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Should I do 1 big bang post or a series of smaller posts?
Recently, I have done a couple "really big" posts on my blog:210 Tips for 2010: http://www.funnelholic.com/2010/01/14/210-b2b-marketing-tips-for-2010/ 52 Marketing Definitions for the Marketing Hipster: http://www.funnelholic.com/2010/01/26/the-marketing-hipster-dictionary-part-i-52-definitions-every-marketer-should-know/ In both cases, people gave me feedback that instead of doing 1 big post, I should have broken them up into a series of posts. What do you think?
Best Answer
- Recommended by:
- Julius Thomas
I think if content truly passes the remarkability test, then it can be packaged into remarkable chunks. Ideally each chunk hooks the reader and they can jump to earlier/later posts in the series. If I only had ever seen "The Empire Strikes Back" (the best of all Star Wars movies, IMHO), I would be a lock to see Star Wars IV and VI.
Following that logic, if my first introduction to Star Wars had been Star Wars I, with that goofy JarJar Binks character, or Star Wars II, with Hayden Christensen's horrendous wooden acting performance, I probably would've avoided the rest of the entire Star Wars franchise.
- Recommended by:
- Caty Kobe
Do we eat breakfast, lunch & dinner all at once in a day? Of course not.
Same way, if the readers are getting information in smaller chunks, then only they can digest all information in a proper way.
The best way to deliver content is: Small Parts of a Big Article.
I think you should release the posts the way you feel at the time of writing them. If you felt like the 52 definitions was something you wanted to release ALL at once, you should. If you planned prior to release it as a series, then so be it.
Isn't it said, 'variety is the spice of life'? I, myself, prefer all relevant information in one blow. But then sometimes, I just can't handle it all at once ... what's a girl to do?? In this, I trust the whims of my favorite bloggers.
I think attention spans have shrunk to the level of a 3-4 year old, given the ocean of information that hits us in the face us every time we get online. I for one love learning new things so information is usually my friend, but when I have so much virtual ink that I want to read all at the same time I have to force myself to eat only samplers and only an occasional full meal (only something that is absolutely irresistable).
So, unless the topic you are covering or the ideas you are articulating are life changing (or close enough), I'd keep blogs to digestible chunks only (2-3 paragraphs max)
When faced with that decision, I lean towards longer single posts that have a common theme when the individual parts are not enough to make a blog post on their own. For example, a 10-point blog post that's 1500 words works, but 10 150-word blog posts would be odd. Think of your 210 post -- each on its own woud be meaningless (except on twitter), and bunching them into groups would make it hard to keep the momentum while reading.
On the other hand, If you had 5 points, and each are 500 words or more, then I would consider making a 5-part series, if they are related, yet distinct.
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Craig,
The golden rule of blogging: one point per post. If that is a list of 10 or 100 things, so be it. Use the more tag or break up into a few pages if it's dense.
A multi-post, on the other hand, should be premeditated and should be more "epic" in nature, like "How to build an aircraft carrier in 5 steps." With the content of the subsequent posts even determined by feedback, comments, and events that take occur in between.