Getting comments from users on blog posts is a very rewarding experience for bloggers. Often bloggers want to encourage comments by giving something back to those that comments. On Simply Basic I keep track of the months “Top Commenters” in the sidebar, rewarding commenters who contribute the most. Another common reward method is to make your blog “dofollow.” This means that links have ther “nofollow” tags removed and that the links help their search engine rankings.
The nofollow versus dofollow topic is a heated debate. I used to be a dofollow blogger but changed after I noticed a large increase in worthless spammy comments.
The other day when I was browsing through a freelance website I noticed something that was quite disturbing. Someone was actually listing a freelance position to help them spam dofollow blogs. That’s right, spam for hire. Here’s an exerpt from the listing:
This project involves downloading a software program…and using the software to locate “do-follow” blogs. I will give you a list of 200 phrases and I will need you to enter each key phrase into the program, 1 phrase at a time. The program will take a few minutes for each key phrase…to locate blogs with the key phrase. Then you will sort the results and copy the URL of ONLY the “do-follow” blogs to a spreadsheet.
So is there any doubt dofollow blogs are being targeted? Luckily, spam blockers like Akismet make keeping spam off of your blogs a little easier. But still, be carefull when making your blog dofollow, you never know who’s sniping your blog.
Today Jeff Chandler at Weblog Tools Collection published an interesting article discussing the cost of a WordPress installation. The comments that followed were quite interesting to read. A lot of developers agreed that $20-$70 for a raw installation was fine. Of course, there was a strong argument that it should be free.
So how much is a WordPress installation? If you want my services, I charge $35/hour for a basic WordPress installation (minimum one hour). Why would I charge by the hour? Clients want different things in an installation. Some just need WordPress installed straight up. Others need plugins downloaded and installed. And others need a database created, FTP set up, plugins downloaded, and a theme customized to their liking. By charging a flat, agreed upon hourly rate I’m able to adapt to the clients needs on the fly with out always requesting an increase in the bid.
As you know, WordPress is free to download from WordPress.org. You are not paying for the software. You’re not paying for plugins or themes I may install unless they are professional (for-sale) items. So what are you paying for?
When you hire me you are paying for:
Of course, I highly recommend learning to install and configure WordPress for yourself. I’d much rather you higher me in a month to develop a custom plugin! So how can you learn it for yourself? Here are some resources that will help you on your journey to basic WordPress self sufficiency:
To sum it up, WordPress is a great blogging platform that is easy to use and easy to configure, if you know what you are doing. Even with all the resources available, however, some users are just more comfortable with others installing and configuring it for them. If you’re one of those, I’m here to help you, as are other developers. But don’t expect it for free unless you can do it yourself.
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