Posted on December 21st, 2007

legs<Rant> Imagine our surprise to learn that, earlier this year, StumbleUpon trolls were publicly calling for my death.

Our blog is known as a search marketing “advice” publication, so here we’ll share a sadly funny SEM factoid. Some of the most successful AIMCLEARBlog posts were written about and drove OODLES of traffic from StumbleUpon, to a great extent from negative SU reviews for posts about SU.

I mean SU sent us an incredible amount of visitors since our start in March. In retrospect and after researching, we were surprised to learn that quite a bit of buzz-traffic came from those in SU who were totally critical of the fact that I had the AUDACITY to WRITE about SU, truly my favorite social media community. Some individuals employed nasty rhetoric & even suggested that I kill myself…really.

We don’t mind heat and don’t need to get out of the kitchen. Still, intellectually we’re amazed at the “thumbs down” and ugly sentiments, delivered by crabby SU trolls, for heartfelt work. Here are a couple of favorite shitty SU reviews of our post “6 Reasons to love StumbleUpon,” which drove tons of traffic-over 70,000 uniques.

arleas rated 6 months ago

[AIMCLEAR is] “another ass-kissing blog… “…This is unworthy of being a stumble simply because it’s of more interest to people who have never heard of Stumbleupon…and the rest of the ‘article’ is just opinions on why the author loves SU… big deal…”

Nitku rated 6 months ago

“It’s like reading product reviews of something you’ve already bought…I’ll just make sure if everyone else too thinks it really is good. What bothers me is that looks like every other blog post I stumble upon is about how Stumbleupon kicks ass. Whee.”

iper-Wolf33 rated 6 months ago

“What good does STUMBLING to this page do??”

orangerules907 rated 6 months ago

“oh hey more brown-nosing.”

Loving SU Must Be Fake
I guess since I’m an author who loves SU my motivation can only be selfish. Ok, maybe it’s because I’m a SEARCH MARKETING blogger that pisses off some crabby StumbleUpon natives and makes me selfish in their eyes.

Search marketing insidersoften say to HIDE the fact that I’m a Internet marketer. Wait, don’t those SEM conference speakers say to be “transparent?” Neil Patel says to get a hot chick avatar and don’t reveal that I’m an SEM. Which one is it?Well sorry, I just can’t fake it. I love SU AND my business is search. Tamar says the true hallmark of social media is AUTHENTICITY.Maybe the mob isn’t so wise AFTER ALL.

Here are some lovely troll review-ditties for “My StumbleUpon Friend,” a post from earlier this year. These helped drive tens of thousands of unique visitors:

ragingtexan rated 4 months ago

“I think you craven traffic-whores need to maximize the amount of bullets entering your mouth and exiting your skull.”

Tyfus rated 4 months ago

Whore. Dirty, dirty whore.

isshe rated 4 months ago

“i’ll tell you how to maximize stumbleupon: try doing it dead.”

Umm OK…suggesting suicide might be a bit radical. Anyway in our posts “6 Reasons to love StumbleUpon,” “My StumbleUpon Friend,” “Is Facebook Bleeding Out StumbleUpon,” “StumbleUpon Gets Facelift. Beta Upgrade Unveiled to Wider Group,” and “Will Ebay Wreck StumbleUpon” we DID in fact actually write about StumbleUpon.

I’m SORRY if we pissed any SU trolls off. OK, not really…Nothing can diminish my affection and respect for this community. I love search marketing so OF COURSE that’s a well covered topic in AIMCLEARBlog. I love SU a ton…ALSO well covered…yada, yada, yada.

For now, to those in SU who are critical of articles about SU, FUCK off (Even Danny Sullivan dropped ONE F-Bomb this year). Is it possible we actually meant all that nice stuff about SU? Could it be that we were being true to our hearts and surprised by the traffic? Maybe SU naysayers wouldn’t know authenticity if it hit them in the head.

To the majority of SU folks who support our writings about SU, THANK YOU for spotting honesty and passion when it’s right in front of you. To the rest of you…get a life </Rant>

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  • Chris H.

    Wow, I feel better now knowing that I’m not the only one who got ripped for writing about SU. I love it for surfing too.

  • Marty Weintraub

    @ Chris: Imagine our surprise to learn that, months ago, SU trolls were calling for my death. LOL. Thanks for stopping by.

  • 5ubliminal

    This is my last post before I leave in vacation so first, before it gets ugly, I wanna say Merry XMas and a Happy New Year!

    On the otherhand, aimclear my man, you kind of have a ki$$ a$$ attitude. Maybe some comments were a bit harsh but I’ve noticed many posts / comments of praise and sometimes you just gotta stand straight and take what’s coming your way like a man. I’ve been most entertained with Caroline Middlebrook when she got haters running her over because her silly, unasked-for thank you notes on Stumble which were a clear way of asking for trouble. When you get a Thank You for virtually nothing … you think about hidden agenda … and nobody likes hidden agenda!

    I get stumbled from time to time but I only got one bad review (nothing personal) and never said thanks for a Stumble. If I say thanks or ki$$ a$$ it means I aknowledge they did not Stumble my sheet ’cause they liked it or for its quality but maybe because they liked me! And that is not a good enough Stumble reason for me.

    And when you make a post on “How to Game StumbleUpon” (My translation: “How to Use & Abuse Stumblers”) you can’t expect gratitude from people who are told upfront they are being used and abused for the sake of a visit, bandwidth consumption and maybe for a lousy buck.

    My 2cents. Flame me now or forever hold ya’ peace!
    PS: Expect any replies from me in 1st week of January 🙂

  • Marty Weintraub

    @ 5ubliminal: I appreciate your perspective and am glad you stopped by to share…BTW, a comment calling for my DEATH is not “a bit harsh.” It’s Neanderthal. Travel safely 5ubliminal and have a wonderfully happy Christmas. m

  • Avinash

    Marty,

    Great writeup! StumbleUpon trolls like arleas (I’ve seen him talking crap in almost 95% of his reviews) are HIV viruses for any sane StumbleUpon member. I feel sick only seconds after reading his reviews.

    I’ve tried to control and am yet to leave a poke-in-the-eyes type of review on his profile but one day I’ll do this for sure if he doesn’t stop doing this shit. Sadly, there are hundreds of such trolls @ StumbleUpon and I don’t see the administration doing anything.

  • Marty Weintraub

    @ Avinash: It’s lovely to greet you here this evening. Thanks for lending the insight.

  • Avinash

    My pleasure, sir! I thank you for going ahead and writing about these trolls. Early this month, I wrote a post on my blog requesting to the general StumbleUpon community that they pay attention on the reviews.

    It’s really sad if a community of over 3 million people can’t save StumbleUpon from becoming a shitty place like YouTube where the review section is always full of 4th class comments.

  • Matt Ridout

    I agree 100% about this, I recently posted a Guide on SU and generally got a lot of good feedback. However there were a few that seemed to think it was ok to be rude to me, I believe these people are the ones bringing SU to “Digg” levels.

  • Liam Delahunty

    Isn’t being a dirty whore a good thing? Otherwise it’s a waste of good money.

    In any social site there are those who feel it’s not just their right, but their obligation to spout off at every given opportunity. Personally, I’ve always enjoyed your SU articles.

  • Marty Weintraub

    @Liam: yup!
    @ Matt: it takes ALL types.
    Good morning everybody. It could be an interesting day. We’re going to personally email each SU user mentioned in the article and invite them to comment.

  • Li Evans

    Great piece Marty, it’s sad that some trolls have to stoop to the “die die die!” type of comments, just sort of proves the level of their intelligence. Now if some troll were to come off with “may the fleas of a thousand camels…..” or something quirkier, ya might have to take them a bit more seriously. 😉

    You’ll always have detractors, most of the time it usually means that they are jealous of you for some reason, in this case that other stumblers actually did like your post. 🙂

    Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and no more F bombs till next year 😉

  • Sam Freedoms Internet Marketing Controversy Blog

    No way! First of all, excellent take-down, Marty… take it from one who knows.

    But, obligatory compliments aside, I never, in my wildest dreams realized that on SU it was THAT easy…!

    It sounds like taking candy from a baby or milking all the neighbors cows. I’ve never heard of such a wild bunch of self-defeatists who, ironically, cancel their own vote the moment they make it.

    Any pointers for replicating results, or should I just “stumble” into it like a bull in a China shop?

    Sam
    ps… like any particular headline or keyword that brings em out like bees to honey? Thanks!

  • Marty Weintraub

    @ LI: “and no more F bombs till next year,” I think that was the first F’emheimer ever in aimClearBlog. It was sort of liberating. We only have to wait a week until next year! Thanks for the good perspective.

    @ Sam: Best we can figure, just write from your heart about SU, tag it up with “StumbleUpon,” and the rest takes care of itself. It’s a for-sure minimum 500-1000 uniques over a couple of weeks and usually much much more. However, be careful. Folks tend to suggest that you kill yourself.

  • Marty Weintraub

    The Trolls are starting to weigh in. I emailed each person who called me a whore and wrote, "6 months ago you called me a whore and suggested that I should kill myself." This morning I wrote about YOU"…and provided the link to this post. 🙂

  • JMorris

    As stated on SU…

    I never understood the mental masturbation of flaming someone. Regardless of the motivation for writing about SU, the most effective way to diminish the impact of the work is to ignore it. Flaming it only ads buzz and makes the flamer look like a royal ass. How does the old saying go? If cannot say anything nice…

    I don’t necessarily agree with your calling out the trollers as it just feeds them. However, I can and do appreciate your frustration. When I was moderating on a forum of over 40,000 members, I had to deal with oxygen thieves on a regular basis. Mind you, I didn’t always keep my cool.

    What I took from that experience is it is best to ignore the idiots. Stooping to their level only tarnishes your “brand”. A good friend of mine taught me that, if you must respond, say something to the effect of, “Thank you for your comments. They will be considered accordingly.”

    This is a nice and professional way of saying, “Go f*** yourself.” 😉

    Again, I understand, and appreciate what you’re saying here, but I think ultimately, the impact on your image will be more detrimental than the temporary satisfaction of calling these idiots out.

    Just my 2 cents. Sorry, no refunds. 😀

  • Marty Weintraub

    @ Jim: Great perspective. The damage to our brand was done long ago 🙂 “oxygen thieves” = will remember that term forever. Thank you for the comment.

  • michael streko

    “Whore. Dirty, dirty whore.”

    Sorry, but i have to agree. :p

  • Marty Weintraub

    @ Michael: Takes one to know one 🙂

  • Goat

    You know, I wasn’t a “Stumble Troll” always. Once I was a normal stumbler wandering aound the net. Then you bitches entered my Stumbleque and a monster was born. So, from the mouth of Frankenstiens Monster, please splatter your brains on the ceiling with a 12 gauge!

  • Marty Weintraub

    @ Goat: You’ve really got a moving & poetic lilt to your writing style. Your parents must be very proud. Thanks for stopping by to validate the premise of this post.

  • Sam Freedoms Internet Marketing Controversy Blog

    Well, at least he’s at the point where he can admit he’s a “StumbleTroll”; yes, it might be minor, but it’s progress. Hope springs eternal….

  • Marty Weintraub

    @Sam: Thanks for rushing to our defense buddy!

  • JMorris

    The thing about trolls that inevitably wins out is that eventually, their immaturity and idiocy rises to the surface, makes a bit of noise, then disappears into the sea of voices.

    Much like water that springs from the ground, passes through the valley and moves on. It has no solid ground to contain it, therefore, it must flow and thrash upon the rocks that guide it until it inevitably reaches the sea where it is incorporated into the greater good.

  • Marty Weintraub

    @ Jim: “therefore, it must flow and thrash upon the rocks that guide it until it inevitably reaches the sea where it is incorporated into the greater good.” I was hoping you were subscribed to this thread for this very reason. Thanks for the excellent (and actually) poetic comment.

  • JMorris

    It’s a pleasure. After all, we can’t let the oxygen thieves steal our serenity. 😉

    Thinks to himself: Now, if only I could remember this stuff when I’m mad. 😀

  • MikeMarshall

    “So an Irishman, a Rabbi, and a StumbleUpon Whore walk into a bar…”

  • Marty Weintraub

    LAUGHING OUT LOUD!

  • caile

    I’m not even a marketer on SU. I’m attacked because I exist. I’ve been a daily stumbler for over two years now.

    I was strongly on the side of those against marketing blogs for the reason that they dilute the quality of our stumbles. I was angry and I’ve spoken out, but never in a hateful or threatening way. (I’ve since stopped altogether.)

    But the “trolls” (I call them “haters”) don’t just dilute the quality of our stumbles: they literally try to destroy our entire *existence* there. They RUIN it ALL. Not just the quality of our stumbles, but the whole point of being at SU to begin with: to enjoy ourselves in whatever way we see fit.

    So I’m viewing marketers as the lesser of two evils, and I hope the trolls get what’s coming to them. I hate “diluted stumble quality” (heaven forbid) as much as the next “SU old-schooler”… but I hate trolls/haters 1000 times more. They drive out perfectly innocent stumblers for the sheer purpose of “entertainment.” That’s what they claim in their hater’s group forum, they don’t try to hide it. So for them to give marketers hell for “reducing the quality of their time on SU” is ludicrous. They are the epitome of “killing the joy” of SU. Give them hell. There is a special place there for them. 😉

    Sincerely,
    caile-girl (who is dubbed a “drama queen” because she dares *gasp!* stand up to the trolls)

  • Marty Weintraub

    Calie, You are everything lovely about SU. At the end of the day, I don’t think eBay will like the publicity about to ensue. Welcome to aimClearBlog.

  • Brock

    You essentially ‘whored-out’ members of a social network, using personal information that they disclose to connect with each other to sell for marketing purposes, and then posted about doing so.

    In this day and age, when many of the ads we are flooded with promise to “stop malware” and “delete cookies that track your habits”, are you actually at all surprised at the outrage you caused by openly mining a social site for commercial profit?

    I can’t say that all of the negative responses were mature, but I would hardly call putting the word “die” at the end of an “I hate people like you” post a death threat.

    I worked insurance for several years, and can’t count the number of times my mother’s honor or children’s purity was called into question by someone upset that I had denied their claim. It comes with the territory in certain jobs, and I certainly didn’t make a federal case about it every time an upset claimant told me to f*** off and die.

    In a world where people are sick and tired of ads being shoved down their throat in ever more intrusive ways, if you are going to continue to spider people’s personal information for marketing *and then brag about it to those very people*, you really need to grow a thicker skin.

  • 5ubliminal

    Good comment Brock! Gooood comment 🙂

  • Marty Weintraub

    @ Brock/Subliminal: Thank you for stopping by to share your opinions.

  • Igor The Troll

    aimClear looks like you are wanted by the Stumble fascists Dead or Alive..:)

    You better buy life insurance before Gestapo knocks on your door!