A Look at Classifying Blogs

There are many ways to label a blog but not one definite one. Wordpress (n.d.) has nine general categories of blog types, as does Margaret Simons (2008). However, while both are listing blog genres, they do have their similarities and differences. For instance, Simons’ ‘Diary’ and ‘Popular Mechanics’ label is the same as Wordpress’ ‘Private’, ‘Personal’ and ‘How-To’ categories respectively. These only cover subject blogs. The image below shows the many types of topics a single blogger could cover.

Image from topleftdesign.com

Other types of blog mediums which also circulate the Internet include sketch blogs and video blogs which allows people converse directly with their viewers (Betancourt, 2009). Therefore, these blogs are classified according to their medium. Another form of categorising blogs is by target audience. Similarly, the author of the blog can define its classification – some blogs are handled individually as personal websites but others are managed by corporations to reach out to customers (Effective Corporate Blogging, 2009).

Then there are blogs which combine many mediums and subjects at once, which is the reason why there is trouble when it comes to finding a niche where each of them can fit neatly into. Blogging using many different mediums is effective because it allows the blogger to connect to its audience from multiple angles (Cheuvront, 2010).

In my opinion, the subject classification of blogs is the more effective mode of categorising. While it does not take into account medium and target audience, it does give a clear idea as to what the blog’s purpose is. Therefore, it is the best way to direct those interested in that particular subject towards the blog.

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References

Betancourt, L 2009, The complete guide to video blogging, Mashable, viewed 25 September 2010, http://mashable.com/2009/10/09/video-blogging/.

Cheuvront, M 2010, Connect with consumers from multiple angles using multiple mediums, Social Media Marketing, viewed 25 September 2010, http://www.socialmediamarketing.com/blog/connect-with-consumers-from-multiple-angles-using-multiple-mediums.

Effective Corporate Blogging 2009, Global Audit Information Network, The Institute of Internal Auditors, viewed 25 September 2010, www.theiia.org/download.cfm?file=96697.

Simons, M 2008, Towards a taxonomy of blogs, Australian Policy Online, viewed 25 September 2010, http://www.apo.org.au/commentary/towards-taxonomy-blogs-0.

Wordpress n.d. Types of blogs, viewed 25 September 2010, http://en.wordpress.com/types-of-blogs/.