March 5, 2010
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Freaky Friday
Lately it’s become a popular fad here to swap your general profile picture for an attractive female profile pic. A number of prominent xangans are (or have been) conducting experiments on the differences in traffic that come with an attractive picture, and unsurprisingly, content turns out to be fairly unimportant in the popularity of those blogs. So, I decided to mess around with something myself. Not a profile picture swap, that’d be derivative. Something bigger. An entire blog swap!
Swap!
So, yesterday Shimmerbodycream and I wrote blog entries for each other. Mine, A Boy and His Dog, was published on her blog, and hers, I’m Only Gay When I’m Drunk, appeared on mine. I don’t know what her motivations were for participating (and she’ll probably elucidate on her own blog) but I wanted to see whether reader reactions were more based on expectations, or content. Obviously, a few of my readers were pretty confused by my entry (I just don’t know who you are anymore! or I’m so confused.) Otherwise, though, the responses were pretty subdued. Shimmerbodycream’s readers, on the other hand, were much more enthused about her entry. Apparently, she’s “funny as fuck!”
So in the end I’m left somewhat unsure. I’m pretty certain I would not have received the same responses had I put A Boy and His Dog on my blog, but that could simply be because we have different readers. The question of whether xangans respond to posts based on the writer’s reputation or based on the content itself is still somewhat unsatisfactorily answered.
Nevertheless, I thought the experiment was an interesting one, if for no other reason than switching things up every once in a while helps reinvigorate the system. Try it yourself.
Do you think you respond to a blog entry based on the content, or based on what you (think you) know about the writer?
Comments (32)
Ohhhhh that’s what that was all about. I read that, very drunk. No, very very drunk, and didn’t understand what was going on, shrugged and moved on haha.
LOL.
i was quite bemused – not really knowing you well* and reading that post as though it were yours – wasn’t about to comment given*…
now i guess i’ll have to read about shimmers -uh-dog
Hmmm. Swapping blogs is an interesting idea. I hadn’t seen your post (well, Shimmer’s) yesterday…
I just avoided the blog entirely so I never saw what you said lol I always view a blog by its content, but if it says something about the writer, then I obviously will have to compare the entry to my expectations about the writer.
I didn’t know what you were doing, but I figured you were being satirical or something. It was the swearing that surprise me most, since I can’t recall ever seeing you do that.
I believe that reputation of the blogger matters a LOT. It matters in the real world; ask any new author whose book is constantly passed up for the latest release by a best-selling novelist. The public already knows the best-seller, or at least think they do.
The only way to ensure comments on Xanga- especially positive comments- is to make at least a few friends. People who miss that step are nothing but frustrated.
I’d never been to your blog before but I had seen your comments on others and assumed you were a man. But after reading “your” entry was surprised to see that you aren’t. Actually, I have no idea now…..
But as far as the experiment goes, I do think first time men do look at blogs based on pictures but stay based on content. (unless of course someone keeps on putting up attractive pictures~then I’m not sure) =^D
Btw, I think the drama on Xanga has been over the top. I don’t believe half of what I read anymore. I’d rather people use attractive photos to get attention then the ridiculous melodrama they crank out on a daily basis.
Media hype and marketing make bank on the fact that most of us are suckers for superficial appearance. But brand loyalty develops because of results.
So the beauty becomes the beast if she doesn’t put up or shut up.
I thought it didn’t sound much like you! Ha ha! I was like, maybe he’s turning over a new leaf! It just didn’t sound like you- but it was so entirely funny none the less- ps. I’m subs to Shimmerbodycream’s xanga as well so <3 you both! But as soon as I heard the phrose ” ‘Holla” I was like “I’ve not seen this side to NikBv before” but was like, I’m just going w/ it. <3 your stuff (you’re so sharp) <3 hers as well, she’s halarious but totally different style.:)
Hope you’re have a great weekend!:)
This post-swap idea sounds great!
I just kept imaging you in a gay orgy surrounded by guys in fedoras with very delicate moustaches.
Aw, I missed the online shenanigans. Freaking job and me having to go to it.
Clever idea, though.
well to be honest, the story on shimmers blog really bothered me because i know she likes dogs. so i was quite concerned as to what she really meant and am so glad you wrote it instead of her!
Both.
The water tower says “hi”.
I don’t think it’s wise to swap photos or blogs. You will only succeed to confuse and irritate new bloggers like me.
@RestlessButterfly@lovelyish - Golly. I hope it was mostly confused, and only slightly annoyed. I couldn’t stand the thought of having a new blogger annoyed with me!
yayayayaayay
“X”anga’s been so USURPED by ____?????____’s that i no longer CARE what’s on HERE
Just USE xanga because there’s no HTML headaches AND i can always link back here WHERE i made an “impact” so many MEologian-less years ago
Well, its a good thing I friended ShimmerBodyCream, whom every1 knows the l8 mathematicalbagpiper had a crush on, to pad my confusion.
reputation matters a lot, because it gives every writing a perspective. imagine if Drakonskyr and I tried this. CHAOS. he’s seem mellow, and i’d seem… like whatever he is.
that was INTENSE (o)(o)
..for the most part, the second motive.
Very interesting.
must say that i generally comment/read/react (not in that order, i hope) to a blog based on the content. i don’ thin’ i would ever react to something solely on what i thought i knew about someone since it’s been proven to me that i don’t know sh*t about a lot of things… *sigh*
i shall now go read the aforementioned (by you) posts to see what i might have missed…
I think I generally judge the blog on content, but if I’m familiar with the writer it gives the written word more content, since I am aware of personal subtleties and can pick up on their train of thought more easily. This was a cool experiment, it should be repeated ^_^
Your profile pic. should be the real you: a late 20′s male who masturbates too much for his own good. You’ll go blind, but you’ll also gain extreme upper strength. It’s one of those you win some, you lose some situations.
You blog a lot.
@GunStarHero1988 - wow it’s like you were describing me cept i’m 21, a female and not blind yet. I blame it mostly on porn hub but sometimes on the easily available vibrating mascaras. I know I have a problem
@ShimmerBodyCream - This explains why you’re so fond of make-up.
I read it based off content, but I think expectations/popularity of a blogger do matter a lot for other people.
On a side note, I used to have an old blog where I didn’t have a picture of myself, and people barely came by or commented. With this new blog, I used to have a picture of myself up, and I started getting more traffic than I ever have. It was weird, so I took the picture off. Now I am back to having no one read my blog, haha.
Interesting experiment. I tend to have favorite blogs, and I usually don’t look at much else unless the title strikes me/
ryc: well, i traditionally like Amys, but she’s over-the-top. must be the caffeine.
I respond mostly by content. That’s pretty much all I have to go by since I’m not as “buddy-buddy” with other Xangans like I used to back in day. But kudos on the blog swap! That confused the hell out of me too. lol