SKYPE

Skype is one of the newest crazes in today's communication world. I first began to personally use Skype when I moved away to school here in the USA. Skype is a communication tool that can be used to keep in touch with people anywhere in the world. It is much the same as MSN Messenger, in how there is instant messaging. The benefit that Skype has to offer over other basic instant messaging tools, is that there is video chat available which allows the user to create a much more intimate setting by being in a conversation involving video. Skype has many different benefits, making it one of the top new communication tools today. Another key tool that Skype has to offer is the cheap rates for long distance calling. This tool can literally be treated like a regular phone with video capability... what is the technology world going to come up with next?

Facebook - [feys][book] - Easy to say and use

One of the newest forms of a communication tool seen today would be the use of Facebook and all it has to offer for keeping in touch with both your personal life and your work life. There really are endless opportunities for using this type of communication tool. From a business stand point, you are able to create pages that display your companies products with a lay out that offers feedback from the consumer. This is advantageous for a company because it is an indirect approach to getting valuable feedback from the consumer. As well, there is instant messaging available through the website as well as other messaging options to and from your personal page. Being an International student, this is one of the main ways I am able to keep in touch with my family and friends back in Canada. It is an important part of being able to be away from home but still stay in the loop of things. This is one of the fastest growing communication tools today and has shown beneficial for many companies and individuals.

Top Ten Personal Blog Sites

1) Gongshow Hockey – This site offers simple maneuverability, come on, it is for hockey players. There are tips for improving your game as well as an easy place to communicate with others who share the same passion about hockey.

2) Facebook – It is one of the largest used personal blog sites. I personally can vouch that it is extremely easy to use and allows you to stay up-to-date with all of the closest people in your life.

3) Yahoo! Puck Daddy – NHL blog – This site is a great read for any hockey fanatic, the layout is simple but gets the message across about the most recent games and any inquiries fans have about the NHL today.

4) ESPN NHL blog – The top columnist from ESPN comment on upcoming match-ups and do in depth comparisons for the biggest games of the week. This also includes links to all other professional sports for blogs.

5) The unofficial Audi blog – This sites offers insight about new cars and development for Audi. The simple layout offers the opportunity to research any vehicle Audi has and find real life personal opinions about the vehicles you want to drive.

6) SBNATIONS Oakland A’s blog – This site has the most recent news from the Oakland A’s locker room as well as relevant information about the league. Also, there are personal statistics for the entire roster, which allows fans to stay in the loop as to how their team (the best in MLB) is doing.

7) The Bengal Den – Idaho State University’s blog page that allows you to communicate with other fans from the Big Sky conference. This site offers information about all sports from ISU; it is a simple layout but gets the message across.

8) A Beer Blog – Simple, catchy, and fun to use. This site has news and tips for how to use beer for not only drinking, but everyday life as well. There are funny pictures that involve different beers from around the world that help to catch the reader’s eye and make this site worth viewing.

9) MyTripJournal.com – Travel is one of the most popular things people enjoy doing, this site allows you to log your whole trip with comments and pictures uploaded easily and fast.

10) My personal blog – What else is more interesting than a blog I manage at least once a week. This is a creative insight of what my passions include and demonstrate my creativity with school. As well, this is probably the simplest layout I have seen when it comes to blogging.

Top Ten Corporate Blog Sites

#10 The Otter Group

#9 English Cut

#8 Sunbelt Software

#7 GM Fast Lane

#6 Adobe Software

#5 Ask.com

#4 Tom Peters

#3 Yahoo! Search

#2 O’Reilly Radar

#1 Google

While using what is shown here according to, Marketing Nirvana’s Top Ten Corporate Blog Rankings, as the #1 Corporate Blog Site. Since this was my first choice to find the answer to my question, I can only agree with the list Marketing Nirvana has accumulated. The simplicity of groups such as: The Otter Group, GM Fast Lane, Ask.com, and Yahoo! Search is on the top ten because of the easy maneuverability through the site along with an effortless readability. The other sites have exceptional content that is up-to-date with the technology changes in the world today. There is a great deal of information that is beneficial to any concerns or curiosities technology has in your mind.

"Marketing Nirvana's Top Ten Corporate Blog Rankings," Google, July 2006, http://mariosundar.wordpress.com/2006/07/16/top-10-corporate-blogs-technorati-powered/ (accessed October 18,2009)

The Ever Evolving Blog

As early as the internet was started, there has been some sore of blogging. In 1994 the blog, as we know it, was started as an online diary. By 1998 both corporate and personal websites started to include one paragraph “Whats’s New” sections. These were updated several times a week and included mainly opinions of the writer. The new millennium brought some of the more popular blog sites today to life.

Just as the internet has progressed, blog sites have evolved into money making opportunities. As technology continues to change on a daily basis, the evolution of a blog site follows the progress the internet made each and every day. I believe that the business world will continue to use this form of communication to strengthen their businesses and that blogs will continue to modernize as the internet does.


“History of Blogging,” Wikipedia, September 2009, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_blogging_timeline (accessed October 2, 2009)

Corporate Blogging Guidelines

Minding your manors is something we have all be taught since a very young age. My research has concluded that the same thing applies in the business world. Here are some of the policies that I feel are best used by major corporations.

- Blogs, wikis and other forms of online discourse are individual interactions, not corporate communications. Be mindful that what you write will be public for a long time -- protect your privacy.

- Respect copyright, fair use and financial disclosure laws.

- Don't provide confidential or other proprietary information.

- Don't cite or reference clients, partners or suppliers without their approval.

- Respect your audience. Don't use ethnic slurs, personal insults, obscenity, etc., and show proper consideration for others' privacy and for topics that may be considered objectionable or inflammatory -- such as politics and religion.

- Find out who else is blogging on the topic, and cite them.

- Don't pick fights, be the first to correct your own mistakes, and don't alter previous posts without indicating that you have done so.

- Try to add value. Provide worthwhile information and perspective.

I feel that all of these and valuable points to consider when writing a professional blog. The most important thing to remember is that you represent the company you work for, there is no room for personal life in business blogging.

"Guidelines for Employee Bloggers," Web Pro News, May 2005, http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2005/05/16/ibm-publishes-guidelines-for-employee-bloggers (accessed September 27, 2009)

Success as simple as this...

In more recent times computers have taken over the way everyday life is carried out. It seems that everyday there is another new way to communicate with the person sitting across the table from you at breakfast via a computer. Businesses can take this to the next level and allow for more efficient ways to communicate with clients and employees. The uncanning ability to be able to communicate with all of your clients at one time by posting a simple blog, makes your job easier. Since the computer is already in use at work, there are no extra cost to using blogs. An open interface is created and allows for a more personal level of communication to be met. This doesn't take away from the business side of it, rather, it builds stronger relationships with clients. Therefore I believe it is beneficial for businesses to utilize a resource (computer) that is already in use in the work place.

"The Pros and Cons to Business Blogging," Developer Tutorials, April 2008, http://www.developertutorials.com/blog/content-blogging/the-pros-and-cons-of-business-blogging-part-1-156/ (accessed September 20, 2009).