420 Design Blog
Articles vs. blog entries
12 Oct 2007 | Angie H
It's not often that I disagree with Jakob Nielsen. But his July 9 Alertbox article is one I definitely don't agree with. And sure, maybe I'm hungover from drinking different kool-aid last month, but still...
In his article, Jakob Nielsen suggests
To demonstrate world-class expertise, avoid quickly written, shallow postings. Instead, invest your time in thorough, value-added content that attracts paying customers.
I can certainly see his point and almost agree with him. One of the things that hold me back is that he's making an assumption that all blogs are created equally. But they're not. Sure, there are puh-lenty of blogs that have "shallow" content. But I subscribe to over 130 RSS feeds (several of which are business blogs) and I can tell you that the majority of them post extremely interesting content that is anything but shallow.
He also insinuates that blog entries are written in a few minutes (sometimes more) while articles are written in a much more formal manner. I can attest that that's just not true for every blog out there. I've read more than one blog on more than one occasion where the author has noted "in researching this entry", or "in preparing this article", etc. While I know that I sometimes write a quick post in just a few minutes, most of my entries here on the Soapbox are written in longer sittings and don't get posted without a second, sometimes third read-through.
Mr. Nielsen goes on to give a short list of distinctions between his definition of "articles" and "blog postings":
- in-depth vs. superficial
- original/primary vs. derivative/secondary
- driven by the author's expertise vs. being reflectively driven by other sites or outside events
Quite plainly, I think this can be misleading. Articles can be superficial and blog postings can be in-depth. Articles are often written in response to something, and blog postings can be written purely based on knowledge. I will admit that yes, some blogs are posts (or articles) that are written in response to some outside event or site. But that doesn't make the author any less of an expert, assuming he/she is one to begin with. John Gruber is a perfect example of this. He is a well-respected writer/blogger and considered one of the top authorities on all things Apple. Many of his articles are written in response to other writers, observations and outside events. Yet, he's still an expert. My point here is that I see the lines quite blurred. The distinctions aren't big enough.
Perhaps for me, the recurring theme in Mr. Nielsen's article is that of money. Now, I'm no fool - I'm in business too and like so many people, I want to make money so that I can pay my bills and live life comfortably. But I also understand that in the current business world we live/work in, customer relationships have soured so much that consumers are less and less trusting every day. Blogs (or articles) on your site shouldn't be just about hooking a reader/consumer so that they part with their money. I'm willing to bet that many, many bloggers (business or otherwise) would even say that blog entries aren't about selling at all.
Again, it may be influenced by my current reading of Robert Scoble and Shel Israel's book, Naked Conversations, but I believe (and would like to think that I've believed since I started this here blog) that blogs, articles, whatever you want to call them, should be about showing (and sharing) your knowledge; to gain or increase your reputation as being knowledgeable or an expert. Why? Because they're not just random postings. At least they shouldn't be. They're conversations. If done correctly. (Which, by the way, is the reason I decided to open our blog back up for comments.) To quote the writers:
Businesses need to join the conversations because they build trust. Most companies know the value in that. Blogs also humanize companies, or at least the people who work inside of them. Your blog lets your potential customers see who the person on the other side of the desk is before they engage you in potential business. It accomplishes much of what the photo, diploma, or trophy in your office or cubicle does for visitors. It lets people know you just a little bit.
Articles -- the kind that Jakob Nielsen seems to be referencing -- don't do any of that. You may be seen as an expert by writing a smaller collection of more "in-depth" articles, but that doesn't make you any more reachable or human. And that human factor is what people are craving for when doing business with each other. I think that's something that Mr. Nielsen has forgotten.
Technology, Web Design + Development