Dean's World

On a regular basis, I get email from people who want me to promote something for them. At least half the time, the email will either fail to include a link at all, or, will include a hyperlink but the linked article will be missing crucially important data. For example (not to pick on anyone, this is just the latest example) a radio person today emailed me a link to where he was announcing that he's interviewing a celebrity. But when I hit the link it did not mention where the show is to be broadcast or when it is to be broadcast or even the name of the show, nor did it give any other information on how anyone who wants to hear the interview can do so.

This sort of thing happens to me at least a few times a week. I'll get emails from publishers wanting to help promote some book, but they'll give no link to where people can find out about the book. Or a non-profit group will mail a lengthy announcement to me, but then will include no link where I can direct people to read the press release for themselves.

I am mystified by this behavior, but it's terribly common. I'm not complaining so much as I'm trying to remind people to think harder about these things. If you want bloggers to help you promote something, you have to go out of your way to be blogger-friendly. That includes always having a direct hyperlink they can use, and that hyperlink should give people *all* the pertinent information *in one place*.

* Update * Trudy Schuett rightly labels this behavior "Magical Thinking", and says it's commmon in her experience too.