A blogroll can be a beautiful thing. Some, though, really stand out above others. Donâ??t underestimate the importance of your blogroll â?? it can be an invaluable tool to help you attract links and make important contacts.

As youâ??ll see in the list below, your writing style isnâ??t the only tip-off you can give to others about the type of person you are â?? your personality can also shine through in your blogroll. Use it to showcase your favourite books, music, podcasts, conferences, and blogs. Trying to highlight different interests and exposing your readers to them is a sound way to show your human side â?? never a bad thing.

And donâ??t blindly think you have to label it as a blogroll. It can really be called anything. Some variations Iâ??ve seen include Andy Wibbels â??Professional Crushesâ?�, Christinaâ??s â??eBeautiesâ?� and Guyâ??s â??Blog Scratchingâ?�, to name a few. Again, this speaks to the human side of things.

On to the list:

â?¢ Graphic Define: The other day, I received a comment from Daniel Schutzsmith thanking me for some resources I linked to. Check out his blogroll â?? youâ??ll want to thank him for the same reason.

â?¢ American Copywriter: Includes everything you can think of, including music, photo albums, podcasts and blogs. These links play a prominent role in the overall look and feel of the blog itself, and give readers great insight into the personalities behind the AC podcast and blog.

â?¢ Tom Peters: Instant credibility if youâ??re listed here. But the wonderful thing about this list is how complete it is. Tom clearly is a champion of the little guy, as well as the big. Plus, his is an exhaustive list of some of the best business related blogs you can find.

â?¢ Hugh MacLeod: Hughmungous. Highlights another way to host a blogroll â?? he leads readers to his Bloglines newsreader. (Excuse the terrible, terrible pun up there.)

â?¢ BlogWriteforCEOs: Debbie Weil takes a business approach here. One list highlights blogs written by CEOs and senior level executives, another focuses on corporate blogs, a third lists blogging resources, and then comes what she calls â??Other smart blogsâ?�. Essentially, she uses her blogroll to validate her position as a blog coach and in turn has become THE resource for all things related to corporate blogging. Can you do the same in your field?

â?¢ Beyond the Box Score: This multiple contributor baseball blog has categorized links by MLB division, leading readers to individual team blogs (fan administered) and then on to other blogs for other sports â?? and an extensive list of other baseball links. Clean + nicely categorized = easy to follow.

â?¢ Press Think: This is an interesting approach. Instead of just providing a link, Press Think gives the reader a little background and context â?? ultimately saving time and energy for those who arenâ??t interested in being sent on a wild goose chase.

So there you have it, a few different approaches you can take to setting up a blogroll. In my mind, though, there’s one important criteria you should keep in the back of your mind when setting up your blogroll: don’t try to be everything to everyone. Your blogroll is best off as a list of the links most relevant to your readers â?? ideally, to the blogs that have had the biggest influence on you. If youâ??re going to link, make sure every link counts.

If youâ??ve come across some blogrolls that stand out to you, please feel free to add them in comments.

Related stuff:

â?¢ Bud Parr at TypePadTips wonders: Is the blogroll dead?

â?¢ Visit Common Craft for an extensive explanation of what a blogroll is and why you would want one.

â?¢ Blogrolling is a link list manager that is â??designed to make your blogging life easierâ?�. Let me know if you have an opinion about this system.

â?¢ For WordPress users, check out Chipsâ?? Tips for a new opml-blogroll widget.

â?¢ As mentioned up top, Bloglines allows you to share your subscriptions with others.

This entry was posted on Monday, January 1st, 2007 at 9:32 pm and is filed under Blogging. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.