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The Problem with Meta-Blogging: Being Unique in a Saturated Niche

Jeff Atwood’s latest article on 13 blog cliches makes a few points which I’ve thought about many times but never fully explored on Dosh Dosh. One of his cliches deals with meta-blogging, or the art of blogging about blogging.
I must confess that I am also not a fan of meta-blogging. I find some blogs about blogging to be rather dull, not because they are poorly written but rather because they are repetitive and do not add value.
Too much has already been written on the topic; it’s nearly impossible to get out of metablogging’s conceptual arc.
Archetypes dominate in this field. Some meta-blogging articles are minor variants of topics originally covered in greater depth on a bigger site like Problogger.
Even when I read an article on Problogger, I get the feeling that I’ve read it somewhere else. Eventually, the signals blend into noise.

Meta-blogging is like masturbating. Everyone does it, and there’s nothing wrong with it. But writers who regularly get out a little to explore other topics will be healthier, happier, and ultimately more interesting to be around– regardless of audience.

Unique Content is the Answer to Meta-Blogging Redundancy


Meta-blogging needs to be parasitic in order to evolve beyond its prison of ideas. It needs to latch onto another conceptual field in order to go beyond the thought circle it currently revolves in.

Meta-blogging is porous as it allows you to write about blogs existing within multiple topic fields and niches. If you’re already in the meta-blogging niche, the four tips below may benefit you directly; if you can create extraordinary content, you will build an audience and make more money from your blog.
Some ways which may help you go beyond the proverbial practice of meta-blogging:

  1. View Blogs as General Websites. Keep in mind that blogs are primarily publishing vehicles which rely on producing content in exchange for publicity, interaction and revenue. They are websites which provide information within the online public sphere.Blogs can and should be created, optimized and marketed like every other website on the internet. Focusing exclusively on platform-centric blog monetization and optimization will reduce your content scope unnecessarily.

  2. Borrow Principles Elsewhere. Spend more time reading things that interest you (besides blogging) and incorporate their influence or ideological patterns into your meta-blogging articles. Explore diverse topics which fascinate you.What do you like to read about? Start with those articles and examine their underlying theories or principles. Use them as case studies. Don’t be afraid to use a new topical language or writing style.

  3. Don’t Think Like a Blogger. If you really still want to blog about blogging in general, look at blogging from the viewpoint of someone with another agenda. Occasionally put on a designer, CEO, entrepreneur or advertiser’s hat.Stop thinking like a blogger or blog reader. The change in perspective is crucial here, particularly if you want to create content that is unique and yet relevant to your blog’s theme.

  4. Perform Unique Research. My pet peeve with meta-blogging is its emphasis on creating general principles or laws to be applied to individual blogs; this is the main cause for the widespread repetition of knowledge. It only teaches you to tweak and re-tweak your template and blog structure again and again in a bid to reach optimization nirvana.The individual experience should always precede general principles and any other historical precedent. A strong emphasis on statistical and experimental analysis would yield better reading material than an article that heavily borrows from others which predate it.

In the same article, Jeff Atwood recommends looking elsewhere for content ideas:

Three years from now, will anyone care that Apple released a new iPod on that particular day? My advice here is almost contrarian: if everyone else is talking about it, that means you should avoid talking about it.
Switch things up. Seek out uncommon sites with unique information. Dig down to original sources and read the material everyone is commenting (comments on top of comments on top of comments) endlessly on.

Moving Away from Meta-Blogging in General
I’m tired of the genre as a whole and I’ve consciously tried to steer Blogger Tips for beginners away from meta-blogging. Most of the articles I’ve written in the past month have been focused on internet marketing, entrepreneurship and social media, topics where there is more freedom for fresh analysis or a unique spin.
I may still write meta-blogging articles occasionally and hopefully they won’t be boring and insipid. Quality is important to me and if I can’t contribute to the discussion or add a unique opinion, I’ll rather keep quiet and let others blog about it.

What do you think of meta-blogging? Do you enjoy reading blogs about blogging?

What are your thoughts on this matter? Do share it in the comment. Thank you for your time

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Written by Admin on April 7th, 2011 with no comments.
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