Permissable Back Linking and Self Promotion Policy

As a Category Editor you are a special privileged user of this site and unlike other users, have the ability to create content on the site without moderation.

That privilege carries a responsibility not to abuse the power you have been given

This policy defines what Category Editors may do and what they shouldn't do when it comes to self promotion in their reviews, comments and forum posts.

What You Can Do

1.  Include  a link back to your site in the review authorship paragraph

Most reviews end with a paragraph naming the category editor along these lines:

"This software category is maintained by Joe Bloggs.  Registered site visitors can contact Joe by clicking here."

It is fine to hyperlink your name ("Joe Bloggs" in the above example) back to your site, blog or personal bio providing your site or blog does not contain offensive or illegal content.

2. Include a brief bio in the review authorship paragraph

Feel free to add a small, 50 words or less, bio about yourself providing the bio is relevant to your category review and is not in itself an ad.  

So something like this is fine:

"This software category is maintained by Joe Bloggs. Joe has had a lifelong interest in system utilities and is the president of the Bay Area System Developers forum.  Registered site visitors can contact Joe by clicking here."

And this is fine too:

"This software category is maintained by Joe Bloggs. Joe is the owner of System Tools for All,  a software house producing custom utilities for commercial clients.  Registered site visitors can contact Joe by clicking here."

However the following two examples would be not acceptable:

"This software category is maintained by Joe Bloggs. Joe has had a lifelong interest in system utilities and is developer of WonderClean, the worlds most powerful temporary file eraser.  Registered site visitors can contact Joe by clicking here."

"This software category is maintained by Joe Bloggs. Joe is the owner of System Tools for All,  a software house producing custom utilities for commercial clients.  If you are looking for a tailored utilty to meet your company's specific needs then email Joe by clicking here."

3. Ask Gizmo for an ad slot.

This site will be funded by ads and I'm happy to allocate a percentage of the available slots to category editors who want to promote their site or blog. This offer does not apply to product advertising.

This will be done on a once off basis and will be rationed between editors. No continuity is offered or guaranteed.  In other words, it's a freebie offered at my discretion. That said, I'll try to help if I can.

If you are interested write to me with details.

What You Can't Do

1. No ads or self promotion are allowed in your category reviews, comments or forum posts

Apart from the exceptions above, you cannot promote yourself or your business in your category reviews, comments or forum posts. That includes links back to your site or ads of any kind.

2. You are not allowed to include affiliate links in your freeware category reviews

My main objection to affiliate links is that the revenue earning potential may color your reviews.  Even if your reviews are not colored, the fact  that such links are visible to site visitors will reduce the credibility of your category reviews and the site's credibility as well.

That applies to only to software category reviews, comments and forum posts. If you want to write a product review and submit this as a separate article then you can include affiliate links in that article providing you state this at the bottom of the review in a manner plainly visible to readers.

However if I regard the article as slanted, biased or basically just an advertisement then I may, at my discretion, remove the article from the site. 

Implementation

I seek your cooperation in this matter. Please try to abide by this policy as I don't want to become a policy policeman. However, if I have to, I will. Consistent offenders will lose their Category Editor rights.

Thanks

Gizmo