Lately, the program “Entrecard,” which allows web owners to drop a virtual business card when visiting other websites, has taken the blogging world by storm. According to Entrecard.com, bloggers now place “3,000 ads per day on Entrecard.” Currently, I have my Entrecard widget installed into this site’s right sidebar and though it is a bit big for the slot, it looks better than the smaller Entrecard widget option. Many people seem to be using taking advantage of Entrecard to spam their site’s name around the web. This is one reason that blogger John Cow felt compelled to remove the E-card widget from his website. In my opinion, much of the generated Entrecard traffic isn’t very valuable. Many people just quick look for the Entrecard widget, drop their card, and leave. There is definitely potential to have a high bounce rate from Entrecard visitors.

I do, however, feel that the benefits of using the Entrecard widget definitely outweigh any negative aspects. Why? Because there are actually many sincere, non-spamming Entrecard users and it is a great way to generate traffic. By completely removing or not installing Entrecard on my website, I feel that I am definitely missing out on some bonus traffic. The Entrecard credits that I’ve built up can definitely come in handy as a prize for a contest or can be used to advertise on a high-traffic, popular blog. Another benefit from Entrecard is that you may notice your RSS subscriber number increasing, which is definitely a big plus! And though there may be many spammers using Entrecard, my website is attracting a lot more traffic. In my opinion, generating 10 spammers and 10 quality visitors is better than generating 0 spammers and 6 quality visitors. As web moderator, it is easy to eliminate most Wordpress spam. When Entrecard traffic is bombarding your website, I recommend making it a personal challenge to get the card droppers to stay and actually check out your posts by displaying interesting content. If you are able to work up a strategy to get chronic Entrecard droppers to stay at your website by writing interesting aricles or creating a catchy layout, you can definitely bet that you will see a large increase in the amount of returning traffic!

If you haven’t already installed the Entrecard widget, I recommend you try it out and make a personal evaluation. Though I have received a lot of spam via other Entrecarders, I have also received very good, quality cards. There are some free Entrecard designers out on the web as well. If you would like a custom design, I recommend searching google: “free custom entrecard design” and checking out the websites that are giving this offer. Most websites that offer “free Entrecard designs” require you to link to their site in one of your posts, which in my opinion, is definitely a fair exchange for their designer services. Having a customized Entrecard widget is a great way to make your card “stand out from the crowd” and generate more clicks to your website while advertising on somebody else’s widget. Not only does a customized Entrecard advertising square help to rake in an increased amount of traffic, but it also increases the likelihood that website owners will approve your ad to appear on their website. I don’t know about you, but if I see a high-quality Entrecard design in my Entrecard inbox, I am much more compelled to check out their site and allow them to advertise on my website.

If you do not want someone else to design your Entrecard, I recommend creating your own customized card. Below, I’ve included instructions on how to do so.

How to create a custom Entrecard design / 125 x 125 advertisement:

1. Download & open the program “IcoFx“
2. Customize icon dimensions to 125 x 125
3. Create the image design you want using the programs tools
4. Save the image (.ico file) to your desktop
5. After that image is created, download the program “Total Image Converter” (free trial) to convert the .ico file to the necessary image type (.jpeg should work)
6. Login to your Entrecard account, upload your customized creation AND you’re done. (That was easy!)
7. If you haven’t yet done so, you can also use “IcoFx” to design a customized website icon that will appear to the left of your website URL in IE or Firefox.
8. Another great thing about using “IcoFx” is that you can also create a custom 125 x 125 advertisement to appear in a 125 x 125 ad. box on another website’s advertising square if you ever choose to buy advertising space! To do this, follow the same steps above. (But, instead of uploading it to your Entrecard account, upload it to the website for which you bought advertising)…

As of right now, I think the Entrecard widget will remain on AndrewPavelski.com for awhile. I personally enjoy the widget and have decided that I will continue using it for a few months before re-evaluating the results. Feel free to drop your “E-card” on my site if you haven’t already!

Below is an example of the Entrecard image I’ve created for AndrewPavelski.com:

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