This is the story about a guy and his psyche. Well, not really. While he has a lot of respect for what he calls, the “super blog,” he also is starting to feel his motivation “smashed” by the speed and power of said blogs. He’s wondering if anybody feels the same way or if it’s just him getting a bit apathetic.
This is just a quick thought I had to get out of my head. I have to admit my psyche has a bittersweet relationship with the design super blogs. Places like, Smashing Magazine, Design Reviver, the Envato Network and Web Designer Wall.
First of all, I have a lot of respect for places like this, because they dedicate their time to spreading awesome information through tutorials and articles. A lot of them are run by people who are immensely creative and run circles around me when it came to truly mastering Photoshop and the like.
But that’s the thing.
The other side of the coin shows the same issue, but when it concerns my motivation to write articles, tutorials, build themes and the like. The only thing I can compare it to at the moment is say, Walmart closing down the smaller mom-and-pop shops. It’s because these blogs have dedicated and creative staff. They’re also businesses running on that premise. They need to do this to make sure they stay afloat. In doing so, it gives me an odd feeling.
“What’s the use?” I’d say to myself, they’d probably be able to do it better. I’m sure this apathetic feeling is just me. While I’m bothered, I’m not. Because really, I can only offer so much. I only wonder if other people are finding it hard to want to write or create things because of the larger blogs doing the same. For example, Smashing Magazine and their numerous WordPress themes, seems like one a week these days.
To conclude, the only thing I do fear, is the spread of misinformation. Things like the second point of Smashing’s article on table designs shouldn’t be there. Because these destinations have such clout these days, they have to be extra careful. I fear they won’t be because it’s the nature and speed of the business, but for the sake of the people in our industry who have tirelessly taught standards, we can’t have the next generation of designers learning the wrong things.
I agree that they do get an disproportionately large amount of traffic, but at the end of the day, I think the target audiences are slightly different.
Like you said, those websites are great, and every now and again, I find a really useful article.
But I also see inumerable “top 10 most bestest things which are awesome at $subject” - and they just annoy the hell out of me.
Most of the time, they are just a giant list of links to articles I’ve already read, and on the rare occasion I havn’t read one of the articles they recommend, its because its crap.
I truly believe in quality vs quantity, and I believe that that is an advantage the smaller blogs have over the biggies. Blogs like yours don’t rely on ad commission, and your goal is not to live of money generated by traffic, so you only have to write articles when you want to, about subjects you feel are important.
I much prefer reading posts every few months from people like yourself, khoi vinh, and mark boulton, over the ‘5-top-10-lists-every-day’ mega-sites.
I think the problem is, with good PR and friendly designs, the mega-sites make themselves look more human, but at the end of the day, their main goal is money, and as Conan O’brien says: “It’s a volume business”
Love your site, and hope you don’t worry about this stuff too much.
Dan — Thanks for your insight. I tend not to worry about this stuff at all actually, but I guess it was sort of nagging at my inner ear. :)
I’m the same way, some days I spend ages trawling through list after list reading hundreds of articles, thinking how wonderful the internet is… Then other days I get really annoyed by how those kind of blog posts are the only ones we ever seem to see thesedays.
I guess the best thing to do is just buck the trend, so I’m going to start trying to blog about really niche things, going into detail about subjects I’m passionate about, and not try to pull traffic with soul-less lists of other peoples work.
You absolutely are not alone in this thought.
I’ve tried to keep my blog mostly out of the personal stuff you see on many of the everyday blogspot/typepad/wordpress.com/etc blogs that everyone has these days - stuff like “I washed my dog” or “I ate 20 oreos last night.”
Unfortunately, as I see more and more sites like Smashing Magazine (because they are done so well) I feel like if I can’t provide content of their level, I might as well turn my blog into your standard “my-personal-life” blog. Which, honestly, I have no desire to do (though it has been a consistently frequent thought the last 6 months or so).
What is the solution?
I only wish I knew.
Something like 9rules seems like a good idea (aggregating several independent blogs together) but in practice, seems to fall short.
Let me know if you come up with anything. =)
Wow. You hit on a big thought for design-bloggers like us. I was just talking about this very think with my wife last night.
I am struggling with the direction of my blog and I wrote about it because I don’t have the time, nor the energy to match their full-time forces.
I started a design inspiration column, but who would want to follow that when it is updated once every 2 weeks to a month, when smashing or (name your design blog) offers that sort of stuff ALL THE TIME. Why offer tutorials, when psdtuts or whatevs are paying people to pump out sweet stuff for them?
It’s almost like mom-and-pop bloggers like ourselves thought of something, be it offering tutorials, insights, design inspiration, etc and did it well. But we did it at a small scale. Hmmm, thinks the ‘corporate’ or big blog…how can we maximize it? It’s McDonalds all over again in the blog world.
What is it that the mom and pop type blogger can still offer? Maybe it’s personality and unique thought. Maybe we showcase obscure sites or not-so-mainstream techniques. Maybe we can draw on the experiences of successful mom and pop businesses that make it nowadays…
taps Bryan on the shoulder Oh hey dude, I’m sitting in the same corner, right behind you.
Just yesterday, I found myself in the exact same situation. I have a short list of things that I’d like to accomplish - writing more walkthroughs and tutorials being one. Releasing some free and paid themes, another. But like you, I’ve seen the amount of good quality content design blogs like Smashing have been pushing out and have wondered if I should even bother.
One thing I’ve come to realize is the power of one’s name/brand. I was honestly very surprised to see how many people were stoked to see me redesign. I figured my time had come and gone, but apparently not. And I know that people would read my tutorials and use my themes simply because they came from me. They’ve come to trust and respect me over the years, so no matter how well everyone else is doing in the same field, I’ll still have people looking in my direction for guidance and content. It goes without saying that you have the same support behind you.
Wow…I’ve been thinking this for the last week.
I’d really like to create a blog that serves useful and valuable content to web designers and developers. I’m torn between what I feel is something new and original and something that is just regurgitating the internet over and over. But I can’t write a new post every day of the quality I want…..
The one blog that I do have a lot of respect for is Steven’s http://vandelaydesign.com/blog. While he does have lot of the top ten content, he also has a lot of insightful commentary and editorials.
The answer is simple. We must all band together and create another mega-blog :-)
I’m going to echo Matt’s sentiment as I’ve been going over the same thought in my head - my personal brand is the most important asset I have. Who I am, and how I present myself to the world is what matters.
One thing I’ve noticed is that some of the larger names out there, the ones presenting, speaking at, or even hosting conferences, blogged independently. Usually they work for a firm, but who they are individually mattered a great deal. I don’t follow ‘A List Apart’ so much as I follow Zeldman. You know?
I still would love to write more though. :)
The web wouldn’t be what it is if “small” guys like you didn’t stand up and put their minds online, despite the “big” guys being so omnipresent and omnipotent. Who cares if they can put better content, more concise information, higher level designs, and what not? It’s different. You run this blog for your own reasons, and I bet it’s not money. That makes up for a whole different kind of content.
Big companies write about awesomeness. The down to earth guy writes about down to earth stuff we all know and care about, even if we usually drift off to read about “the best site online” every now and then.
Just to make a point, your blog is in my rss reader, smash magazine isn’t.
Don’t be silly, we love your blog. And some of us did so before you decided to scratch your “old” blog, and come up with “new” stuff.
Like some people above have mentioned, theres a big difference between a blog like yours, and smashing magazine. I’ll read smashing now and then to get some ideas, but not on a daily basis. A blog like yours is about reality, and your life as a designer. I find that a lot more interesting and I can relate to it more. I think its usually the small blogs that end up publishing articles that are the innovative, new ideas as well. I can’t remember reading about some new concept or cutting edge idea that came from a big commercial blog, unless it was a link to a smaller blog. Keep up the good work!
i understand exactly where you’re coming from. i owe a lot to those “super blogs” like PSDTUTS and Smashing Magazine. they taught me most of what I know, and fostered a love for all things digital and design. Now that im ready to go out and create my own site, my own business, and my own blog, i wonder if I really shouldn’t even try to write a blog. no one would read it anyway. maybe i should just post an article or two on the powerhouse blogs, and call it quits before i put a huge amount of effort into it and have no one ever see it. to be honest, im still undecided.
I think this is one of the larger points I’ve tried to hit with this article. Zach, you said you’re wondering if you should “even try to write a blog.” Whether or not that view was different in the past, it still seems like apathy in my view. I’m wondering how much of this apathy is caused (directly or indirectly) by the super blogs, and how much is created (again, directly or indirectly) by other means.
Thank god someone else is feeling the same way I am. I’m so tired of “top 10 resources everyone should know about css/photoshop/coding standards/design/blah blah blah.” I’m so tired of stumbling on to lists like that. I even giggle when I see a “top 1500 free icons.” Can people really be that uncreative?
In fact, its because of facts like that that I prefer websites like yours, or A List Apart, or Shaun Inman’s blog that tend to touch on different issues with a more personal feel. I’ll take that over a top 10 list any day.
I’m on the same boat. Big blogs like Smashing Magazine covers almost everything about design. So, sometimes it makes me think twice whether I should still blog or not. I sometimes ask myself, “Why do I have to write this article? I’m sure the big blogs have written or will be writing a better version.”
I’m also tired of seeing list of “top 10 or the best blah blah” reaching the top of Digg and Design Float. Yes, I know their compilation of top things are really great. But it’s just that I want something that has more depth. That’s why I’d rather check the RSS feed of smaller blogs because they got a personal touch to it which I can relate to.
Anyway, this is my first time on your site and I’m loving it. I’ll definitely be coming back. Keep it up!