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Recently I've had a few people suggesting that I join BlogCatalog.  I haven't joined yet, although I would like to at some point.

So, why the delay?

1.  I already have the list of recent MyBlogLog readers on my home page.  Adding the BlogCatalog readers would add an unnecessary amount of extra clutter to my site.  Also, it looks quite similar to the MyBlogLog box - so this could cause confusion for my readers.
2.  I am already getting a lot of traffic from Entrecard.  I don't need to try BlogCatalog yet.  I'd rather wait until the Entrecard traffic dies down (if it ever does!).

Why not just get on and join BlogCatalog?

It's not due to being lazy or not wanting to join.  I want to be sure that everything on my site is worth having, especially when it comes to gadgets and widgets that drive traffic to someone else's site.

You have to get something out of it.

Too many people jump on the bandwagon and add loads of different links, buttons and boxes to their site just because everyone else is doing it - rather than because they want to add the link and it does something for them.

You have to give each site a trial run before you'll know if it's worth using.  Much of the time, the biggest names just get bigger, and the smallest names don't get very far.  However, some sites work differently and the smaller names can do well too.

If I had found that Entrecard was doing nothing for me, I would have considered removing it.  But I've been pleasantly surprised with the results, and I am definitely keeping Entrecard on my site for the time being.

Feedback is good, but you can't do everything.

If I added all of the stuff to my site that some bloggers add to theirs, I'm sure someone would tell me that my site looks cluttered.  Honestly, I think it looks a bit cluttered even now, but I'm trying to be careful about adding new things.

I like getting feedback.  If someone suggests something in a comment, I do take it seriously and listen to what they have to say.  It doesn't mean I always follow their advice though, and in many cases I can't act on it immediately.  But I do consider all of the suggestions I get and decide if they would work for me.

Don't do things just because others do them.

You can learn a lot from reading blog entries.  If you go to a blog that has loads of widgets and ads all over the site, see if you can find a blog entry where the author explains their reasons for displaying all that stuff.

If you find a good explanation, perhaps you'll try adding some of those yourself.  However, if the author cannot say anything good about the sites they link to (if they even say anything at all), don't go and add the same things just because you've seen someone else doing it.

It's not always true to say "that person does it, so it must work".  A-list bloggers could theoretically do well out of ANY service they sign up for, simply because everyone wants to be their friend.  It's a bit like a well-respected celebrity endorsing some kind of cologne... are people buying it because they think the cologne works for them, or because their favourite celebrity endorsed it?

Don't just follow.  Think for yourself.

I think that if you blindly follow others without thinking for yourself, you'll never really be able to connect with your target audience.  You'll be forever blogging in the shadow of someone bigger.  Why not do your own thing and see what works for you?


Do you have a lot of clutter on your site?  Does it all generate good results?  Do you copy other people or do you think for yourself?

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