Blogging is the current craze. It is a diverting and low-cost way to have your say on the Internet. A blog is a web log and using one, you can publicise anything about your life - your thoughts and what you've been up to – and with a larger audience. In fact blogging is like an online diary, although I would advocate care as to what you make public in this way. It is also useful for advertising, marketing and sharing information.



Why use a blog?

Blogging has become part of our lives. It is almost certainly one of the most used technological aspects of the internet, allowing even people with a non-technical bent to share information and become involved in the evolution of the internet. The wonderful thing about blogging is that it is not complicated to begin and simple to learn– especially with a dedicated service such as Blogger.

Blogging software manages website content. In other words, it facilitates the effective organisation of a regular record of events. It is much more useful than a static website which, however often updated, will not appear in real time like a blog does.

What is Blogger?

Blogger is a free service provided by Google, which they bought from Pyra Studios in 2002. The workforce of three which comprised Pyra developed Blogger and it saw much success when the dot com phenomenon was at its height. However, the decline of dot com businesses saw a similar decline for Pyra Studios until the purchase by Google which saw the original team ensconced as a section of Google itself.

Why use Blogger?

Why opt for Blogger? Here are some reasons, which explain in more detail the service provided by Blogger.

1. Zero cost. You can sign up for Blogger using your Google gmail account or any other and it's absolutely free of charge. There are no advertisements, unless you choose to include Google AdSense on your page.

2. All the features you need. You can have multiple blogs on one account. You can set up your own templates or use the ones provided and you can easily create, edit or delete entries which can include photos. You have a choice of plain text or html and can also include tracking and counting code.

3. Simple searching. You can easily search for blogs on any topic on Blogger. Your own blog is included in in this search facility making it equally easy for others to find you or your topic of interest. Once they've found you, they can subscribe to follow any new posts you make and your blog may well be suggested to visitors to other blogs with a similar subject, so there's a bit of in-house advertising too..

4. Business Benefits. Firstly, you can insert Google AdSense or your own advertisements on your pages. You can tell your readers what's new on your main website or what your latest product recommendation is. This works particularly well because your readers look on you as a person not a business, so if you make your posts friendly sounding and informal, they are more likely to follow your recommendations and visit your product pages.

This informal method of marketing is extremely productive and has resulted in numerous heavy-wieght corporations using blogs as part of their marketing arsenal.

To take full advantage of the passion for reading blogs, you need to update yours regularly with useful and interesting information and write as though you were having a chat with a friend. That way, your readers are most likely to follow your advice and buy your favourite products.