Web Publishing: To Blog or Not to Blog

Web Publishing ...

... can be divided into two categories: blogging and site building. Although the end result of both activities is that you'll end up with a web site, the process and outcome can be very different. If you've been thinking of building a site, which is the best method for you?

First, let's define the terms. Blogging involves posting pages to a site which are organized by the order in which they were posted. The reason for the focus on time is that the underlying implication is that this material is time sensitive, which means writing a one-person blog can be a little like running on a constantly moving treadmill, especially when your subject matter is always changing. (For instance, think about a political blog during election year. You would be posting to such a blog numerous times per day to keep your readers up on what is happening.) If this is right up your alley, click on how to blog to learn more.

By contrast, web publishing by building a site is different. In this case, your site is organized not by the date and time the material was posted, but by the subject matter. A web site built in this way is more like a book. The site (book idea) is divided into related topics (chapters) which are further divided into subtopics. In this way, a well-built web site leads the visitor deeper into your site.

Why is this important? One of the ways search engines determine the rank of your site is how much time your visitors spend exploring its content. For instance, it's better for a visitor to spend 15 minutes on your site than 5. And it's better for your visitor to read a number of pages, rather than just one. Search engines record visitor behavior in order to determine the value of a site and thus, its ranking in the search engine listings.

So when it comes to web publishing and making a choice between building a blog or a niche content site (a site that focuses on a particular subject), ask yourself the following questions:

• Is my site news-related?
• Is the subject matter cutting edge and changing almost every day and can I stay on top of this?
• Will my posts be brief (example: thought of the day)?
• Do I have the time to post to my site at least two to three times per day?

If you answered yes to the questions above, then check out this comprehensive set of blogging tutorials that takes you step by step through the process of setting up your blog, making posts and driving traffic to your site. I've taken this course myself and it is thorough and easy to understand.

If you answered no to the questions above and the content you're writing is fairly constant (like a site on parenting or gardening), keep reading.

A better alternative to blogging for those whose content is not time sensitive (that will allow you to build your site at your own pace and help you build more income in the long run) is to build a niche content site. To learn more about the differences between blogging and building a niche site, click on web publishing . To learn about the tools I have used to build four successful online businesses that place in the top 1% of all sites on the web in terms of traffic, click on build a web site or watch a short, introductory video about it. This server side software has everything you need to be successful online and is perfect for the newbie (you can build a site by typing text into boxes within a template in your browser, which is how I built this site) or the experienced web site professional (you can choose to upload your own HTML). Best of all this software contains the best of both worlds because it allows you to add blogging capabilities to your site, so you can post time-sensitive information whenever it is necessary.

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