Explosion of the Internet

The internet can be defined as a link of computers systems that interconnects smaller personal computers to a network of data that is located on the World Wide Web. The web is a subset of the internet that supports web-pages and whoever sets up a server large enough to hold data from various sources can link to this network, example; a company building a web-page of information and giving the end user access to its contents.

When the internet first came about, it was used primarily for data sharing by companies and researchers alike internally within their own systems. This gave them easier access to data as they need to collaborate with each other from different location. I suppose it could be described as a advance facsimile transmission, the exchange of data over a telecommunication system. However, a duplicate copy wasn’t being made; it was published to a large server for others to access the data.
With the explosion and popularity of personal computers, along with the ability to transmit data though phone lines and cable wires from anywhere around the world, the internet became a part of our daily lives. Today, according to the Internet world stats, more than 1.9 billion users worldwide are using the internet.

As internet started off with as a data sharing tool that businesses use to communicate, share information, and conduct business transactions. (Shelly) People of all ages all over the world are saying that the Internet improves the quality of their lives by allowing them to find useful information, send and receive e-mail, exchange instant messages, participate in online chats, exchange thoughts, photos, and links with others, and subscribe to mailing lists and newsgroups. (Shelly) More than ever businesses are conducting transactions with their customers and vendors. According to Nielsen rating, 84% of internet user has made a monetary transaction through e commerce business.

We-pages are being designed more efficiently as site navigation and usability has been made user friendly with active links at the bottom of most pages and content menus on the top or left hand side column of main pages. This will allow the user to find the information they are searching, and web-page owners (i.e. businesses) hope to attract the traffic back many more times.


References
Internet World Stats. http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm

Shelly, Gary. “Discovery the Internet- Complete Concept and Techniques” Cengage, Boston, MA. 2010.

The Nielsen Company. http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/measurement/online-measurement.html

GoAnimate.com: Blogging for Business by katford


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Blogging can be a Great Presence for Your Business

Social Marketing has gained strength over the years with the vast burst of social networking. Companies’ blogs have expanded at a massive rate, as they are attracting consumers from a wide rage of demographic segments. Social media covers all interactive outlets in which consumers can comment or contribute to the media content, as this refers to the terms of blogs, online communities, and social networks. Social networking can be a vital tool for your business to attract, maintain and keep brand awareness on the top of the mind of your  consumers. 

Small businesses are taking advantage of online social networking because it can be a low cost effective way for them to gain awareness about their product of service.  “For small business owners without the time to learn web html or the money to hire a designer/developer, blogging offers an inexpensive method to get your company's name out on the Internet.” (Zahorsky)There are many articles published on the web that will give the inexperienced webinar the tricks and tools to become an exceptional and efficient blogger. 

Chris Brogan from B suggests, in order to become a blogging “professional” one should blog every day. Don’t worry about your writing style in the beginning; just write anything that you think your audience would be interested in reading.  Eventually, you will become more comfortable with the process and your blog writing skills will improve. Another suggestion he gives is to start out commenting on other blogs to get comfortable engaging in conversations of others who have opinions on the topic. 

Creating a blog should be well thought out and organized; you want to make sure you are conveying the right message. After all it is the presence of your company or organization. Setting the right tone with your blog should be done from the beginning.  I would suggest, if have begun to develop other social media outlets, like web-page, twitter, facebook, keeping  a similar format with all your other online media, consistency is key in keeping your consumers or followers interested. Just remember it takes more energy to attract new customers than it does to retain them. 

According to USA News, there are 5 keys elements a business should know to a successful blog. 

1) “Be a reader of blogs. Blogging has its own unique language that is different from other forms of writing. To understand how to speak that language yourself, it helps to regularly follow at least a few other blogs.”

2) “Don't stress about it too much. Even though being a successful blogger takes work, trying to do too much can be almost as bad as never updating your blog. It is recommended to keep post short, breezy, and conversational.”

3)” Don't do adspeak. Even if you're blogging to promote your business, you can't seem like you are only interested in promoting yourself. That is a big turnoff in the blogosphere. A better way to approach blogging, Brogan recommends, is to give the readers what they want: useful, specialized information that comes from your own experience.”

4) “Tell a story without ranting. Many blogs on the Internet have a personal diary-like quality to them, where the author keeps a daily track of what's going on in his or her life. It can be good to add a personal touch to your blog about your business, but don't overdo it. Long rants about personal subjects will get in the way of conveying the information."

5) “Keep it simple with search engine optimization. If you're blogging about plumbing and you are based in Buffalo, don't just blog about "drain clogs": Write about "drain clogs" and "Buffalo." Another easy thing to do is to insert links to other pages in your posts, which also makes Google searches more likely to find you.” 

For the full article of USA News:  http://money.usnews.com/money/business-economy/small-business/articles/2008/09/26/how-to-blog-your-way-to-small-business-success?PageNr=1

Developing relationships with your customer is an important aspect of your marketing plan. Social media and networking has added real value to build a vital relationship with your consumer. Although this is a new venture for you, make it fun. Having them return to you on a consistent basis is important to keep the customer a long lasting loyal consumer. 

References

Bandyk, Matthew. “How to Blog your way to small business success” USA News. September 26, 2008 http://money.usnews.com/money/business-economy/small-business/articles/2008/09/26/how-to-blog-your-way-to-small-business-success?PageNr=1

Brogan, Chris. “How to Blog Everyday” October 11, 2009, B Chris Brogan.com. http://www.chrisbrogan.com/how-to-blog-almost-every-day/

Zahorsky, Darrell.  “What a Blog Can Do For Your Small Business” About.com http://sbinformation.about.com/cs/ecommerce/a/bblogs.htm