One of the biggest reasons for people to come to a blog and actually consume it’s content is if the blog simply solves problems.
Personally, I’ve been watching some of the traffic patterns to this blog and can definitely tell you that some of the biggest “traffic posts” are the ones that do just that.
Although, I’ll be honest, I didn’t “get” this for a long time. I stumbled upon it as my blogs have grown. But now, it’s so dead-obvious, I mean, it just makes sense, right?
Solving real problems that people have is a valuable reason to come to a blog. Does your blog help people in need? Does it solve real problems for real people or just hint at it (or completely miss it)?
I like Andy Stanley's "The Principle of the Path" where he claims people do not need answers or their problems solved, they need direction. His equation is "time plus direction = destination". Do you think, even though its less popular to get people to think about the wisdom of the direction they take, that a blog should do what Stanley suggests? Just chewing on this myself as I write blog posts. If I strictly read Stanley, then I would never write a how to! But, people want it.
Ah, this is a great point as well! I blogged about that here:
http://churchcrunch.com/2009/04/23/andy-stanley-d... />
Definitely agree with you. people need direction as well, but finding the right one (or where to go) could be a “problem” that needs fixing as well…!
But, you're right.
andy's awesome.
I think the best thing a blog does is "dialog" and build relationships through meaningful conversations. So, problem solving with each would fit that well I think.
very true. although, what would you say of bloggers who don't allow dialogue so openly?
perhaps some have content so worthy they need not dialog on the blog venue but really that stinks and why blog if you hide the good stuff??
ultimately, in my opinion, the value of a blog is in how real people are engaged and in meaningful discourse not in propping up an author's book, a musicians music, etc.
btw…I love how you dialog, so this explains why I think your blog is great!
and why I am trying to learn how to improve on with things like solving a problem in this platform
Rich,
Perhaps! They are gurus and founts of wisdom…!
i'm not the “professor” on this stuff,… i just am calling it how i see it. thanks for joining with me in the conversation! still lots to learn.
It drives me nuts. Like maybe Seth Godin…252k readers would create quite a bit of spammy confusion. But everybody else…why turn off comments??
Consider This: which is better, a blog with so many comments that one person cannot handle them all, resulting in a spamfest or, worse still, a hostile environment; or a blog that is “under control” with limited discussion? (That’s assuming you can’t have the “best of both worlds.”)
“Dia-blog” is important, but if the blog author can’t keep up with all the comments, there is no dialog.
Of course, there’s also the issue of comments that start trending toward areas they don’t need to go. Recently one friend had to close comments on 2 blog posts, and I agreed with the decision.
I'm going to say no, mine does not. But I also don't think that a good blog has to solve a problem. Though, I could be wrong.
it wasn't a blanket statement, or at least I didn't mean it to be.
I think mine does but it still needs some improvement.
John, you're right on about this. I've noticed this exact same thing with my blog. Being able to see the Google search strings gives you an insight to what people are needing. I'm curious to do an analysis on the one-year anniversary of mine to see the trends.
i'm excited about the 1 year review as well…! should be tasty.
are you publishing the review?
yes. it'll be epic.
John,
I think another way to say "problem" might be "need or desire." Putting it into the Christian plain, is there a way that we can meet those needs, desires in a Christ-honoring way online? I think the answer is yes, and that building a good blog may be a the intersection of that need/problem/desire and pointing to Jesus.
One thing that's been bugging me a bit is that "Christian bloggers" might forget Jesus' principle – to serve others. As a group of bloggers we seem to be determined to find a "get rich way" of doing blogging – i.e. not serving others. That's a blanket statement and I know funding for ministry needs to be much more innovative than ever before.
I wonder if we might get caught up in the "let me figure out a way to pull them in" mentality – for personal gain – i.e. "that I be known or make a name for myself" or "rattle off what I want people to know" or "make money."
Blogging, along with some of the social media, seems to kind of naturally lend itself to a slippery slope of pride.
But it also could lend itself to being a great tool to point to Jesus and many do that well.
That's a long intro to ask you what you think about using the information you've gotten about why people come to your blog? I'd be interested in the way you see the intersection and how it will help you focus (same, differently, new thoughts)?
(By the way, I come to your blog because I believe we need pioneers to create a path for the church to move online well.)
Thanks,
Sandy
sandyboone.com
Good point! I was “thinking” this but didn't write it explicitly… obviously a big “problem” or “need/desire” is a relationship with Christ. but that doesn't always come out “right” online.
Hey no criticism – just wondering how we'll process this.
wow, you're blog is neat!
"Blogging, along with some of the social media, seems to kind of naturally lend itself to a slippery slope of pride."
Sandy this rings so true for me! I always love to find blogs that find a great balance between talking about themselves and the topic. I think ChurchCrunch does that pretty well.
I also like the idea of focusing on serving others. It's such a great principle to keep in mind.
Thanks for your thoughts Lauren.
"Finding balance" is a common theme I think as we have fun with culture in a new way. I like that thought – balance.
I haven't got a picture clearly in my mind yet of what's balanced and what's unbalanced? Thoughts on that?
yes, definitely! thanks for commenting!