Blogs: My Top 5

Blogs are becoming increasingly more popular in our society. A blog is a great medium to use to interact with followers and share ideas and information with others. According to eMarketer, by 2014 over 150 million Americans will be reading blogs (http:// www.emarketer.com/Articles/Print.aspx?R=1007941).  Therefore, it’s important for brands and companies to use blogs as part of an IMC plan  to reach their target audience. But not all blogs are created equal. There are specific characteristics that characterize successful blogs. According to Collier (2009), successful blogs publish new content frequently, maintain a presence on various social sites, write fresh content, and provide sharing options on social media sites (http://moblogsmoproblems.blogspot.com/2009/04/Secrets-of-top-marketing-and-social.htm). ). I have chosen to review five blogs that interest me and analyze their format and content to highlight factors that make them successful.

Whole Foods Market blog is a professional blog. Its purpose is to inform followers about different products, share information about eating and living healthy, and shares recipes and information about healthy food in general. The blog is unique because it focuses on eating healthy and showcases products sold in the store. The blog reflects the brand because its message is about enjoying a healthy lifestyle by using organic and natural products. Whole Foods website drives traffic to the blog. The website has rotating headlines with a link to the blog. Whole Foods also drives traffic to the blog through its other social media sites, by emails, and by newsletters, which are part of their IMC plan. Based on Collier’s (2009) characteristics, Whole Foods blog is successful since it posts new and original content everyday. The blog contains social share buttons, and readers can connect with the brand on multiple social networks. Per Young (2011), a successful blog uses pictures and images and offers solutions (http://www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/9986.aspx?format=2).  This blog does use images and videos and gives readers solutions for how to eat healthy.  However, I think the images on the blog could be better quality. I did not see any outside companies advertising on the blog, but Whole Foods does showcase products they carry.

Zappos Fashion Culture blog is also a professional blog. The purpose of the blog is to feature trendy fashion items that are sold at the online site. It’s a unique blog because its main focus is fashion and giving customers information about what’s in fashion. The blog reflects the brand because it is fun, simple, and trendy. It offers a service to its customers by showcasing different items and fashion trends. The website drives traffic to the blog, and Zappos does have a IMC plan that includes social media sites, email, and ads in magazines. People want to read the blog because they are short, fun, and full of great pictures. Based on Collier’s (2009) characteristic of a successful blog, this blog is successful since it posts several times a day, and the content varies from spotlights on new designers and new brands to fashion tips. According to Young (2011), grabbing the reader’s attention with interesting headlines is a great tip to use for a successful blog, and Zappos does this well. An example of a headline that caught my attention is “Inspired By: Cozy in the City.” The varied content and great images help make this a successful blog. However, per Collier (2009), a successful blog has social buttons and options to connect to other sites and Zappos only has a Facebook button on this blog. Zappos could improve their blog by including a link to their Twitter account. Zappos advertises the products they sell on this blog.

Nuts About Southwest is a professional blog. Its purpose is to inform people about what’s going on inside Southwest Airlines and to interact with the brand. This blog is unique because it gives readers an inside view of the company. This blog reflects the brand because it’s funny and reflects the unique sense of humor that Southwest Airlines projects to its customers. The Southwest website drives traffic to the blog. The blog is just one part of their IMC strategy that includes email, social media, TV, etc. They use SEO to rank high on search engines. People read the blog because it connects them to the brand. This blog contains many of the characteristics mentioned by Collier (2009) including new content, original content, social share buttons, and links to all their social media sites including Luv Letters, a section with letters from customers. I do think the blog could benefit from higher quality images and photos. I did not see any advertisers on the blog. Potential advertisers could include rental car companies or hotels.

Mashable is a news blog that specializes in digital, social media, business, tech, entertainment, and mobile news. The purpose of the social media blog is to cover the latest news stores about social media and to offer information about what’s going on with different social media platforms. It is a unique blog because it covers the latest developments in social media. It reflects the brand because it’s informative. Its website drives traffic to the main blog which offers viewers different content areas to choose from. Mashable has a presence on all the different social media sites that also drives traffic to the blog. They also send emails to followers. This blog has many of the characteristics mentioned by Collier (2009) including posting new content daily, links to other social media accounts, a presence on the different social media sites, and options for sharing and receiving content. Not only do they have great images, videos and interesting headlines, they interact with their readers by posting questions and requesting comments, all different tips that Young (2011) recommends to follow to have a successful blog. In my opinion, this blog isn’t missing anything. Some advertisers on this blog are Moto X, Seagate Central and Samsung.

Twenty-Something Travel is a semiprofessional blog written by Stephanie Yoden. Its purpose is to tell the adventures of a young woman who has decided to make traveling a priority in her life. She wants to let other people her age know that anyone can choose this kind of lifestyle. The blog is unique because it’s geared towards people in their twenties who would like to enjoy traveling while they’re young. Since the blogger is twenty-something and living out her dream, her site reflects her adventurous spirit. The blogger has a presence on all the social media sites, which bring traffic to her blog. She also writes for US Travel on Answers.com. Per Collier (2009), successful blogs keep content fresh by reviewing products, which this blogger does. On her September 8 post, she reviews some travel products. She does have social share buttons, links to her social media sites, and nice images. In my opinion, her blog could use some videos to provide another form of communication with her readers. UK Travel Videos advertises on her site.

Blogs are a great way to drive traffic to the website, help businesses increase their SEO, and share information with customers. Blogs allow you to communicate with your followers on a more personal level. On other social media sites, short posts are common. On blogs, you are really able to share a large amount of information with your followers so they can get to know your brand or company better.