[MakinTheBestOfIt]

Figure I'd better get down how this works so there is no confusion for anyone...

Once a week, on Sunday, I will post a blog from our list.  The order is first come first served so there is not the pressure of picking and tracking who has gone and who hasn't.  You must have a blog in order to participate...we talked about allowing FB, but after some research it doesn't seem to fit in with what we are doing because only your fans can see your page.

You have a week to write a blog about the featured of the week.  You can write about their blog or their shop and build them up to be the hottest artists you've ever seen  !  After you have blogged, return to that weeks thread and post the link to your post. 

The rest of the week, the members of the ring will visit your blog and click and comment on your great choice!  This will help with traffic, Google, SEO, etc. and maybe even result in a sale or two!

The next Sunday a new victim, um member, will be announced and the cycle starts again.

In order to keep it manageable, I will cap the list at 15 to a ring.  As more people jump in I will form a second list and run two rings at once.   This way, you will be featured about every 3 months rather than once a year!  Hopefully, we can get enough people that it will warrant a bunch of rings at once and we will be able to mass promote each other.

Any questions?  Post them here...

[seedlingsjewelry]

For folks who participate in the blog ring it would be cool to have one of the new badges and a link to a page that had all the participating blogs listed (with the HAF blog at the top). That way folks who were like, 'ooh blog ring, who else is in there' can get to it in one fell swoop. And forgive if that page exists already...I know there is a page with all the shops.

[MakinTheBestOfIt]

Great idea!  I'll talk to Ambiant about working one more badge for us.

[seedlingsjewelry]

I thought we had a blog badge? I've got it up on my blog...no wait, I lie...I have the shop badge up there... 

[MakinTheBestOfIt]

My brain is on Sunday mode...we do have a forum/blog badge here http://handmadeartistsforum.com/grab-our-badge/

[Flyingcheesetoastie]

Oops, I didn't see this ban on FB so have already done a post on my page for the first week.  I was told that FB members could see it and only needed to be my fan to 'like' or comment on it, but I'm looking at this to see if it can be rectified in my page settings.

I'm a little sad that I can't be one of the 'Hottest Artists' just because I dont' have a blog...

[Larissa]

It's not that you're not a hot artist! 

It's just that blogging can be a great marketing tool, and what this idea does is promote hits and comments on everyone's blogs to make them pop up higher in searches and such, in addition to increasing the direct outreach.  So if you don't have a blog, YOU don't get assisted by it, except with fans on your FB page.

Think of it this way - Without an etsy store, I miss out on all the etsy promo!  Nothing I can do about that without creating a store I don't want.  Unfortunately, to do the blog ring, you kinda need a blog (that YOU may not want).   

[redfoxjewelry]

Oops, I didn't see this ban on FB so have already done a post on my page for the first week.  I was told that FB members could see it and only needed to be my fan to 'like' or comment on it, but I'm looking at this to see if it can be rectified in my page settings.

I'm a little sad that I can't be one of the 'Hottest Artists' just because I dont' have a blog...

Well, you could start one just for this and nothing else. It is a once a week thing. That's all. Do you have time for that?

[seedlingsjewelry]

Rachel, I use FB a lot so left a comment on your fan page 

[speranzajewelry]

Sounds great...anything we can do to drive traffic to our sites, and thereby our stores.

[JewelrybyNaLa]

Can this HAF blog link be used on my blog, or is it a private page reserved just for us?

http://handmadeartistsforum.com/forum/index.php?action=links;cat=1

[Flyingcheesetoastie]

Okies, cogs been grinding here but whatabout a Facebook Ring then?  I tentatively put my little pinky finger up to have a bash at running it? 

Miss Kimberley?

[Chainmaille By MBOI]

Can this HAF blog link be used on my blog, or is it a private page reserved just for us?

http://handmadeartistsforum.com/forum/index.php?action=links;cat=1

Not sure what link you are referring to the link you posted was to the links page if you are talking about the blog http://handmadeartistsforum.com then link away there is a badge there for it as well

[Larissa]

Can this HAF blog link be used on my blog, or is it a private page reserved just for us?

http://handmadeartistsforum.com/forum/index.php?action=links;cat=1

Not sure what link you are referring to the link you posted was to the links page if you are talking about the blog http://handmadeartistsforum.com then link away there is a badge there for it as well

I think the idea is that the badge that already exists links to the HAF blog.  What's being talked about is a Blog RING badge, that would identify all those specifically in the blog ring, and link back to a page of links to all the participating blogs.

[MakinTheBestOfIt]

Can this HAF blog link be used on my blog, or is it a private page reserved just for us?

http://handmadeartistsforum.com/forum/index.php?action=links;cat=1

Not sure what link you are referring to the link you posted was to the links page if you are talking about the blog http://handmadeartistsforum.com then link away there is a badge there for it as well

I think the idea is that the badge that already exists links to the HAF blog.  What's being talked about is a Blog RING badge, that would identify all those specifically in the blog ring, and link back to a page of links to all the participating blogs.

I'll look into one...let me take care of few other fires first and then get moving on a ring badge