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Blogging is one of the most common activities done by people who use the Internet. Blogs are utilized for several purposes: as an online diary, as a tool to reach out with a message to the masses, and as a means of acquiring different opinions on one specific issue, among others.

A History of Blogging

The modern concept of blog was derived from the word *weblog.* In 1999, Peter Merholz personalized a sidebar in his weblog containing the phrase *we blog,* a form of the word *weblog.* This action resulted in the word *blog* being adopted into many dictionaries both as a noun and a verb.

The structure of the blogs that we know today is an evolution of the online diary. Like the traditional diary, these blogs were used by several users of the Internet as a chronicle of their daily personal lives. Since online diaries began in 1994, we could say that the modern blog began in 1994.

Uses of Blogging

Blogging is used by most people nowadays to publish their thoughts and opinions to the general public, or to some chosen contacts by way of the private option afforded by some blog sites like Multiply. Most people only want to make themselves heard, while others intend to gather comments from other people who read the blogs.

The functions of the online diary still remain in existence, as some people do treat personal blogs as some sort of diary only that they are open to the public (as most diaries are considered secret journals by most people).

Because of its effectiveness in reaching out to people, businesses have often taken advantage of the blog tool to promote their businesses. Businessmen would write blogs * mostly informative blogs about things that relate to their businesses, although some businessmen's blogs are not limited to that * and publish them always with a link to their business* website.

How To Use Blogging to Promote Your Business

Writing blogs alone is not enough to maximize the benefits that this powerful tool can give you. There also other steps that you have to undertake to ensure that your blog does exactly what you want it to do for you and that is to reach out and gather intended audiences to your business.

Your blog must, first and foremost, be of high quality. The articles must give out detailed information about a topic, but it should be written in a way that the readers* curiosity would be aroused and lead them to find out more. It is this curiosity that will lead them to click the link that you include in your articles, which point to your enterprise's website. This is how blogs generate the necessary traffic to your website.

Taking advantage of the Web 2.0 phenomenon or the power of social networking websites, you should share links to your website in social bookmarking websites such as Digg. Digg and other similar websites afford users the facility of sharing interesting content to other people wishing to seek information. This could also help you attract necessary attention to your blog and, along the way, your business.