A couple of weeks back, I ordered a boxed set of DVDs by Seth Godin.  They arrived yesterday.  I’ve been watching them every spare minute.  My brain is on fire, with many great ideas running through them.

But that’s not what this post is about.  It’s about the 2 ways to blog with influence I learned from one of these DVDs.

Build a Water Cooler

What’s a water-cooler blog?  A place where everyone in the niche or industry hangs out.  Shares thoughts, comments, opinions - about anything.

It’s a gathering place, a digital bar, a virtual locker-room where folks meet to discuss what’s happening in your circle of interest.  You, the blog owner, are the concierge, the maitre d’… and your role is to be as ‘hands-off’ as possible.

You clear up any inappropriate or off-topic message - but do little else.  All’s fair, as long as it is about the subject of your blog.

And by sheer numbers of visitors, you gain influence.  You post.  Others comment.  Your blog is soon known as an ‘authority’.

Build the Ultimate Resource

The other way to approach blog influence is by providing overwhelming value.

It’s like developing an ‘authority website’.  Your blog covers just about every aspect of the subject matter - from your perspective.

Which, incidentally, will paint YOU as the ultimate expert… in time.

Community and interaction don’t matter as much on such a blog.  Content quality, relevance and frequency of publishing are more important determinants of influence.

And as inbound links will naturally appear, influence grows.

Two ways to build a blog with influence.  Which one is your choice?  How are you going about it?