What’s a blog and why does everyone seems to have one? The word blog derives from an abbreviation of web-log. They combine the interactivity of forums and bulletin boards, the sensitivity to current events of a news service and the personality of talk radio. Over the past few years several free blog services like WordPress and Blogger have both fueled and been fueled by the burst in the number and popularity of blogs.

A blog is any website that has four distinguishing characteristics:

• Frequently updated
• Focused on a single page
• Linked to other sites and blogs
• Written in a personal voice

Because a great number of blogs are open and very easy to use, they can be created by anyone and on any possible topic. Generally blogs can be divided up into three categories:

• Personal Diaries — blogs created to display the day to day experiences of their author
• Links — blogs which contain collections of links to other sites, usually united by a particular interest or aesthetic sense
• Forums — blogs that are centers of discussion on certain themes

Blogs are cash cheap but time expensive. Starting a blog, particularly for business is a commitment. Be prepared to spend as much time as is necessary to write interesting honest posts and responding to comments. The good thing is that blogs are one of the most powerful ways to sell your service or product. Not only do they dramatically improve your page ranking with search engines, but they also give a human face to your business.

Most business blogs have such three purposes:

• To establish the author as a thought leader
• To drive web traffic to a homepage
• To enlarge PageRank on Google

How do I write for a blog? Blogs are not meant to give facts. There are many valid sources of information on the Internet , but blogs are not reliably one of them. Instead, blogs are about community. People use them to find out what other people think and to participate in conversations. For example, it would be difficult to find reliable information about the current travel conditions in Sri Lanka from a blog. On the other hand it is very likely that you could find dozens of blogs about life, food, politics and religion there — each blog talking about Sri Lanka from its authors point of view. Consequently blogs are mostly written in a casual, informal voice. A lack of subjectivity (and humor) is perceived as insincere and, worse, dull .

Do

• Say “I”
• Give suggestions and opinions
• Talk about personal experiences
• Ask open-ended questions (rhetorical and otherwise)
• Link to sources that confirm your ideas

Don’t

• Try to teach
• Try to sell
• Give answers
• Be too serious
• Try to keep the reader from leaving the blog

Blogging is the easiest and most enjoyable way to build your reputation and business. Give it a try by starting an on-line conversation and observe your friends and customers come to you.

Read more about Atomic Blogger, Atomic Blogging and Blogging Basics.

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