It’s a constant battle for blog vs. website. A lot of people, online entrepreneurs in particular, are still confused on this matter. Many are resorting to one or the other thinking that it’s what’s going to work for them. But what is really the difference between a blog and a website? And which is better for your business?
First of all, it’s a well-established fact that all blogs are websites though not all websites are blogs. For instance, WordPress.com and Blogger.com are websites per se and people can create blogs out of them. From this viewpoint, it can be said that websites are generally large scale whereas blogs are somewhat small scale.
Audience interaction – this is the primary thing to notice in the matter of blog vs. website. In a blog, you will find articles or posts in reversed chronological order. These posts are updated frequently and at a regular basis. Blogs are generally focused at certain niches. They cater to a particular type of audience. Hence, they’re very interactive and dynamic.
In a website, you will find pages and articles that are often static. They’re static in the sense that the content may or may not be updated regularly depending on the plans of the website owner. A blog page can be incorporated to the website to give it a bit of interactivity with the audience.
Websites are usually not focused on a certain niche. They do, however, focus on branding. Unlike niche-oriented blogs that appeal to the emotions of the audience, brand-oriented websites reach out to its target market through promotional articles and landing pages. Advertisement is their main aim.
If your business touches on culture, interests, and thoughts, you may go for a blog. If you’re more on product orientation and material results, a website may do you good. However, there are a few more points to consider in making your decision.
The good thing about a blog is the CMS (or Content Management System). With CMS, everything you need for establishing an online identity is right in front of you. All you have to do is create that authentic and appealing content, publish it to your chosen blog platform, set some categories, images, and keywords, then you’re good to go.
The process involved with creating and maintaining a blog is practical and easy. Themes are available and pre-made for customizations. Tools and plug-ins abound for effortless market monitoring.
Meanwhile, the good thing about a website is that it can be anything. Consider limitless possibilities. You can think out the box. There are ready-made themes available to start your website. The thing though is that you wouldn’t want to stick with pre-made themes as they’re often bland and they easily go out of style. With a website, you can create an online presence that fully matches the identity of your brand or service.
The problem comes in when it comes to your time, skills, and budget. Blogs are meant for fast and ease of use. Blog platforms are often user-friendly. They don’t require many skills and expertise. Also, they’re very cost-efficient. Websites, on the other hand, require a bit of patience, a touch of imagination, and an ample knowledge on coding (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, etc.). They also can be quite pricey. But this is not to say that you should go for a blog instead of a website.
Which is better for your business? Let’s take another factor for consideration – content marketing. First and foremost is the SEO (or search engine optimization). SEO has a significant role in the difference between a blog and a website.
With blogs, SEO is way easier. Each entry that is published in the platform automatically notifies the search engines to visit your blog for indexing. With websites, on the other hand, you must notify the search engines manually to index your site. Or you may have to wait for the search engine to spiders to eventually crawl in your site.
There are, however, a lot of content marketing options other than just marginal search engine results. There’s the social media, for instance. Social media provides a convenient and effective avenue to promote your content. Additionally, you can connect or integrate your social media accounts with your blog or website.
There’s also email marketing. If you’ve got enough leads, you can promote your brand, services, or blog through e-newsletters. You don’t have to rely on SEO strategy alone to market your content.
Now, which is better for your business? Blog vs. website? Actually, it’s hard to choose. Successful companies and online entrepreneurs often have both – a website AND a blog. If you’re new in the field, why not start small and easy with a blog? With time, as your online presence and budget grows, you can then put up a website. Then you can integrate your blogs and social media accounts into your website. Consider your options wisely.