Except: it IS a pyramid scheme. And frankly, that’s the benefit for people like Darren: he’ll get the most benefit from this type of promotion because he is at the top of the pyramid.

I’d also make some argument that Darren isn’t any paragon of good taste: he’s promoted plenty of utter crap in the past and I’m sure he’ll do so again. I don’t think he’s doing it out of raw avarice; I suspect rather that he just reports on the wide range of things bloggers of all types will use, from the picky to the indiscriminate.

And IMNSHO, Entrecard falls into the indiscriminate camp.

I agree that there isn’t a pyramid scheme, but I do have to say that avid users of the system see their credit cost for advertising go up quickly, which puts them at the top of the list – however, they’re tiny blogs with little exposure for people to advertise. It’s a little misleading, to say the least.

A-listers like Problogger and John Chow really don’t do anything with Entrecard beyond using it to promote themselves with credit giveaways. Their ad slots are always full and people can’t queue in to advertise, they don’t advertise on other people’s blogs (as far as I can see – and they really don’t have to, between you and me), so they simply put up the widget and let people go crazy trying to get a spot.

For chain-dropping, I’ll quote the comment I left at Rudy’s blog:

“Since I wrote that quick review of my experience with Entrecard, I’ve dropped all activity there. I’m not dropping cards, I’m not accepting new ads, I’m not doing a thing. I’m getting hit up left, right and center by Entrecarders with blogs so bad that it isn’t worth my trouble checking them out. It’s unfortunate that there isn’t a filter for crap quality, because it means I don’t even check my inbox to see who dropped a card anymore. (My apologies to all the good sites dropping cards that I haven’t visited.)

I’m still getting hits to my site through it, despite the lack of activity. I can also see the potential value for very small blogs or those starting out, but there comes a point when these cheap tactics are better left behind.”
Chain dropping is the norm, Graham, not the exception, I’m afraid.

The sense of cheap and silly does not come from Entrecard itself. That feeling of cheapness comes from the high level of abuse from chain-droppers and credit grabbers. As I’ve mentioned, I feel there is good potential, but not until the abuse is addressed.

Also, it’s impossible to use Problogger as an example of someone who doesn’t feel it’s cheap and silly – Darren Rowse has no need to go trot about the blogosphere dropping cards to pick up credits to advertise on his blog. He’s number 17 for a reason and was in that position before Entrecard came along.

I am surprised to hear that Entrecard isn’t considered a traffic exchange program, because that’s commonly what people seem to be using it for – to gain traffic through advertising. I haven’t really seen anyone using the other services you’ve mentioned and my experience has been one of “There’s Jamie’s blog! Let’s grab a credit from him!” Some bloggers, of course, are very respectful. Many are not.

It is the only network that allows you to advertise affordably on other blogs, yes. I’ll grant you that – despite the good blogs being all queued up and full that there probably isn’t a hope in hell of ever advertising there to begin with.

I’ll stress again, Graham – the system is a good one with good potential, I believe. But there must be a way to curb the abuse going on or change the rules a bit so that we’re not being exploited just for the credits we offer.

As for advertising, I deny almost all cards – it’s incredible to see how many people don’t put the attention into creating a good virtual business card or who don’t pay attention to the relevancy of advertising on our blog.

I do hope to hear your comments, Graham. Discussion between the people who use services and the people who offer them is productive and often leads to better things. I may be taking a hard stance, but that may only be because I had high hopes and feel disappointed.

1.) Entrecard is NOT an MLM or Pyramid scheme. Members get NO referral commission or reward of any kind for promoting it and signing up other members. There is absolutely no pyramid or multi-level to speak of. Everyone in the system is treated exactly the same.

2.)Plenty of high quality blogs, such as ProBlogger and JohnChow have the widget on them. They’ve had the widget for months and are quite happy with it.

3.) Not everyone chain drops and zips from one to the next quickly. It’s way too black and white to assume that all the traffic you get is chain dropping traffic. It actually runs the whole gamut. Some of the traffic will stay, read a post or two, leave a comment, and move on. Some will just read a post. Some will just scan the blog quickly to see if anything interests them. Some will just drop a card and move on.

4.) Cheap and silly: ProBlogger doesn’t feel its cheap and silly, and he’s the number 17 blog in the world according to Technorati. We’ve had discussions about this. In fact, it promotes the community by offering a small space on your blog. Entrecard a very community oriented social network, and if that’s cheap and silly, then I would say the whole concept of blogging itself, or of facebook, is cheap and silly.

5.)Finally, the core service that Entrecard offers is NOT a traffic exchange, but in fact a social network. Take a look at mybloglog or blogcatalog, these services have been around for years. They have not worn off. We offer all the same social networking as these sites: forums, message systems, favorites, profiles, and more. We have a news feed to see what you’re favorite bloggers are up to, including what they’re selling in the shop, who they’re buying ads on, what they’re saying in the forum, and more to keep you well connected. But, suffice it to say that this is the only social network that also allows you to advertise for a day on nearly 4000 blogs and reach their audiences.

I suppose I am a bit biased in favor of the service, but what I have stated above is all truth and fact. It is not a pyramid scheme, it is a social network. Cheap and silly is a matter of opinion. Feel free to simply deny any bloggers who’s card doesn’t fit with your theme.

I like to be an informed seat-of-the-pants flier.

@ Rebecca – Yes, I do see Entrecard as just another game. Also, Blogrush didn’t even win me over for 1 hour. I think these gadgety types of affairs make blogs look cheap, honestly.

Hm. Well. I’ll give it a week or so, I think. But so far, I’m really not impressed and I’m really leaning towards Tony’s way of thinking.

However, I’m building my brand to sell my products, and that’s not what every other blogger is doing. I could see it being useful for other bloggers who aren’t brand-building, though, in the same way bloggers who don’t sell their own products use Adsense.

PS, Rudy – The A-List is likely dropping ads fot this exact reason, but just because the A-list does something doesn’t matter – see here for why: http://www.copyblogger.com/blogging-a-list/ … but since you put “A-List” in quotes, I’d imagine we’re on the same page

But as someone once commented: traffic is good. Even if they’re just “dropping by”. You may still get a chance to convert them.