Why Blog?

Blogging is the easiest and quickest avenue for non–coders to get their message online. Most blog services are even free for casual or non–demanding professional uses.

Individuals and companies publish blogs for a variety of reasons; some blogs are launched for marketing purposes, others are posted just for fun.

Here are a few things you can do with a personal or professional blog:

Personal Blogs:

• Journal – Most sites support private blogs that can be used as a journal or public blogs for sharing. Some bloggers use weblogs to publish their travelogue, personal thoughts or daily events.
• Special Interest – Write on your favorite hobby or subject. Share tips on cooking, photography, gaming or other hobby. Or write on your favorite topic, you can write on any subject from Victorian Literature to Fur Balls, there are no boundaries.
• Family Blog – Most Blog services let you set up multiple users with passwords, so you could start a family blog. Family members can login and add posts and images to share with the rest of the family.

• Product Promotion – Many individuals and companies use blogs for free marketing. Posts can be created as product reviews, articles, news or whatever. You can also link your blog to your corporate or sales sites.
• Customer Education – Blogs can be used to inform customers. A corporate blog can contain product news, tips, company news, articles and more to educate customers or shareholders about products, services or corporate happenings.
• News and Information – Numerous blogs are used to relate current events. Some bloggers publish national news and commentary; others use blogs to cover local events.

What to Look for in a Blog Service

Blogging can be a highly personal endeavor, so you will want to look for a blog site that suites your needs. Some blog tools are tied into personal pages whereas others are integrated with social networking.

On the other hand, other blog services are intended for professional use and include the ability to customize templates, monitor visitors and track referrers.

So when looking for a blog service, pick one that offers you the kind of exposure you want and complements your level of expertise.

Below are the criteria TopTenREVIEWS used to evaluate Blog Services:

• Blog Design Tools – The top blog sites offer an assortment of templates and tools to customize blog entries, including the capability to add photos and sidebar links. Services ought to offer tools for experienced coders as well as non–coders, such as the ability to compose posts in code or through a text editor.
• Promotion/ Tracking Tools – A number of sites host their own blog site with a directory, other blogging services facilitate blog design and submit your blog to several directories. A few also offer tools to help you track visitors, referrers and comments.
• Ease of Use – Frequently blogs are composed and posted by those that do not code, so it is necessary that the service be simple enough for all levels of expertise.
• Technical Help/Support – Since many blogging sites are free, technical support is principally limited to online documentation like FAQs and a searchable knowledgebase. However, the best sites also post tutorials and a weblog that covers help topics.