- 1). Sign up for an account on the StumbleUpon website at www.stumbleupon.com. Follow the instructions to install the StumbleUpon toolbar and get ready to start discovering endless amounts of Web material tailored to your tastes and interests by StumbleUpon.
- 2). Select your general interests when prompted by StumbleUpon on the first use so as to enable StumbleUpon to generate its first Web page suggestions for you. Start "stumbling" by clicking the "Stumble" button on the toolbar. As StumbleUpon opens new pages, aimed to satisfy your stated interests, indicate how you feel about each one by giving it a "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" using the icons on the toolbar.
- 3). Click the speech bubble icon in order to write a review of a website, which will be posted with all other StumbleUpon reviews. If you are the first one to "stumble upon" a certain page, you will be listed as a "discoverer" for everyone to see. All sites you have visited and "liked" will be saved under "Favorites."
- 4). Click the "Friends" button -- the icon depicting two people -- to see sites visited and liked by your friends on social networking sites. In order to be able to use this increasingly popular function of StumbleUpon, you have to add your friends to your account. You may do this during the signup process or at a later point. StumbleUpon will scan your Facebook, Myspace and other accounts for friends who are already using StumbleUpon. You can also send invites to friends asking them to join.
- 5). Use StumbleUpon to promote yourself and your projects by driving traffic to your website or blog. Use the following key techniques to attract more hits. Get a few friends or fans to give "thumbs up" to your site and, preferably, also review it. Increased crowds equal increased visibility. On your site or blog, place a prominent StumbleUpon button and an invite to sign up for your RSS. Make your site visually appealing and packed full of good, pithy and well-laid out content. Most importantly, keep in mind StumbleUpon works reciprocally by rewarding your effort. The more sites you "like", review and, most of all, "discover," the more likely StumbleUpon is to proffer your website to other users.
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