Some businesses treat blogs as just another media outlet for press releases and news. Others use them as part of their marketing mix, promoting products and services as they would on television, radio, and in print. Still others use their blogs to create an engaging online experience for customer by establishing two-way communication with customers, stockholders, and the general public. In general, the use of bizblogs has yet to be fully explored or mastered, but the potential for them in the business world in general, and the retail industry specifically, is as unlimited as cyberspace itself.
For those unfamiliar with it, stepping into the world of blogging is like visiting a foreign country. Without a working knowledge of the native language, the adventure will probably be frustrating, overwhelming and potentially perilous. It is this lack of understanding that is the excuse that many retail organizations use for avoiding the use of blogging tools altogether. But learning the language of blogging is no more difficult than learning the lingo used in any industry.
For those who are completely uninformed, “blog” is the term used to describe a website or portion of a website where content is written in the style of a personal journal, and displayed in reverse chronological order. The terms "web log" and "weblog" are often used interchageably with the term blog and have the same meaning. The word "blog" is also often used as a verb (along with "blogging" and "blogged"), to describe the action of writing an entry that is, or will be, posted to a blog.
Along with that basic definition, there is some fundamental blog jargon (a/k/a “blargon”) that needs to be understood in order to produce a successful blog product. What follows is the terminology that specifically relates to the business applications of blogging. Welcome to the blogosphere!
Blog feed
Sometimes referred to as a syndicated feed, this is a transfer system which allows visitors to get a blog's content dowloaded regularly to their own website, e-mail, or directly onto their computer's hard drive.
BlogDay
An annual event in which bloggers are encouraged to discover and recommend five new blogs to recommend to their own readers. BlogDay occurs on August 31st and is intended to further connect the worldwide blogging community.
Blog Digest
This is a summary, list, classification, or condensation of a number of blogs. Often this type of digest is actually published on a blog as well.
Blogebrity
A person who has gained fame because of their blogging activities. Examples include Perez Hilton, Arianna Huffington, Heather Armstrong, Gary Vaynerchuk, Michael Arrington, and Pete Cashmore.Blogger
A person who owns, runs, or contributes to a blog. The term "weblogger" has the same meaning, but is rarely used.
Bloggies
Awards that are presented to blogs and bloggers in 30 different catgories each year. Started as a non-profit project by a group of ten friends in 2001, these awards are among the oldest and most well-known in the blogosphere. The winners are chosen through a process which includes open nomination and public voting.
Blogstream Media
A reference to mainstream media, this term refers to the most heavly trafficked blogs which communicate to the largest number of people in the blogosphere. The aggregate of people who comprise the blog community are considered to have prevalent attitudes, values, thoughts, and practices, which are considered to be the mainstream, and thus labeled the "blogstream."
Bye-line
A parody of a newpaper writer's "byline," this term applies to the authorial identification a blog poster, which generally appears at the beginning of a post, or the end of a comment.
Blogroll
A list of included in the sidebar of a blog which contains recommendations for, and links to, other blog sites.
Blogosphere
Refers to a global community of blogs, and suggests that there is a social interconnectedness among those who blog and those who read and comment about those blogs. The term denotes an ecosystem that exists due to symbiotic and complex relationships that exist in the blogging community.
