Part 1 :Turn Your Grab My Button into a Free BillBoard

You've posted a "Grab My Button" scroll box in your side bar. Now friends can copy the code and install it on their blogs. They'll use your button to showcase their 'favorite sites', related blogs, niche networks or as a 'thanks' for helping them with a problem. All at no cost to you. Once the code is out there, your button can travel anywhere in the blogosphere.  Here are some tips to use this free promotion to your greatest advantage.

1. Don't make it difficult to display your button.

   Comment from an eager user at Food Storage Made Easy :

   Your Button is a bit too wide for the area in my blog. Is there anyway to reduce the size of the button so I can post it at my website?

   The button in question is 200 wide x 108. The user's sidebar comfortably holds up to 165 wide image.  Problem!

   Solution: Ideally your button should be the size of a 125 x 125 ad, making it more versatile as a promotion ad or a trading button. If your current rectangular image degrades as 125 wide, then use your software to find other sizes that work (rescale in proportion). A width of 150 - 160 works for most sidebars. Update your scroll box code to show the default size (200 x 108). Add a note below the scroll box telling readers the other size values they can use (165 x 89 or 125 x 66).

   <img src=http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3234/2979643396_1a51b2aec7.jpg?v=0 width="200" height="108">
   

   <img src=http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3234/2979643396_1a51b2aec7.jpg?v=0 width="165" height="89">
   

   <img src=http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3234/2979643396_1a51b2aec7.jpg?v=0 width="125" height="66">
   

2. Find out who is using your image and make contact.

   Question from a blog owner :

   How will I know who has grabbed my button? Problem!

   Solution: Add unique search term in your button code as part of the 'Alt=" attribute. When you search Google, put quotes around your keyword and track down who installed your code.  This could be a useful way of promoting your blog.

   e.g. See this code excerpt:

    img border="0" src="http://farm4.static ..." alt="BWS tips button" 

   Then search:

   You can also set up a Google Alert and get e-mail alerts whenever someone grabs your button. Remember to put keywords in quotes.

3. Change the face of your button whenever you want.

   Question :

   How do I tell everyone to replace my old button image?
   

   Your button is now on who knows how many blogs and you want to do a recall. Maybe you changed the blog's tag line or logo? Problem!

   Solution:  Don't tell them anything, just update your image and see if they notice.  The image location must be the same since for current buttons to pick up the revised one. However you CAN NOT REPLACE a Flickr image unless you are on the paid subscription. So your button code must point to your own blog image library or to one like PhotoBucket.com where you can replace the original.

   If you use your own media library, have the new image ready on your pc, make a copy of the current image with a new name.  Then delete the current one from the online image library.  Yes, this breaks any links to the image, but you then quickly upload the new one with the same name!   No one will know, but be careful that the sizes are exactly the same.

Stay Tuned for Part 2 ....

Sign up for our RSS feed so you don't miss future posts. Learn to use PhotoBucket's online tools to make your button image act like a billboard changing as you want, when you want.

We'd love to hear your comments on how you or your friends use your button image!