As a blogger and lifelong bumbling marketer, I look to articles by people who are “Internet famous,” in order to advance my craft. One of the best I’ve found is Seth Godin; 20-time author, marketing philosopher, and ultra-cool über-nerd with funky eyeglasses.
I signed up for Mr. Godin’s blog and receive his wisdom in my inbox every morning. To be honest, when I read his first blog post, it was so short, I thought it was a mistake.
Maybe he was having a busy day and didn’t have time to write much? I envisioned him hacking away at his iPad as his taxi was stuck in New York City gridlock, only to jump out, slide across the hood action-hero-style, throw the cabbie a 20 and say “Keep the change, Joe!” and sprint uptown toward his office, his assistant racing to keep up without spilling his boss’s latte. Then again, I don’t even know where Mr. Godin lives or if he’s got an assistant or even likes coffee, but that’s how I picture the life of this dazzlingly-successful entrepreneezy.
But day after day, the lack of length was confirmed:
Seth’s blogs are short.
Ridiculously short.
Comically short.
In fact, the first thing you think when you see his posts (without reading them,) is, “Wow, that’s really not a lot of words.” I actually started counting. His word count can be anywhere from 60 words to 360, with most posts averaging less than 200 words.
That’s remarkable in this day and age when writers tend to prattle on (I’m guilty, your honor!) Most blog posts reach 700-800 words, and there are too many that look like an endless sea of words. But Seth Godin’s blogs can be washed down in one easy gulp.
I’m here to tell you, that’s awesome. And the more I learn about him and his work, I doubt it’s an accident. Why?
But I’m afraid I’ve said too much, already- over 500 words! So to wrap it all up, I’ve learned a lot from Mr. Godin’s ridiculously short blog posts. And Mr. Godin; if you ever need someone to run behind you in traffic while holding your latte, give me a call – I have a lot to learn.
-Norm :-)
I signed up for Mr. Godin’s blog and receive his wisdom in my inbox every morning. To be honest, when I read his first blog post, it was so short, I thought it was a mistake.
Maybe he was having a busy day and didn’t have time to write much? I envisioned him hacking away at his iPad as his taxi was stuck in New York City gridlock, only to jump out, slide across the hood action-hero-style, throw the cabbie a 20 and say “Keep the change, Joe!” and sprint uptown toward his office, his assistant racing to keep up without spilling his boss’s latte. Then again, I don’t even know where Mr. Godin lives or if he’s got an assistant or even likes coffee, but that’s how I picture the life of this dazzlingly-successful entrepreneezy.
But day after day, the lack of length was confirmed:
Seth’s blogs are short.
Ridiculously short.
Comically short.
In fact, the first thing you think when you see his posts (without reading them,) is, “Wow, that’s really not a lot of words.” I actually started counting. His word count can be anywhere from 60 words to 360, with most posts averaging less than 200 words.
That’s remarkable in this day and age when writers tend to prattle on (I’m guilty, your honor!) Most blog posts reach 700-800 words, and there are too many that look like an endless sea of words. But Seth Godin’s blogs can be washed down in one easy gulp.
I’m here to tell you, that’s awesome. And the more I learn about him and his work, I doubt it’s an accident. Why?
- A blog is supposed to be one thought. That’s it.
- The point of a blog is to get the reader thinking, not tell them what you think.
- No one ever reads Seth’s blogs and says, “Gosh, I wish there were more words.”
- Written messages are unique in that the less you write, the more perceived value the reader attaches to them.
- In fact, I find myself rereading Seth Godin’s posts, to let the content really sink in.
- Brevity conveys the author values the reader’s time and intelligence, not busying them with fluff.
- You never close out one of his posts because you've lost interest.
- If anything, you end it and wonder if there’s more. That’s the first rule of show biz – always leave them wanting more. The reader is more apt to pay attention and pay the ultimate tribute – click through to is website.
- How wonderful that we can differentiate ourselves with what we don’t write. We can give the reader the gift of space to think and breathe.
But I’m afraid I’ve said too much, already- over 500 words! So to wrap it all up, I’ve learned a lot from Mr. Godin’s ridiculously short blog posts. And Mr. Godin; if you ever need someone to run behind you in traffic while holding your latte, give me a call – I have a lot to learn.
-Norm :-)
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