Postscript to my post “Three Reasons Why I Left Entrecard”
Posted by
eli
on 3/01/10• Categorized as Consulting
Sheila Sultani, one of my favorite bloggers whose blog The Ad Master is Entrecard’s most popular blog in all categories, commenting on my previous post, said: 
“I really don’t understand why people who decide to leave EC feel like they need to then post about how awful it is. Are you going to do the same thing when adgitize and CMF don’t give you the traffic you want? EC should be such a small part of your overall advertising that it shouldn’t make that big of a difference whether you use it or not. I’m a little surprised that you would write such a negative post. It doesn’t really seem like your style.”
Chinaren, another nice blogger with a razor-sharp intelligence, wit and humor, also commented, saying in part:
“Wow, this comes over as fairly bitter Eli, though I’m sure you didn’t mean it that way.”
Well, as a blogger I sometimes blog about my experiences with Entrecard to share to my readers and fellow bloggers, for the purpose of enriching the discussion. However, it was not my intention to bash about Entrecard.
Certainly it was also not my objective to make fun of my fellow bloggers who use Entrecard.
After all, Entrecard has still a lot of wonderful, no-nonsense and nice bloggers, Sheila Sultani and Chinaren among them.
In addition, there are Lainybelle of Lainy’s Musings, Big Daddy Richard of Traders’ Hub, Sandy of Travelling Suitcase, John of EZGreat Life, Martin of Cornymans Money-blog, Aldon of The Orient Lodge, and JuneZach of The Fledgling Blogger, to mention just a very few.
Though Entrecard is a cold virtual place, yet the above-mentioned bloggers, and many more, have made and continue to make Entrecard community a warm, vibrant and friendly place that makes blogging a learning experience, as far as I was concerned.
In retrospect, Entrecard, for all its flaws and imperfections, is still a good network, especially for newbie bloggers to grow their blogs, and a good place for both newbie and established bloggers to interact and network.
The three reasons I gave for leaving Entrecard were my personal observations and I respect existing bloggers who remain with Entrecard.
But as I said, there is always a time to join and a time to leave, a time to blog and a time not to blog. To each his own. Each person has his/her own reasons for joining, for remaining, and for leaving Entrecard.
The philosopher Henry David Thoreau said: “If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.”
Sorry Eli I don’t agree that you were bitter at all. I believe you wrote that post because in reality I think you are a lot like me. I miss EC is many ways and the people there. I still even think to drop on the widget when I visit a blog that has the widget.
In reality I believe neither of us wanted to leave, but the fact is and still is, that the EC program is not being taken care of in regards to the problems that the bloggers themselves have brought up time and again. Why they don’t open up the EC blog for their customers to be able to express these feelings is one of the reasons, bloggers like yourself have posted about it on their own blogs.
The reason anyone joins in the first place is to become more known and to get TRAFFIC. Anyone who thinks differently is just fooling themselves. To spend 3 hours a day to do a mindless task is in no way helping them become a better blogger.
The guy who even went as far to say that now people are actually spending longer, some up to an hour on his blog, is I am sorry laughable. If your doing all these drops how the hell can you even think to spend that kind of time if your using EC.
Facts are facts, none of these traffic services unfortunately give you good stats, except for the almighty hit of traffic. The people that do enjoy your blog will spend time and read or at least scan what you have posted.
I am also sorry Sheila felt the need to bash you in regards to saying the things she said in regards to CMF or Adgitized. It sounded like it’s my ball and if we don’t play the way I want to play then I am taking my ball and going home and thats, that.
Lastly I don’t remember you bashing anyone for staying with EC, if anything maybe someone from EC will read your post and try and work on the problems instead of shutting down communication. We all have a special place in our blogger mentality for EC and even thou we chose to leave, want nothing but the best for EC and the bloggers who still use it. I hope someday they can fix a few of the glaring flaws, I would not be adverse to going back. I just don’t have the time to spend any longer to maintain the standard of making the program work for me.
Hi Glenn,
Thanks for your very sensible and intelligent comment, as always.
I got a good laugh when you said that: “I believe you wrote that post because in reality I think you are a lot like me. I miss EC is many ways and the people there. I still even think to drop on the widget when I visit a blog that has the widget.”
Well, maybe. Dropping EC could be addicting, sometimes.
Of course, I agree with you that we who have left EC have nothing but the best interest of EC at heart. After all, some of our wonderful blogger-friends are still there. And it’s very convenient visiting their blogs thru EC because we can just make a drop list and visit them easily.
The first time I read your post it actually had a different title. You removed the second part which would make it negative in a sense but at least you changed it to “Three Reasons Why I Left Entrecard”.
Entrecard is just a part of my blogging life. It is not the main thing but in fairness it has greatly helped my blog to receive good traffic. I am not sure how long will I stay with EC as I completely agree with you that there is an appointed time of all the things under heaven just like having a time to drop and a time to stop.
What makes blogging real fun to me? It’s the warmth of friendship I have in the blogosphere.
A big thanks for the special mention Atty. Eli!
I’m like Sheila and Chinaren. I found that it was a bit out of your style and it surprised me. After all, didn’t you once say that it was your secretary who was actually dropping the E-cards?
I find that people who have had bad experiences with E-card generally are the ones who knock it and encourage others to leave it. I have no problem with E-card so I generally just look at posts that “knock” E-card as a bit of sour grapes.
Oh and should I take that as a knock on my blog that I was not included in the well known E-carders after all I’ve been right there in the top of my category too?
I’m the guy who even went as far to say that now people are actually spending longer, some up to an hour on my blog: it’s no joke, buster! Not everyone in Entrecard is wildly dropping toward the 300-a-day mark. One of the bloggers who visits me and stays a spell is on dial-up. She averages about 25 drops a day. She’s more interested the community aspect of blogging. She reads my articles, comments if need be, sometimes says “hi” in the C-Box. Within the last hour someone visited me via http://ezee.ca/quick.htm and spent 14 minutes on my blog!
Here’s The Twitterer’s Tweet:
ah, yes, june zach answered my question. the second part of the title sound kinda negative and some readers, including me, felt inclined to leave a comment and share our own POV.
will be missing you in Entrecard. but will see you in my adgitize rounds.
happy blogging!
I have to agree with all of you. It is a way to meet more bloggers and get some traffic. I in no way, can drop 300 drops a day. I just do what I can and really enjoy looking at other blogs and I especially like reading all of your blogs. It is too bad the EC has to be so stubborn as far as the forum and working things out goes. Glad to read all these comments and posts.
I really don’t mind anybody, especially you Eli, writing something bad about Entrecard. In a way it makes everyone realize that not all smells good when you put on that widget. It gives us a different perspective that informs new bloggers that there is more than just ‘dropping and running’.
What you wrote is something that should always be put in mind when you see your traffic rate increase along with your bounce rate. It is something that has existed in our subconscious, but more often ignored because we got too preoccupied dropping and generating those precious ECs.
Keep writing those critical articles!
@ Kirhat, you are a gem. I like your being objective and your attitude of looking at the issues with the “two sides of the coin” perspective.
Some EC users are emotional and they take criticisms about EC seriously, even if its constructive criticism meant to improve EC as a whole.
I’ve observed that EC stimulates a lot of reactions, both positive and negative, compared to other ad networks like Adgitize, PW or CMF Ads for that matter. I don’t know what’s in it in EC that makes people react immediately and take sides.
I don’t know what to say about this.. but the fact is I’m not leaving the entrecard to many memories in entre to my blog .. but I think this is not about joining or leaving but participating.. entrecard grow from the user it self .. maybe you still remember about power dropping and down because the user too… but I like your honesty … keep da spirit to blog
I don’t think you were bitter…sometimes people can just “read” when there’s really nothing to read or most oftentimes, does not read “between the lines”—-they misunderstand a post just because of a word or a sentence you’re using or some particular feeling you evoke in one phrase or two.
That is why my blog is often misunderstood. One of them is that particular commenter you just mentioned whom you so admire who bashed me just because she thinks I was conceited and proud—-if you read one of my recent posts about brutal attacks on my blog—-there you would see my experience are far worst than yours.
One thing I’ve learned, I would never be any way be slammed down by these negative commenters like her. Go on and say whatever you want to say as long as you don’t demean any one without any provocation.
“Go on and say whatever you want to say as long as you don’t demean any one without any provocation.”
Thanks Bingkee for your comment and words of wisdom.
I know you have lots of experience on people blasting your blog and hating your posts just because what you wrote are not to their liking, but yes, we could not please everybody. Besides, we are not blogging for meet their expectations.
Eli, I did not feeling you were bashing EC, nor did I feel you were bitter. I appreciate the insightful, intelligent, witty comments you leave on my blog. I do not sense you are a vindictive type of person at all. You were just presenting your reasons for leaving EC and that’s all.
Interesting. Just the other day at one of the blogs I work for someone thought it fit to tell how we should write that blog.
And now the same happens here.
Blogs are great to visit, because they represent the honest opinions of people. (I’m not talking about the advertisement sites.)
So you just blog the way you feel and want.
I don’t agree with the list you gave. Not completely.
After the recent EC drama, I’ve seen at least one person start his private hunt to prove who dropped well and who didn’t, and that simple fact gave me a bad taste in my mouth.
I always consider mutual trust a good startingpoint of a community.
Well, to me it’s gone.
Or maybe I should say I’m a bit more critical of where I drop and where I don’t.
I can understand people leave, and I can understand their reasons.
I can also understand why people stay.
A bit of discussion isn’t a problem, as long as people see the difference between criticism of thing and criticism of a person.
Have a nice weekend.