Are travel blogs losing their creativity and going downhill?
Jan 28, 2012, 9:04 am
#46
Join Date: May 2009
Location: South Park, CO
Programs: Tegridy Elite
Posts: 5,678
What?! Surely you're not referring to his constant shouting (!!!!) that goes with each of his posts! Annoying?! Don't you know all those exclamation marks are necessary?! How would us rubes know if it was a good deal or not if he didn't put at least one or two exclamation marks after it? I realize it's sort of like being hit over the head with a 2X4 but sometimes that's what it takes to get through to some of us! He only needs a few pop-up, flashing neon exclamation marks to really get through to us!! (I'm kidding Dan, you don't need any of those!!) 
Well before too long, every single email had "HOT!" on it because I guess someone wanted to justify their job as being so important. So now we have "HOT!!HOT!!" if they think it's really, really important; and "HOT!!!HOT!!!HOT!!" if it's extra-super-duper-important with fudge sauce on top.
Jan 28, 2012, 9:22 am
#47
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: PSM
Posts: 69,232
Another thing to consider is that there are only so many CCs and other promos out there, and many more people are writing than there are such deals. Either there is going to be a lot of repetition or many blogs will have no content. Much like there are several news outlets all reporting basically the same story, that is the way of FF promos. If that's the content that you care about then there are many places to get it, each with slightly different spin and tone. But expecting them to all be different is somewhat unreasonable given the very limited amount of content they can choose from. It isn't like I can just conjure up a new promo for Hyatt and break the news.
Jan 28, 2012, 9:53 am
#48
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 17
need miles
Any ideas on how to increase my mileage awards (CO & AA) for a future trip in the fall? I have e-miles with CO and e-rewards (very poor) am getting petty miles for those surveys. I prefer AA miles, as CO does not service my city, however, I can fly to their hubs w/out a problem provided airfares are reasonable. I recently opt out of points.com, it was taking too much time and they also dropped AA from their list of carriers. Please post PM if you can help.
Jan 28, 2012, 2:56 pm
#49
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 3,738
This is starting to get ridiculous.
View from the Wing: American’s New 777-300 Revealed
So this now makes 6+ bloggers on Boarding Area to post about the preview of American’s new 777-300. I guess the only difference being with is that the most recent post has the worst photos of the bunch. What's the point of hosting blogs if they all are repeating the same content. Simple fix, just don't post something to your blog daily if you don't have any original content to blog about.
View from the Wing: American’s New 777-300 Revealed
So this now makes 6+ bloggers on Boarding Area to post about the preview of American’s new 777-300. I guess the only difference being with is that the most recent post has the worst photos of the bunch. What's the point of hosting blogs if they all are repeating the same content. Simple fix, just don't post something to your blog daily if you don't have any original content to blog about.
Jan 28, 2012, 6:12 pm
#50
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: PDX/AUS
Programs: AA-UA-AS IHG-SPG-Carlson
Posts: 4,562
Jan 28, 2012, 6:24 pm
#51
Join Date: Nov 2002
Posts: 920
...So this now makes 6+ bloggers on Boarding Area to post about the preview of American’s new 777-300. I guess the only difference being with is that the most recent post has the worst photos of the bunch. What's the point of hosting blogs if they all are repeating the same content. Simple fix, just don't post something to your blog daily if you don't have any original content to blog about.
Jan 28, 2012, 6:48 pm
#52
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 3,738
Can't believe it but I gotsta say I agree with all your posts in here 100%. Its getting to the point of how many hits or clicks they can get to keep ya coming back. These blogs suck for the most part and they've turn into money making creations that dont always share the same values as the FT or MP boards do. I agree that they shouldnt post stuff that isnt their ideas. Why do they feel the right to post others ideas and end up making money thru traffic or clicks?
Here's an idea for a travel blog... Someone who reads all the blogs and gives a top 10 or top 5 posts for that day. They don't post on the days when there is no good material. They give a short summary and then a link to that blogger's article. They post no original content. Limited or no banner ads (maybe a donation button?). Clean simple site design.
Jan 28, 2012, 7:22 pm
#53
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: PBI
Programs: DL FO
Posts: 388
All of the blogs have turned in to one big credit card affiliate link. It is really sickening and I have slowed wayyyyy down on reading them for that simple fact. This thread gives credence to that and the hits will start going down.
Jan 28, 2012, 7:50 pm
#54
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 234
Don't read them!!!
I really dont' understand the hostility over the bloggers.
I for one know that they are much easier to read and if i miss a couple of days no worry just scroll down and check out the missing "content".
Googles makes money from your searches are you going to stop using google? My point is that no one is forcing any blog on to anyone. And if the blogs make money so what, there has to be some overhead/incentive to keep the blog active.
the one i check daily is TPG because i like the format. there are others but those are only used when i am searching for a paticular thing.
my 2 cents
I really dont' understand the hostility over the bloggers.
I for one know that they are much easier to read and if i miss a couple of days no worry just scroll down and check out the missing "content".
Googles makes money from your searches are you going to stop using google? My point is that no one is forcing any blog on to anyone. And if the blogs make money so what, there has to be some overhead/incentive to keep the blog active.
the one i check daily is TPG because i like the format. there are others but those are only used when i am searching for a paticular thing.
my 2 cents
Jan 28, 2012, 7:59 pm
#55
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: PSM
Posts: 69,232
There is a blogger that bases his income on people paying for his books and access to his website. He basically is taking content from FT and other blogs and presenting it as his own and charging people to access it. Wonder if he is pushing his own CC referral links on his paying customers too? I don't believe he gives credit to the sources of his tips/material.
Here's an idea for a travel blog... Someone who reads all the blogs and gives a top 10 or top 5 posts for that day. They don't post on the days when there is no good material. They give a short summary and then a link to that blogger's article. They post no original content. Limited or no banner ads (maybe a donation button?). Clean simple site design.
Producing the original content isn't easy. The time invested can be pretty significant. Aggregating others is faster in some ways, but you've still got to distill all the incoming content, pick and publish. And that still doesn't get over the fact that the folks publishing the original content are going to be basically doing the same things they are today.
Jan 28, 2012, 8:06 pm
#56
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Rust belt
Posts: 300
As a new guy..there is a ton of info on flyertalk but you will need to search the hell out of it. I tend to find credit card deals and such thru personal finance sites e.g mymoneyblog.com and hustlermoney.blog before I started joing the points and miles club. (Funny thing I thought miles and points where worthless. Thats a whole other story.)
The good blogs teach you how to do something whether its double dipping, searching for rewards tickets, booking tickets thru buckets and fare rules to save money. I think that any blog that teaches you how to use expert flyer and KVS tool is tops in my book.
(I actually thought about starting my own blog about a angry asian living in ohio trying to make it in the world. Im a IT geek with a MBA that is a extrovert and a party animal.)
The good blogs teach you how to do something whether its double dipping, searching for rewards tickets, booking tickets thru buckets and fare rules to save money. I think that any blog that teaches you how to use expert flyer and KVS tool is tops in my book.
(I actually thought about starting my own blog about a angry asian living in ohio trying to make it in the world. Im a IT geek with a MBA that is a extrovert and a party animal.)
Jan 28, 2012, 8:31 pm
#57
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: Thousand Oaks, Ca., USA
Programs: AA Lifetime Plat; Bonvoy Titanium Lifetime Elite;Hyatt Globalist; HHonors Diamond; United Silver
Posts: 8,317
Don't read them!!!
I really dont' understand the hostility over the bloggers.
I for one know that they are much easier to read and if i miss a couple of days no worry just scroll down and check out the missing "content".
Googles makes money from your searches are you going to stop using google? My point is that no one is forcing any blog on to anyone. And if the blogs make money so what, there has to be some overhead/incentive to keep the blog active.
the one i check daily is TPG because i like the format. there are others but those are only used when i am searching for a paticular thing.
my 2 cents
I really dont' understand the hostility over the bloggers.
I for one know that they are much easier to read and if i miss a couple of days no worry just scroll down and check out the missing "content".
Googles makes money from your searches are you going to stop using google? My point is that no one is forcing any blog on to anyone. And if the blogs make money so what, there has to be some overhead/incentive to keep the blog active.
the one i check daily is TPG because i like the format. there are others but those are only used when i am searching for a paticular thing.
my 2 cents
I like that they duplicate things. I don't want to read 6 blogs.
It makes my life much easier. Plus several people have depended on me to get the info on credit card bonus'. Now I tell them to read View from the Wing and One Mile at a Time's list of offers.
Jan 28, 2012, 8:37 pm
#58
Suspended
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: DCA | IAD | BWI | BOS | OSL
Programs: AMEX Plat, AA EXP, DL Diamond Medallion, US, B6, SPG Gold,Marriott Gold,Hilton Gold,Starbucks Gold
Posts: 1,388
The blogs just steal information from Flyertalk and post it on their blog. Then pump credit card referrals.
It's like going to a penny stock site and they're pumping some new green energy stock. Worthless.
If you want high/low end reviews of hotels and airplanes go to trip reports on airliners or here on flyertalk
^!
It's like going to a penny stock site and they're pumping some new green energy stock. Worthless.
If you want high/low end reviews of hotels and airplanes go to trip reports on airliners or here on flyertalk
^!
Jan 28, 2012, 8:55 pm
#59
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: NYC (often in Thailand, Israel and Sweden)
Programs: Turkish Elite, AA Platinum, Royal Orchid Plus Silver
Posts: 382
Two ways to look at things
Ive also noticed that the content of the blogs are getting more and more similar. There are two ways of looking at this:
A. The bloggers are keeping each other on their toes. After all, three or four vacuum cleaners going over the same rug will increase cleanliness, at least asymptotically.
B. The field will thin out this way, since eventuallly, the blogs will be so many and so similar that no one will spend time looking at all of them (except complulsive deskbound people like me). Some may point to the newspaper death of the last century. NYC, for example went from 12 major dailies in 1950 to 3 by 1970. However, here, there is no added expense involved in checking out all the blogs.
What will probably happen is that the blogs with added value, such as humor and creativity, will survive.
A. The bloggers are keeping each other on their toes. After all, three or four vacuum cleaners going over the same rug will increase cleanliness, at least asymptotically.
B. The field will thin out this way, since eventuallly, the blogs will be so many and so similar that no one will spend time looking at all of them (except complulsive deskbound people like me). Some may point to the newspaper death of the last century. NYC, for example went from 12 major dailies in 1950 to 3 by 1970. However, here, there is no added expense involved in checking out all the blogs.
What will probably happen is that the blogs with added value, such as humor and creativity, will survive.
Jan 28, 2012, 9:36 pm
#60
Join Date: May 2009
Location: South Park, CO
Programs: Tegridy Elite
Posts: 5,678
Ive also noticed that the content of the blogs are getting more and more similar. There are two ways of looking at this:
A. The bloggers are keeping each other on their toes. After all, three or four vacuum cleaners going over the same rug will increase cleanliness, at least asymptotically.
B. The field will thin out this way, since eventuallly, the blogs will be so many and so similar that no one will spend time looking at all of them (except complulsive deskbound people like me). Some may point to the newspaper death of the last century. NYC, for example went from 12 major dailies in 1950 to 3 by 1970. However, here, there is no added expense involved in checking out all the blogs.
What will probably happen is that the blogs with added value, such as humor and creativity, will survive.
A. The bloggers are keeping each other on their toes. After all, three or four vacuum cleaners going over the same rug will increase cleanliness, at least asymptotically.
B. The field will thin out this way, since eventuallly, the blogs will be so many and so similar that no one will spend time looking at all of them (except complulsive deskbound people like me). Some may point to the newspaper death of the last century. NYC, for example went from 12 major dailies in 1950 to 3 by 1970. However, here, there is no added expense involved in checking out all the blogs.
What will probably happen is that the blogs with added value, such as humor and creativity, will survive.
I do like sbm12's blog as a better example of what interests me - trip reports, industry news/commentary for airline geeks like me, along with some miles tips and analysis.