Website or Blog?

The Best Way to Promote a Business Online. The Internet is an inexpensive way to draw new customers to a business. Online promotion requires time and dedication, but its monetary costs are low. Even if the company chooses to promote a business online for free, it can bring in traffic and new customers using a free blog or hosting service.

Before the online marketing begins, businesses need to choose between a blog or a website. Some businesses choose to host both a website and a blog in tandem, which is still an affordable way to promote the business online.

Benefits of a Website for Online Promotion

A website allows a business to conduct online promotions with an e-commerce web store, content generation and dynamic product displays. A blog can offer some of these promotions, but a website allows the company to actually conduct business. A blog is used for informational purposes, while a website can generate online income through payment gateways and shopping carts.

To create a website, the business owner needs a domain name registered with an official domain registrar. A web host is needed, which is used to save the website pages, database files and any extra applications used in the website application. A website is generally more expensive to run than a blog, but it has the ability to bring in more customers and generate revenue for the business.

The general pros to promote a business online using a website are:

• More control of products and dynamic content
• Payment processing for payments and customer shopping carts
• More professional look and feel for customer trust

Blogging for Businesses

Blogs are used as a separate entity to inform customers, or these components can be added to existing websites. Some businesses incorporate a blog within a company website, which generates content for better search engine optimization. Blogs are also affordable ways to promote a business online. Using WordPress or Blogger, the business can set up a hosted blog for free.

Blogs need to be updated consistently. Blogs add content for search engines and readers, so updating the blog keeps the content fresh. Some businesses hire a writer for blogging. The business can also purchase blog content and upload an article each day.

The pros for using a blog for online promotion include:

• Affordable and quick to set up
• Hosted blogs don’t require a domain name or web host
• Provide information for readers

These two methods to promote a business online can be used separately or together. They provide information for readers, and it can market a business without the high cost of tradition advertisements.