Is there a difference between a blog and a Web site? Yes and no … how’s that for decisive? Technically, a blog IS a Web site.
All Web sites fall into one of two categories. They’re either static (your typical HTML site) or dynamic. A blog falls into the latter category, as do other forms of database driven Web sites.
There’s a shorter learning curve to developing a static HTML site from scratch. I build these types of sites in Dreamweaver. Others use FrontPage. Some simply use Notepad, which is all that’s truly needed once you understand how to write the code. Still, there is a learning curve. I generally maintain HTML sites for my clients because I already know how the site works. For a client to take over the site, they need to purchase software and/or learn sufficient HTML to make content changes without “breaking” the site.
A WordPress blog on the other hand, is designed to handle easy content updates by anyone with permission and an Internet connection. Installation is simple, but site customization beyond uploading one of many available themes requires knowledge of PHP and CSS.
A WordPress blog is more versatile than a static Web site. Upon install, it has all the necessary functionality built in to easily update, share, and archive content. Blog posts, such as this, show up on a “posts page.” Clicking on the headline of the post takes you to a “permalink” page that only displays that one specific post and comments. Add a category and tags to your post, and now you and your readers have the ability to find everything you’ve ever written within that category. You can also find posts through the search box, another automatic WordPress function.
This blog uses the posts page as the home page, but you can also create a static home page and any number of additional pages, selecting a different page for your posts page. Changing this is as simple as clicking a radio button inside your settings panel.
WordPress plugins extend the functionality of your blog, offering simple ways to create redirects, search engine optimize each post, track the keywords used to find your post, create contact forms, import video, and easily share each article.
If you regularly add fresh, interesting content to your blog, it will be indexed more frequently by the search engines. If you take the time to search engine optimize your posts for relevant keyword phrases used by your market, your posts will be more easily seen by your market. Over-simplified? Somewhat, but getting the most out of your business blog will be a topic for future posts.
Related Articles:
Should I Change My Website Into a Blog?
Is it a Blog or a Website?
Hi Shari,
I have an affiliate website in the works and have decided to go with Wordpress. What I’m used to is Wordpress blogging, not static pages. Using categories isn’t an option with static pages, so it’s been a bit of a hassle, but I absolutely love how versatile Wordpress is.
Plus, there are so many wonderful themes and templates to choose from. I’m using one called Atahualpa for both my static site as well as for Learning SEO Basics blog. It has 200+ theme options, including parts and pieces that make SEO much simpler and is built into the design.
While in the ’should I or shouldn’t I’ mode for choosing WP for my static site, I stumbled across a post that referred to WP as a CMS, not just a bloggers tool.
Hi Kimberly, I’m using the Remix theme on a two WordPress blogs currently and two more sites in the works. Like the one you mentioned, it has numerous options for customizing every part of the site. Lately I’ve come to prefer the WordPress blog platform over a static site, both for SEO purposes and because they’re so much quicker to get up and running.
It’s good to see you here. Thanks for stopping by!
Interesting post, but I feel like you’re comparing the wrong two things. You should be comparing a static website vs. a dynamic CMS website OR you should compare a small 1-10 page website vs a blog.
I would argue that the blog format is not right for many small businesses, but using Wordpress as a CMS even for many non-blog websites is great and easy for the small business owner.
A WordPress blog is not limited to being used as a blog. I’m making use of it on several client sites as an effective CMS, as it’s easy to learn and maintain, and less costly to get off the ground. It’s not limited to comparison against a small website, but scales easily.
Thanks for stopping by, James. I appreciate your comment!
I agree with Mr. Paden, I also do feel that you are comparing the wrong things. As most blogs are now being considered as product websites, there’s really no reason for a debate on which of the two should prevail.
Great article, though. Keep it up.