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Shel Holtz
Communicating at the Intersection of Business and Technology
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The role of the roll

I’ve been reading more and more bloggers assert that the blogroll is a bankrupt idea and should be deleted from blogs. Back in November, Shel Israel noted in his Naked Coversations blog that blogrolls were once popular, but “That was then This is now.”

Back then, we were all struggling to discover new writers who appealed to each of us. It seems to me that now, we are each struggling to keep up with the overwhelming abundance of things we have discovered and enjoy, but don’t have the time to loyally follow.

Several comments to Shel’s post suggest blogrolls have become irrelevant. Steve Rubel, PR A-lister, has removed the blogroll from Micro Persuasion.

Those arguing against blogrolls, though, have been around the blogosphere for a while. For instance, one of the comments to the Naked Conversations blog notes that the author doesn’t pay attention to blogrolls “any more.” It’s the “any more” part that’s worth some thought. As I travel and speak, I find one of the most common recurring questions from audiences of communicators is, “How do I find blogs?” Of course, I point to Technorati and other blog search engines. But those who have not yet become regular readers of blogs are usually most intrigued by the blogroll. All they need to find is one blog that addresses a subject they’re interested in; the blogroll will direct them to more. In a recent talk I gave to a PRSA chapter, one communicator in the audience said, “Oh, I get it. It’s like saying, ‘If you like this blog, you’ll like these.’”

Exactly. Perhaps those of us who have been blogging for a while find blogrolls irrelevant, but it’s a bit jaded to think they serve no purpose since research makes it clear that most people don’t yet read blogs…and that includes members of our own profession. I’d like to think this blog attracts new readers—including those new to the blogosphere—all the time. So I’ll keep pointing them to other PR bloggers. It’s premature to pronounce the blogroll’s demise.

02/18/06 | 14 Comments | The role of the roll

Comments

  • 1.Absolutely, one of the things that irks me most about blogs and social media is the assumption that what the early adopters are doing is right. What better way for new people to be introduced to a wider range of blogs than by personal recommendation by someone they already know.

    Although the BlogCode that I talked about the other day might provide a similar useful service if enough people can be bothered to use it.

    Stuart Bruce, BMA PR | February 2006 | Leeds, UK

  • 2.Blogrolls are very important in the long tail. Tools like technorati and to a lesser extent the meme trackers are biased toward the more popular blogs. Blogrolls on the other hand only reflect the bias of the blogger. When you find a blog that shares your sensibilities, that blogroll is the best place to start looking for other blogs you might like.

    Susan Getgood | February 2006 | Massachusetts

  • 3.Bang on, Shel. Someone who is totally plugged into blogs might not pay attention to blogrolls, but there are millions of people who don't even realize they're visiting a blog, and lots of folks who are just getting their feet wet. Blogroll on, I say.

    Eric Eggertson | February 2006 | Regina, Canada

  • 4.Agree.

    I think blogrolls should stay as they help your visitors to find in a FOF basis more relevante blogs.

    Best.

    Octavio Isaac Rojas Ordu?a | February 2006 | Madrid, Spain

  • 5.I've chosen to keep a blogroll, but I have some pretty hard-and-fast rules for it.

    Last year, I trimmed it way back. I was trying to make it a representation of what I read, which wasn't particularly meaningful.

    Now, people are added to it when I feel that we have engaged in some degree of conversation, either on my blog or theirs. It's not rocket science.

    I've come to see it as a demonstration of respect, really.

    Phil Gomes | February 2006 | Los Angeles, CA

  • 6.Mr. Holtz,

    In fact, I had only asked the question about blog rolls and never reached a conclusion. Like you, I get to travel around and talk with people who are struggling with the blogging phenomenon. I've concluded that blogs are very useful for people who are new to blogging, in part because the search tools to find people and topics of interest are still difficult and take time to master.

    shel israel | February 2006 | Silicon valley

  • 7.Phil, take a look at Neville Hobson's new blog (http://www.nevillehobson.com). He has a very limited blogroll on his home page, but he's planning on adding a bunch to his "links" page. This is part of a new approch to design that I like -- similar to what Allan Jenkins has done.

    Shel (Israel -- I'm not talking to myself), I hope I didn't give the impression that you did anything other than start a conversation. But the more blogs I see without blogrolls, the more I was reminded of that post, so I used it as a launching point myself! And, hey, great party the other night...

    Shel Holtz | February 2006 | Concord, CA

  • 8.indeed, i value the blogrolls of blogs i like. it gives me a snapshot of what the blogger likes, as well. often, i find that when i like the blog, i also agree with the selection in the blogroll. it's always a new adventure to find new networks and it's definitely very different from the quite impersonal mix you can find through blog searches. so i say, please keep the blogrolls.

    Tessa San Diego | February 2006 | philippines

  • 9.I found Rubel's post offensive and hypocritical, and hope that others take my lead in just dropping him from your blogroll.

    He went around begging to be included when he started, built up his traffic with posts on everything but PR, and now that he's attained his level, he doesn't want to allow anyone else to get any traffic from a blogroll.

    So, yes, drop just certain blogs from a blogroll. Let's see how the Technorati rankings are then.

    Jeremy Pepper | February 2006 | San Francisco

  • 10.The blogroll *still* has a purpose. Rubel's recent hiring by Edelman proves it, to a degree. The 'roll' was - in part - crucial to his rise to the 'link summit.'

    Seriously. Do you think he would be anything more than another Livejournal / MySpace blogger without it. I don't. He worked the links. He is proud of them. Told me so himself.

    And, Shel Israel is the same person that pounded Edelman for ... wait for it .... NOT LINKING. So, I'm sure Shel Israel sees value in it. Remember all the trackbacks (and perhaps new blogroll links) he garnered with that post?

    Out there in blogworld - for some it is all about the link. Sure, I like them, too. But I'd take a good learning experience in one blog post in trade.

    Robert | February 2006 | Auburn, AL USA

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