A blog is a website or part of a website that usually features one or more of the following criteria: Editorial Commentary Links to external sites, often seen as recommendations which may, or may not, be factual. Blogs tell stories. Usually about a specific topic, subject, or genre.

It tends to be opinionated and personal and could be considered "newsy" rather than "news". Blogs create interaction with the audience and may include photographs of you and your activities. Blogs are now carrying breaking news, gossip, and little tidbits that intrigues the media. Business blogs are all about putting a human face to your company customer base when you open a business blog. Businesses should look at their current set-up, check their financial position and choose a provider with strong sector experience and a reliable reputation.

The culture of the customer is one that has conditioned them to look for opportunities to talk to businesses, express their opinions about businesses, share their purchasing experiences with businesses as well as look for those companies (especially the ones they like) which are willing to talk back and share the inside story of how the company is being run and managed. The opportunity here is that any business can position themselves as leaders in their market, in their communities and most importantly in the minds of their customers by simply talking about how they are doing business and asking for input and feedback from customers. It takes some time to build an effective business blog but with the right strategy for your business and right guidance on how to deploy social communication tools in your business, you could be well on your way to improving customer relationships, building brand equity and keeping your competitors in check. Blogging is a great way to make sure that your content is always fresh, and thus regularly checked in on by Google and company. Because that's what will make a reader that finds your content through a search engine decide whether to visit your website or not. This is the make or break point that determines whether you get read or passed over in favor of someone else's content.

Like the rest of the social networking sites, you create a profile and network with others. The beauty of social and business networking sites is that they don't take up a lot of time to set up and use. One thing you can be sure about is that social networking is not going away. It is shaping the way that people do business.

Francina Smit is the owner of InHouseDollars.com and writes articles on various subjects regarding Home Based Business. Visit her for more information at: http://www.InhouseDollars.com/newsletter-signup.html