Before creating a blog or website, you’ll want to be able to define “blog” and “website” in your mind.
Both blogs and websites provide an online ‘location’ for your business or personal purposes, but they are not the same. Because our lives are increasingly lived online, it’s good to understand the uniqueness and value of different online landscapes. So if you’re wanting to start a personal site or a business site, which should you choose?
Define Blogs and Websites
“Website” is a more general term to refer to any “site” (place) on the “web” (interconnected system of locations) online. There are ‘dynamic sites’, which change regularly, and ‘static sites’ which generally stay the same.
A “blog” is a type of website that contains a series of posts and is added to regularly. The term was originally “web log”, and naturally shortened to blog with use. Writing the web-log entries became defined as blogging. So all blogs are websites, but not all websites are blogs.
You may have heard the term “vlog”, and that is a subset of blogs where posts are in video format. This evolved form the longer “video log”, but at its core it is a blog.
What’s the Difference?
There are a number of features that differentiate a blog from a website. Keep in mind that blogs are always dynamic, and even otherwise static websites can include a blog within their pages.
Blogs
- Blogs Consist of a Series of Posts in Reverse Chronological Order – Blogs contains different, but usually related posts or articles, with the newest one listed first. If a website is only or mainly a blog, it usually displays 8-12 of the most recent blog posts on the main page. This helps readers immediately see the most recent news and updates.
- Blogs Have A Commenting System – Blogs feature posts that usually (but not always) allow sections for readers to add their comments.
- Blogs Can Be Subscribed To – If you subscribe to posts or updates, this is a blog or mailing list.
- A Blog Uses Categories or Tags – Another way to distinguish a blog is that it uses categories or tags to ‘group’ and identify posts. You may be able to search or filter by the tags that appear at the beginning or end of a post.
- Blogs can be stand-alone or part of a website with many pages.
Websites (that are not blogs)
- A Website will have a static front page, and usually a few other static pages, such as an ‘About’ page or ‘Contact’ page.
- Websites don’t allow comments. Social media networks do allow comments, but they are are special case.
- Websites cannot be subscribed to.
- Websites don’t display tags or categories for their pages, but other ‘tags’ and indexing tools are applied in the back end (in the guts) of the website.
- A Website is found at an address like www.ABGDEFG.com, and then pages within that site are at addresses like www.ABCDEFG.com/whatever. So www.dkodetech.com/blogis a page within the dkodetech.com website.
Which is Better for Your Needs?
When it comes to choosing between a website and a blog, it really depends on your intentions for your site. Do you want a personal platform to keep people up to date with what you are doing – like an online diary? Then a blogging or creating a vlog is the right choice for you.
If you’re running a business, the best choice is actually the combination of a website and a blog.
The reason for the static website component is that it provides website visitors with the consistent and stable information they are used to. A conventional website can include all your website information, including vital business contact details.
Attaching a blog to your website has the added benefit of allowing clients to subscribe to regular news from your business. You can deepen your relationship and make your business useful to your customer base even before they become a customer.
A website attached blog also helps you stay up to date with search engine optimization. Blogs regularly add new keywords and fresh content to your site which is constantly indexed by search engines. This helps your web address to appear higher in the search results, so more customers will find your business when looking for local services.
If you’re looking for a professionally designed website that integrates an optimized blog, talk to D-Kode Tech or a local web designer about creating the right solution for you and your business.
