Blogging is a journey of exploration. To see the strengths and weaknesses of one’s own blog and the components it’s made up of it can be valuable to venture out and learn what is truly great about the world of blogging. The visual appeal and effectiveness of a blog is determined by its design, content, purpose and audience. Through analyzing my peer’s blogs I have gained alternate perspectives on these components. Evaluating those findings revealed a basis for exploring ideas that I will consider incorporating into my own blog now and in the future.
While exploring my fellow students’ Blogs I focused on the following four elements: purpose, design, content, and audience. This was a revealing process during which I discovered what seems to work and what doesn’t. Overall, one lesson I learned through my examination of my peers’ Blogs was that a Blog can display personal style and voice; however it still needs the aforementioned basic elements to be effective and appealing. Each of the five Blogs I analyzed provided me with examples of different approaches to the same task which was creating a communication focused portfolio.
The first blog I analyzed was Theresa Horne’s (2010) “Global Communication” blog. The design of Theresa Horne’s (2010) blog was appealing to me because of her wonderful color choices and layout. It was very easy on the eyes and was without distractions and clutter. I enjoyed the catchy titles and graphics. Her catchy titles and graphics were luring and made me want to read her blog articles. One issue I found was a lack of consistency in theme which made me question the purpose and audience. Horne (2010) places emphasis on culture, such as art and music, but doesn’t clearly link those aspects of culture to the topic of communication or global communication. The blog could be strengthened by adding simple connections between the two topics and this would make for a very interesting and current subject for future blogging. The comparisons of the U.S. and China, for example, are valuable and interesting and would be even more so if the comparison ended with a note about how these examples of differences affect cultural norms and what that communicates about our cultural values. Some sort of tie in would make the added discussion more relevant to communications. Making these changes and/or additions would also improve clarification with regard to the purpose and audience and increase the cohesiveness and, therefore, strength of the blog.
Todd Barraza’s (2010) blog includes terrific pieces of writing and it is very organized. By adding a portfolio and resume he certainly makes his purpose clear, utilizing his blog as a tool to market himself professionally. One critique I must make is that I had trouble focusing on his writing with the abundance of white in the design of his blog. This serves as a reminder of the important role color plays in the visual appeal of a blog. The white is overpowering and therefore distracting which takes away from his writing. I would also suggest proofing through his writing for grammar errors. Although the content is appropriate and well-written, grammar, spelling and punctuation errors can reflect poorly on a writer’s credibility. This discovery in Barraza’s (2010) blog inspired me to read through my writing and reminded me that although I have a volume of writing samples included in my blog from over the years I still need to ensure that those writing pieces are free of grammar, spelling and punctuation errors, especially since it is likely that I am not the same writer today that I was four years ago when I started my degree.
On the other hand, Elisa Overstake’s (2010) blog is organized with terrific color and layout choices, and it is very consistent. She made creative use of the blog text gadget, utilizing it to categorize her writing by course and title. It is apparent that Overstake (2010) is aware of her target audience and consistent in making choices for that audience. I was not aware that text gadgets could be used in this manner and I know that my new knowledge of it will benefit me in organizing my own blog to cater to the needs of my audiences as well. I plan to use this gadget to catalogue my writing in such a way that highlights technical writing samples, media writing samples, public relations-related writing, intercultural communication articles, and articles on communication theory, to name a few. This is a much cleaner way of allowing my audiences to access specific pieces of writing relevant to their individual needs.
The first aspect of Patricia Fox’s (2010) blog that appealed to me was her introduction. It was very fitting for this assignment. She was clear and direct about the purpose of her blog which was complimented by a clean and organized layout. When needed, Fox’s (2010) thoughts and/or points are supported well with research and descriptive words that make her writing very enjoyable to read. Another feature of Fox’s (2010) blog that I appreciate is the side bars that describe her inspiration which humanized her blog. This taught me that a blog can be functional, professional and personal to some level. The only change I would make is to double check for consistent messages in the content of the blog. Videos added in the side bar are not easily recognizable as relevant material. This could be combated by a brief description to help the audience understand what the relevance of this addition is.
The layout of Dexter Anderson’s (2010) blog is very appealing, organized and clean. I enjoy the faded white color and serine backdrop combination. He could benefit from reviewing his profile information and writing pieces for errors to ensure accuracy and to maintain credibility as the author of his blog. The most valuable lesson I learned from Anderson’s (2010) blog was that it is smart to start small and work your way carefully into the design and content of a blog, especially when entering unfamiliar territory. Although his blog did not contain many pieces of writing he was taking the process a step at a time and now, a week after my initial review of his blog he displays effective progress in its development. I have a tendency to rush into adding content rather than carefully organizing and strategizing. This goes to show that it is good to not only analyze a peer’s blog, but to see the development of it as it progresses over time.
To develop and design an effective and visually appealing blog it is important to start with an audience and a purpose and then design around that focus. If a blog is started with clear intentions it is easier to maintain and keep consistent through the design and development process. Once the intended audience and subject matter is determined elements can be added to a blog that cater to that purpose and audience specifically. On the subject of design I refer back to my article, “Good Bloggin': A Review of 5 Blogs,” from my Blog, A Perspective (2010):
From the heading to the footer, the side bar to the comments, organization, color scheme and style all play a significant role in a blogs readability, appeal and impact. Color, font, font size, and layout will affect what stands out to the reader and what doesn’t. Attention to such details will manage the focus and highlight what is important within a blog. (Tuenge, 2010)
Although a blog is often used as a creative voice for its author, the content of a blog should not be neglected with regard to grammar, spelling or citing of sources. The chosen topics should be researched and well-written in order to maintain credibility as the author of a blog. It is all of these elements that make an effective blog.
By evaluating my peers I am able to recognize strengths and weaknesses of other blogs as an outside audience member rather than the writer. Receiving feedback was also a valuable aspect of this assignment. This provided many examples of tools I can use to strengthen my writing and my blog. A few specific examples of how I might apply the knowledge I gained from evaluating my peers are as follows: use of blog design gadgets, gearing my blog layout and content for a specific audience, and For example, in some cases, fellow students have made wonderful use out of the text gadgets to organize their portfolios so that the blog is not simply an archive of work but it in a box to the side can highlight specific writing samples or topics that can easily be pulled out for specific readers. This would make my blog easier to evaluate by my peers and my professor.
Another aspect of these evaluations that I can apply to my blog is focusing on my audience. It is easy to write and write and write on topics I am familiar with, but focusing on the idea of a potential employer viewing my blog as a portfolio changes how I want my blog to be laid out. I also may want to make certain I leave out too much personal information so that I maintain a professional feel to my blog. The layout is important because in the event that I was applying for a position in media relations, for example, it would be wise that a potential employer have quick and easy access to those specific pieces of writing rather than having to surf through your blog posts in search of them.
A future addition I may choose to apply to my blog, inspired by Todd Barraza (2010), is adding a resume to my blog page, once relevant that is. Once I have a year of experience in my field and can offer more current examples of real work experience I will make those additions and use them to market myself in my professional career to potential employers. For those with resumes that speak for themselves this can be an effective piece to add to a blog intended to be used for the purpose of career building. For now, my works, or my writings, speak more highly of me than my work experience so, for now, I will omit this addition to my blog.
A blog can, in fact, serve as a valuable tool to market oneself professionally if proper attention is given to the design, content, purpose, and audience of the blog. When the purpose and audience is clear, design and content can be used effectively to support the intended purpose. There is value in analyzing other blogs when evaluating the effectiveness of one’s own blog. Learning what is effective and ineffective through exploring blogs related to the subject of one’s own can provide direction in making choices when developing and designing a blog.
References
Anderson, Dexter. (2010). Big dex blog [Web log message]. Retrieved from
Barazza, Todd. (2010). Todd barazza: academic blog [Web log message]. Retrieved from
http://toddbarraza.blogspot.com/
Fox, Patricia. (2010). Academic blog: a showcase for writings completed throughout a college
career [Web log message]. Retrieved from www.com480.blogspot.com
Horne, Theresa. (2010). Global communication: the filler in the empty spaces [Web log
message]. Retrieved from http://theresacommunication.blogspot.com
Overstake, Elisa. (2010). Elisa overstake [Web log message]. Retrieved from
Tuenge, C. (2010, November 1). What's in a blog? [Web log message]. Retrieved from
http://opinionsandperspectives.blogspot.com/2010_11_01_archive.html
