If You Can’t Get to the News First

An important aspect to being a successful blogger is getting to that news first. If you can beat the blogosphere and be the first to announce breaking news you can build some good trusted readers. But you can’t always be the first onto a top story. So what can you do?

I think there are many things you can do with a story even if you aren’t the first to post it. So don’t be afraid if you get to it 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, etc. I guess when it has been 3 days and there are 212 pages of results for all the blogs that posted about it… well maybe you should give it up.

But, heck we can’t always be the first to post about something, and in fact it is rare. So what do we do?

Be the first to post a decent commentary about it. Though we may be looking for facts, we also want to hear what others have to say about something. It is our nature. So quit beating yourself up over trying to get to that story first. I know it can be a great way to get some hits but I think what’s most important… and a lasting impression is what you do with that information.

Post your opinion and tell your readers about it. Personally I can’t stand reading politics blogs when all of the Democrats have the same opinion and all the Republicans have the same differing opinions. I mean come on folks. Are we that simple of human beings where we are either Democrat or Republican? If there is a top story on Barrack Obama, you can almost bet that if you land on any or all Democratic blogs you will read pretty much the same thing. Same goes with Republicans.

So my point? Umm…. Be yourself and discuss the issue. Being able to have a strong voice that isn’t the same as all those other bloggers is important.

So how do you stand out in your commentary? You can agree with everybody in your camp or you can have a real opinion. But maybe you do agree with everybody? But my point is that don’t simply write what everybody else is writing just to get the news posted on your blog. Actually take the time and come up with something decent to write. In the end it is all about what you say…

Obama… Osama…