How to be a Good SearchWarper
Posted: Saturday, September 12, 2009
by Connor Davidson
I am writing this article primary due to the launch of the "Community Interaction" score which I think is an absolutely fabulous idea as those who contribute to the life of SearchWarp are rewarded and those who don't (yet) are encouraged to. During the course of this article I am going to take you through a little etiquette and online politeness (yes there is such a thing). A lot of this I would hope you do already and if not it may be an idea to start: not only will people like you more; they probably will read more of your articles and will be more likely to pay attention to you. Is that not what you want?
Always Respond to Comments
Responding to comments makes others see that: 1) you care that they made the effort to comment 2) it goes some way to prove that you did in fact take the time to read it and 3) it is the action most people expect.
You also need to remember that different comments require a different type of response. Obviously, if someone posts a question you should try to answer it. While if someone posts something like "great article [name] thanks so much for writing, it was a good read." You can get away with just saying something generic: I use "thanks for the comment". Whereas if someone writes something like Dr Clarence Rucker did:
"One thing for sure Connor, every good thing always have the greed. I Remember when my father and other men in the neighborhood use to take care of the elders, widows, and the unfortunate. That was in the latter 50s. Then, others noticed and cared so much, went to the government to get grants. They received the grants and no one knew they had them until the preachers started complaining. It was found the grant monies never reached the ones that needed it. One you probably know very well, Huey P. Long, former Gov. of Louisiana. The New Jersey cases now reminds me of the constant greed. As you see the greed of the ones that lie, as if they cannot work, the Dr making money varifying they cannot work, groups like AARP when you can get the same information from Social Security (referral services.) The CEO of AARP last year made $1.625.000 (I cannot varify it). I am glad you brought up the subject. One thing you may have noticed, a lot of the greedy ones are coming out of hiding now, so far they do not have a President that is working with the greedy. They cannot hide now. I do not think anything will be free coming forth, however, it appears there is going to be equal in purchasing, selling, and manufacturing. 4 years ago I had Allstate (15 years with them). I never used their services, just paid. 2005, storm knocked down a tree in my back yard. They gave me 250.00. Within 90 days, they cancelled me. Why? I was a risk. That is one reason they are angry with this President, he states: "If we do not use the insurance, we should get a partial refund. I guess it is a sin to be for the people now"You really need to give a good response to this as he has obviously spent a lot of time writing this 304 word comment. So instead of saying simply "thanks for the comment I decided to give a relevant response to what he had written and show I had taken time to read it and had considered what he had said. This was my reply:
"Capitalism has a great talent for destroying morality and basic ethics. We are quite luck in the UK as we are one of the least corrupt countries, rated at 8.6/10 by the UN compared to Bangladesh at 1.7/10. The least corrupt is Iceland at 9.7/10.Notice you don't need to write a reply the same length; it just has to be considered and relevant to what the person has said. Ask yourself would you be annoyed if the above comment was yours and no-one bothered to respond?
Anyway, thanks for the comment. "
Join Fan Clubs
Now I highly doubt that there is not a single person you like on the whole of SearchWarp. Thus, there must be people worth reading so you should join their fan club. Not just to find out about their latest article but recommend them to others too.
Take an Interest in Other Warpies
If you want to get the full community aspect of SearchWarp then it may be a good idea to look up people you like on sites such as: Twitter, Facebook, Myspace or what ever other social network you use. In addition you may want to have a look at the writer's sites to find out more about them and maybe read their books or more articles. I once clicked on Steve Kovacs website (thekovacsperspective.com) and before I knew it I was on his radio show having a whale of a time.
Wish People a Happy Birthday
This will up your Community Interaction score by one point every time. But at the same time it is "the nice thing to do" which should count for more.
I would advise, however, that you wish them a happy birthday on the day of their birthday rather than a week in advance in-case you forget.
I always try to wish people a happy birthday on the day of their birthday as it seems logical that you would say happy birthday on the actual day. However, the problem with this is that you are liable to forget or take a day off and so you will not wish everyone a happy birthday. You decide can what's best.
Add a Picture
This one shall we say is optional. I understand that some people don't want to give out their identity so don't worry. If you do decide to get a picture, however, you will not only get 100 points towards your Community Interaction score you will also give your articles a greater authenticity. But the picture should be of you or I can assure you it won't be there long.
In addition to having a picture you should update it. It is sad that as we age we look different but we can't really stop it so stop worrying. I find if people have the same picture on there articles for years I tend not to notice it.
Get the Newsletter
The SearchWarp Newsletter is a great way to keep in touch with the new features and Writers Competitions her e on the Warp. It is not annoying like those newsletters that come every few days and only contain links to this that and the next thing. The Newsletter is as well written as an article and is (in my opinion) fun to read. I can't wait for the next one
Welcome New Writers
One thing that in my mind puts SearchWarp at the top of the list with regard to good article sites is the wonderful community that is always growing. When new people join the community it is polite to say some thing like "Welcome to SearchWarp" at the end of a comment you have made to their article.
You can find the newest writers either through the Readers' Club or by clicking on the "New Authors" page on the left had menu on the home page.
Never Write a Purely Negative Comment
The reason you should not do this is because there is no bad articles on SearchWarp as they have an excellent team of editors who sort that lot out so we don't need to worry. It is possible that some my slip through the net though I don't think there will be many. That is assuming there is actually any in the first place.
Before you even start to comment or rate an article take into account the editors rating which is just under the article title. As a rule of thumb articles are never worth only one star I would say to stars in minimum when making a comment. Articles from Featured tend to be 4 stars - but that's not to say that non-featured people can't get 4 stars.
In addition when rating you are not just showing down your opinion. For example I'm not into floral arrangement but if I found that someone had wrote and incredibly good article I would give them five stars even though I am not interested.
I would strongly advise that you are never nasty. For example if someone comes on and writes an article and it has really bad grammar do say that but be tactful about how you say it For example I would never say:
"This article was so badly written as I did not have a clue what the blazes you were on about. It was so hard to read due to so many stupid spelling and grammar mistakes. I gave up reading and would advise you to give up writing too as you can't do it. "Straight off I can notice several things are wrong with this comment. For one it is highly patronising, it is conspicuously rude. It offers no help what so ever and is no use to anyone. But most of all this person has forgot that people are here to improve and learn how to better there writing. No-one is born with exceptional spelling and grammar - it is something to learn. Therefore a more acceptable comment would look like:
"I see what you are saying with this article and you have made some very good points. However, the grammar and spelling could do with a little work. An idea would be to copy and paste the whole article into word and run a quick spelling and grammar check If you don't have word try the SearchWarp spell checker that you can get by editing your article.What you have is good and when you crack the spelling and grammar you've got potential. Don't give up: practice makes perfect"
Oh and welcome to SearchWarp."
This comment gives practical advice on how to improve and encourages the writer to keep going and also implies that SearchWarp is here to help.
Stop Stealing Warpies Work
I am generally fine with people using my work (notice the reprint rights) but I do like to be acknowledged as the author of the article. I don't know if you have ever found your stuff on cheap content sites without your name on it. It is really frustrating. So just don't you won't make friends especially not with Mike Fak: /swa508789-Pains-Of-Being-Prominent-On-The-Internet.htm
Respect that SearchWarp Staff have a lot of Work
Imagine running a site the size of SearchWarp. Imagine how many articles come in per hour, the emails per second and the endless torrent of spam pouring in like nobodies business. Then imagine that it is you that has to deal with it.
Right hopefully you can see they have a lot on there plate so subsequently don't expect them to jump about when your email joins the queue with the other 100 emails. I usually get a reply from Bruce and co within a day or so of sending which is fine. They are good at replying to emails so you can expect a reply soon but not too soon.
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I do hope that you follow some/most of these tips. If we can all try to be Good SearchWarpers then SearchWarp will fly up the highway of success with you being towed behind and all the traffic will be going one way . However, should we not bother then traffic will be flowing the opposite way and we can expect some collisions.
This Article has been viewed 2,303 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
More commentsThanks Connor! Fine points all. Still being somewhat new to SearchWarp this was very informative. Thanks again.Thanks for the comment.
Thanks Connor for writing this! very informative and well-thought out! I feel a little self conscious. I hope my comment lives up to your standards! :)You have given some great and very relevent comments to me in the past so I'd say you're doing just fine.Thanks for the comment.
Good article Connor. One question, how do you know when people are celebrating a birthday? Oh and thanks, I didn't know SearchWarp had a newsletter until I read your article.
Your points are on the money, Connor. I think the Birthday Wishes part of SearchWarp is most easily overlooked. I needed that reminder. Great article!I see you often give Birthday wishes.Thanks for the comment.
Connor, I should like to thank you for this lengthy article that sounds like a wake up call to me. Now that I must keep an eye on comments from other friendly writers at SW and remember to feedback.
hildaGood, you always respond to my comments.Thanks for the comment.
SearchWarp has a newsletter? Seriously, some very good points here, Connor.Yes go on the" Edit Account & Email Settings" page and check the box.Thanks for the comment.I was being facetious. I've been receiving the newsletter for quite some time now.OK, I did not pick up on that.
Wow. Thanks for writing this article. I was wondering how to up my scores. I browse through the control panel, but still haven't managed to feel confident that I'm doing the right things. Your article is a big help!It takes time to get used to. I did not get the Readers' Club for over a week!Thanks for the comment.
Hey Connor--you are the SearchWarp guru--go to guy now--great!!!! Great article topic and nicely put together--I think you will be on the SearchWarp first page for ever now!!!!!!!!I was Jean's pick of the day on the home page.Thanks for the comment.
Thank You Connor for this article.I am new to Search Warp. Your article was very informative and advisable for me. Thanks again.Thanks for the comment and welcome to SearchWarp.
I really enjoyed your article. Well written and informative for those of us who are new to the SW community. Thank you.Thanks for the comment.
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