Something’s been nagging at me for a while, and today I finally realized what it was.
Opinions, random musings, reporting, and advice are everywhere in the blogging world (as it should be). But with few exceptions, there’s no supporting material behind the posts other than the author’s experience and creative license.
For most blog posts, it doesn’t matter if what the author is saying is supported by facts. After all, you’re reading to get their opinion on something.
I have a completely different expectation when it comes to how-to articles, or when someone claims that they know the best ways to achieve a specific effect. When I’m reading those types of articles, I WANT PROOF before I send my valuable time and resources chasing down a hundred different paths!
Analysis Please? Where’s the PROOF?
There are thousands upon thousands of articles full of off-the-cuff thoughts about what’s effective and what’s not. But the fact that something appears in a hundred different "Top 10 Ways to ______" lists doesn’t make it true. Just as the fact that a post appeared on a highly successful blog doesn’t necessarily make it credible.
Try finding someone that’s really studied the effectiveness of different techniques and documented what really works. The internet seems to go dead silent. I get the distinct impression that, more often than not, Bloggers are just making this stuff up as they go along (say it ain’t so!).
There are exceptions, like a recent article from Clickalite.com about Digg’s effect on Technorati rank. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find more than a handful of other articles like this.
Free the Knowledge
Maybe the smartest bloggers are just keeping the knowledge to themselves? Or maybe the best SEO and SEM companies are hoarding all the good stuff.
If there are some really good resources out there with more content like Clickalite’s Digg study, I’d love to hear about them. Until then, I’ll continue the mission I started with my series on How the Great Blogs Began.
Keep watching here at Zen Zoomie’s place and you’ll soon find the proof you’re looking for.
Sphere: Related Content
4 responses so far ↓
1 Lewis Empire // Aug 12, 2007 at 2:47 am
I often wonder how much of what I read is true. I agree that there are a million top X lists that may or may not be based on real experience.
Usually, I am less concerned about whether the author is an expert but more concerned about how much something works for me. Of course, that only works for blogging stuff…I want to know who’s giving me my medical advice!
2 Rob Kingston // Aug 12, 2007 at 8:27 am
I’ve come across a lot of SEO/SEM material before which I find really questionable. I think the best source for anything to do with search marketing is best found at www.seomoz.com
I find top 10 lists misleading often times too. I do find them pretty good as summaries though. I guess that’s why people love them!
3 Real Estate Editorial // Aug 14, 2007 at 1:08 pm
I agree with Lewis Empire. We all take the information we find for what it’s worth. What works for me might not work for you.
4 Zen Zoomie // Aug 14, 2007 at 10:33 pm
@Lewis & Real Estate — There’s no doubt that no two situations are the same…and some experimentation is necessary to figure out what will work best for you and your specific situation. But when 100,000,000 bloggers have been there before us, there are a lot of “lessons learned” out there where we don’t need to repeat mistakes that have been made in the past. I’m interested in learning what works consistently to achieve specific results. We’ll see how it plays out, but I think some in-depth case studies will be pretty revealing and put some real meat on the bones of what works and what doesn’t.
@Rob, Seomoz is probably my favorite SEO/SEM site as well (it’s on my blogroll).
Top X lists obviously work..and I enjoy reading them as much as anyone else. They’re just like anything else you read online–take ‘em with a grain of salt. I’m always wary of blindly following any type of advice–especially if it requires a significant investment in time or money…
Leave a Comment