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How to Blog…And Why You Should!

Blogging. It’s a concept which has taken the world by storm. It’s a way to get your thoughts, hopes, dreams, and ideas out into the world; published, for everyone to read. It’s the ideal way to start a career in the newspaper/writing industry and sometimes, just sometimes, it’s the best way to get discovered as a genius. Okay maybe not a “genius” but there are quite a few million eyes on the internet and perhaps one pair will look at your blog and give you a job because of it.

Even if this once-in-a-lifetime experience doesn’t happen to you, it’s still good to learn how to use a blog and learn how social networking helps you to get readers, share your work, and impress family and friends. If you want to show your parents that the iPhone/Blackberry/Mac/PC Christmas purchase was well worth their hard earned cash, read on to start a blog in the New Year. Who knows, maybe it will prompt your parents to continue to supply you with the best technology available.  Blogs are also a great way to keep your parents up to date on your activities without letting them see your full online profile, I often used my blog to update my family while studying abroad.

What types of blogs are there?
Nowadays there are literally hundreds of social networking sites and many of them include a blogging feature. Some are short message “blogs”–like Twitter–while others allow you to post as many words, pictures and videos as you would like. This list is clearly not a complete list, but it’s a few of my current favorites.

1. Blogger: As a fan of Google, I was also a fan of blogger. It’s a site which allows you to blog for free by logging in and linking up with your Gmail account. This is good if you are just starting out because it’s a very easy to use interface. It shows you your progress, blog roll and followers right on your dashboard. Blogger is the host for a lot of blogs that you’ve read or at least that I’ve read, and it’s nice to be able to follow them. The best plus of Blogger is that you can add videos FOR NO FEE–that’s right videos are COMPLETELY FREE TO PLACE ON YOUR BLOGGER BLOG. The URL for this is also customizable, as are many blogs, and if you choose the free option it’s yourname.blogger.com.
2. Wordpress: Is another free service, however it does not include the video option. Wordpress does allow you a custom URL (yourname.wordpress.com), and has a diverse set of layouts for your blog. Once you “take control of your online identity” as the wordpress info sheet says, you also have the option of converting your wordpress blog into your own domain. They also feature a variety of “widgets,” including a counter. Blogger does not have this feature. The counter does not count you as a viewer, so your stats are completely accurate. This is one of my personal favorites on Wordpress and the reason why I use it to host my own blog. (They also have an awesome iPhone app, which just is the icing on the cake for me!)
3. Tumblr: Tumblr works like Twitter–it’s a short message service blog which allows you to post anything for free. You can change your domain name whenever, your username whenever and your blog title whenever. This is the low key blog version, basically the best starter blog if you are familiar with Twitter and want to learn quickly how to integrate the two.
4. LiveJournal: LiveJournal is a blog within a community, which is also a great starter blog. The emphasis on community allows you to see all types of blog posts and helps you to better understand the way blogging works and the best way to get your words out there. The premium account allows you to access a few more features, including an @livejournal email address, additional user pictures and some other features that might help as you grow your online presence.
5. Typepad: This is a pay per month blog, with rates starting at $8.95 per month. It allows you total control over your blog and online identity. This is a serious investment and might be good for you if you are interested in having greater control or if you wish to use their particular interface. Additionally, they now have a micro-blogging Web site, similar to Tumblr which is free.

If you’ve become inspired, but still lack the overall idea of what exactly you should write about, check out Technorati. It’s a list of the hottest blogs, posts and information on the Web. And of course you can always read our blog, oh wait you’re actually reading it right now! Happy Blogging!