Blogging Overview
Getting Started: What is Blogging?
Blogging is the practice of keeping an online journal or forum or information collection that anyone can see.
- A blog site or blog page contains articles small and large that are posted regularly.
- Each article is called a "blog" and each is dated.
Some blog websites are dedicated to one subject or one person, i.e. cooking blogs, finance blogs, a blog of tips for new moms, organizing blogs, personal blogs, etc.
Other websites are commercial/business sites that contain a blog page with articles pertaining to their industry.
What is the difference between a blog post and a web page?
Web pages are areas of content that are static, meaning, their content doesn't change much (if ever).
- Typical web pages are titled Home, Services, About, Contact, Gallery/Photos, and Resources.
- Web pages aren't dated.
- There's no place for a visitor to comment.
Blog posts are areas of content that change.
- Blog posts may be added or deleted.
- Often they are related to seasons or events (i.e. in the screenshot above, "December Lawn and Tree Tasks").
- They are usually dated and occur in a side-bar list in reverse chronological order (most recent first).
- They are often categorized.
- They can contain tags that help visitors find them.
Should You Have a Blog?
Maintaining a blog page with regular blog posts can be a good way to:
- Communicate with residents on a community website
- Provide an archive or timeline of events that are happening or have happened in a community
- Promote the community to prospective residents
- Provide general and helpful information to draw visitors to your site as potential customers
- Dramatically increase Google search results because Google's search engine algorithm rewards fresh content. (Meaning, more online visitors will find your site than would if you didn't have a regularly updated blog.)
