In about 20 years, Internet has grown from its infancy stage of surfing for information to a highly complex interdependent grid comprising of social media interacting with advertising and marketing models, along with superfluous information emanating from independent sites, bloggers or news websites. In essence, Internet has emerged multifaceted and the sheer multiplicity in content is what characterizes it today. The demographics comprise of Facebook and Twitter (social websites) and blogs which aggregates into one central feature-spontaneity. Earlier considered a means of data, it is now a platform for testing new technologies, business models and as experimental grounds for advertisers.
Web Logs, or blogs, are the most successful and contemporary form of expression on the web in recent times. Coming from a grey area in journalism, every blog has a theme and unique point. Bloggers do not always write with a time frame in mind they’re entirely on the discretion of the blogger whether it is serious like Huffington Post or an excuse to vent like a personal diary. A blog is intangible property with respect to its writer. They are fully responsible if anything controversial is put up. Plus its effect is instantaneous and high on interactivity with sometimes torrential comments within minutes. “Freedom of press is guaranteed only to those who own one”. Although, this would not hold true for conventional media giants but blogging sites have redefined press in a broader sense. It acts as an autonomous network for collective conversation in the modern day public sphere. But now multinationals, newspapers, magazines and even celebrities keep blogs either as a public relations necessity or gaining an upper hand in the blogosphere.
Numbers may argue that the blogging scene has diminished in its present status, the advent of networking sites have ousted blogging more into ‘irrelevance’ than ever before. So given that the world hasn’t figured what exactly blogs are, let us assume that they are provisional (since mostly they require great deal of maintenance and instant analysis) and offbeat in style of expression. Blogs have still maintained an upward course, in gathering netizens at about 175,000 – 225,000 every day. Blogging is quite young as about 120 million blogs exist. Interestingly, a whopping 50 percent of internet traffic visits these 120 million blogs. The potential of this dynamic medium is often grossly miscalculated if not ignored. It can possibly hold be the most effective advertising online. As blogs cater to niche viewers, understanding consumption pattern and target groups is viable intercepting the portion of readers. 47 percent of online consumers now read blogs for advice. The blog networks that have survived the economic downturn in advertising and the explosion of competing content on the web credit coverage of narrow topics, along with business models that reach beyond advertising. Meanwhile (according to NY times), advertising revenue for magazines dropped 21 percent, and the number of ad pages sold dropped 28 percent. Blogs have also started to get recognised by Media Firms such as Washington Post (for the last 6 years) and recently Associated Press as a credible news source. Mainstream media has rebroadcasted and reported on factual information from blogs especially in time of conflict like during the Iran election protests or Myanmar military repression.
Another unprecedented phenomenon is complete liberty to bloggers over the advertisements that get placed, like in Google ads. Especially, where ownership is concerned, they are responsible for what goes up on their site and how well it will resonate with the readers. In terms of traditional media, it is path breaking because advertisers cannot directly influence content this way round. Such advertising models are light years ahead of print media. Newspapers have realised the prospective of blogs and blog advertising and are making the most of it.
Blogs are foreseen as a substantial part of the web. Innovators searching for inspiration for the next big thing will find it understanding how software programming and optimization of content can do.
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