Every so often, a frequent complaint that arises in the comments section of posts on Digg.com is that it gives the impression that only a select few people get their submissions hitting the front page. It is a comprehensible frustration, especially if you've been posting yourself. Many might wonder precisely what it takes to get onto the front page of Digg.
I've been a registered user at Digg since June 2006, and my first submission was made in September 2006. Nevertheless, it was not until four months later that I got my first front paged story. Since then, I have been posting on a daily basis, and have had over 40 of my submissions front-paged.
There are a few ways you can get on the home page. One way is to follow the example set by the top 10 Diggers (you can see the Top 100 here) and post pretty much non-stop. That is, of course, if you yearn for spending a majority of your time on Digg mainly submitting articles. & by "spending a majority of your time", I mean "all of your time". Some of the top users have been known to post up to (and sometimes more than) 200 posts within a 24-hour period.
But that is probably too much if you're new to submitting stories. The fact is, if a sniveling snotbag like me can have their posts front-paged, then you can too, and what it comes down to is patience, persistence, and practice. The extra effort you place into submitting stories to Digg simply benefits Digg: the site gets stronger on a daily basis from the community effort.
So how can you get on Digg's main page? Here are some tips and tricks that have helped me out:
Digging and Commenting - Responsibly:
First and foremost, if you want your stories to have an opportunity at hitting the front page, you need to be seen. Participate in digging as frequently as you can, and be sure to bury stories that deserve to be buried. Do not bury a post for any old fickle fandangled reason; be sure to use the reasons given when burying. Involve yourself in thoughtful (or humorous) commenting as often as you can, but avoid making comments reminiscent of "awesome", or replying to someone with something like, "Right on, I agree" (you can use the digg up or down buttons for those kinds of reactions). Also, the best location to make comments is in the Upcoming Stories section where you will have an enhanced chance of making your comment closer to the top of the page.
Do not troll:
This one is self explanatory, but it is highly recommended you avoid making offensive, controversial, or flame-baiting remarks. Not only do you look like an asshat for doing so, but you will end up getting buried, as well as becoming yet another addition on the block lists of numerous digg members. Being blocked means people will not see your stories. Besides, you want to develop yourself a positive reputation with other users to help your posts become popular.
Choose your target sites:
As referenced earlier, it took me a few months before I felt I was ready to post a submission to Digg. As I was preparing to actually start posting stories, I began constructing a list of my "target sites". Your best bet for this is to choose sites that you frequently visit for news, information, or entertainment, that are popular, but that you do not often see on Digg. One example I can give you is the Metal news site, Blabbermouth. I infrequently saw a front page story from there, but I used to check the site regularly for the latest in the galaxy of Metal. Blabbermouth became one of my "target sites" when I was posting articles; though I would often find myself posting links to their original sources (more on posting original sources in a bit).
Get fed with feeds:
RSS feeds are almost certainly the best friend a Digger could ever have. Go to your target sites, and see if they offer a feed. Subscribe to it and check it on a regular basis; and be sure to submit anything new that may be of interest to users. It can be persuasive to add a lot of feeds at once, but I would recommend starting with only a few to commence with, and then build up from there. It can also be helpful to see websites that bring together feeds from other social news and social bookmarking sites, such as doggdot.us, PopURLs, Reddiggulo.us, and NetVibes.
Register for alerts:
Another handy tool is in subscribing to newsletters and news alerts from web sites. Your best sources for this are your target sites, as well as news services such as CNN that have Breaking News e-mail tools. It is another resource you can tap into when looking for articles to submit. But it does not necessarily have to be news. For example, I subscribe to an IT newsletter that deals with technologies being used and developed on university campuses across the United States. It suits the job I am currently working in, and every so often, they will publish an article, listed in their newsletter, that may be of interest to Diggers. While some people cannot stand e-mail newsletters, as a person that posts articles to Digg on a daily basis, I find them to be a valuable tool.
Post daily:
Some users get easily frustrated when their posts do not immediately make the front page, and they will often give up. Persistence and patience does pay off however; so if you are determined to make the front page, put yourself in the practice of submitting, as a minimum, one or two links a day. You will have productive Digg days, and not-so-good Digg days as a submitter. Nevertheless, your patience will pay off. Mine did.
Go for the original:
I am partial to sites like Engadget and Blabbermouth - but often they will not be the primary story source. Usually sites like these will post the link to where the original article came from. It is best practice to post that original link, rather than the blog or site you first saw it at. This occurrence is often referred to as "blogspam", and is usually the incidence of a story that is often a simple paragraph with one link to the original news source. The worst offenders for issues like this are any of the Alex Jones sites, such as InfoWars.com and PrisonPlanet.com. Most of the stories posted from there are glorified blogspam, and quite often will not make the home page. Another example I could use is one of my "target sites" called ShortNews.com. Short News receives user-submitted stories that have an original news source link. I will explore the site, see if there's any article that may be of interest to Digg users, and then check out the original news source. From that point, I will post the original story, rather than the Short News link. Users will find, however, that they have superior success experiences in front paging stories that come from the web site that originally reported the news, rather than some of the above mentioned sites. In short, where possible, go for the original.
Do not post dupes:
Duplicate submissions can be a pet peeve for countless Digg users. The best recommendation is to avoid, wherever possible, dupes. It is recommended at Digg to search before you post; but Digg's search function sucks alpacas. Your best bet would be to start making your submission, because after you click on the submit button, you will be taken to a page listing suggested stories that bear resemblances to the one you're submitting. If it is a duplicate story, do not continue. Move on to your next post.
Stumbling upon something that grabs your attention:
Newbie submitters will often ponder where exactly they are going to get their source stories from. Sometimes, however, you need not look any further than your own web surfing behavior (with the exception of pr0n, of course!). If you come across something you find interesting online, there is a decent chance that someone else might find it of interest. If so, submit it to Digg. The same applies if you get a remarkable informational e-mail. I am not talking about the old e-mail forwards about "Amazing Real Facts" you still get from Grandma Josie that you were getting back in 1998. But if you get an out of the ordinary article in your e-mail, Google it to see if it's online somewhere, and then check its authenticity over at Snopes. Also using the StumbleUpon toolbar can be advantageous in finding interesting sites, web pages and articles that may be worthy of submitting to Digg.
Informational Articles, Lists, and Tutorials:
Aside from news and, more often in recent months, pictures, Diggers tend to be a group of geeks hungry for information. For as long as I have been a member of Digg, members love checking out articles that are more informational in nature; it is part of the continuing learning experience, so to speak. So interesting, unusual or informational posts such as Massive list of sites all self learners should know about and Steve Jobs on Music can turn into be popular submissions. Lists (Top 10's etc.) are always dugg as well, so if you come across one, go ahead and post it. Links to handy online tools (especially ones related to Digg) such as A Better 'Digg This' Button are also popular. Finally, tutorials are useful to Diggers as well, especially with regards to graphic design (Photoshop and the GIMP) and web design (CSS and HTML).
The Title of your Story:
Creating the right title for your post is a huge part of getting your story to the front page. For news articles you have come across, for the most part it is pretty acceptable to copy-and-paste the title already set to the story by the original writer. But often, it works to your advantage if you supply your own title. At first, this may be a little intimidating, but with time and practice, you will find you will get better at it. Using light-hearted humor in your title can, every now and then, be helpful, but don't over-rely on this technique: we are talking about Digg here, not Fark.
Descriptions - The Title Does NOT Always Say It All:
The description of your story is just as important as the title. As with the title, using witty and humorous descriptions can be effective from time to time; but avoid relying too much on this technique. For news articles, it is usually acceptable to copy-and-paste the opening paragraph of the story as it usually is an accurate introductory explanation of the article's main details. Where possible though, highlight the key points of the post that stand out to you, or that you deem to be the most important. If at all feasible, try and avoid using the phrase, "Title says it all". Only in rare occurrences does this happen to be the case, and it is despised by many users who will more often than not automatically bury your story for merely uttering the phrase.
Choosing the right category:
Deciding on what subject area best suits your submission can either be very easy or tedious. I will sometimes come across something of interest to post that does not seem to match any of the categories listed at Digg. Attempt to match your story to the "right" category as best you can.
Do not give up - Be patient:
You know what they say: "If at first you don't succeed, try and try again..." When I started posting to Digg, I got frustrated when something I thought should make the home page never came close. As time went on, I realized how unpredictable the community can be when it comes to stories. Sometimes, the posts I made that I thought might not stand a chance got more Diggs than I expected. Having said that, when you start posting on a regular basis, do not expect miracles. It takes time to cultivate a good sized friends list, and (more importantly) get a positive standing with fellow posters. When you start posting, you will fail regularly... meaning that your first few stories do not have very much chance of getting on the main page. But be patient, and keep at it. The more you persevere, the more your submissions will get dugg onto the front page at some point. It just takes time; and that time between your first story and your first front paged article is a good learning experience in discovering positive methods in making a Digg submission.
Multipage stories - post the "1-page" link where possible:
One of the more common complaints I see is when a submission is a story that is spread across an insane amount of pages. Web sites repeatedly do this to get more of a chance for the odd click on one of their ads, and it can be exasperating. More often than not, some of these sites will have a link to the "story on one page", or even better, a "printable page" link that will have the full article on one page without the ads. It is good practice to post the one-page version of the story; or you can submit the link as is, and add a comment on your story with a link to the article on one page. When members of the Digg Army see this, they appreciate that you have taken the time to help them avoid an aggravating 57 page article that could have been on one - and these efforts do get noticed.
When in Upcoming:
As soon as you post your story to Digg, it gets placed in the Upcoming Stories list, where people can digg it, bury it, and comment on it. Keep tabs on your submitted posts from your profile. For me, the magic digg number is 35... If one of my submissions hits 35 diggs, it usually stands a pretty good chance at being listed in the "Hot in all Topics" list. Several people assume that the best way to help this process along is to blindly bury every other story, but it is not (Digg does ban users who blindly digg and bury at high rates). The best method when your story hits a magic number of diggs is to start spend time in the Upcoming Stories section, reading the most popular stories, digging/burying where suitable, and commenting if necessary. By doing so, you are assisting the stories on the zenith of the list to break through to the front page - which means your story may have the good fortune of being added to the "Hot" list. If your story gets into the "hot" list, you have an excellent chance of getting on the front page. Of course, this does not work all the time, but I have learned that being proactive in the Upcoming Stories section is an excellent method of helping your own stories get more diggs: because people notice when you are actively participating in the community.
Mirrors, Mirrors, on the web:
Users at Digg have a love/hate association with the Digg Effect. There is nothing satisfying than knowing you assisted in bringing a server "to its knees", but at the same time it's infuriating because you cannot see the content that everyone is digging on so much. If you submit a post from a source that looks like it might not handle the Digg Effect so well; or if it is a site you are not sure about and it's in the "Hot in All Topics List" in Upcoming Stories, then you may want to consider posting a mirror link in advance. You can check for a mirror using the Coral Cache project by adding .nyud.net:8080 or .nyud.net:8090 to the end of the domain name.
For example:
http://www.the-trukstop.com/articles/2007/digg_front_page.html
You can also check for a cached version of the page at Google or at the Way Back Machine. If the article is listed in the more popular Upcoming Stories, there's also a reasonable possibility that DuggMirror has caught it. Either way, if you find a working mirror beforehand, people will appreciate you posting it as a "just in case" comment if the site does indeed get shattered by the Digg Effect.
Do not laugh, but fanboys can be helpful. No, seriously:
Digg is full of geeks, and every geek is a fanboy of some kind, even though most might not admit it. Despite this, the site has huge subcultures of Apple fanboys, Linux fanboys, Wii fanboys, Ron Paul fanboys, Star Wars fanboys (I'm one of those)... and so on. A large amount of these guys are very passionate about their chosen obsession that they will absorb and digg anything that has something to do with their favorite topic. If you happen upon something that fits into one of the fanboy "subjects", go ahead and post the link to Digg. It does not have to be news: it might be something entertaining, or a lengthy article that might generate some interesting discussion in the comments.
Using the Friends Feature:
Making use of this tool at Digg is essential in getting stories front-paged. Firstly, it might be tempting to go out and add as many friends as you can, but this isn't MySpace, comrade. Digg friends work a little differently: if you add a friend, you will see their submissions in your friends section; but they may not see yours. The people who have befriended you will see your stories.
Adding Friends:
It is very easy to get carried away with adding friends in any kind of social website. On Digg, it is important to be selective. Some people automatically add users that have dugg any of their submissions, though that can be a little overwhelming. What I have found best practice for me is to take a look at the Diggers who commented on stories I have submitted. Are they practicing submitters themselves? Do they use features such as "My #1" (Now known as "My Most Recent Favorite Story")? Have they posted anything that has made it to the home page? If the answer is yes for all of these questions, I more often than not add them. There's a reason I get selective with who I add to my friends list, and I will get to that shortly. It is probably also a good idea to add a few top Diggers, to get an idea of their methods of submission. How are they wording their story titles? What types of their stories are making the front page more than others?
Who Befriended You:
More important than adding friends you have come across from comments on your stories is checking out who has befriended you. These people are usually those who have, at some point, enjoyed an article you have posted, or enjoyed a comment you have made. It's essential that you add them as friends too, as it gives both yourself and that member the chance to check out each other's submissions.
Digging Each Other:
As you start growing a healthy-sized friends list, it is a good idea to have a look at what stories your friends are posting to Digg. At first, it may be tempting to just scroll through the list and mechanically digg everything submitted... but I would strongly advise against it. Digg Admins keep an eye out for those who "blindly" digg stories at a rather high rate, and it may actually end up getting you banned (Yes, it does happen). Your best bet is to scroll through the list of articles submitted by your friends, and take a look at the ones that have the most Diggs or the most comments; and the ones that interest you. Take the time to read the stories, and comment on them. Your friends will notice this, especially on stories that may not make the front page; and it's often appreciated that someone has essentially taken the time to check out such a story.
Prune back your friends list:
You read that accurately. This is why I recommended being selective about adding friends. A while back, there seemed to be some credibility to a theory that how fast a story hits the main page can be influenced by how many friends you have. For example, if a member of the Digg Army with nine hundred friends submits a story that rapidly reaches 25 diggs; and someone else with fifty friends submits a story that also rapidly reaches 25 diggs, the guy with 50 buddies might end up getting to the front page before Mr. 900. At any rate, that is the theory. What I recommend is once a month or once every few months is to go through your friends list and remove users that are not digging your submissions. To find out who is digging your material the most, you can use this very convenient tool to find out. For the most part, you want to keep those who have befriended you on your friends list; as well as some of the top diggers. But remove those who don't seem to be actively participating. Doing this on a regular basis is additionally a good way to become more familiar with who exactly is on your friends list as well (as I stated, it is easy to get carried away with adding friends on a social web site). A query I was recently asked was how many friends would make a reasonably sized friends list at Digg. There does not seem to be an easy answer to this question. If you have a look at the friends lists of the Top 10 Diggers, some of them have as few as thirty friends, while a couple are moving stealthily closer to the limit of 999 friends. My recommendation would be to, when tightening up your list, try not to focus on the AMOUNT of friends, but rather on the actual users in your list who are actively participating in the wider Digg community effort.
Get ready to be flamed, dugg down, and criticized:
As you continue posting stories to Digg, be prepared to develop a very thick skin. The warm-fuzzy sensation of getting a story front paged can often be tainted by negative comments. These remarks can range from honest criticisms of your submission, right through to outright flaming and trolling. Do not lose heart at this: it's very common, and is an easy curb to step over. You cannot satisfy everyone. It is very tempting to respond to people criticizing your submission, but I have found that it is usually best to make rebuttals scarcely. Whoever criticizes your post has as much right to express their opinion as those who are making positive statements. Ultimately, step over negativity and simply move on to your next post. You will get over it; we all do.
Get an avatar:
Having an avatar is better than not having one. It is not the most important thing in the world, but choosing a good picture to use for your avatar can be helpful. Choosing and keeping something straightforward and identifiable as an avatar can work to your advantage at Digg. Some top Diggers such as MrBabyMan and Bonlebon have kept and used the same icon for as long as I can remember, and their choice of picture is easily identifiable. When I see that digging sign icon, I immediately know it is a story posted by MrBabyMan without having to look at "submitted by". When I see that kooky snapshot of everyone's favorite Muppet named Beaker, I know it is a Bonlebon story. On the other hand, regularly changing your avatar can work well too, such as with Digg user sepultura... Since coming to Digg, I have noticed he has changed his avatar a few times; and it can be refreshing to see if one of your friends has given their pic a facelift. In fact, I will often click onto their profile to see the slightly larger version of their pic, which in turn gives me a quick link from that page to see their latest posts. It's entirely up to you as an individual, but it is always best to choose something simple that stands out, and even if it isn't, it most certainly beats using that ugly default profile avatar.
Using a Digg This button:
If you are posting your own site's material, using a Digg This button can be quite helpful. Not only do your visitors have a chance to digg your story from your site, but you are also giving Digg more exposure, which can only help the community grow even further. Mind you, as a side note, if you submit your own material from your own site, ensure it is not the ONLY thing you are posting. If you want to get a story on the home page, the best way is to be a proactive member: this means submitting articles other than just your own, as well as commenting on other stories. One more thing: if your own material could be perceived as blogspam, avoid submitting it. On the other hand, if someone else finds it of value, they might just post it for you.
Finally: HAVE FUN
Digg is not a contest. My personal opinion is that if you are trying to shoot to be the "number one digger", not only are you probably at the wrong site; you're also setting a very unrealistic goal. Keep it fun, and do not take it too seriously. If it's taking you a long while to get a home page story, do not let it get you down... it just takes time, and patience. More to the point, if my dumb ass can get a front page story, you can too.
Every so often, a frequent complaint that arises in the comments section of posts on Digg.com is that it gives the impression that only a select few people get their submissions 
First and foremost, if you want your stories to have an opportunity at hitting the front page, you need to be seen. 
This one is self explanatory, but it is highly recommended you avoid making offensive, controversial, or flame-baiting remarks. Not only do you look like an asshat for doing so, but you will end up getting buried, as well as becoming yet another addition on the block lists of numerous digg members. Being 
As referenced earlier, it took me a few months before I felt I was ready to post a submission to Digg. As I was preparing to actually start posting stories, I began constructing a list of my "target sites". Your best bet for this is to choose sites that you frequently visit for news, information, or entertainment, that are popular, but that you do not often see on Digg. One example I can give you is the 
Another handy tool is in subscribing to newsletters and news alerts from web sites. Your best sources for this are your target sites, as well as news services such as 
Some users get easily frustrated when their posts do not immediately 
I am partial to sites like 
Creating the right title for your post is a huge part of getting your story to the front page. For news articles you have come across, for the most part it is pretty acceptable to copy-and-paste the title already set to the story by the original writer. But often, it works to your advantage if you 
The description of your story is just as important as the title. As with the title, using witty and humorous descriptions can be effective from time to time; but avoid relying too much on this technique. For news articles, it is usually acceptable to copy-and-paste the opening paragraph of the story as it usually is an accurate introductory explanation of the article's main details. Where possible though, highlight the key points of the post that stand out to you, or that you deem to be the most important. If at all feasible, try and avoid using the phrase, "
Deciding on what subject area best suits your submission can either be very easy or tedious. I will sometimes come across something of interest to post that does not seem to match any of the categories listed at Digg. Attempt to match your story to the "right" 
You know what they say: "If at first you don't succeed, try and try again..." When I started posting to Digg, I got frustrated when something I thought should make the home page never came close. As time went on, I realized how unpredictable the community can be when it comes to stories. Sometimes, the posts I made that I thought might not stand a chance got more Diggs than I expected. Having said that, when you start posting on a regular basis, do not expect miracles. It takes time to cultivate a good sized friends list, and (more importantly) get a positive standing with fellow posters. When you start posting, you will fail regularly... meaning that your first few stories do not have very much chance of 
One of the more common complaints I see is when a submission is a story that is spread across an insane amount of pages. Web sites repeatedly do this to get more of a chance for the odd click on one of their ads, and it can be exasperating. More often than not, some of these sites will have a link to the "story on one page", or even better, a "printable page" link that will have the full article on one page 
As soon as you post your story to Digg, it gets placed in the Upcoming Stories list, where people can digg it, bury it, and comment on it. Keep tabs on your submitted posts from your profile. For me, the magic digg number is 35... If one of my submissions hits 35 diggs, it usually stands a pretty good chance at being listed in the "
Users at Digg have a love/hate association with 
Digg is full of geeks, and every geek is a fanboy of some kind, even though most might not admit it. Despite this, the site has huge subcultures of Apple fanboys, Linux fanboys, Wii fanboys, Ron Paul fanboys, 
Making use of this tool at Digg is essential in getting stories front-paged. Firstly, it might be tempting to go out and add as many friends as you can, but this isn't 
It is very easy to get carried away with adding friends in any kind of social website. On Digg, it is important to be selective. Some people automatically add users that have dugg any of their submissions, though that can be a little overwhelming. What I have found best practice for me is to take a look at the Diggers who commented on stories I have submitted. Are they practicing submitters themselves? Do they use features such as "My #1" (Now known as "My Most Recent Favorite Story")? Have they posted anything that has 
More important than adding friends you have come across from comments on your stories is checking out 
As you start growing a healthy-sized friends list, it is a good idea to have a look at what stories your friends are posting to Digg. At first, it may be tempting to just scroll through the list and mechanically digg everything submitted... but I would strongly advise against it. Digg Admins keep an eye out for those who "blindly" digg stories at a rather high rate, and it may actually end up getting you banned (
You read that accurately. This is why I recommended being selective about adding friends. A while back, there seemed to be some credibility to a theory that how fast a story hits the 
As you continue posting stories to Digg, be prepared to develop a very thick skin. The warm-fuzzy sensation of getting a story front paged can often be tainted by 
If you are posting your own site's material, using a Digg This button can be quite helpful. Not only do your visitors have a chance to digg your story from your site, but you are also giving Digg more exposure, which can only help the community grow even further. Mind you, as a side note, if you submit your own material from your own site, ensure it is not the ONLY thing you are posting. If you want to get a story on the home page, the best way is to be a proactive member: this means submitting articles other than just your own, as well as commenting on other stories. One more thing: if your own material could be perceived as 
Digg is not a contest. My personal opinion is that if you are trying to shoot to be the "number one digger", not only are you probably at the wrong site; you're also setting a very unrealistic goal. Keep it fun, and do not take it too seriously. If it's taking you a long while to 
