13 Blog Elements To Consider
As happens with social media, many bloggers find that the distinction between their professional and personal lives tends to blur. It’s easy to say keep your professional exchanges separate from your personal ones on social media platforms. But, as in real life relationships, this can be easier said than done. Nowhere is this more challenging than blogging where the best bloggers integrate their personality into their content.
Unlike social media networks where you can limit which of your connections see the information you post, your blog reveals to the world information you, the blogger, may not realize you’re disclosing. This is attributable to the nature of the quicker, less edited style used in blogging.
To help you navigate the blogging waters regardless of whether it’s designed to achieve professional or personal goals, here’s a chart across a variety of topics. (Note: When we discuss personal blogs, the reference is to something broader than a personal journal.)
Blogging: Balancing Professional Versus Personal
13 Elements You Must Consider
Topic |
Professional Blog |
Personal Blog |
Hosting |
|
|
Branding |
|
|
Topic |
|
|
Language use |
|
|
Photographs |
|
|
Bloggers/ contributors |
|
|
Publishing schedule (aka blog post frequency) |
|
|
Guest posting guidelines |
|
|
Comment policy |
|
|
Terms of use |
|
|
Private information |
|
|
Support |
|
|
Budget |
|
|
© 2012 Heidi Cohen – HeidiCohen.com – All rights reserved
When examining the differences between professional and personal blogs, a lot depends on the topic, positioning, target readership and the blogger. As with any social media platform, you have to be human and transparent. When in doubt, choose to be more restrained in your approach and your language. Understand that your blog has a potentially broad audience that’s likely to have a variety of different perspectives and language standards.
What else would you add to this list? How would you make the distinction between professional and personal blogs?
Happy marketing,
Heidi Cohen
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Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/72213316@N00/5527423785/