The Blogging Time Dilemna: Long and Juicy or Quick and Dirty

If you ask a group of bloggers: "What is better: A long and juicy blog post, full of orignal thought and links to other resources, or a quick and dirty post that only comments on another blog or news article?" You will get as many answers as there are bloggers.

I am a "long and juicy" blogger. I include a lot of original thought and commentary in my posts. But in the long run, my blog traffic numbers tend to suffer because I am not here posting every day.

My mentor and blog coach, Mike Sansone, author of the critically acclaimed and very popular blog Converstations, has his own formula for blogging success, one that I envy, sometimes follow, but mostly just admire. Just reading his archive on blogging strategy is akin to reading the bible on blogging.

The simple key to your personal blogging style depends on your goal for the blog. Do you want to be a super-star with 5,000 daily readers? Do you want a place to promote your business or give your current Web site a rise in Google searches? The answers will give you guidance on how many posts will get you to your readership goal.

I'll give you a glimpse of the types of posts that I recommend to my clients. Ideally, posts should vary from long and juicy, to quick and dirty, with several types in between. Problogger has an excellent post here that details 20 different types of posts and how to effectively mix 'em around in your blog.

Effective time management is essential to the success of a blog and the person writing it. While writing an actual post may take you no more than 20 minutes, you have to block out time for research, commenting on other blogs, linking, identifying your sources, and tagging posts.

My best advice is to be realistic and generous with your time estimate. Then block it out on your calendar like any other obligation. But don't forget to stay relevant to your audience, and for goodness sake, have a little fun now and then.

Comments

[Easton Ellsworth]

Excellent blogging tips, Claire!

[Jim W]

It's an interesting question you pose. I think that small entries, frequently posted, will be more beneficial to a blog than longer, infrequent entries. One of the keys to getting more traffic is to make a reason for people to visit every day.