Social Networking in the Otaku Blogosphere and some Self-Reflection
Posted by: Noirsword in Articles, Otaku
Social networking is everywhere you go on the internet. It doesn’t matter whether it’s between otaku, gamers, or MySpace/Facebook/LiveJournal/DA fanatics; There’s no escaping it. Love it or hate it, social networking is an essential part of helping your blog grow. In the otaku world, blog growth is linked to how well you network. The better you network, the faster you grow.
It’s important to make yourself discoverable. Your editorial writing skills could be the stuff of legends. Your episode blogging could be epic enough to split a mountain in half. Your figure photos could be so awesome that they would even make Super Rats cry manly tears of joy. But it’s pointless if no one can find your blog. If you love it, social networking is a tool to establish contacts and friends. If you loathe it, think of it as something of a necessary evil. Either way you look at it, social networking helps bring in hits and readers.
1. First up is commenting. Bloggers love comments. It makes them feel all special and loved. It provides the means to start short conversations and share your opinions on various topics. You have to make your presence known on this otherwise anonymous internet. Converse with like minded individuals and then go to the next step…
2. Blogroll exchanging. Being on other blogrolls is akin to forming small syndicates in the blogsphere. Perhaps syndicate has too much of a negative connotation attached to it. Let’s say the process is similar to forming guilds or clans with the common interest of anime.
A simplified mock-up of the benefits of blogroll exchanging:
Blog A and Blog B link each other. Blog B has connections to Blog C. Blog C goes to Blog A, likes it, and links to Blog A. So on and so forth with letters D-Z or however far you want to go before getting bored.
3. Anime portals that direct you to other blogs are a form of social networking. This is the best way to bring in the hits. All your interests are concentrated into one site, thus making it easier to find what you want. Say you see five Gundam topics that interest you. You click those links and go to their respective blogs. Then you make new friends through commenting and a blogroll exchange.
So the more you make your presence known by commenting and having your link discoverable on other blogs, it’s easier to get new regular readers. That’s not to say it’s impossible to become well known without social networking; Growth just becomes slower. A blog is more fun when you have colorful readers leaving comments and having fun with the discussions. Having a community on your blog brings a sense of camaraderie that makes it an enjoyable place to post. Something I’ve noticed is that female bloggers thrive from the benefits of social networking and, well, just saying you’re a girl is enough to garner the lonely male readers.
As a career internet lurker, I’ve never really been a very talkative guy. If people are kind enough to leave comments here, I usually always comment back unless I’m really busy. If they have a blog of their own, I’ll visit and try to leave a comment. Most of the time I prefer to just lurk, because it’s always been more in my comfort zone. If I see a post on a popular blog that already has 10+ comments, I probably won’t leave a message. I know it’s a bad habit to shy away from popular topics, but that’s always been me. I’ll try to gradually be more talkative around the blogsphere. Maybe you’ll see me around more on the big blogs.
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Hah, you do sound a bit jaded about the networking situation in the otakusphere, but I can sympathize since I tend to be on the lurking side too. Maybe it’s just my urge to try to only talk when I have something to say.
Personally, blogrolls don’t do much for me, mainly because so many people have gigantic blogrolls where I couldn’t pick “X Anime Blog” out of the crowd if I tried; but a lot of people are annotating theirs now, which works well.
And hey, making yourself discoverable is only important if you care about readers. I know a few bloggers who are off all the networks, since the only thing important to them is writing the posts, not getting the readers. I respect those people a lot, since I can’t be like that anymore. XD
CCYs last blog post…[Rapidfire] The Touhou Conspiracy, Part I: Analyze it slowly! Yukkuri
I try my best to socialise around the blogosphere, despite my new-ness and my lack of skillz.
Also, can I call Point No. 2 on your list then? I linked you already. ^_^
C.I.s last blog post…[Madness abounds] The results of the Anime Saimoe Tournament Group 5!
Your post is so ironic I’m having trouble finding wrinkles ;P
I never use blogrolls for link exchange. I don’t believe it in. The blogroll on my site is not from exchanging links. They are just sites that I like to read and I use my blogroll to show others what blogs I like to read.
scottfryes last blog post…Someday’s Dreamers: Summer Skies Impression
@CCY: Do I sound that jaded to you? This was written as more of an observation than a rant. My writing is normal to me, but some may consider it a bit harsh at times.
Blogroll annotation is a good idea. I’ll probably do that… Eventually. Also the point of a blog is to share and spread your views. Readers are needed to provide criticisms and counterpoints. It’s more enjoyable to have an interactive blog with discussions and such.
@C.I.: Welcome to the anime scene. Consider yourself added.
@Hinano: Irony is infused into my writing style. I don’t think I could remove it even if I tried.
@Scott: I respect that decision. I’m also honored that you like this blog enough to link it. Seems we did an unintentional blogroll exchange, because I added you sometime back.
I’m one of those people with the huge blogrolls, but really about 90% of what’s on there is stuff that I enjoy reading, and the other 10% comes from people who want to exchange links. It’s definitely not the best solution, but I think it does work a little bit for people who have time and enough interest to check them out (plus some random comments if you mouseover the links
). The best examples that I see of things that can work are when people do things like annotated blogrolls or posts about “These are some awesome blogs that need more love” and so on.
I tried to help at least “expand” the anime blogosphere as part of the committee of the Anime Blog Awards, especially during the nomination stage, though you could consider it to be a forced effort in that sense. But then again, I don’t see it as trying to do some social networking, but just learning more about the variety that there is to see in the blogging world, if you just make an effort.
TheBigNs last blog post…Impressions on Kurenai: The Ties That Bind
Don’t forget Dango linking!
I LOVE COMMENTS TOO! XD
If i don’t get comments, i get sad ….
blissmos last blog post…World Destruction 1 ~ First Impressions
Nobody’s as Lurker as me: My special skill is Subterrainan Spines with a base of 20 damage. *Skitters away*
Zerg rush kekeke.
@TheBigN: You covered the bases of your entire comment, thus I cannot comment on it. Thanks a lot.
@DS: I’m at your blog eating all your dangos. They are delicious.
@Blissmo: Comments are like blogger’s Prozac. You can’t be sad when you get comments… Even the ones posted by trolls. The way they lash out is so cute.
@Meu: Get back to the mines! Coal doesn’t mine itself, you know. And take your obscure Starcraft joke with you.
I’m more of a lurker myself as well. Anyway, I think your observations sound right. It took me almost six months before I got a comment on my blog, but then I didn’t visit other blogs either. Within a week of posting comments on other blogs it started working out okay.
I almost never use blogrolls, which is probably why I don’t update it unless people ask. I find myself finding new blogs through comment posts than the blogrolls of people’s blogs.
super ratss last blog post…Natsume Rin Obsession
More of a lurker here too, like you, if I see a post with lots of comments already, I tend not to comment unless there’s something that I can add in after reading through the comments.
Like any other guy, comments are always nice and I liken it to the “gochisosama” after a meal :p Too many people (myself included) tend to eat and run these days ^^; I guess I’m bitter and jaded too in that I don’t quite enjoy one line comments which is something I try very much to avoid, hence not commenting sometimes since I have nothing better to say ^^; As super rats says, people perhaps go to other blogs via comments and to me, one liners are there just to gather the hits :p
Yeps, I’m bitter about this networking thing xD
“Social Networking” is hell. It’s true. It’s true. I’ve been slowly coming around to the horrible fact I need to know people who know people who know people who can help you get where you need to go. Ah, but such a network should work in reverse as well –instead of looking up, looking down the ladder to see who’s there and how the two of you can benefit and move up the ladder together–.
But then again I do live in a dream world. xD
[...] guess this is something of a follow up to my Social Networking post, in which I mentioned how I tend to mostly lurk around the internet. I notice the blogging [...]