Ever see headlines like that one?

I’m betting you have.

Last week I asked for your feedback on the term “tutorial marketing,” because I began to think that it may be just a bit too bland.

I think the consensus ended up being that you feel the same way.

The concept behind tutorial marketing is pretty powerful. By taking a strategic educational approach, you are actually selling more effectively, all while allowing the prospect to feel like they were not actually persuaded at all.

The fact that such content can also be effective link bait makes the methodology even more attractive.

Headlines like the one on this post are essentially talking about the same thing, just dressed up in forbidden clothing. It’s a different approach for a different audience, and that particular pitch actually works well with certain demographics.

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Imagine being an author, writing a book and toiling away in solitude.

You’ve got a general idea for the overall subject matter that’s good, but of course that idea has to be executed on chapter by chapter.

How would you know if one of those chapters sucked?

I suppose if you had a really good, attentive editor, she might tell you. But that’s a luxury that even most published authors don’t have.

So, in all likelihood, you just wouldn’t know.

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Want some good Techmeme exposure?

Here’s 3 easy steps to showing up:

1. Do a riff on a post by a famous SEO guy.
2. Offer pedestrian blog writing tips.
3. This one is the real key… have the word Google in your name.

Sour grapes? Maybe.

But watered down advice like this is why so many bloggers don’t have an audience.

Bonus tip 4: Comment on pedestrian blog writing tips with a post of your own.

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In 1988, The Writer’s Handbook reprinted an article by novelist Stephen King entitled Everything You Need to Know About Writing Successfully – in Ten Minutes. In it, King told the story of the fateful 10 minutes to which he credits his success as a writer.

Back in 1964, King got in big trouble during his sophomore year in high school. Part of his punishment involved taking a job at a 12-page weekly community newspaper in the small town in Maine where he grew up.

It was at this tiny newspaper that Stephen King met an editor named John Gould, the man who taught King everything he needed to know about writing in one 10 minute review of his first feature piece for the paper.

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