February 13, 2004 | View Comments (20) | Category: Whitespace
Summary: Should I allow guest posters on this site?
I have been considering whether I should allow guest posters on this site. I know 37Signals does it, but no offense to them, most of the time the guest poster adds absolutely nothing to the site and in the case for January I don't think the guy posted at all! I don't need a guest poster for a whole month, but maybe I could let people have a week/couple of days to post some of their thoughts on this site. Obviously I would do it for people who don't get the amount of traffic as I do (not bragging at all so don't take it like that) and this would be a good way to drive people to their site if the audience likes their entries.
Do you think this is viable at all? Also, what do you think the best format for this approach would be if I were to go with it? What should qualify someone for becoming a guest poster? This is our weekend discussion.
Trackback URL: http://9rules.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-tb.cgi/148
I guess the obvious consideration would be how this would fit in with the goals of your site.
In terms of guest posting I've always liked the mezzoblue secondvoice format
(http://www.mezzoblue.com/secondvoice/).
Or instead of guest posting you could just interview those you want to give a higher profile to or do what many other do and have a link log.
dez (http://dezwozhere.com/blog/)
I don't like this idea. If they have their own weblog, they can write stuff there and you can link to them. I feel what is posted here should be posted by you (and that means Paul).
Zelnox
I second the 'pre-arranged' topic idea. As mentioned it would eliminate meaningless posts and most importantly guide the conversation.
If not pre-arranged, then pre-approval of said topic would be advisable. Your goal with your site is yours and yours alone. Making sure it remains consistent and meaningful is priority.
However, I can already see that your proposal for guest posting will garner both negative and positive comments. Here's also something to consider: Did you envision this site (or weblog) as being shared or solo? I'd say that if your initial vision wasn't a shared weblog with contributions from other writers, then keep it to yourself.
Otherwise, I see nothing wrong with guest posting so long as it remains consistent, as mentioned above.
kartooner (http://www.kartooner.com)
I think Kartooner pretty much said it. If you want your site to be that way, do so. In my opinion, this seems more like a Paul blog than a community blog. A very important blog to the community, but not a "community blog". Yeah, I think you get it. :P
Maybe the link log is a good option. Suddenly I think of a Trackback-powered link log with some sort of moderation feature. Not necessary (we have email :P), but whatever.
Anyways, it's your decision. I'd be happy to guest blog here sometime if you choose to open it, and I'm sure many others would take the chance too.
Chris Vincent (http://dris.dyndns.org:8080/)
If someone has something good to say, maybe they could submit it and if it was good and appropriate, you can post it. I wouldn't open it up to a certain time limit though. Not everyone can come up with a good topic every day like you can, so they might feel pressured to post something and end up posting something that didn't need to be posted.
Derek Rose (http://www.twotallsocks.com/)
I'm with zelnox on this. This is your baby. We mouth off enough in comments. :-)
Someone else posting, no matter how high quality that post is, would dilute what brought your readers here in the first place. And I don't think it would add much.
Why don't you create a category for posts on other blogs, and use that when you're just pointing out something good on another blog... you have multi category ability in MT I think, so you can still have it categorized based on the content of the post (design or what have you), and also categorized as a contribution or whatever you want to call it. You could ask folks to post something on a given topic in their blog and link to it, if there was something specific you wanted to see.
I should note, one time I might see a guest blogger as a good idea is if you were going to be on vacation for a couple of weeks and could find someone who was at least half as prolific as you are to cover for you.
JC (http://thelionsweb.com/weblog)
I'm second JC's statement. Maybe if you were going on vacation or something, but otherwise I think you do one hell of a job.
A link sidebar would be grand though, I've always been a big fan of those :)
Taylor (http://gtmcknight.com)
I find the idea of a guest speaker appealing, though I would go along with the people who say not to let the guest speakers drown out your own voice. I'd think no more than 1 guest post a week, perhaps less...
I also don't think that the goal of having a guest speaker would be to generate traffic to their site. The goal should probably be to share a new or unique perspective on a topic that you yourself couldn't provide. In that sense, you probably shouldn't limit your guest speakers strictly to those that aren't as well known in the web community. It should be about the quality of the post, not celebrity or lack thereof of the poster...
In summary, do what I say.
Alanna (http://www.virginmoistness.com)
scrivs this is your place; as JC has said we get to open our mouths in comments.
keep the site the way it is :) anyways i like reading your thoughts, your a very interesting person and a smart one at that, and i've grown to trust your opinions on a lot of topics posted here at whiespace.
In closing (i sound smart ) whitespace is the place i come to read what 'Paul Scrivens' has posted, weither it's his view on web standards or how he likes his coffee (lol) w_s is Scrivs home..so hope you decide to keep it that way.
-PEACE
-PEACE
Steven
I'm in two minds -- on one hand, having a place for (potentially) a one-off or very occaisional post on a high traffic blog would be great. I don't have a blog of my own (never have enough to say), but on occaision, I have something worthy of a decent write-up.
On the other hand, this is your space, and your readership is here for you.
Either way, I think a more random guest posting (posted for aproval by you before posted) would work better than (for example) opening your blog up for X days.
Let me know if you go ahead with it, and I'll submit a post for your aproval :)
Justin French
January was a bust on SVN, though I still think some guest posters over there have done a good job over the past year (especially last July). ;)
It's something I have been toying with on my site too. While comments do offer the opportunity to create a community place, it's also nice to shake things up now and again. Sort of like adding a new character to a sitcom after 3 seasons. Mm. Bad example.
Matthew Oliphant (http://usabilityworks.typepad.com)
Matthew, are you suggesting Paul is trying to jump the shark?
hehehe
JC (http://thelionsweb.com/weblog)
I just happened onto your site. As a site designer, I am impressed with it's cleaness. I am new to blogging and have not checked out your site thouroughly, but it appears to be very well managed. I think having guest posts by topic a very good idea...otherwise things can get out of hand. It is good to keep focus while allowing flexability for input and some dialogue. I look forward to discovering more of your comments, and experiencing this aspect of the web.
Davida (http://not right now)
Well it looks like the idea will be put on hold until I solidify the details. Everyone has made valid points here and I appreciate the input. I guess I am starting to see this site more as a community site with me being more of a "conversation starter" than anything else.
Scrivs (http://www.9rules.com/whitespace/)
Maybe you should keep whitespace as is and add a forum or something to the 9rules network if you want other people to post and discuss their ideas?
JC (http://thelionsweb.com/weblog)
JC has a good idea. Appending a forum to one of your pages would be cool.
kartooner (http://www.kartooner.com)
I don't believe guest posters are the way to go. Slashdot calls people who don't give their name 'Anonymous Cowards' which I think is suggestive enough :P. Guests often add nothing to a conversation. Surely most people who will post a quality comments would want to recognised for their points, and if not would have the decency to make up an alias to go by. Guests are more often the spammers, as it saves time to not have to enter a name.
If you allow people to post without a name, how are you to differentiate between anonymous posters? What if you want to follow up a discussion with one, but they don't have a name. You'll have to say something along the lines of 'I think that the person that posted the comment around number 12, the one between Scriv's and my earlier one about the point where...'. Not really worth the bother is it?
David House
I think you missed the point there, David... by guest, he means people he invites to post.
JC (http://http;//www.thelionsweb.com/weblog)
Keep track of comments to all entries with the Comments Feed
©2003-06 9rules, Inc. | Thoughts Feed | Notes Feed
Amazon Stores: Powertools | Jewelry | Books | Health | Landscaping | Kitchen | Movies
#1
what if guest posters weren't based on a time period, but on a topic. either you could ask others to post based on a certain topic, or people could volunteer to post based on a topic of their choosing. that way, you don't have to worry about meaningless posts all over the place, because they will only post once based on a pre-arranged topic.
ak (http://www.alexkeeny.com/simplicity/)