I owe a lot to Active Rain,
- I learned about blogging in general.
- I found Bloodhound Blog through following Terri and Greg during Project Blogger. (and many other great blogs)
- I’ve generated business from converted leads.
- And made really good friends.
But this morning I’m feeling a little nauseous after the much anticipated revamp of Localism, The redesign is neutral and simple, with a few twist in navigation still needed. I would have rather paid for an “outside blog” than purchased “communities“. Maybe buying the way to the top as a community sponsor will actually reduce some of the crud posting just for points, but right now I’m having very mixed feelings about continuing to drink the Kool Aid. Maybe I just need sleep.
Cheryl Johnson says:
Stephanie,
I know they worked hard on the new Localism, and I wouldn’t want to be unkind … but I was a bit …hmmm… underwhelmed … as well. I actually liked the old design much better.
And each post will be reviewed to ensure it adds “value to their intended community and audience”…? I know this is well intended, but there is a lot of potential for favoritism. I think I like the point system better. 🙂
July 9, 2008 — 4:07 am
Stephanie Edwards-Musa says:
Wow, each post will be scrubbed? Are they really taking away the point system?
Big changes. I was confused reading the page because it says that it will have the top contributors for the community but then you have an option to ‘sponsor’ one. So, what’s the point of posting on there if someone can join tomorrow and sponsor the community?
I just woke up so I know it’s not that I need sleep, but the whole concept of it seems to go against how AR typically does things.
I’m disappointed, but keep an eye out to see what happens. I still can’t believe that they are scrubbing the posts. Unreal.
July 9, 2008 — 6:03 am
Michelle DeRepentigny says:
Cheryl, I spent two hours trying to convince myself that I was happy about these changes and the further I dug in the more digruntled I became, and 2 hours of sleep did not help. 🙂
Stephanie Scrubbed, decimated, censored whatever they choose to call it, today there are many questions being asked about where all the old post have gone. I spent 1 year and 4 months wasting my time apparently as the bulk of my content is no longer there. Oh well, their platform, their control.
July 9, 2008 — 6:10 am
Stephanie Edwards-Musa says:
Ok, I just cruised around the site in the neighborhood that I post most in and I’m totally confused. I agree with Michelle, not even the pictures that I added are there anymore…from as recent as not even 3 months ago.
I have been the highest in this region for way over a year and I am not even on the page as a neighbor? WTH?
Sorry AR, this is not good. I still have posts on there if you get to the bottom of page two, and I’m not even on the list of contributors. That was the final chap on the back side for me.
It seems as though what they have done is give a back hand to all of the long time contributors on AR who have helped to make the site what it is and made way for new ones to come in. It’s not about points, it’s not about being number one. The point is, they are not making their long time members visible in the least. Whatever.
I have to leave for appointments soon, but if I had time this morning I would be tempted to set up an entire outside blog on my own and transfer all of my community content over to it.
So not happy right now. Getting slapped at 8 o’clock in the morning is not fun. Hopefully I’ll calm down because right now I’m tempted to write a really long post as Member’s Only with the biggest rant that I’ve ever posted on there.
July 9, 2008 — 6:23 am
Cheryl Johnson says:
Sorry, Michelle and Stephanie, my first comment should have been addressed to Michelle. It ~was~ pretty early.
All your content is still on Active Rain, regardless of whether or not it shows up in Localism. I have no idea what criteria/system they will use to select which posts now flow through to Localism. Used to be just checking the “For Consumers” box and geo-tagging the post.
If you haven’t copied all your pertinent Active Rain posts over to your own blog, I’d probably think about doing that soon.
July 9, 2008 — 6:29 am
Michelle DeRepentigny says:
Cheryl – it was too early – no worries. I’m so ill I that I’ve gone from gagging to choking at this point and I’m glad all my post are saved to NuVu.
Stephanie – I’m not a “neighbor” 🙁 either – in fact there are only 11 in Georgia.
July 9, 2008 — 6:39 am
Stephanie Edwards-Musa says:
Cheryl, I believe I will move everything but that’s because I’m not sure where this is headed. Something tells me that localism will be searched out higher than AR on local content which is sad. There would be no point in having older content on Ar.
I just posted a member’s only post..I’m so not happy. I never expected this.
July 9, 2008 — 6:40 am
Stephanie Edwards-Musa says:
Michelle, I linked to this post in my member’s only..heads up.
July 9, 2008 — 6:41 am
Greg Cremia says:
Once again FREE has reared its ugly head to reveal its true nature.
July 9, 2008 — 7:10 am
Teri L says:
Gagging indeed.
Nice way to treat your content suppliers.
As AR’s best and brightest content suppliers continue to understand what is happening and move off, the quality of the content will drop, and consumers looking for something more, tech savvy consumers anyway, will see AR for what it is and look elsewhere.
What bothers me most is that this is completely and horribly expected. It would be nice to have been wrong.
July 9, 2008 — 7:26 am
Teri L says:
And John McCain ads, right next to your content. Wow.
So if I pay to sponsor the neighborhood, do I pick the ads? If I’m offended by the ads, then what? What if my consumers are offended?
I don’t see how this makes anyone shine in the eyes of consumers. How does this benefit consumers? I should be asking these questions there…
July 9, 2008 — 7:48 am
Eric Blackwell says:
@Greg Cremia – we must be blood brothers…This is the mantra that I have been preaching for YEARS.
We preach home OWNERSHIP to people and yet we then RENT (and nothing is free) our online presence by becoming a content generator. The price for a “blogging education” is indeed high when purchased by giving content to others.
I am a HUGE fan of putting it on your own blog. That way you truly OWN the neighborhood, and not just rent a space of it that (as Teri L correctly points out)can be right next door to something that you or more importantly your customers find unseemly.
Best to all
Eric
July 9, 2008 — 8:04 am
Jim Lee says:
“I am a HUGE fan of putting it on your own blog. That way you truly OWN the neighborhood,”
Yep, right up there with owning your own website and not using a template type site you rent or lease.
I always get a kick out of these ‘lead generators’ that want to sell you a zip code, a territory, or some keywords.
They never seem to have an answer when I ask how they came to own it in the first place; I usually hang up about this time. ;->
July 9, 2008 — 12:16 pm
Cyndee Haydon says:
Michelle – So let me get this right – we’re supposed to generate the unique content so Johnny Deep Pockets can just come in and buy the community – I think being a paid blogger would give a better return – lol! Feeling more than a little used and discarded.
I agree human edited will lead to favoritism! Old featured posts weren’t even brought over – but all my lovely photos seem to make it – could it be the google seo they carry?
We went from top in our Communities to extinct in one simple flip of the switch – OUCH!!!!
I’ve always loved AR but not loving this
July 9, 2008 — 12:27 pm
Sparky says:
As I’ve shared elsewhere today, I think everyone needs to give Localism a little time to unroll, develop, and populate before sending out the lynch mob. One of the strengths of AR has been the willingness of the AR Staff to listen to member input, and make changes accordingly. Don’t jump to unnecessary or premature conclusions. Don’t drink the Kool Aid before it’s been served.
July 9, 2008 — 1:47 pm
Eric Blackwell says:
@Sparky-
I do not think that being PRINCIPLED and applying those principles constitutes being a “lynch mob”. I don’t believe in commenting on, supporting with my content, or linking to other peoples’ sites that are or might be in the near future competitors. That is MY PRINCIPLE. Not a personal dislike for anyone involved.
The ownership changes at AR were enough to at least clue me in to their need for a return on the capital invested.
I don’t need to wait and then drink this Kool aid because by principle I know that the likelihood is that is that it is not go for me or the industry I work in.
Please explain to me how that makes me the “lynch mob.”
July 9, 2008 — 2:12 pm
Rich Jacobson says:
Eric: I wasn’t bringing your principles into question here. I’m not quite sure how you arrived at that conclusion. What ownership changes are you referring to? To what extent have you personally participated as a member on ActiveRain? Again, to each their own. You can either see value in participation there, or you don’t. Many of our members have derived significant benefits from being members. The lynch mob consists of people who prematurely jump to conclusions before all the facts are presented. I am simply suggesting that people hold off on casting judgment until the platform has had time to become fully functional.
July 9, 2008 — 3:00 pm
Missy Caulk says:
Well said, Rich.
It is the first day for Pete’s sake. Gee give it a chance folks!
July 9, 2008 — 3:26 pm
Glenn says:
Eric – “We preach home OWNERSHIP to people and yet we then RENT (and nothing is free) our online presence by becoming a content generator. The price for a “blogging education” is indeed high when purchased by giving content to others.
I am a HUGE fan of putting it on your own blog. That way you truly OWN the neighborhood, and not just rent a space of it that (as Teri L correctly points out)can be right next door to something that you or more importantly your customers find unseemly.”
Extremely well said.
I have not been to the new site yet – but will visit it later and see what is like and judge it for myself.
July 9, 2008 — 4:52 pm
Teri Lussier says:
Rich-
I’ve been catching bits and parts of this all day, here and elsewhere. I’m not out to lynch anyone, and I don’t see this happening from anyone commenting here, but if the thing isn’t fully baked, and we contributed, it’s perfectly understandable and reasonable, and even a smart thing to wonder out loud about it. But, that’s kinda beside my point.
What I’m curious about is what incorrect conclusions are people jumping to? You are asking people to wait, but what are we waiting for? What’s missing from our judgment?
July 9, 2008 — 8:40 pm
Rich Jacobson says:
Teri: It’s simply the very first day that Localism has been rolled out. We still have a lot of things left to incorporate. Not all the content has been transferred over. People are looking at it as though it were the finished product, and it isn’t. It’s in private BETA so our members can check things out. People simply need to hold off on making overly critical judgments until we’ve had the chance to unroll everything, populate the platform completely, and remove it from BETA.
July 9, 2008 — 11:21 pm
Bob and Carolin Benjamin says:
We also are dismayed about the new Localism and feel that the all the agents/people who have provided content up to this point are being thrown under the bus as anyone can now apparently come in and buy their neighborhood out from under them. Also, will have to say that as an agent it seems to make little sense to buy “little neighborhoods” as few people likely search on “little neighborhoods”. Also if we are doing the math correctly, by the time one would buy enough of the “little neighborhoods” to “own the community” it adds up to pretty big dollars. We’ll watch this unravel and see what transpires, but definitely we’ll be spending more time on our other blogs instead of the A/R ones.
July 10, 2008 — 12:17 am
Laurie Manny says:
It would be nice if the AR staff would put up a post and explain what their intent is as an end result.
Did somebody say FREE? Well, I put a value on my time and I spent considerable time contributing to the Localism platform. The bulk of all of my work at AR was on Localism. As a matter of fact, my posts are among the top performers on the system. While I may not have paid for the right to post there, I have certainly contributed heavily to that system.
While I no longer actively contribute to the system, and haven’t for some time now, the work I have on it actively contributes to my internet presence. I put my time in, I earned that presence.
If the end result includes using my posts to support the ‘communities’ and to advertise other agents in my market, those posts will be deleted permanently. I will however, wait, watch and see for a short while.
I don’t care about the points, I never did. They do not serve a valuable purpose.
Many of us saw this, or something similar to this coming a long time ago and began outside blogs. I am thankful today that I am not among the group that is dependent upon AR for their entire internet presence, if I were, I would be hyperventilating right now.
July 10, 2008 — 3:14 am
Eric Blackwell says:
@Rich- I arrived at that conclusion right after you used the word “lynch mob”. I did not realize “you” were “sparky”, but that makes no difference to me. Whomever said we were a lynch mob is flat out wrong. I merely stated my principles.
If I am writing customer centric content it is going to be on MY blog or on close friends’ blogs where they will NOT be competing with me.
@Laurie- nicely said about FREE.
@Rich’s response to Teri. Ummm…call us a lynch mob and then ask us not make “overly critical judgments”…hopefully that explains the quizzical expression on my face..grin…
Rich I am actually an incredibly friendly guy, but I am not one to change principles. I am certainly no lynch mob.
July 10, 2008 — 5:20 am
Laurie Manny says:
Hmmmmmmmm, everything transferred to localism is now sporting no follow tags on all outgoing links to the agents outside sites. Links that are not present on the original post.
July 10, 2008 — 5:32 am
Teri Lussier says:
Thanks Rich-
I understand that content hasn’t yet been transferred.
I’m getting the impression that what has people concerned is the sponsoring. I’m not seeing details about that.
If my content is being used to boost SEO for someone with deeper pockets and faster fingers. IF that’s what is happening, that’s…Well, that’s a lotta things, but I suppose I’ll wait and see. Do we wait and see until after communities are bought? Or will we know before?
Laurie-
You’ve spoken for a lot of people.
July 10, 2008 — 5:38 am
Teri Lussier says:
Laurie-
(We were typing at the same time.)
Holy crap.
July 10, 2008 — 5:42 am
Laurie Manny says:
I guess that putting those no-follow tags was part of what they meant when they said they were “scrubbing” the posts.
I guess that syndication is right around the corner. That should send some hefty backlinks to AR that won’t bleed page rank to the agents due to the no-follow tags.
It’s interesting that one of the two featured agents in California/Los Angeles/Long Beach (yes-all 3 categories) isn’t from Long Beach and hasn’t posted there. She got there strictly on photo contributions. Funny thing is, I’ve seen those pictures before, elsewhere, they are not even original pictures as is required by the Localism guidelines. This I am familiar with, having moderated those photos in the past.
July 10, 2008 — 5:42 am
Eric Blackwell says:
@Teri-
You said:
“If my content is being used to boost SEO for someone with deeper pockets and faster fingers. IF that’s what is happening, that’s…Well, that’s a lotta things, but I suppose I’ll wait and see. Do we wait and see until after communities are bought? Or will we know before?”
I am at an Autism Conference that the family is speaking at in Orlando. You point there just about got me to ditch a class or two and do some fast typing of my own (grin).
Thanks for that. I think it illuminates the problem precisely. (or at least a piece of it.)
Well said.
Eric
July 10, 2008 — 5:56 am
Eric Blackwell says:
@Laurie- I see a Trulia-esque pattern pattern developing there as well. But i will wait until it is out of beta… Not sure HOW it can be claimed that they don’t TRUST the content…
Rich can you help us with what your intentions are there? I do not want to fire prematurely, but is it your intention to no follow these links when it is out of beta?
Eric
July 10, 2008 — 6:00 am
Laurie Manny says:
Eric, Funny, I was thinking the same thing, reminds me of the Trulia plan as well. I also wonder what part House Values plays in all of this and exactly how they will benefit. Just thought I would bring that up since nobody ever goes in that direction.
July 10, 2008 — 6:07 am
Stephanie Edwards-Musa says:
Just wanted to say that Trulia was also the first thing I thought of when I saw it yesterday.
Laurie, I considered the House Values deal yesterday. We have yet to see anything about them, anywhere. All good food for thought.
July 10, 2008 — 6:24 am
ines says:
We all understand that AR needs to start making money, we are not questioning that, it’s the way it’s being done.
Many will keep a close eye ready to pull the plug and start deleting – let’s hope it doesn’t get to that.
As for the no follows, that’s just INSANE!
July 10, 2008 — 8:15 am
Kaye Thomas says:
Let’s see I’ve been the number one person in Manhattan Beach and according to the stats I still am but I don’t have any posts on localism and am not even a neighbor. What a bunch of BS..
I’ve been working on a new blog so haven’t been posting as much as before but I guess all my articles and all the information I’ve posted over the years doesn’t count for anything. Now they are taking away my follow tags.. Gee Thanks Guys.
July 10, 2008 — 8:47 am
Michelle DeRepentigny says:
Anticipation of the Emotionalism of Localism and some of the obvious questions that Active Rain contributors would have a little earlier could have made this rollout much smoother and less traumatic for all involved,in my opinion.
From reading through Jon Washburn’s posted official answers and community builder’s comments throught the Rain it appears the “land grab” will only affect approximately 5% of the page view.
Brian Brady’s concern in todays post regarding Jon’s attitude toward self branding is also very disturbing to me and with the no follow tag issue raising its head (thanks Laurie) becomes even more so!
There are many other issues in the comments above that I want to further explore with all of you, but I have relocation buyers here today, so right now I need to sell some real estate ;), but I’ll be back soon.
July 10, 2008 — 10:56 am
Laurie Manny says:
Funny thing happened. The red highlighting is gone from the links on my Localism posts. That red highlighting is what the SEO for Firefox tool uses to indicate no follow tags. I guess that means the no follows have been removed.
Noticed another interesting item tonight as I was cruising Google. Posts that I had put into draft mode (old listings and open house posts) have been redirected to the main page of Localism and are showing up in the Google Search Engine.
I deleted almost 30 posts that were in draft mode tonight. Guess what? They still redirect to the main page of Localism!
Any genius’s out there that understand this one?
July 14, 2008 — 2:38 am