Introduction
Internet and its associated IT technologies have made it possible for anyone who has a desktop computer, tablet or mobile device to communicate his/her message to another person or even persons (not known to you) staying in any part of the globe.
If you have something to say, it is useful to know “Blogging DIY”.
Blogging is something that is very much in flux, as the new technologies that appear every day redefine what a blog is, what a blog can be, and what a blog should do.
Today, virtually anyone can use a computer, cell phone, or wireless PDA that’s connected to the internet to become a blogger. Becoming a blogger offers quick and easy access to an audience comprised of potentially millions of people. Thanks to free services like Blogger.com, TypePad. com, WordPress.com, Facebook.com and many others.
However, whether or not their blog will generate a following, capture the attention of people, and appeal to its target audience is another matter altogether.
For many years, blogs were defined as text-based websites that kept records of days, similar to a captain’s log on a sailing ship. However, this started to change as the group of people who kept blogs became more diverse. The more bloggers began to explore the limits of the medium and of the technology that made it possible, the more the boundaries of what could be called a “blog” expanded.
Today, there are an abundance of photo blogs, and there are even video blogs, podcasts and webcasts as well. Mobile blogging devices may well change the definition of blogging entirely by making it possible for bloggers to create new kinds of posts. Another element of the blogosphere that is starting to redefine blogging is the corporate blog. As more companies hire writers to keep blogs with the sole purpose of creating positive buzz about their brand.
Between all of these different forces that are constantly expanding and reshaping the blogosphere, it is difficult to imagine that the definition of what is and is not a blog will ever remain fixed for very long.
Blogging and Equipment Explained
Blog is short for weblog, which simply means a series of online posts presented in reverse chronological order. That’s all! Most blogs are text, but there are also photo blogs and video blogs. The rest of blogging 101 has to do with the technical side of things.
If you are setting up a blog, you will need a platform, a web host, and a domain. A blogging platform is a computer software program that allows you to write posts and to update your blog. Your platform is also what you use to design the look of your blog, from colour scheme to font size. The web host is sort of like the virtual file cabinet where your blog is stored. Your computer communicates with the host when you upload or edit a post. The domain is the online address of your blog, and usually ends in ‘dot com’. Now that you know what a blog is, what a platform is, and what domains and hosts are, congratulate yourself! You have passed blogging 101.
Based on what you’re looking to do with your blog and the type of content you plan to include, choose a service (free or paid) that offers the functionality, capabilities, and online based tools and templates you’ll need.
Additional equipment, such as a digital camera and photo editing software if you want your blog to utilize digital photograph. Additional costs if you choose to record your blogs and produce podcasts or video logs.
Why Blogging?
Before one goes into doing blogging, one needs to know the “Why Blogging” part.
What do you want your blog to be?
What do you want to get out of it?
What do you want to be known to your audience?
A friendly expert in a specific area, someone that could be trusted to obtain recommendation on product comparison review, most up-to-date news commentator or an alternative opinion go-to person.
To achieve success in blogging, it is important to create unique, original and informative content that appeals to your audience that have similar interest in your niche subjects. By adding entertaining element in it will be a plus point in attracting and retaining your audience.
Thought & Planning
To do an impactful blog, you need to have creativity, persistence and pure hard work.
Thoughts & Planning are required for creating, publishing, managing and promoting a blog website.
Creating a dedicating following for your blog will take extensive (and ongoing) marketing and promotional efforts on your part. It could take days, weeks, months, or even a few years for you to begin generating hundreds, thousands, or even millions of hits (visits) to you blog on a daily or weekly basis. You’ll also need to take steps to ensure that the content of your blog stands out in a positive way from the countless other blogs already out there.
So, if you are thinking to create a blog, whether for business or for pleasure, you need to know some tips that could help you get through and make your blog one of the interesting blogs online.
Here’s how:
1. Consider your audience
Even if your blog is generally personal, still, it would be better to consider the minds of your readers. You have to think of something that would interest them. After all, most of the reasons of people who write blogs are not at all confined to their own personal motives. Most of them would love to be “heard” (or read) and would love to be known, in some way or another, even for just a minute. Hence, it is very important to come with a write up that everybody can understand, not necessarily that these people can relate to it but they can understand it.
“Stories constitute the single most powerful weapon in a leader’s arsenal.”
~ Dr. Howard Gardner, Prof. Harvard Univ.
“You’re a great story teller! You should write about your experiences.”
You’ve heard this so often that you decide to use those experiences to create a blog.
2. Pictures speaks a thousand words
To make your blogging worth the browsing effort of your readers, it would be extremely nice if you will put some pictures in it. It does not necessarily mean you have to place a picture of yourself. Any photographs will do as long as it does not pose danger or insult to anyone who will be reading your blog.
3. Make constructive and beneficial blogs
Even if you are free to write anything you want to say to the world, still, it would be better to create some write-ups that would be beneficial to your readers. After all, its information technology that you have there so better is inclined to provide information rather than sheer quirky entertainment.
4. Avoid making multifaceted and complicated blogs
In order to have an interesting blogs, try not to use some highly technical and highfalutin words. After all, it is not a science discourse or a debate that you are making, so better stick to simple facts and short blogs. Bear in mind that most people who use the Internet usually do more scanning than scrutinizing each site word for word. Therefore, it would be better to come with blogs that will not bore your readers just because you have these lengthy articles.
5. Make it interactive
As much as possible and if your capacity will allow it, make your blog interactive. You can do this by placing some video or audio clips in your blog. You can even place an area for comments or for some feedbacks. In this way, you can get some impressions or reactions of other people. Who knows, you might even gain some friends just by making them feel at home in your blog site.
Blogging Story
Indeed, blogs are not created just for the mere fun of it. It also has its own purpose in the world of the Internet. Therefore, for people who wish to harness their craft, as far as writing is concerned, blogs are the best way to do it. As they say, blogging is the contemporary term of creative and commercial writing.
Blogging News Stories as They Happen. Blogging news stories as they unfold is one of the most exciting and controversial applications of technology that bloggers have discovered. One thing that makes the blogosphere so active is the fact that it is possible to update a blog instantaneously, so the news on blogs tends to be more current than the news in the paper, or on television.
if you are stuck in telling a story, Carolynne Melny, author of “Calm, Clear & Happy Toolkit” has the following pieces of advice:
In writing, they are:
• Address your target audience and their problem.
• Trust your inner feelings to write from your own perspective.
• Avoid comparing your voice to another voice. Each is unique!
And of course, there is one final ‘secret:’ write, write, write! The more you write, the clearer your voice will become.
Summary
In summary, blogging is simple & mostly free. Try to be authentic in your writing. Ensure your blog provide at least one or more of the elements that millions of people are online throughout the world are looking for, namely obtain information, entertain themselves, stayed informed, share ideas, and occupy their time.
Notes:
1) Ideas extract from Jason Rich, the author of “Blogging for Fame and Fortune”.
2) There is no one right and good way of blogging. The most important thing to remember is to have the readers in mind. To capture their attention and interest, you must have something that could benefit them in some way. Be it, a solution that could resolve a problem he or she is struggling with right now or learning a new skill set or being entertained after a hard day work.
3) The time to start Blogging journey is Today. Not all will found fame as a blogger. At least, someone in blogosphere will get to know you and your story. How nice to have your voice heard while sitting comfortably. in front of your PC desk, at your own home.
Happy Blogging!
Email: reubeno@reubenointernet.com