Gauging someone’s popularity in school was measurable by your spot in the lunchroom. Online, we have several metrics to see where we sit in the blogsphere. I’m currently in the corner with my stromboli and chocolate milk. I know it, I’m fine with it, but I’m not staying here forever. I want to move closer to that desirable spot we all wanted in school… the “blogosphere’s cool” table.

So set down your tray and and I’ll explain the five metrics on where you are in the blogosphere lunchroom.

Notes passed in the classroom - In school, all the cool kids get notes passed to them and for bloggers, these are our comments. A blog is meant to be an interactive tool, IMO. Seth Godin maintains a nice table seat despite not allowing comments (he used to). Whereas, Noah Kagan… well, let’s just say he loves them. You’ll always have those regular commenters (we love you!), but it’s not the end of the world if you only get a few. I quickly learned with the city blog we launched for Louisville, most people want to be voyeurs first and interactive second.

Interacting in the Halls - When the bell rings and you have to walk to chemistry class, how many people do you stop to chat with? Better yet, how many stop YOU? With blogs, these are the people who grab your RSS feed and make up your monthly traffic. Feedburner has built a business for tracking blog traffic and rss feeds (among others). I think this is your ticket to upgrading your table position.

Signatures in your yearbook - Did you write something thoughtful in your classmates’ books or did you make fun of them? Both ways can get a response and to grow blog traffic, you gotta show link love. It’s the online way to pat them on the back (agree) or give them a little shove (disagree). Show the love or stir the pot because both ways work.

Weekend invitations - Getting invited to the weekend party was always a big deal. Online these invitations come in the form of social networking. Whether you’re selective (Jory Des Jardins) or you’re adding everyone (Ron Bates), the way you network online can affect your blog traffic. I’ve chosen to be an open networker on LinkedIn and MyBlogLog, but keep my MySpace account more selective. Much like linking to others, both strategic or open networkers can drive blog traffic and help you maneuver to a better lunch spot.

Prom Royalty - Who was chosen as your prom queen/king? I can’t remember who won at my school, but getting that one-time vote was important to some. In the blogsphere, our votes are taken daily at aggregation sites like Reddit and Digg. Don’t be afraid to nominate yourself and be sure to help others if you want to wear the “crown” one day.

Currently, I slink over, head pointed down to my seat enjoying a lactose beverage. I’m building my plan to inch my way towards a better table. And although the cool table kids stand in the same line with me everyday, I swear they get served more fries.

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