Thinking about adding a blog to your website? An important factor to remember is that not all blogs are created equal. Check out RezStream’s complete line of .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) to learn more.
What is a blog?
A blog (contraction of the term “web log”) is basically a website made up of short, frequently updated ‘posts’ that are arranged in a chronological order and can be on topics of either a personal or business matter. You can use a blog to discuss events in your community, expertise, news, staff recognition, or just about anything you can think of while putting a more community orientated and human face to your business.
How can adding a blog benefit a hospitality business?
Blogs help hotels and resorts communicate timely information with potential customers and also to increase the overall number of pages of a website. Keep in mind that Google, and other search engines, reward websites that post new content often and also rank larger websites higher.
Why blog anyway?
1. To advance the position of your website in the search rankings.
2. To show your expertise and knowledge in an area or community.
3. To bring traffic to your main website.
4. Easier and less expensive to update than changing content on your website.
5. For recognition, as journalists use blogs more and more to find information for articles.
There are two main types of blogs (hosted and self-hosted), with pros and cons of so-called “free” hosted blogs versus self-hosted blogs.
What is a hosted blog?
Hosted blogs are “free” and are hosted by third party companies. However, they come with some serious drawbacks.
Advantages of hosted blogs:
1. They are usually free.
2. Hosting company keeps the site software updated and introduces new features.
3. Quick and easy to do without much experience.
Disadvantages of hosted blogs:
1. Rules & restrictions: The hosting company has their own rules and can limit you on what you can do on the website. For example, if you wanted to host E‐Commerce on your blog to sell books or other items, you may need to pay an additional fee to add that to your site.
2. The hosted blog URL is not on your own domain. You might have a URL such as http://mysite.Blogger.com or http://WordPress.com/mysite or something similar with another company. This means that blogger.com or wordpress.com gets the credit for the ranking of your posts, not your own website. THIS IS A MAJOR DRAWBACK!
3. Search engine optimization—the biggest disadvantage of hosted blogs. While you might be able to optimize parts of your blog posts on one of the “free” hosted services, you will not see the benefits to your website as the blog holds a different URL than your own website.
4. You don’t control whether the blog site stays live. If the hosted blog service goes down, out of business or decides that your site is not sticking to their rules, they will suspend your account and your site will be down. There have been a number of times where Facebook pages, Blogger pages or other sites are no longer accessible because someone reported them as being spam, someone hacked into them, or the hosting company just took them down. When you own your own site, you maintain complete control of what happened to your blog.
Examples of hosted blog policies:
a. Blogger.com (Google):
Termination; Suspension. Google may, at its sole discretion, at any time and for any reason, terminate the service, terminate this agreement, or suspend or terminate your account.
b. WordPress.com (Automattic):
Termination. Automattic may terminate your access to all or any part of the website at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice, effective immediately.
5. You might not own or control your content. On some hosted services, you don’t own the content. You need to read the terms & conditions of the service to see if, when you upload content, it remains part of the provider’s service. You should know who keeps control of the content and who has the final say in what is posted to the site.
a. Blogger (Google)
While they claim you are responsible for your content, and hold the copyright to it, Google also exclaims that they control what content you post and can refuse to post it to the site. “By submitting, posting or displaying Content on or through Google services, which are intended to be available to the members of the public, you grant Google a worldwide, non‐exclusive, royalty‐free license to reproduce, publish and distribute such content on Google services for the purpose of displaying and distributing Google services. Google furthermore reserves the right to refuse to accept, post, display or transmit any Content in its sole discretion.”
b. WordPress.com:
“By submitting content to Automattic for inclusion on your website, you grant Automattic a world‐wide, royalty‐free, and non‐exclusive license to reproduce, modify, adapt and publish the content solely for the purpose of displaying, distributing and promoting your blog…without limiting any of those representations or warranties, Automattic has the right (though not the obligation) to, in Automattic’s sole discretion (i) refuse or remove any content that, in Automattic’s reasonable opinion, violates any Automattic policy or is in any way harmful or objectionable, or (ii) terminate or deny access to and use of the Website to any individual or entity for any reason, in Automattic’s sole discretion. Automattic will have no obligation to provide a refund of any amounts previously paid.”
What is a self-hosted blog?
Self-hosted blogs are built right into your website domain and you host them wherever your normal website is hosted. They are also more customizable and help promote your own website, not some third party company website.
Advantages of self-hosted blogs:
1. You make your own rules. You have control over the blog content and you can put what you like on the site.
2. Search engine optimization: The biggest advantage is that as you create your blog on your domain, you can optimize each post and page and reap the rewards. The blog will help promote your main website and visa‐versa. If your main website has a high ranking in the search engines, your blog will inherit that ranking and dramatically improve your search engine visibility.
3. Branding: By using your own URL such as http://blog.MySite.com you are reinforcing the branding of your company by using your own domain.
4. You own the site. If you want to move to another hosting service or if you want to make everything on your site © to you, then you can do just that. It is your content and you control where it is used. Unless you are using the site for illegal purposes, you can be confident that the site will not be removed or taken down for “any reason or cause” as can happen with a hosted site.
5. Professionalism: In the early days of the web, companies used AOL email addresses; now they control their own business email address accounts under their domain. Companies using a hosted blog look unprofessional and cheap. You would no longer consider using an MSN or AOL account for your business email, so why use Blogger or WordPress.com for your blog?
6. Design: With self-hosting blogs, you can create a blog design that has the same look and feel as your website using the same fonts, text color, heading, sidebars and backgrounds. This builds confidence in your visitors as they see continuity from the main website to the blog, which verifies they are still on the same site. While you can somewhat adjust the styles of hosted sites, it is usually more trouble than it is worth and would cost as much as building a blog that you own.
7. Support team: On a hosted site you have to rely on the forums or other users to get support answers to problems or questions. When you self-host, you have guaranteed help from the team that built your site to answer questions or assist you as you expand your site. RezStream has been building and working on blogs for many years and can help solve any blog issue, answer questions, and help you with training.
Disadvantages of self-hosted blogs:
1. Costs more in the early stages to set up.
Conclusion:
Anything that is “free” usually comes with some drawbacks. That is certainly the case with third-party, hosted blogs. The slogan, “Let the buyer beware,” certainly rings true with this type of blog service. While it may cost $1,000 to $3,000 for a custom build self-hosted blog, the cost is well worth it. Remember, the point of blogging is to increase your OWN search engine presence, extend your OWN branding, and share timely information with potential guests. Self-hosted blogs help you achieve all those goals. RezStream strongly recommends that you add a custom self-hosted blog to your website. Learn more about RezStream’s complete line of custom blogs by calling 866-360-8210 today.
About the authors:
This article was written by Bill Mitchell and Liz Hamilton. Both Bill and Liz have extensive experience in the hospitality industry. Bill is the Chief Operating Officer for RezStream. Liz is a consultant to the hospitality industry.
