A blog is a type of web site, usually maintained by an individual, with regular entries of commentary, events or other material such as graphics or video. Blogging allows you to get your messages out to many people at once and offers direct feedback opportunities from readers. Other benefits of blogging include:

• Building a community and sharing your expertise and knowledge with a larger audience
• Higher search engine rankings
• Communication out to a large audience
• Appear accessible
• Blogging is a low-cost alternative to have a web presence
• Build awareness of your brand
• Gain insight into your customers

Blogs offer a variety of different features and applications that allow you to “dress up” the overall template and create a more enjoyable and in-depth experience for your readers. These features can vary by platform and some will need to be downloaded or programmed before implementation and use. Some applications that you may want to consider adding to your blog include:

• Blog Search Field
• Photo Gallery (Flickr or other)
• Tag Clouds
• Article Categories
• RSS Feeds
• Article Archives
• Links to Your Website & Other Social Sites

Blogging Community Sites
Blogging Community Sites allow users to create interactive blogs based on their own subjects of interest. Some examples of Blogging Community Site include:

• Bebo
• Squidoo
• Technorati