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This is part of the the book BLOGTASTIC! Growing and Making a Difference Through Blogging. You can read the table of contents and follow the book on this page:
See the table of contents for the book here: BLOGTASTIC project
Previous article: Don’t impose your rules on other bloggers
BLOGTASTIC!: Don’t apply the rule of reciprocation for blogs.
Blog linking is not a game of link exchange.
Let me explain.
Suppose you help one of your friends. When you need some help, your friend chooses to help you in return. That’s the rule of reciprocation. This is one rule where exceptions are common. There are no simple ways to quantify the help you give and the help you get.
In the blogosphere, it is best to put this reciprocation rule to rest. It just doesn’t work that way. The rules are simple on the blog:
1. You can link to anyone you want, but never link just for the sole purpose of getting a link back.
2. You should link to the content when it is appropriate to your readers. It’s your call.
3. Other bloggers will link when the content is appropriate to their readers. It’s their call.
4. There are no guarantees.
If you follow these four rules, you can and will be positively surprised.
Blogging Tip: Being nice really helps in the blogosphere
While there are no guarantees of reciprocation in the blogosphere, being nice on and off the blog really helps in the long run. I have personally seen that nice people get much more help than the people who are less nice.
Rajesh Setty is an entrepreneur, author and speaker based in Silicon Valley. He maintains another blog called Life Beyond Code and tweets as @UpbeatNow