Lately, with the growing exposure of LIFT06, and now the CoComment meme, the projects I am working on have been getting increasing exposure. And with exposure come trolls and, as Hugh calls it, pet toys. Both species have in common the fact that they will try to hit you with a baseball bat, usually to try to make some noise and get the sense that they actually exist in the blogosphere.

I watched the big guys get into some fights, got one tryout with a local who thought that our pricing for LIFT was nuts (after we refused to hand him a free entrance…as in blog chantage), and I came up with a few rules for you and me.

Rule #1: The last word does not matter
Twisted people always find a way to have the last word because their reasoning defies logic, which gives them a larger palette of options to attack you with. The thing is the last word does not matter as much as in real life. Blogs are not about being smart but about thinking you are being smart. In that context everybody can win anytime, it just takes a bit of imagination.

Rule #2: Trust the readers
People aren’t stupid. Trust them, they will do the math and acknowledge you are right if you are, in fact, right.

Rule #3: 99% of times, ignorance is the answer
Think a lot before answering something because it is what will transform a negative opinion in a fight. Be sure to answer when you have time and energy to dedicate to it. It is often a much better idea to wait a bit to see if people comment on a matter instead of jumping right into the mud pit.

Rule #4: Be aware than 10% of people make 90% of the noise
It’s not because you suddenly get three guys hitting you that the whole web is against you. What I found is that there is usually a minority of people looking for trouble, while the vast majority of constructive souls are less keen to get their hands into a good fight. Don’t over react, the people who agree don’t get into the arena but they are here.

Rule #5: Don’t look for instant confirmation you won
At LIFT I had people come to me and say “I stopped reading that guy’s blog because he said what he said”. Three months after the fact. Most good people won’t take the time to send you an email and say “I’m on your side”. Next time you see them they will let you know. Be patient.

Rule #6: Don’t let anger answer
In terms of importance that’s a big one. All experienced blog fighters will tell you they never answer an attack just after they found it. Take time, reflect on it, then answer when bitterness is gone. Anger will make you cross some lines you don’t want to cross, and that will be turned against you.

Rule #7: Stick to the facts
Give the readers the tool they need to understand what happens. Keep the personal attacks out of it, even if the other side did not display the same ethic. Personal attacks are fuel for the other side’s quest for recognition, giving the impression you are vulnerable.

Rule #8: Fight on your own turf
This one is big. It happened to me a while ago, that same old story. The guys lies about things, and when I answer with the undisputable facts he deleted my comment under a lame excuse. Truth hurts, so fight on your blog where you can expose it without being censored.

Rule #9: Fight the big guys. Only the big guys.
Scoble says: “First I check if people read the guy. If he has no comments, I don’t answer”. Good point. Don’t be fooled by those looking for trafic from a bigger fish. Obscurity is the worse sentence in the blogosphere, so let the system do the punishing for you.

Rule #10: Irony = arrogance

More generally: a blog fight is not the best time to crack a joke. Irony can easily be turned to arrogance by jealous people. Example: “You are an A-lister making fun of the smaller people”.

I am sure there are more. Feel free to add your stuff in the comments below.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 8th, 2006 at 11:43 am and is filed under blogosphere, english. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.