We announced today that the Healthcare 100 now includes more than 1,000 health and medical blogs submitted by bloggers worldwide.
For those of you not familiar with the Healthcare 100, it is a directory, search engine and ranking system designed to assist individuals who are seeking health information from blogs.
Since we started the Healthcare 100 in June 2007 with just over 100 blogs, hundreds of health and medical bloggers have submitted their blogs to our directory, turning it into one of the Web’s go-to resources for health-related content. Surpassing 1,000 member blogs is a milestone not just for us, but for the community of health bloggers.
One reason I created the Healthcare 100 was to help consumers gain confidence in the value and reliability of health and medical blogs. As old-timers like me may recall, health blogs were once viewed as questionable sources of information by many people. Health professionals and the media were skeptical, and consumers weren’t sure whether they could believe the health news and information they found.
By developing “power rankings” that show the relative influence of a wide range of health blogs using data from Google, Yahoo, Technorati, Alexa and other sources, we created a tool that has helped consumers identify worthwhile content they can trust.
While attending the January health blogger summit at Consumer Reports, it really struck me just how far the health and medical blogosphere has come in less than two years.
The mainstream media has now fully embraced the health blogosphere, a fact that is evident in reviewing the Healthcare 100 today. The New York Times and Wall Street Journal currently manage two of the top blogs in our rankings. When we started the Healthcare 100, few traditional journalists could be found anywhere on the list.
What’s great about this, as demonstrated at the Consumer Reports summit, is that journalists and bloggers, including doctors, patient advocates and others, are now coming together at the same table to discuss the issues and challenges facing our healthcare system. That’s good for all of us.
- Convergence of Health 2.0 and medical home? (Health Blawg)
- Health 2.0 Conference Review – Day 2 (Alt Search Engines)
- Fact or Fiction: Electronic health records save money (The Health Care Blog)
- United Health Jumps Into Consumer Fray (ChilMark Research)
Subscribe to the eDrugSearch Blog with Bloglines:
We’ve started a Twitter account and would love for you to follow us. If you’re not familiar with Twitter, it’s a social network built around a kind of mini-blogging or group IM tool that allows you to leave messages of up to 140 characters.
Some of our favorite bloggers like John Mack, Jack Friday and Matthew Holt are already using it, so we thought we’d try it out, too.
You can follow us here: https://twitter.com/carybyrd
We’ve gotten quite a bit of feedback from Healthcare 100 bloggers after adding some new metrics and features to our algorithm this month. Based on this feedback, we’ve now made adjustments to Technorati, Bloglines and Alexa in the algorithm, decreasing the influence of Technorati and Alexa and increasing Bloglines (although it is still a smaller factor than it was in the original Healthcare 100 algo.)
We made these adjustments based on remarkably consistent feedback we were getting from people across all positions in the Healthcare 100 rankings. Essentially, we became concerned that our inclusion of Alexa, while a valuable indicator of Web traffic, was overweighting the list in favor big domains (wsj.com, scienceblogs.com, etc.)
Meanwhile, our downgrading of Bloglines seemed to disproportionately hurt independent blogs — some of which had large and loyal subscriber followings. As flawed as Bloglines is, it provides the only publicly available API for measuring blog subscribers.
We also agreed with the criticism that we had overweighted Technorati in the new algorithm. What we love about Technorati is that it SHOULD be the go-to source for measuring and comparing blog influence. It’s precisely what they’re set up to do.
Unfortunately, Technorati has had a number of issues and failures over the past year or two that have really pecked away at its authority in the eyes of many bloggers. So we decided we needed to reflect this by better balancing Technorati’s influence relative to Google, Yahoo, Alexa and Bloglines.
Finally, a word or two about proposed changes we didn’t make. We didn’t increase the influence of Google PageRank in the algorithm — a big reason being that Google PageRank, like Alexa, is biased toward big domains. We also aren’t crazy about Google’s black-box methodology; we like to know what’s being measured by one of our metrics, and how it’s being measured.
We also were asked to do a lot of things that we simply can’t — like include Feedburner stats, or StatCounter or SiteMeter metrics, etc. If the data isn’t available via API, and if the metric can’t be applied to all 900+ blogs in our system, we can’t incorporate it in the Healthcare 100. (However, if you know of an interesting metric with an API that is not included in the Healthcare 100, please let us know.)
So there you have it. This stuff is hard work! But we hope we’ve created a list that serves as a valuable directory of health and medical blogs based on their relative influence in the blogosphere. Thanks to everyone for your input.
We’ve been gratified — more than gratified — at how health and medical bloggers the world over have embraced the Healthcare 100.
Since we launched the Healthcare 100 a little over a year ago, the list has grown to more than 900 blogs — with hundreds of bloggers submitting their own blogs. Many of our favorite blogs display a Healthcare 100 badge on their sites. The list even got a mention in the online Wall Street Journal a while back.
But as they say, with power comes responsibility. Not that we consider the Healthcare 100 all that important in the grand scheme of things — but to the extent people trust in us, we have a responsibility to make the list the best it can be. So, in an effort to create a Healthcare 100 that better reflects the comparative influence of its 900+ listed blogs, we’ve updated our algorithm to incorporate new metrics and to reflect the changing influence of some of our old metrics.
As with the first iteration of the Healthcare 100, we were inspired by Todd Andrlik, who created and maintains the AdAge Power 150. The new metrics we’ve added are, for the most part, the same ones added by AdAge sometime back.
Specifically, they are –
Yahoo InLinks: Yahoo tabulates the number of links to a particular blog with its Site Explorer. The more links, the higher the blog’s score on our 30-point scale.
Technorati Authority and Technorati InLinks: We’ve added two new Technorati-based metrics in addition to the current Technorati Rank metric. Technorati Authority shows the number of unique blogs that have linked to a particular blog over the past six months. Technorati InLinks, like Yahoo InLinks, measure the number of individual links to a blog. For each of the three Technorati metrics, the Healthcare 100 scores blogs on a 20-point scale.
Alexa Rating: Alexa computes traffic rankings by analyzing the Web usage of millions of Alexa Toolbar users. A blog’s Alexa value is determined based on ranges (e.g., top 10,000, top 20,000, etc.), and each range is assigned a number (1 to 20) that is part of the algorithm.
In adding these new metrics, we’ve reduced the relative influence of the existing metrics. We’ve also further reduced the influence of Bloglines, since the importance of this feed reader compared to others, such as Google Reader, has declined over time. Unfortunately, Bloglines is still our best proxy for measuring feed subscribers, since not all blogs use Feedburner and there’s no API to access Google Reader subscribers automatically.
Along with adding and changing the weighting of metrics, we’ve incorporated some cool new features to help you get more out of the Healthcare 100 –
Healthcare 100 Blog Search: You can now search for specific blogs in the Healthcare 100 and quickly find their Healthcare 100 stats.
Healthcare 100 Blog Content Search: You can now search the content of blogs listed in the Healthcare 100. Want to see who’s been writing about a specific topic? Here’s an easy way to find out. We’ve created an index based on the content from Healthcare 100 blogs, which is updated throughout the week.
Recent Posts Popup: An icon of a plus sign is listed with each Healthcare 100 blog, which allows you to view a popup window displaying recent posts from that blog.
OPML Feed: This includes all feeds in the Healthcare 100.
Customized Healthcare 100 Badge: We’ve added a new JavaScript badge, customized for your blog, that you can easily add to your site. Just find your blog in the list and click on the badge icon to grab it.
FINALLY, there is one feature we’ve added that we really need your help with.
Like Todd’s Power 150, we’ve now included a flag icon to display each blog’s home country. You can add your country when you submit your blog for inclusion in the list. However, for blogs already in the Healthcare 100, we’re going through manually to make sure we’ve got the right flag — which is kind of a pain.
You can help us by finding your blog on the list and telling us if we have the right flag. If we don’t, please leave a comment here or , and we’ll get your new flag flying right away!
OK, I guess that’s it. We welcome your feedback and — just as we have with this new iteration of the Healthcare 100 — we’ll continue to respond to it.
One last point. As you explore the list, some of you will find that your rankings have dropped, and others will find that your rankings have increased — by a lot, in some cases.
If, for example, you’re an older blog that has a whole lot of Bloglines subscribers, you might feel a little pain when you see your new ranking. We think we were overweighting Bloglines before, though, so this is only fair to others on the list. We’ve obviously dramatically increased the importance of individual inbound links through Yahoo and Technorati InLinks, and this has also had a big effect on some blogs’ rankings.
Please note that if — even factoring in the new metrics — your Healthcare 100 ranking doesn’t look right, there’s no need to panic. The main reason for fluctuations in blog rankings, particularly among the lower ranking blogs, is that we sometimes collect inaccurate data from one of our sources, or experience some other kind of technical glitch.
If your ranking still looks off next time you check it, contact us and we’ll look into it right away.
We hope you have fun with the Healthcare 100, v. 2.0!
(Update: We originally posted the new Healthcare 100 on Friday with each of the Technorati-based categories on a 1-30 scale. Those have been modified to 1-20 scales.)
Looks like it’s time to amp up your spam filters, folks.
This marketing e-mail, sent to PR firms nationwide by the PR list vendor Bulldog Reporter, was passed on to me by a PR-practicing friend this morning:
“Inside Health Media’s huge new blog directory gives PR pros an inside guide to influential bloggers covering health, medicine and fitness.”
Inside Health Media now gives you links to 596 blogs on individual diseases, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, women’s health, nutrition, health policy, health IT, fitness, parenting and much more!
This is such great media intelligence on such a hot new media format, I want to give you this blog directory access now. (Warning: Don’t pitch another blog before you review this list.)
If you want a comprehensive list of every major blog on health, medicine and fitness,let me give you free access to the Inside Health Media blog directory —plus start your free one-week trial subscription.
Just call toll-free 1-866-666-1198 or go to Free Access/No-Obligation Trial to get your copy. NOTE: Blog directory access offer expires May 2nd.
But wait, there’s more:
Dear XXXX,
What advantage do your competitors in health, medicine and fitness PR have that you don’t?
Fact: More than 120 top pharmaceutical companies, hospitals, healthcare PR firms, research facilities, medical schools and medical equipment manufacturers now subscribe to Bulldog Reporter’s Inside Health Media.
Why? Two reasons.
First, Inside Health Media’s daily online reports give them advance notice of hot new placement opportunities—and now the most comprehensive guide to healthcare blogs. This directory gives you instant access to 596 professional and consumer blogs—all with descriptions and most with contact info—conveniently organized into 29 categories! It gives you a chance to access blogs from healthcare professionals, executives, journalists, researchers, policymakers and consumers themselves.
Second, Inside Health Media gives PR pros hundreds of exclusive interviews with hundreds of top-tier journalists—who spell out in their own words exactly what kinds of stories they’re working on . . . and what kind of help they want from PR professionals.
It means you get an inside track on building valuable long-term relationships with the nation’s most influential editorial gatekeepers in health, medicine and fitness—ahead of the pack.
Take Inside Health Media’s new directories of health-related blogs: This huge directory lets you monitor and pitch blogs in 29 categories covering all manners of health, fitness and medical topics.
Find 327 blogs like these listed in the professional section:
- Pharmaceuticals (28 blogs)
- Health management (11 blogs)
- Health policy (36 blogs)
- Blogs by doctors (57 blogs)
- Biotechnology (18 blogs)
- Blogs by nurses (30 blogs)
- Public health (11 blogs)
- Healthcare IT (23 blogs)
Plus 277 blogs like these in the consumer section:
- Diabetes (14 blogs)
- Mental health (20 blogs)
- Consumer advocacy (18 blogs)
- Blogs by patients/caregivers (31 blogs)
- Diet/fitness (47 blogs)
- General science (22 blogs)
- Women’s health (16 blogs)
- Newspaper blogs (27 blogs)
Best of all, we’re adding new health, fitness and medical blogs every day!
I’m confident that once you see this comprehensive list of blog links and start receiving Inside Health Media every business day, you’ll understand why so many PR firms and corporate PR departments use this exclusive media intelligence to increase their coverage.
To gain your access to the new blog directory and take a test drive of Inside Health Media, just call 1-866-666-1198 or go to Free Access/No-Obligation Trial now.
I think you’ll so value this placement news and advice that you’ll want to continue your subscription for the coming year.
(Believe it or not: Many PR pros tell us they’ve been able to place stories in leading media even during their one-week trial subscription. Chances are good that you will, too!)
But please act now: This free blog access/free trial offer expires on Friday, May 2nd and will not be repeated.
Please drop me a note once you’ve started receiving Inside Health Media and tell me how you like it—let me also know which media, journalists or bloggers you want us to cover next.
Best Regards ,
Jim Sinkinson,
Publisher, Bulldog Reporter
I hope Jim didn’t use the Healthcare 100 for his source material … but I wouldn’t doubt it.
Wall Street Journal reporter Raymund Flandez writes about the Healthcare 100 today in his piece, “Getting on the Radar Of an Industry’s Top Bloggers.” Here’s an excerpt:
The first step is to find out who the bloggers are in your specific industry. You want to focus your time and attention on blogs that will be the most receptive to talking about the kinds of products or services you offer…
Some Web sites list the most influential blogs in a specific industry. For example, AdAge Power150 (www.adage.com/power150), run by Advertising Age magazine, shows the top media and marketing blogs, while eDrugSearch.com’s HealthCare100 (edrugsearch.com/edsblog/healthcare100) ranks the top English-language health-care blogs.
Sadly, there was no pen-sketch portrait of me accompanying the article 
Thanks for including us, Raymund!
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