So, the idea of widgets gets pimped in a big way over at the New York Times today. For the lay person they describe how widgets can pimpify your blog, and yes, shocking, how some widgets might go from free to some sort of pay-per-something model.
Can someone explain what the big deal is?
With all due respect to the pimpalicious treatment Om Malik gives widgets, I just don’t see why they get the amount of publicity they do. Sure, they extend and add functionality to a blog. But you know what? With one single exception there is a widget that I find useful when I go and visit a blog as a reader, and furthermore, as a blog owner.
Quite frankly, I think that all of the pub that widgets have gotten and continue to get (2007 the year of the widget? Playa, please!) distract from bloggers creating great blog content in the first place. The emphasis on bling detracts from bloggers focusing on what matters most: creating fresh, interesting, passionate content which is the REAL reason why people come to read any blog.
All of this is compounded by the notion that a significant portion blog readers read their blogs exlusively through RSS feeds anyway. Yes, that means that they can’t see your widgets!
Blogs have the reputation as being the providence of self indulgent teenagers and navel-gazing introverts. Some of that is warranted. But we all know that the reality is much different, and for some of us evangelists (and funnily enough, I do consider myself a ‘blogging evangelist’) it can be an industry and game changing reality.
Any time the mainstream media focuses on the trivialities and frivolities of blogging gives one more piece of ammunition to the public consciousness that yes — that’s what blogging is all about. The flash, pizzazz, bling and bluster. And that’s a disservice to every blogger out there who busts his hump creating something that is worthy of their readers time.
* the only widget I’ve found useful is the MyBlogLog “recent readers’ widget
** yes, I’m aware of the meebo and other IM ones … but I’ve found they’re pretty much useless as any time *I’m* looking for a blog author, they’re always offline. An email will suffice in that circumstance, thanks very much.
*** no, I don’t consider Wordpress plugins “widgets”
**** no, I don’t find Sphere-it useful
12 Comments
I totally agree. And as much as I respect Nick Wilson, I don’t think widgets are the Holy Grail of “linkbaiting” or whatever better term we come up with. I wouldn’t put that crap in my sidebar, and I don’t think many in the business blogging world will either.
Sure there will be future widget successes. But they will be few and far between, just like the success of the site that started the widget mania, YouTube, will not soon be replicated.
Solid in-post citation is still the best linkage you can get, and you only get that with solid content that’s worth discussing or referencing.
I agree with you in part but i do like: del.icio.us daily posting tool, the revver widget is pretty sweet (see both of these in action at micropersuasion) and upcoming.org. at splashcast we are making what could be called the killer media widget, btw. (jan 30th launch!) many people look for ornamental self expression but adding hard value is clearly most important to others.
Agreed on the MyBlogLog recent readers being the only useful widget in the bunch. As far as del.icio.us links, it’s more useful to do them as asides in the main blog.
Maybe it’s because I haven’t used it and don’t pay much attention to it, but I don’t find the MyBlogLog widget useful (from a reader’s perspective). MyBlogLog clearly benefits the proprietor of a blog by helping to build a readership, but I’ve never given a second look to anyone else’s “recent readers” widget.
The big deal is personalization. Just as MySpacers seek to differentiate and personalize their page, bloggers are doing the same with their blog space. An online personal publishing rennaissance is taking place, why is it hard to believe that people will make it their own and get a little creative?
BTW, only 18% of bloggers offer an RSS feed of their site, per Pew Internet. Also, only 4% of bloggers write about technology whereas 37% write about “their life and experiences”.
Jordan,
I can see *why* people would want to personalize their space. Its the same reason why teenage boys like to spend thousands of dollars pimping their hoopties.
My puzzlement is over the fact that its a big deal when people should really be focusing on creating real content. And that includes “their life and experiences”.
People blog for all kinds of reasons, but regardless of the reason, I think that everyone still looks for validation when they do blog. Comments, traffic, inbound links and so on.
Without compelling content, even for navel gazing blogs, none of that happens. Widgets distract from what’s important, is all.
“pimping their hoopties”? LOL. I can only guess that a hooptie is a car.
I’m not in disagreement, but I did misunderstand — thought you really did request an explanation. :-P
Slamming widgets because they distract from the content when put in blogs is like slamming TVs because they distract from driving when put in cars. But TVs belong in the home. And widgets belong in social networks.
I posted on this on the Lightspeed blog. Click on my name in this comment if you’d like to see more.
Jeremy,
I’ll grant you that widgets are also used on social networks — however, the widget directory that is mentioned in the NYTimes piece, widgetbox, seems itself to target bloggers.
Not social networkers.
Follow the link for “Why use widgets” and you end up on a page about widgets ending up in blogs: http://docs.widgetbox.com/bloggers/
I don’t know where most widgets are deployed, but until I do see some/ any hard data, I wouldn’t be so quick to think that they’re mostly used in social networks at all.
If they were, you’d think that widgetbox would have adjusted their copy to be more social network-centric. But in fact, there’s nothing mentioned about MySpace, Bebo, or any of them.
And hey, if you’re in the position to actually have data on widgets, pass it along. I’m more than happy to eat crow if the situation warrants it.
t
Tony,
You’re right about widgetbox – it targets bloggers. You can also see on its homepage how many widgets its served since inception – about 14m. Both Slide and Rockyou serve more than 100m widgets a DAY on social network sites (this was announced at the Mashable Widget Conference). Now these are not directly comparable as there are lots of other widgets served up on blogs that are not served by Widgetbox. But there are also lots of other widgets served up on social networks other than those two (Rockyou, Blinkyou, Zingfu, Bunny Hero Labs etc etc). Its indicative data only, but I think its directionally correct.
Spot on. I’m in total agreement. Down with widgets.
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