Uncategorized - by Patrick Thornton on Monday, March 24, 2008 6:38 - 1 Comment

Simple Network Ask: Take This Poll

Ed Silverman from Pharmalot used a great (and now becoming classic) method of bringing his readers into his blog. He created a simple poll. A simple yes or no answer – and he’s received over 130 responses. Obviously these responses aren’t statistically significant, because the delivery method of the poll is through his blog – but by repeatedly doing something like this, which takes minutes to set-up, Ed is creating an invisible network around his blog.

My only constructive criticism would be: "Let’s take it to the next level."

Why not find 30-40 trusted sources and create quick polls like this for them using Google Forms. Then, not only can you receive feedback, but if the poll takers are chosen wisely, the results will have some weight behind them.

"Nine out of ten dentists recommend Colgate." The important part of that pitch is "dentist."


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Hassan Hodges
Apr 10, 2008 8:39

That’s a good idea, and a great way to get people more involved.

I just happen to be the tech guy on Pharmalot, so I think I’ll starting looking into this some more.

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Patrick Thornton is the editor and lead writer of BeatBlogging.Org. He is @jiconoclast on Twitter.
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