What is a Blog, anyway

Blogs are an interesting topic in the Web community because their loyal audiences are growing by leaps and bounds, so much that Fortune Magazine recently ranked the Blog as the #1 Tech Trend to watch in 2005. Here is a little background.

A Blog (weblog) is an online journal or opinion column updated online. It is an interesting topic in the Web. Blog Programs and tools allow users to create, post, customize their own web log without extensive web developer or html creation knowledge.

Some samples include:

• Blogger – Google (free)
• MSN Spaces (free)
• Yahoo 360 (free)
• Type Pad (free)
• Many others

Why Blog? A Blog is a personal, consumer-friendly message avenue and it can have high search engine visibility (due to link popularity, site visitors, etc.) which exposes messages to greater number of consumers and media personnel.

Sample Blog Approaches include:

• Personal online journals

• Corporate execs offering an “inside scoop” into the industry, their company, and their opinions on newsworthy events

• Richard Edelman - http://www.edelman.com/speak_up/blog/

• Industry niches

• Blog Business World - http://www.blogbusinessworld.blogspot.com/

• Employees blogging on their opinions towards their company, their company’s products, how their company handles issues and how those issues affect consumers

• Microsoft Employee - http://scoble.weblogs.com/, http://www.economist.com/people/displayStory.cfm?story_id=3644293

Some insight into successful blogs (and bloggers) include:

• Update frequently (at least twice a week)

• Avoid focus on promotion. Don’t focus most of your posts on how great you are, your client is, your client’s products/services are.

• Avoid focus on self. While it is interesting for people to read about certain personal facts and experiences, they must be intermixed and/or related to issues, stories, etc. happening in the world and society at large. The idea is to write something interesting enough to attract readers who don’t know you.

• Fill a niche. Try to appeal to a specific group, rather than writing a general “about anything and everything” blog. (e.g. fine dining, conservative politics, diet soda, business marketing, cats, etc.)

• Link to other blogs. This creates a blog community – meaning other blogs will also link to yours, thereby driving up your readership as well as your link popularity.

• Allow comments on your blog. It makes people think you are open and receptive – an important concept for becoming part of a blogging community and building readership.

• Comment on other blogs. Another way to build community and readership. Let’s people know you are out there.

• Submit your blog to free blog directories. There are many out there… start with a search for “blog directories” to generate a good list.

• Post on forums and message boards, and include your blog URL.

• Be aware of what other bloggers are saying about your blog or the niche that your blog covers.