Riding the Rocket! 22/05/2005 A couple of days ago BlogExplosion introduced a new idea called the Blog Rocket. I stumbled upon it purely by accident very early on, even before the mailshot went out to BE customers. And I have to admit that it's addictive and fun, as well as increasing traffic to your blog.It consists of a list of 25 slots for blogs. Register for the game and your blog is inserted in the bottom slot. As more bloggers join, you move up the list, eventually arriving at the top spot. Of course, the first blogger to join after that knocks you off the top and you can then re-register to appear at the bottom again.The benefits come in that you can win credits by having a look at the blogs riding the rocket with you. You have a chance of winning the big prize, 1,000 credits, as well. But the real benefit is that it increases traffic to your blog. I rode the rocket a few times yesterday (Saturday) and, at the end of the day, the stats showed twice as much traffic from BE as usual. That's pretty impressive, I think.But I'm a bit cynical about these things and so my first thought was that yes, it increases traffic, but it has to be poor quality traffic in that no-one will stop to read. It seemed to me that everyone would just click through the available blogs, hoping to win a few credits. There was no obligation to stay the regulation 30 seconds, after all.A few things happened that made me change my view on this. To begin with, I noticed that I was seeing a lot of blogs that I'd never seen on the usual blog exchange. And I stopped to read them. Incredibly, I began to find a few that interested me and (horror of horrors!) I started blogmarking some. As I settled in to the speed of the rocket, I realized that there was no hurry; the thing progresses slowly enough for you to stop and read if you find an interesting blog.That's just me, I thought. Nobody else is going to bother with actually reading anything. Yet I was proved wrong in that too. Quite soon I began to get comments from bloggers that had never visited before (I even had a sarcastic one - yes, thank you, that man!). So it seemed that I wasn't the only one finding it easier to investigate blogs properly at the pace of the rocket. Another point in its favor.Don't get me wrong; the speed of the rocket is variable, dependent very much on how many bloggers are clambering on. There were times on Saturday when it really was a rocket and there was hardly time to glance at a few blogs before your own shot out of the top of the list. But late at night it gets really slow and can take an hour from start to finish.Perhaps the greatest thing about the Rocket is that it's fun in a way that blogclicking isn't. After a few rounds of clicking on the blog exchange, the same old blogs begin to come up and it becomes an exercise merely to build credits. On the Rocket, however, there seems to be a much higher proportion of blogs not seen before. Perhaps they are the blogs of those who have become disillusioned with the usual exchange.The tendency on the Rocket is to run round to the bottom as soon as one pops out of the top. But I have found a principle of diminishing returns in this. Most bloggers repeat the process as soon as they have completed a journey and this means that you can find yourself riding the Rocket with pretty much the same people as before. And then you find that you're not allowed to look at a blog again if you've looked at it in the last 24 hours. Ride the Rocket three or four times in succession and you can be in for a boring time with nothing to read until you reach the end of the journey.And, of course, most have looked at your blog by that time, so the number of hits it receives declines with each succeeding trip. Probably the best way to ride the Rocket is to take it a couple of times and then go off and do something else for a while. Return later and you'll find a new set of bloggers to ride with.Number of hits varies between about 6 to 20 per journey. As I've said, no matter how well you do on your first ride, the hit rate will decline as you take successive trips.Overall, I have to say that the Blog Rocket is a brilliant idea and a great way to increase hits to your blog. It's early days yet but it does seem that it will continue to deliver on its promise of traffic. But perhaps the best thing about it is the fun it provides.Go ride the Rocket!
Clive
Ned I did try out the rocket and I too, saw different blogs than I had run across before and blogmarked two of them. I saw an increase in traffic although I only did a short stint there and I only won 1 credit. :( Unfortunately, right after that my blog disappeared and it appears myblogsite.com is down completely. I have reverted to my old blog on Blogger for now. But at least I will have a blog to ride the rocket on. Date Added: 22/05/2005
Gone Away To lose one's blog must be the most devastating thing. It would turn me gray (no, wait a minute... I am gray). You have all my sympathy, Ned. But ride the rocket with the old Blogger blog - that'll cure the blues! ;) Date Added: 22/05/2005
dorna! I was pleasantly suprised to discover several 'new' blogs while rocketting. I've no idea what my hit rate's been but it's been a refreshing diversion from the monotony of the usual exchange. Date Added: 22/05/2005
Gone Away I agree, Dorna. And I can assure you it has a huge impact on hit rate. When you consider that one good trip on the rocket could earn you 20 hits in perhaps twenty minutes, whereas it would take about three hours to get that many through the normal blog exchange, the rocket is capable of really getting things moving. The important thing is a regular readership, however, and it remains to be seen whether the rocket will make a serious impact in that area. Date Added: 22/05/2005
prying1 I had over 100 hits and not a single comment. - So it goes - Might be the character of the post. Who cares about yard sales? Date Added: 22/05/2005
Gone Away Must admit that I didn't know what to say to that one, Paul. But hey, bet your hit rate went up. ;) Date Added: 23/05/2005
prying1 The hit rate is much higher. But it has made me realize that I could blog for numbers or blog to be a positive force in someones life. I've been blogging for numbers. Reading Scotwise - http://scotwise.blogspot.com/2005/05/daily-encouragement-monday-i.html - today showed me something that I've known but forgotten. The same message of It's a Wonderful Life. We affect (or is it effect? Or is it both?) people in ways we will never know. All we can do is walk the direction God points us and share good tidings as we travel. I will still ride the rocket. It is much more interesting and fun than the other route. Although I will still use it too. Date Added: 23/05/2005
Gone Away It's "affect". "Effect" is the noun. ;) Absolutely right, Paul. The game of numbers is just that - numbers. The hope is that amongst those numbers there will be those that see something more than meets the eye. So I blog, play the game, ride the Rocket and click the exchanges. And the blogosphere becomes more noticed every day... Date Added: 23/05/2005
Julie Just to prove you wrong again--I surfed in on the blog rocket and stayed to read a while. :) BTW--we're living in each other's countries! Date Added: 23/05/2005
Gone Away That's partly why I blog, Julie - so others can prove me wrong! :) So you're the one who took my place huh? Hope you're enjoying it - it's a good country when you get to know it. ;) Date Added: 23/05/2005
keeefer Im seeing a potential market opening up for Bloggers Anonymous. Obviously we will be a non profit organisation (just paying huge dividends to the major shareholders). We will prepare law suits against the companies that encourage us to become addicted to blogging. I have already appointed the world renowned Flywheel, Shyster & Flywheel to act as the lawyers. Im sure,given time, that we will be able to prove that blogging encourages repetative strain injuries, bad backs and poor eyesight. In addition we are also likely to be able to prove a link to cancer (why not everything else seems to cause it nowadays), then theres the loss of income due to to much time blogging etc. Please register your interest below. Donations ungratefully accepted Date Added: 23/05/2005
Gone Away You're too late, Keef - Blogging will take over the world! :D Date Added: 23/05/2005
keeefer I know Gone and the law suits will follow....honest its only a year or two away. My names keeef and im a blogaholic Date Added: 23/05/2005
Gone Away I'll not hold my breath then... ;) And of course the confession would be typed into a communal blog therapy room. :D Date Added: 23/05/2005
Benjamin Solah Guess how I got here? Yes this is a great idea. I tend to only read the ones in the Writing and Politics catagories, I think I can find this addictive, I surf at the same time I ride the rocket, but I think the hits from the rocket may have a bit more substance. Date Added: 23/05/2005
Gone Away It's looking that way, Benjamin. The rocket gives you a bit more time to look around a blog, I think. Date Added: 23/05/2005
Jay g'day... have been 'riding the rocket' for a few days, too, and so far thin it's great. true, a lot of BE users (and users of traffic exchange programs), do not stop to read - they're merely interested in earning credits. but there are SOME of us who do stop, read, ponder and enjoy the blogs... its one of the great things about using BE is that it forces you to read/experince points of view you may not otherwise come across. yeah, its nice to see your stats go up i s'pose... but there are lots of fringe benefits, too :) hope you continue to get a kick out of ridin' the rocket... Date Added: 23/05/2005
Gone Away And g'day to you too, Jay. Good to meet someone who understands that traffic exchanges only work if we treat them fairly and do our share of reading as well as collecting credits. In the end it's readers that matter not hits. :) Yes and I hope we both continue to get enjoyment from the rocket. At the moment it's a blast! Date Added: 23/05/2005
prying1 Quite a few new blogs I've seen as a result of the rocket. Wife is thinking of joining a Bloggers widow support group. I told her she could start on online with Blogspot for free and wouldn't cost any gas that way. Not sure what she was muttering as she left the room but I don't think she was game to the idea. Date Added: 23/05/2005
Gone Away LOL Paul. Methinks your wife may have a point. Every time I go anywhere near that rocket, I see you riding it! You'll just have to get her a computer so she can start a blog to explain to us how we can escape the addiction. :D Date Added: 23/05/2005
John Evans Nail on the head, Clive. The rocket is a huge improvement over the usual 30-second rush. I've also found that the bloggers who come via the rocket do stop and read a page or two. The absense of that ticking clock MUST have something to do with it. On top of that, I noticed that I had 30 hits at one point and SYNTAGMA was only at #15 on the rocket. The bloggo boys should patent it. BTW, the software at BE is getting astonishingly sophisticated, don't you think? Date Added: 23/05/2005
Gone Away Agreed, John, BE had a lead on the other clickers in all departments even before they introduced the Rocket. Now, I think they'll murder the opposition. Date Added: 23/05/2005
cw greetings from the rocket! always enjoy reading your site when I find myself being 'exploded' to it..keep up the interesting reads... cheers! Date Added: 23/05/2005
Gone Away Thanks for the kind comment, CW. Now I have to work out which one of these blogs you are.... Don't worry, I'll get there! Date Added: 23/05/2005
Ken Ye gods, but you people do make me feel old and out of the loop. Thinks: Maybe a computer made of wood's just not up to scratch these days? I shall investigate this rocket business, although the last one I heard about was something to do with a bloke named "Stevenson", unless i'm much mistaken! Date Added: 23/05/2005
Ken Sorry: for "i'm" read "I'm"! Date Added: 23/05/2005
Gone Away You remind me that I had meant to put in an apology for those who don't use Blog Explosion, Ken. It must be a pretty meaningless article them. However, the traffic exchanges do have a marked effect on hit rate and I would recommend them, particularly Blog Explosion, to anyone with a blog. Date Added: 23/05/2005
Way My eyes are crossed from a couple of hours of click-and-read, but I earned two whole points. NowwhatIdo? Date Added: 23/05/2005
Gone Away Assign them to your blog, Harry. See there in the sidebar where it says Assign Credits... Date Added: 23/05/2005
Morris I agree, thats how I find your site Morris Ask Morris Date Added: 24/05/2005
Gone Away And that's how I first found yours, Morris. What I'd really like to know is, how do people ask questions of you? By email? I would have commented but you have comments turned off... Date Added: 24/05/2005
Morris There is a link on the right hand side under about me entitled "Ask a question". That gives you a form to fill out where your question gets emailed to me. Date Added: 24/05/2005
Gone Away So I have just found out, Morris. Thank you. You will find a question in your in-tray, I believe. ;) Date Added: 24/05/2005
Way First Ned, and now Gone....Whoosh goes Way. Date Added: 24/05/2005
Gone Away Don't tell me you're rising that Rocket too, Way? Date Added: 24/05/2005
Way That's how I "found" you just then. Date Added: 24/05/2005
Gone Away Ah, Way, we have corrupted you... ;) Date Added: 24/05/2005
Way Yes you have, you bad, bad boy. One thing I've noticed tonight is that that ride was much more interesting than the one earlier today, but I did manage to resist bookmarking no more than one on this trip. Date Added: 24/05/2005
Way "The" ride...(looks at Corona bottle) Heck, even typos look better after dark. Date Added: 24/05/2005
Gone Away Yes, and I meant "riding" not "rising" earlier on. :> It varies quite a lot according to time of day, your fellow riders and so on. But you meet some interesting people and meanwhile the hit rate soars. I just hope that the bloggers realise what a treat they're in store for, now that you have joined. :D Date Added: 24/05/2005
prying1 I have dozens of blogs bookmarked and never manage to get back to them. I'm always finding new ones. I have picked up a few regular stops however. Clive, Mr. Gone Away, is definitely one of them. Date Added: 24/05/2005
Gone Away Thanks, Paul. Date Added: 24/05/2005
xtessa hey, ran across your blog... i also joined the blog rocket. i agree that it does increase traffic but only a few stays long enough to give a damn about what you write. i got a few comments along the way, one of which was from an asswipe. i eventually deleted that heinous comment 'coz he wasn't commenting on my blog, per se, but attacking my personality. see you on the rocket! Date Added: 24/05/2005
Gone Away I guess there's always one or two who think it's cool to be rude, Tessa. You did the right thing in just ignoring it. Date Added: 24/05/2005
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