All You Need To Know About Blogs, Bloggers And Blogging

A blog or weblog is a website that publishes or features articles, which are called blog posts or entries, written by a single person or a group of people that make use of any or a combination of the following:

• Straight texts
• Photographs or images - PhotoBlog
• Video clips - VideoBlog or Vlog
• Audio files - AudioBlog or Podcast

Blogs are usually presented and arranged in reverse chronological order, the latest posts being displayed first. People normally use or write blogs for the following purposes:

• As a online journal or a web diary
• As a content management system
• As a online publishing platform

A typical blog consists the following components:

• Post date - the date and time of the blog entry
• Category or Label - the category or label that the blog belongs to
• Title - the title of the blog
• Main body - the main content of the blog
• RSS and trackback - links the blog back from other sites
• Comments - comments added by readers
• Permalinks - the URL of the full article
• Archive - filing of previous posts
• Other optional items - calendar, archives, blogrolls, and other add-ons or plug-ins

Take A Look At - Atomic Blogging - On How You Can Optimize Your Blog.

Take A Break! Watch A Funny Video Below On "Discovering A Way To Create Instant VideoBlog" (viewed more 390,000 times).

A blog can also have a page footer, usually found at the bottom of the blog or each post, that shows the post date, the author, email, the category or label and comments.

There are numerous types of blogs. However, nowadays, the differentiating line is getting unclear, various topics can be found written on a single blog. Below are the different types of blogs based on specific topics:

• Political blog - on news, politics, policies and other issue-based blogs. Currently, the most popular blogs are about the Campaign for the US Presidential Election, 2008.
• Personal blog - also known as online diary or journal that may include an individual's daily experience, complaints, poems, thoughts, encounters or communications between friends and family members.
• Topical blog - with focus on a particular niche that is pertaining to or dealing with matters of current or local interest, usually technical in nature.
• Health blog - on specific health issues. Medical blog is a major category of Health Blog that features medical news and updates from health care professionals and/or actual patient cases.
• Literary blog - also known as LitBlog. LitBlog focuses primarily on the topic of literature. LitBloggers may write about fiction, non-fiction, poetry, literary journals, literary criticism and more.
• Travel blog - with focus on a traveler's stories on journeys to and experiences of various countries.
• Research blog - on academic issues such as research notes and discoveries.
• Legal blog - on laws and legal affairs; also known as 'blawgs'.
• Media blog - focus on mass media; usually exclusive for a newspaper or a television network.
• Religious blog - on religious topics.
• Educational blog - on educational applications, usually written by students and teachers.
• Collaborative or collective blog - a specific topic written by a group of people.
• Directory blog - contains a collection of numerous web sites.
• Business blog - used by entrepreneurs, companies and corporate employees to promote their businesses or talk about their work.
• Personification blog - focus on non-human being or objects, such as dogs or cats.
• Spam blogs - used for promoting affiliate websites, also known as 'splogs'.

Blogging is normally done on a regular basis, almost daily. The term 'blogging' refers to the act of authoring, maintaining or adding an article or post to an existing blog. While the term 'blogger' refers to a person or a group of people who keeps a blog.

Take A Look At - Atomic Blogging - On How You Can Optimize Your Blog.

Take A Break! Watch A Funny Video Below On "Discovering A Way To Create Instant VideoBlog" (viewed more 390,000 times).

As of December 2007, blog search engine Technorati was tracking more than 112 million blogs. More and more blogs are being added each day. People who read blogs have also increased significantly. According to a Pew Research Center Survey published in January 2005 on 'The State of Blogging', 27 percent of Internet users in America read blogs.

This figure is continuously growing, as the availability of various blog software, tools, and other applications make it easier for just about anyone to update or maintain the blog, even for those with little or no technical background.

Because of this trend, bloggers can now be categorized into 4 main types:

• Personal bloggers - people who focus on a diary or on any topic that an individual feels strongly about.
• Business bloggers - people who focus on promoting their businesses, products and services.
• Organizational bloggers - people who focus on internal or external communication in an organization or a community.
• Professional bloggers - people who are hired or paid to do blogging.

Problogging, Professional Blogging, refers to blogging for a profit. Probloggers, Professional Bloggers, are people who make money from Blogging, as an individual blog publisher or a hired blogger.

Below are just some of the many money-making opportunities for ProBloggers:

• Advertising programs
• RSS advertising
• Sponsorship
• Affiliate programs
• Digital assets
• Blog network writing gigs
• Business blog writing gigs
• Donations
• Flipping blogs - buy a blog, update it, build traffic and sell it for profit.
• Merchandising
• Consulting and speaking

The following are some of the things you may want consider if you want to be successful in ProBlogging:

• Be patient - ProBlogging requires a lot of time and effort, not to mention a long-term vision.
• Know your audience - Targeting a specific readers or group is a key to building viewership and traffic.
• Be an expert - Focus on a specific niche topic that you are familiar with and strive to be the 'must-read' blog on that topic.
• Diversify - Experiment with various advertisements and affiliate networks and programs that allow you to make money online, aside from blogging.
• 'Look and Feel' of your blog - Focus on the layout. White spaces, line spacings, paragraphs and bigger fonts make a blog welcoming to read.

Certainly, it is possible to earn money from blogs. One just needs to be passionate, be patient, take risks and the right attitude in order to be a successful problogger.

Take A Look At - Atomic Blogging - On How You Can Optimize Your Blog.

Funny Video On "Discovering A Way To Create Instant VideoBlog".

Increase Your Business With Business Blogging

Business blog is an effective online marketing tool that saves you money and provides great business opportunities in just one click. Blogs are user-friendly, can be customized and are a flexible medium for marketing and disseminating useful information for effective positioning of your products in the worldwide market.

Companies engaging in business blogging will have a definite edge over its competitors who doesn't.

Take A Look At - Atomic Blogging - On How You Can Optimize Your Blog.

Watch Video Below On How to Get Started in Business Blogging.

Here are some advantages:

• Word-Of-Mouth
  
  As of December 2007, blog search engine Technorati was tracking more than 112 million blogs. More and more blogs are being added each day. People who read blogs have also increased significantly. According to a Pew Research Center Survey published in January 2005 on 'The State of Blogging', 27 percent of Internet users in America read blogs. Imagine how much benefit your company will have, if your products are marketed or advertised through blogs.
  
  With Internet, information spreads very quickly especially if an impressive and must-read write-up goes with your product. Soon your blogs may be passed on to hundreds or thousands of possible customers.
  
  
• Awareness And Loyalty
  
  Open, two-way communication with your customers creates trust and loyalty among them. Being there to respond to their questions and comments motivate and make them all the more willing to try your products and services.
  
  
• Feedback
  
  Blogs are very effective for product research and reviews. It would be easier to improve on your products or services if you observe and understand your customers’ thinking and behavioural patterns. You could also take immediate action to your customers’ concerns.
  
  
• Community Halo-Effect
  
  Majority of Bloggers are friendly, reasonable and helpful. They are more than willing to create and contribute blogosphere of comments regarding your product. The only thing you have to do is embrace, adapt and take an active part in the culture and your product will surely be considered in their next stop to the supermarket.
  
  For better marketing results, you should actively promote your business blogs by submitting your blogs to blog search sites and directories such as Blogdigger, Feedster, and Technorati. . Do not forget to paste in with your blogs, your URL.

You must ensure that your blogs contain fresh and exclusive information with value and are always updated to keep readers popping in, read up your blog, move on to the next posts and click on again for updates.

Blog is like a setting up a booth in the biggest trade show on earth everyday. Marketing possibilities are always just around the corner waiting to strike your sale scales upwards.

The Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds are important too in conjunction with your blogs. RSS feeds, which can be read through RSS reader application, are a very useful tool for business and Internet marketers as well. It helps you syndicate updated information to the readers easily.

Use effective and relevant keywords or phrases in your blog to achieve high-ranking position in the search engine to generate

traffic. More traffic means more potential sales.

If you are already convinced with the potentials and benefits of business blogs for marketing and targeting sales increase, your company is now ready to start business blogging.

Take A Look At - Atomic Blogging - On How You Can Optimize Your Blog.

Watch Video Below On How to Get Started in Business Blogging.

Below are some of the considerations of setting up a business blog.

1. Study blog design.
   
   Blog hosting services like

Bloggers provide pre-designed or ready-to-use templates. But if you opt for paid blog service, you can ask your website graphic designer to design and layout your blog site to match the company’s identity and needs.

Choose a topic.

It is good to have a line-up of topics or content you want for your blogs but be sure they are in consonance with your business objectives.

Remember the following safety measures in blogging.

Legal issues are sometimes involved in blogging. It is advisable and safer to include disclaimers, privacy and limitations of liabilities. Create blogging policies, set rules and regulations on who gets to blog and what type of information are allowed to be made publicly. Try to avoid outright marketing blog or you will shy or scare away your readers. You may make use a business blog as a gateway to get readers click and surf your main website.

Start blogging and complete more posts (about 20) before moving to marketing or sales pitch.

Begin marketing.

Regularly monitor the coming ins and outs of readers, their behaviours and get updates. Then, measure your results.

Adjust and retune your blog when necessary.

You can always play with the look-and-feel designs of the blog site as long as it remains match with the company’s identity.

Strive to be consistent with your topic all the time.

Try to have unrelated topics that are too general and have a broad appeal.

Schedule updates regularly.

It is best to update your blogs daily or at least on an alternate day. Keep content updated, fresh, and relevant.

Once you have done all these things, you can now enjoy the benefits of business blogging.

Take A Look At - Atomic Blogging - On How You Can Optimize Your Blog.

Video On How to Get Started in Business Blogging.

Blogging Is An Effective Internet Marketing Tool

Blogging is a concept that started in late 90s. It used to be a way to comment an existing webpage, an opportunity for visitors and readers to react or voice out one’s opinion on the said page. What started as a single-sentence commentary has evolved into pages of personal take on just about anything and everything under the sun. As it continues to move forward, online advertising has tapped into the blog’s potential.

Take A Look At - Atomic Blogging

Watch Video Below On How To Start A Blog.

Here are 5 reasons why blogging is used as an Internet marketing tool.

1. Blogging is simple.
   
   The simplest way to get your piece on the net is through blogging. Not much skills are necessary… an average adult can read and type, or at least click a mouse. It’s like having a virtual piece of paper and you just write your ideas, experiences, new products, and hope that the truth behind your articles comes out and entice your reader to also try your product. If you have a PC and an Internet connection then you can blog and advertise.
   
   
2. Blogging is more authentic.
   
   In this day and age where advertising saturate our lives, we question the credibility of promoters’ claims. However, in blogs, real people share their real-life experiences, unscathed by paid advertising. Reading blogs about first-hand product use is like talking to people about their first-hand experience. You definitely want to buy a tried and tested product.
   
   
3. Blogging is free.
   
   Because blogging is yet to be proven as a mainstream online advertising media, most sites see it as something to augment current marketing tools and thus offer it for free. Any opportunity for free web time is definitely a bonus especially to businesses that are starting up. Needless to say, paid blog pages can generate more income for your seriously growing business.
   
   
4. Blogging builds credibility.
   
   As you get more and more into writing your experiences on a particular product or industry, your readers come to realize that they can depend on your posts for their own information needs. As such, you become an expert on it; as a consequence, more readers visit your site and more bloggers link to your blogs.
   
   As companies and professional organizations notice the growth of your readership base, they may soon get in touch with you for advertising on your blog page, or make you an affiliate, which pays for every referral generated from your blog site.
   
   
5. Blogging builds your market.
   
   -By using your e-mail.
   
   Today, blogging is overcoming the e-mail’s popularity in quickly and effectively reaching and expanding a market. In this age of speed and quick access, logging in and downloading e-mail is simply taking longer than clicking into a blog site. Let them explore your site by using a short e-mail message as teaser to your blog site. If your e-mail is on an entirely different subject, use your e-mail signature to give a link to the site.
   
   -By using subscription.
   
   An easy way to get your readers e-mail is to give them an opportunity to subscribe to your blogsite. Keep some exclusive information for your subscribers to entice readers to subscribe and give their e-mail address. Just be responsible in using their e-mail address, as the last thing you want is a comment on your blog that you are a spammer.
   
   -By understanding your readers.
   
   Conduct a simple survey for your readers to understand their profile and advertising preferences. Ask consumers to give you feedback on a post, an ad link, or a trial that you shared. In this way, it is like interviewing your readers without the commitment and intrusion of a face-to-face interview.
   
   -By joining a blog network.
   
   A network of blogs maybe a collection of blog sites that share the same industry, interest, readership base, payment mode, etc. Consumers find credibility and convenience in clicking one link to several real bloggers about a single subject. Clearly, more bloggers are better than one.
   
   -By using RSS.
   
   RSS is the fastest growing technology on the Internet today. As such, having RSS feeds to your blog is definitely another means of generating awareness for your readership base. Having a variety of feeds can add interest to your blog site.
   
   Give your business a boost by effectively using blogging as an Internet marketing tool.

Take A Look At - Atomic Blogging

Video On How To Start A Blog

Beginners Guide To Blogging

A blog is basically an online journal wherein you can digitally pen down your thoughts, ideas, opinions and practically anything that you want people to read. Blogs come in different styles, formats, and settings, depending on the preference of the user.

Many blogging sites, offer built in features such as hyperlink, straight texts, pictures etc. Some blogging sites, even allow you to put video and mp3's on your blogs. Instead of writing texts, some bloggers choose to make their blogs more audio friendly, by using spoken word entries. This is called audio blogging.

Watch Video Below On How To Start A Blog

Basically a blog contains these features:

Title - which allows you to label your post
Body - this is the content of your post
TrackBack - other sites can be linked back to your blog
Permanent Link - every article that you write has a URL
Comments - this allow readers to post comments on your blog

A Few Templates To Choose

One of the advantages of blogging, is that it is made of only a few templates. Unlike, other websites that is made up of numerous individual pages. This make it easier for blog users to create new pages, because it already has a fix setting that include: slots for title, body of the post, category, etc.

This is especially useful for first time users, since they can start blogging right away. They can chose from a number of templates that blogging websites provide.

Become Member of A Blogging Community

Anyone who wants to start a blog can do so by becoming a member of a blogging website of their choice. Once they've become members, they automatically become a part of that particular blogging community. They can browse through other bloggers pages, and link them back to their own blogs. They can also make comments on other members' blogs.

Blogging is not just limited to personal usage. There are a lot of blogs that follow a theme such as: sports, politics, philosophy, social commentary, etc. These blogs espouse on their specific themes. This way blogging becomes a medium in which people can share their knowledge and opinions about a variety of themes and topics.

Some bloggers even use their blogs as a means to advertise. Some authors advertise their books on their blogs. While other bloggers, use their blogs to shed light to currents issues, events, news and catastrophes.

Nowadays in education, blogs also play an important part. Professors use blogging to document the lessons that they have discussed and taught. This way, students who who have missed classes, can easily catch up with their assignments.

A lot of entrepreneurs benefit from blogging by promoting their businesses on their blogs, with millions and millions of people logging onto the net everyday, blogging has become a lucrative move. Some bloggers who run online businesses promote their merchandise online. While others profit through advertisement.

Watch Video Below On How To Start A Blog

Most Popular Blog Type

But by far, the most popular blog type is the one that takes the form of a personal journal. This is the kind that is usually used by first time bloggers. Individuals who want to document the daily struggle of their everyday lives, poems, rants, opinions, find that blogging offers them a medium in which to express themselves.

Bloggers usually communicate within themselves. This is one of the appeals of blogging. It creates a community of people sharing their ideas, thoughts, and comments with each other.

Blogs varying in topics, themes, and set-ups, can be found in blog directories. First time users who want to get an idea of what the blogging world is all about can browse through a number of blogs using these directories. This way they'd get an idea of what these blogging communities are like.

Blogging is popular all over the world. Blog is short for the term weblog. Bloggers have the freedom to express themselves how ever way they want, and the best thing about blogging, is that most blogging sites are free.

There are numerous blogging websites to choose from in the net. This give first time users the option of joining a blogging community that appeals to their interests.

This blog you are reading right now is hosted by Blogger. It is free and anyone can apply. It has most of the features, sufficient for any beginners who wish to start blogging. Features are very user-friendly as well.

Just search any blogging directory and you'd get a listing of a lot of blogging sites that are available on the net. It's easy to search a blogging directory, because it is organized according to category. This way you would get exactly what you are after. Blogging is really for everyone. It is fun, simple and easy.

Video On How To Start A Blog

Introduction To Blogging

If writing is an art, then, blogging is one way of using words to come up with an art. This is because people who are into blogging are the ones who are artistic on their own sense, carefully choosing words that would best describe their feelings, sentiments, wishes, desires, and everything.

Basically, blogs were first introduced as weblogs that refer to a “server’s log file.” It was created when web logging hit the virtual market. Since its inception in the mid-1990s, web logging gradually saturated the virtual community making the Internet a viable source of greater information.

However, with web logging, you still need a website and domain names, but with blogging, you do not need anything just an account with blog providers. In most cases, these kinds of blogs are free of charge, like this blog hosted by Blogger. You can start one for free today.

With the onset of blogging in the industry, personal journaling had been a common ground for people who wish to be known all over the world. However, not literally famous as this is not a case on being popular or well-known personality.

Generally, blogs are created for personal use. Like a journal, people can write their daily adventures, sentiments, and whatever ideas they want to express online.

Nevertheless, with the advent of the online businesses, blogs had gradually taken the limelight in providing businesses a chance to boost their productivity online. This is where the business blogs have taken the limelight. Business blogs are, basically, created to advertise the services or products of a certain website or online business in order to increase online sales.

Moreover, business blogs are also one way of promoting the company so that the other readers will know that a certain company exists online. With blogs, entrepreneurs are able to establish a name in the virtual market through articles that can be very useful in the reader’s life.

From there, you can make money out of blogs by simply syndicating it to your business’ web site. This can be done through the RSS technology.

So, if you are thinking to create a blog, whether for business or for pleasure, you need to know some tips that could help you get through and make your blog one of the interesting blogs online.

Here’s how:

1. Consider your audience

Even if your blog is generally personal, still, it would be better to consider the minds of your readers. You have to think of something that would interest them. After all, most of the reasons of people who write blogs are not at all confined to their own personal motives. Most of them would love to be “heard” (or read) and would love to be known, in some way or another, even for just a minute. Hence, it is very important to come with a write up that everybody can understand, not necessarily that these people can relate to it but they can understand it.

2. Pictures speaks a thousand words

To make your blogging worth the browsing effort of your readers, it would be extremely nice if you will put some pictures in it, like those on the right side of this blog. It does not necessarily mean you have to place a picture of yourself. Any photographs will do as long as it does not pose danger or insult to anyone who will be reading your blog.

3. Make constructive and beneficial blogs

Even if you are free to write anything you wan to say to the world, still, it would be better to create some write-ups that would be beneficial to your readers. After all, its information technology that you have there so better be inclined to provide information rather than sheer quirky entertainment.

4. Avoid making multifaceted and complicated blogs

In order to have an interesting blogs, try not to use some highly technical words. After all, it is not a science discourse or a debate that you are making, so better stick to simple facts and short blogs.

Bear in mind that most people who use the Internet usually do more scanning than scrutinizing each site word for word. Therefore, it would be better to come with blogs that will not bore your readers just because you have these lengthy articles.

5. Make it interactive

As much as possible and if your capacity will allow it, make your blog interactive. You can do this by placing some videos, for example a New Year Greetings Video, or Using XsitePro Training Video, or audio clips in your blog. You can even place an area for comments or for some feedbacks. You may even consider placing a polling or voting widget of some interesting topic, see the right side of this blog. In this way, you can get some impressions or reactions of other people. Who knows, you might even gain some friends just by making them feel at home in your blog site.

Indeed, blogs are not created just for the mere fun of it. It also has its own purpose in the world of the Internet. Therefore, for people who wish to harness their craft, as far as writing is concerned, or even a liitle income, blogs are the best way to do it.

As they say, blogging is the contemporary term of creative and commercial writing.

Introduction To Blogging Using Blogger Part 1






Introduction To Blogging Using Blogger Part 2