Blogging Basics: The Etiquette of Sharing a Blog Post
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Over the next few weeks or months, I’m going to be sharing tips and ideas for newbie bloggers or those of you just considering starting a blog. Blogging Basics is going to be a really informal thing, meaning don’t necessarily look for it on a predictably regular basis. This week, we’ll be starting with some tips on the etiquette of sharing a blog post when it comes to properly sharing posts that you’ve enjoyed by other bloggers.
First, one very basic point – blog is short for weblog. A blog consists of all the posts on the site. A single entry on a blog is commonly referred to as a “post” or an “article.” Sometimes I hear people refer to a blog when they clearly mean a blog post.
If you’ve been reading blogs for awhile, you’ve probably come across a post that you really enjoyed – one that you’d like to share. Bloggers love when you enjoy their writing enough to want to share it, but there are some do’s and don’ts when it comes to properly – and legally – sharing someone else’s work.
Understand Copyright Laws
It’s important to understand copyright laws. A blogger’s original words and photographs are their work. Original text and photos cannot be reprinted on someone else’s blog without the original author’s permission. Copying and pasting another blogger’s work on your blog without permission is a violation of the Digital Media Copyright Act. It may seem like sharing, but it is stealing.
Common thinking is that it’s a compliment to the blogger to share their post with your readers. It is a compliment, but the correct way to share is to link back to the original post. You can do so a couple of ways:
1. Share a snippet of the of the post – a couple of sentences, but no more than a paragraph and not the first 150 characters (more on that coming up) – with a link back for your readers to read the rest of the post.
2. Write a response to the post you enjoyed with a link back to the original post.
3. Tell your readers what you enjoyed about the original post and include a link back for your readers to read the rest.
Think of sharing a blog post like sharing a great book with a friend. Linking back to the original post is kind of like loaning the book out to a friend to read. Copying and posting the entire post on your blog is more like photocopying the entire book and passing it out to everyone you see.
So, what’s wrong with sharing the first 150 characters? Google looks at the first 150 characters for search engine results. If Google finds the same content on multiple sites, it’s flagged as duplicate content and isn’t shown (or ranks much lower) in search engine results, which makes it harder for readers to find either site – the original or the one that shared the post.
Using Photos
Photos are covered under copyright laws just like blog posts. You can’t use another blogger’s photos without their consent. One exception to that is using a photo from other blogger’s sites for posts that have been submitted for use on your blog. For example, when someone submits a post to be shared on the Homeschool Showcase, a right to use a single photo with the post link is implied. I always include a photo credit and link the photo to the original blog post.
It’s best to use your own photos – and it’s really important that you’re using quality photos in your blog posts. If you don’t have a photo that fits the post, though, a great source for photos is flickr creative commons. When someone shares their photos on a site such as flickr with a creative commons license, you are free to use that photo with attribution. Under the license heading, click the some rights reserved link to see if and how you can use the photo.
With most creative commons photos, you can use the photo – and even make some modifications to it, such as adding text – as long as you credit the photographer (usually by linking to the original photo or profile page).
Sharing another blogger or photographer’s work is a great compliment…when it’s done correctly. When it’s done incorrectly, it feels a lot like having your work stolen and it hurts everyone.
If your work has been taken without permission, the best way to handle it is calmly and with grace, as most times I think it’s done in ignorance, rather than out of malice. If you find your work used without permission:
1. Email the blogger. If you can find the blogger’s contact information, email her privately. Explain that the article or photograph was used without permission and that this is a copyright If your infringement. Ask that the content be removed according to DCMA regulations.
2. Contact the site administrator. If your work has been shared on a website or forum, rather than on a blog, look for the site administrator’s contact information and send your DCMA take-down request to that address. Site administrators usually handle that very quickly because copyright violations are detrimental to their site.
3. Check WhoIs. If you can’t find an email address on the site, sometimes you can find out who the site is registered to by using a domain name search.
4. Hit them in the wallet. If it’s clear that the site using your material is a commercial site – in other words, your material is not being used innocently – Problogger has some excellent tips for how to hit the content scrappers where it hurts.
I hope these tips help you to understand how to correctly share someone else’s work and what to do if someone uses your content without your permission. If you’ve ever found your content used elsewhere, what tips would you add for how to handle it?
Kris Bales is a newly-retired homeschool mom and the quirky, Christ-following, painfully honest founder (and former owner) of Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers. She has a pretty serious addiction to sweet tea and Words with Friends. Kris and her husband of over 30 years are parents to three amazing homeschool grads. They share their home with three dogs, two cats, a ball python, a bearded dragon, and seven birds.
Hi Kris. Thanks for the great post. I love to learn about blogging from people who have as much experience as you. I have a question. How would you know if someone ‘shared’ your content? Is it something that you should look for? Or does it just come up say next to one of your posts on Google?
Thanks, Marianne! I hope the series of posts is helpful. Some ways to find shared content include:
1. Setting up Google Alerts that flag you when certain phrases are found online.
2. Analytics programs – I use Google Analytics and Stat Counter. Of course, this only works if a link back to your site in included and people click it.
3. Word of mouth – Very often people will email me to let me know they’ve found my content elsewhere online.
Yes, yes, yes!!! Thanks for writing this! I believe most of the plagiarism out there is more from ignorance than from malicious intent, so this is a good, good thing to be writing! Off to share now!
This is great information, Kris and I really appreciate it!
Thanks for this! I am a relatively inexperienced blogger and this is all very helpful information. I have never heard of flickr creative commons. I googled ‘images of _____’ for photos I needed for a post in the past. Is that wrong?
Yes, that’s probably in violation of copyright laws, Collen. If you’ve gotten an image from Google, you have no way to know who to credit or if you have permission to use it, unless you followed the link to the original website and checked the sites policy on using photos. Unless express permission to use the photo has been given, giving credit does not equal permission to use the image.
Hope that helps! (And, don’t feel too bad…I think we’ve all done that starting out before we knew better.)
This is a great run-down of the basics! Thank you for this post!
and pixosphere.com is a family friendly photo source. All photos are permitted to use on blogs. 🙂
Hi Kris-
I know this is an old post, but I’m looking to start a blog. Some of the content I want to post about is reviews or posts about diy recipes or crafts that I find. What’s the best way to link back to the original poster of a recipe or craft?
I wouldn’t post someone’s entire recipe or craft tutorial on my site. I’d say something like, “I discovered this recipe/craft on XYZ blog (hyperlinked). You can find the recipe/craft here: {title of recipe/craft hyperlinked to the specific post}.” Then, I’d go into my review or post with my original pictures, thoughts, feedback, etc. Hope that helps!
Thank you so so much!! I haven’t started my blog yet, trying to research and setup how I want the flow to be. 🙂
You’re welcome.