Thursday, November 8, 2007

Homeschool Gold - They Don't Want Me Either. :(

I noticed a little image on a blog I read today:



Apparently it's a site that you can join, have your blog listed and get neato rankings based on your visitors. I thought, heck, why not? I clicked the join button, filled out my info and left.

I came back tonight to this email message:

We're sorry, but after reviewing your blog we found it unfit for inclusion in Homeschool Gold. The following reasons were among the problems we found with your blog...

1. Use of profanity

We strive to keep the blogs linked from Homeschool Gold limited to the best homeschool blogs. We do not include blogs that use profanity.

Thank you,

Danny Carlton


Snotty, eh? Somehow 'best' equals 'no profanity'. Tiger sharks are to electric toothbrushes as best is to profanity.

Ah well.

My advice to Homeschool Gold:
- Target your audience more specifically by picking a name that reflects the specific audience you're catering too. Such a general name gives people strange ideas, say that Homeschool Gold caters to a diverse and general audience.

- Include an 'about us' page that explains your idea of what the 'best' blogs are.

- Give prospective members an agreement to acknowledge, FAQs or even just contact info so that they have a clear idea of what you expect before they waste time submitting their information.

These are pretty basic things to know if you're offering a service like Homeschool Gold's and want to present an honest image of that service. It's not rocket science.

And you know the irony? I bet it's the damn Disqualify Yourself From the Homeschool Blog Awards! post that sunk me! Apparently though, it didn't sink me with What's My Blog Rated? as they only give me this:
online dating

I got sited for the use of 'Whore' once. It didn't pick up my use of the F-Bomb in the disqualifying post I mentioned.

Just one more note, kudos to Homeschoolbuzz.com who really do welcome bloggers of different stripes, even if we use profanity or hold very different ideas and beliefs. I really appreciate that, now especially.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

LOL, oh just face it, you cuss and you're "liberal" and you don't care if your blog is a "blessing" to anybody. They'll never let you join the club. Why would you want to anyway, look at the descriptions there... ugh.

Dawn said...

You're right of course but I honestly didn't mean to be a shit disturber with this though...Just thought I'd sign up.

I actually saw a blog or two I read and some secular looking ones...Oh well. At least my dog loves me.

:)

Anonymous said...

Dogs have more sanity and common sense than a lot of humans I know... :-) Well I for one appreciate your "realness". I will do up a common sense award and send it to you.

Alastriona, The Cats and Dogs said...

Don't feel bad, while we may not be able to qualify for their holier then thou club, we have more fun.

Dawn said...

Darn straight Alasandra. :)

kitten said...

I'm like regular mom, she posted about the same thing, they should put Hollier than thou home school blog. LOL!

Anonymous said...

Well darn, now I know not to go submit my blog there. LOL

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the tip on the Homeschool Gold site, found some real gems there.

Dawn said...

You're welcome!
I'm glad you found it of use. It actually has a few blogs I read myself.

I really don't have a problem with what they are, it's the fact that they don't seem to be upfront about it that bothers me.