Writing blog or web site content on a regular basis can be difficult. If you add in a dose of the dreaded writers block, chances are you could sit at your keyboard for hours and not type a single word. Perhaps social bookmarking can provide some inspiration.
For many writers, they have their favorite sites – but do they have their favorite bookmarkers? If you have added individuals with similar niche related preferences then checking items that they have bookmarked can be a good start. To a certain extent, this was the original idea behind social bookmarking.
The alternative is to use a social bookmarking site like StumbleUpon. Set your preferences to your niche then sit back and let SU take you through a random series of popular content. Stop and read what is relevant, stumble through to the next item if it has no interest.
There are several major benefits in using social bookmarking site for inspiration. The first is obvious – you do get inspired by an article. Other benefits include the introduction to new sites you may not have come across before (or a reminder of a site that you had forgotten about) and learning. You will be surprised at how much you can learn just by randomly visiting sites that others have bookmarked.
Many consider social bookmarking and the random viewing of pages as a ‘time waster’ and that this time could be better utilized. Sometimes, by ‘wasting’ 30 minutes you may find you have acquired new knowledge, been inspired to write (often more than one post too) and found new and interesting sites. It seems to me, with the right attitude, social bookmarking could also be considered an investment.
Social bookmarking is not just about promoting yourself. Sometimes you can gain a lot more by letting others promote to you.
