me to email these instructions to you in a Word document, just leave me a comment with your email address and I'd be happy to do so!
You might want to check out Kelly's WFMW post. She also decided to offer instructions on how to link within comments (great minds think alike, you know) and takes a different approach at accomplishing the same task.
This works for me and Kelly. Maybe it'll work for you too!
If you'd like to share something that works for you, please leave me a comment. And be sure to link yourself over at Shannon's, the host of Works-For-Me Wednesday.
My past WFMW entries:baptism gift
creating blogger categories
alternate use for pot rack
cake decorating tips
unique way to stay connected
cake baking tip
comforts of home while traveling
quenching the thirst of your little one
pie crust made in bulk
hot chocolate kicked up a notch
Labels: Works-For-Me Wednesday
31 Comments:
I adore that you share your blogging secrets!! It is the sign that you are a confident woman!
Excellent! That's a very handy one!
btw, thanks so much for your thoughtful comment on my "My Little Brother, final chapter...." post. I am really in two minds. One side of me does want to send the cards and the gifts. The other side knows that she (baby) won't realize yet, and A. will think "score!"
But I am leaning strongly to the side of just doing it anyway. Regardless of what he may think..
Here’s another tip: When you’re writing the TEXT part, be descriptive. The idea is to give your readers an idea—a choice, actually—on what they are about to click.
Not Good: Thanks for reading my post.
Better: Thanks for reading my post about convincing kids to eat broccoli.
If a reader is interested in reading a post about broccoli, that reader would more likely click the latter link. If a reader is not interested and clicks on the former link, that reader will hate you—okay, maybe feel a little pissed—for wasting his or her time.
Mike
http://somethingaboutparenting.typepad.com/
Hahaha! We did exactly the same WFMW today! Great minds run in the same channels;)
Kelly
Home of Pass the Torch Tuesday
Thanks!
PLEASE email me those instructions in word: sarahstir79605@yahoo.com. I feel like I am the only one on the planet that doesn't know how to do that! :-)
I've wondered how you guys do that! Okay, I'm trusting you and trying it:
My WFMW tip is up, too. It's on how to keep a crawling baby safe outside.
Did I do that right?
Great idea! And you're so generous with your techy knowledge.
Ok, I know how to do that in Blogger, but are there some programs that won't allow it?
Also, I haven't started to try to do the categories thing because everytime I use Blogger's search it doesn't give me complete lists of all the posts. Do you understand what I mean? More importantly, do you know what can be done?
Thanks. I too think it's helpful that you share blogging tips, being my own geek and all.
I had wondered how to do that -- thanks so much.
Thanks! You're teaching us a new language...
I was wondering how to do that. Thank you so much for enlightening me!
Thanks so much for being such a dear and sharing your secrets. I really need to start doing this once in awhile, of course, then I would need to know something :) Thanks again! We are up overa t my blog too!!
You make me Blogger life a whole lot easier! Thanks so much for all the tips + tricks you've given, I'm making sure to learn them all! =)
To answer the question if this will work on other websites, yes, it will unless the site does not allow links. Adding "a href" to any link will make it a clickable link. It's not blogging specific. Its html and that is prgramming that is used everywhere.
Now let me cautiously say to those of you who are thinking of using the links in comments on others sites.
It is not good blogging etiquette to link your site in someones comments. That is a huge no no in the book of blogging etiquette. If someone wants to view your site they can always click on your name after your comment and it will take them there. To put your link into your comment is not looked upon kindly at all.
Some bloggers do not accept your link at all and erase every comment that has a link to your personal site. There are blog entrys everywhere that will tell you about common courtesy for blogging if your interested in blogging etiquette.
I would really reconsider putting links into comments unless your linking to an article written by someone else such as a doctor or the Associated Press etc.
Mrs. Darling, thank you very much for your input. I know linking within comments is a sensitive issue that needs to be treated carefully and with respect, but I do feel there are certain times when it CAN be appropriate and I wanted to share this knowledge with others for those times.
As for my blog, I hope my readers know that I'm not at all offended by those who like to link within their comments. I will not delete such comments, unless they happen to be vulgar or insulting. Thankfully, I haven't had any of those types of comments. :)
Oh, one last thing, as a fairly new blogger I'm truly interested in reading some of these etiquette blog posts that you mention. Would you mind linking a few of the good ones within the comments of my blog so that I can go check them out? Thanks so much!
Problogger
webthoughts
techsoup
Cafemama
How not to comment
Etiquette for blogging Nation
I have to add that in doing further research on this it appears like there has been a shifting of thought on this. The idea now seems to be that you use caution in posting links within comments and some etiquette says that there is no problem as long as the link is relevent and as long as the main blogger doesnt mind.
http://blogforfunandprofit.blogware.com/blog/_archives/2005/2/27/384015.html
http://www.problogger.net/archives/2005/09/10/signatures-in-blog-comments/
OOps it appears that I didnt out links on the bottom two. I didnt know I had stuck them in! LOl Sorry! The last new are actually two of the most relative so just copy and paste them into your browser.
hmmm....I may try this but it sounds difficult to me.....but thats just me! lol
Wow, Mrs. Darling, you left me several links! Thanks so much! And thanks for the additional bit about what you found with further research.
I'm curious, does it bother YOU to have people link in the comments of YOUR blog?
I think one of the reason that it doesn't bother me a bit is because I'm more than likely going to go check out a commenter's blog post and it's so much easier when I can click on a single link rather than going to their blog and trying to hunt for the post I'm looking for. I don't always get to look through the blogs of those that leave comments right after they comment, it might take me a few days and by then the post that I wanted to read isn’t at the forefront. Does that make sense?
I think another reason it doesn't bother me is because I don't mind efforts of self-promotion at all. In fact, that's why I do a Blog of the Week feature on a regular basis, I want to HELP other bloggers promote their blogs.
I really think the feelings of the issue of linking within comments varies from blogger to blogger and I'm curious to know how you feel about it personally, blogging etiquette aside.
Thanks again for your response. Who knew this WFMW would open up such a exchange of ideas, I love it! :)
Thank you, OW. You have no idea how frustrated I was trying to figure out how to do this.
Can you email me your email address? That was a non reply comment and I do want to talk to you. :-)(You can send this comment to the trash after you read it.)
Hi! Found your blog through WFMW--love your pseudonym! For awhile I thought I was going to use something similar--
In Over My Head.
What a helpful tip and interesting discussion. Both were enlightening!
I'm with you--I think it's fine to leave a link if it's on topic. It just promotes dialogue, doesn't it? And that's what blogging is all about!
I've been wondering how to put a link in the comments. Thank you for explaining.
If you get a chance can you email this to me? Then I can save it and refer back to when I need it :) Thanks for sharing how this worked for you!
OW, thanks so much, I think it is so helpful when you offer suggestions that make blogging a little bit easier. Thanks so much, this will come in handy. :)
GReat that you did this. tere are lots of ladies out here who don't know how. Wonderful.
Wanted to let you know that I finally got around to starting that booklist. :)
I figured out that the only way I would manage is in small chunks so today I did a Thursday 13 of Great Fantasy/Fairy Tale stories to read aloud and what is good/not so good about each.
Next week I will probably do fantasy animal stories and so on and so forth until I get through all the types of redaloud books we have done. There are so many I couldn't do it all at once. :)
This is such an interesting discussion. I'm glad to see that there has been a shift in thinking about the "etiquette" for including links in comments. Clearly spam stinks, but if you're leaving a relavent comment and your link makes it easier for readers, I sure don't think it's a big deal. My readers are welcome to leave non-spam links in my comments.
Kelly
I’m looking for feedback.
I just read all of your recent posts. Very interesting stuff! I always appreciate blogging tips. You lead a life so different from mine, and that is very interesting to me. I rarely get to travel. I'll be back to visit you again soon, though!
I leave a link because (a) I like people to see the name of my blog (many people have told me they find that helpful) and (b) then I can tell where they come from when they visit. Otherwise I get a bunch of Blogger profile references as the referring site. I've only ever had two bloggers complain, out of many hundreds I have visited.
Andrew
To Love, Honor and Dismay
Just stopping in to say thanks for your kind comments recently. I'm grateful for the instructions you provided here for adding a link in comments! (I truly had no idea it was poor etiquette!) I always find it helpful!
:-)
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