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0 pointsbenihana13y ago0 comments

>I don't get why people beg for followers at the end of their blog posts.

You don't understand why people promote themselves? You made it to the end of the blog post, which likely indicates that you enjoyed the content. Why wouldn't he say "hey follow me on twitter so that if I write another post that doesn't make it to HN front page, you can hear about it," to try to get some extra followers? Would you prefer he ask you to follow him at the beginning of the post?

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dhconnelly13y ago

There's a huge "Follow so-and-so" Twitter button immediately following the writing, so I'm pretty sure that the corny self-promotion didn't need to be part of the article itself. I read lots of articles where this happens, and it's always jarring.

pjscott13y ago

I'm about as aware of those buttons as I am of individual grasshoppers in tall grass during summer, i.e. not very. They're everywhere, and I hardly ever want to press them. See also: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banner_blindness

robryan13y ago

The suggestion text has been shown to work better than just placing a button. Building up your personal brand can be worth a lot in the long run, so why not?

michaelgrafl13y ago

I don't like being manipulated. Every time I see a "You should follow me on Twitter" kinda thing I make it a point to not follow the author, or maybe even unfollow them.

Holding your readership in higher regards than a meaningless metric can be worth a lot in the long run, too.

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