Blog Services Review

In preparation for the launch of Church Blog Theory, I researched online blogging services extensively.  Not only did I read about most of these services, I signed up for several free accounts and worked within their platforms.  Here is my take on some of the web services available.

1. Blogger -  Rated by most reviews in the top 3 of blogging platforms.  I find it the easiest to start and maintain.  It also allows the most extensive functionality of customizing and adding useful gadgets.  Provided by the Google empire, Blogger doesn’t have any 3rd party ads unless you specifically add them yourself.  I think the greatest attribute is the automatic inclusion of your blog content and tags into Google’s powerful search engine.  See CBT on Blogger

2. WordPress.com - Another favorite.  It is a little more cumbersome to post and manage but still an excellent and free online blogging service.  WP is highly ranked by most 3rd party reviews.  If you have your own web server you can download WordPress to your own domain and have expanded functionality.

3.  TypePad - Appears to be an excellent platform to create and manage a blog.  It is highly rated.  The only downfall is its cost.  Prices start at $4.95 a month.  If you think you might like to use TypePad, they offer a free 30 day trial.  While I’m sure it is a great product I wouldn’t pay when I can get the same quality with Blogger or WordPress

4. Facebook – Is probably the most popular social networking site online right now.  It contains a “notes” section where you can publish a blog-like posts that are shared with your friends only.  Everyone not on Facebook is cut off from reading it and therefore does not improve the exposure the church has in search engines.  On the other hand, there is a useful tool that automatically imports your blog into your notes.  This has significant ministry implications that we will discuss in a later post.

5.  Live Journal -  Another free blogging platform available.  It isn’t the easiest to use and not the best to look at.  It also forces you to have 3rd party advertisements which should be avoided at all cost.  LJ provides an option to pay and omit the advertisements but I think we have previously established why this is a poor idea.

6. Yahoo 360 & MSN Live Spaces - Both email/IM services have expanded to allow their users to create blogs.  They are more like Email/IM/Social Networking/Blogging all in one.  But, don’t let that fool you.  It is rather convoluted and difficult to create something that will be easily shared with friends, family, neighbors, co-workers and the world.  If you are a Yahoo or MSN buff, you might check it out.

7. Xanga – Difficult to start posting and 3rd party advertisements.

8. BraveJournal.com – Difficult to navigate.

9. VOX - Difficult to navigate and 3rd party advertisements

10. Myspace – This is a social networking site not just a blogging platform.  If you have a Myspace profile and have several friends, it isn’t a bad place to re-post a blog.  But I don’t think it should be used as a stand alone blog platform for following CBT.  If you re-post from another blogging platform it is possible to notify everyone in your friends list of that post and therefore could increase exposure of your message.  On the negative side, there are a lot of suggestive 3rd party advertisements.  However, Myspace needs the light of Christ just as much as any other place.  You just need to weigh the pro’s and con’s and how it might effect your ministry.

Without a doubt, for the purpose of CBT, my recommendations are for Blogger and WordPress.  Let me know if you have any questions or need help getting started.  I would be happy to help.

A 21st Century Giant

The internet is indeed a 21st Century Giant! Not only is it “walked” by millions of people every hour, it includes things like…

• Pornography
• Child Predators
• Terrorist Websites
• Identity Theft Scams

to name a few.

What is the Church to do?

Run? Cower? Hide? Imagine it away? Bunker ourselves in and only pop up long enough to say how ungodly the internet is?

NO!

We must approach this giant like David approached Goliath Read Online.

1st – David aligned himself with the Living God 1 Samuel 17:45

• We must have our lives aligned with that same Living God

2nd – David armed himself 1 Samuel 17:40

• We have the word of God which promised to be the all equipping (2 Peter 1:3) weapon (Ephesians 6:17) we need to fight the good fight (1 Timothy 6:12).
• Engaging the internet means we have to understand the internet. If you don’t understand, grab a computer and learn. It is pretty easy.

3rd – David ran to meet his opponent 1 Samuel 17:48

• We must, at all costs, run out to meet the internet head on via blogging, social networking and providing web based resources for people seeking the truth.
• Christians need to infuse the word of God into every facet, forum and outlet the internet offers, especially those that are FREE.
• We need to increase our presence dramatically in search engines.
• We have to use this media to look for and create opportunities to minister to individuals.

The internet is a giant that must be faced. While it will never cease to exist, it is possible for God’s people to have an overwhelming presence there. That presence can lead to evangelism opportunities, encouraging/increasing faith of other Christians and urging ungodly entities to end or go elsewhere.

It depends upon us. Many of our people are cowering in fear. Let us run to and engage this giant and empower our brethren to also let their light shine (Matthew 5:16) on the internet.

Internet & Blog Statistics Overview

“The word blog is irrelevant, what’s important is that it is now common, and will soon be expected, that every intelligent person (and quite a few unintelligent ones) will have a media platform where they share what they care about with the world.”

Current (mid-2008.) annual Internet traffic growth rates = 50-60%
Minnesota Internet Traffic Studies (MINTS)

-and-

eMarketer (May 2008.)

• 94.1 million US blog readers in 2007 (50% of Internet users)
• 22.6 million US bloggers in 2007 (12%)

Conclusion –

• Millions of people are on the internet every day
• 1/2 of all internet users are reading blogs
• Internet usage is projected to continue to expand by 50% or greater

Will we use our resources to share what we care about with the world?

It’s Free & Easy

Free -
Wordpress is a free online blog hosting service. It is one of several different services on the internet. While it is only a tool it has the capability to enhance the church’s presence on the internet and open doors to personal evangelism. Not only that, but it is FREE. Why wouldn’t Christians use something like this to promote the Gospel? Wouldn’t this be considered the cheapest mission work on the planet? Consider this:

If God were to ask,

“Did you use every means available to spread My word quickly and effectively throughout the world?”

Would you be able to respond “Yes”?

Easy –
A blog only takes a few minutes to get started. With 52 ideas for blog starters, all you need is a few minutes a week in front of the computer, your Bible and the desire to change the internet for good as well as improve your personal evangelism. What stands in your way? It definitely isn’t difficulty.

Evangelism with a Blog

How do you use a blog to do One on One evangelism?

• After writing your post each week, use the blog to begin/participate in conversations, frequently inviting others to read your blog.

“Hey, I was writing about something like that on my blog the other day. You should go and check it out.”

• Send emails to friends, neighbors and co-workers inviting them to read and or subscribe to your blog. It is always best to ask before you send them a link.

“Can I email you a link to my blog. I would really like to hear your thoughts on what I wrote about?”

• Import your blog posts into your notes on Facebook.

• Follow up with your readers with questions and conversations about the material.

“Did you get a chance to read my blog?”
“What did you think about ____________?”

• Respond accordingly to comments made on your blog posts both online and face to face. Ignoring a positive or negative comment on your blog could cause you to loose respect and the interest of your readers.
• Thank people for reading and commenting on your blog.
• Ask people if they would be willing to study/discuss the Bible with you.

“Can I buy you a cup of coffee and we can sit down and continue our conversation over ___________ (whatever you have been discussing about your blog)? Bring your Bible and have a study with them. With their consent, it would also be cool to pray with them.

Note:
Your blog posts are not meant to be a comprehensive evangelistic effort in and of themselves. One on one interaction and followup with people is necessary.