Is A Blog A Website? Embrace The Difference & Use Both!

This is the most common question I hear when someone is starting their new online business… Is a blog a website? Is there a difference? Which one should I get?

It can be confusing if you have no experience. And that’s OK! We all start somewhere. And it’s best to ask so you can move forward comfortably, right?

When you surf online, you most likely come across both and don’t even realize the difference. And that’s because, even though there is a difference, it’s subtle.

“Every blog is a website (or on a website rather), but not every website is a blog”

Does that sound confusing? LOL Sorry, didn’t mean to confuse you.

All blogs are in fact types of websites. That’s because to have any type of information online, you need a website to present it.

Did you know that Google, Facebook, YouTube, etc. are all websites? Anywhere you end up from your web browser is some kind of website!

When you search for something, anything, online, you are entering in a domain name. Or if you’re simply asking a question, Google is sending you to a domain name.

This is the web address of the website that has the information you are looking for. Or, when you want to find a video on YouTube without using an app, you’re sent to “YouTube.com”.

OK, now that you know that everything you see online is on a website, let’s look at the differences between a blog and a website…

Would you like to see where I learned all about blogging?  Check this out…

What Is A Blog?

A traditional blog is when you see snippets of “blog posts” presented on the home page. They are presented in the order they were published, meaning the top post is the most recent.

This makes the blog dynamic, as it’s always changing with each publication.

This is why search engines love blogs. They are regularly updated with quality content.

Blogs are presented this way to prominently showcase their individual blog posts. It makes sure that the most current information is seen first.

• Blogs are usually run by an individual, though as they grow, you might see a small group of authors.
• Posts are written in a conversational style, and are usually text-based.
• You’ll also see images and videos, but these are usually added to enhance the article.
• Most posts you read will welcome comments below for their readers to ask questions or leave their opinions.

Even though the home page will show just the most recent 3-4 posts, you can still find what you’re looking for because the posts are archived in categories.

This means that the author would have tagged each post to a category on his blog. These are the different sub-topics related to their overall topic. And you’ll usually find them archived by date as well.

Blog History

Did you know that blogging started in the late 90’s? They were first called “weblog”, then “we log”, and the finally shortened to just “blog”.

It started with people simply wanting to journal their personal lives, their thoughts, or run some sort of commentary on the topic of their choice.

As the number of these blogs started to grow, they started seeing online tools available, to make the process easier for them. Especially if they were’nt technical.

1994 – Justin Hall, is considered one of the earliest bloggers, who began eleven years of personal blogging while a student at Swarthmore College.

1998 – Open Diary was launched. They started the first “reader comment” section which became the first blog community where readers could add comments to other writers’ blog entries.

1999 – Blogger was a blog publishing that allowed multiple users to post time-stamped entries.

2003 – Google bought Blogger, and now blogs are hosted by Google and given a sub-domain of “blogspot.com”.

2003 – WordPress was released which allowed users to store content and create webpages. All the user needed was a domain name and a hosting service.

2007 – Bloggers Code of Conduct was proposed by Tim O’Reilly to enforce civility on blogs as well as moderating the comments.

2012 – Medium was launched as a publishing platform for amateur and professional writers.

By 2019, they estimate there are over 500 million blogs in the world. Now some of these are inactive, as well as many more that may not share their information publically.

Blog Examples

Everywhere you go online, it’s a good chance you’re landing on a blog.

Let’s look at the styles of some bigger blogs out there…

• CNET – A site that let’s you know what’s new in tech, science, and culture.
• Lifehacker – The latest hacks so you can do everything better.
• Bustle – Modern media publisher uncovering stories and issues.
• Pinch Of Yum – A recipe site that started as a hobby and is now a full time business.
• Dan Flying Solo – Giving up corporate life to become a world traveler and blogger.

The last site gives you the best example of how the posts are showing up on his site. He has them displayed with images that cover the entire home page.

My blog on my site isn’t the homepage, but a page in my menu. We’ll go over that style further down.

I wanted to show you what a basic blog site would look like…

Notice how you could also search by month, or by category. The right-hand side show some of my categories, as well as monthly archives.

Each time I publish a post, it shows at the top of this list of posts. That’s the basic difference between a blog and a website.

What Is A Website?

Typical websites have a static (never changing) homepage. This means that the information on those sites is organized in pages. And they aren’t updated frequently.

When you visit a website, the homepage will have menus for you to browse through. These are the various pages that the information is presented to you.

• Websites can be a single landing page, which you’ll often see as a sales page for a new product or service.
• Or, they can contain hundreds of pages, organized in many sections.
• You’ll usually see a “Frequently Asked Questions” page.
• They’ll also have a service or products page that displays what they have to offer.
• They also provide a “Contact Form” so readers can get in touch with them.
• Websites are less interactive as a blog, with no comment sections.

Websites can present their content any way the owner wishes. And it can be from text only, to images, to videos, or the products on an online store.

Like blogs, they are required to have a domain name, as well as a hosting service, so that they can be accessed on the internet.

Though they can be used for personal purposes, most websites are used for business, governments, and agency type sites. Businesses use them as an online business card or brochure for their organizations.

Website History

Websites are currently being built with tools that allow the construction of the website without manual coding.

Back in the day, you would have needed a university degree in coding to build your own website. Thankfully, that’s no longer needed and anyone can build their own site, no experience necessary.

1991 – Sir Tim Berners-Lee created the first website. It was manually written in HTML.

1995 – FrontPage was released by Microsoft, a software to help design web pages.

1998 – Dreamweaver was launched and considered to be the industry leader in design software.

2003 – WordPress was released which allowed users to store content and create webpages. All the user needed was a domain name and a hosting service.

Currently, most hosting companies provide their own website builder, making it easy for anyone to start their own. They are quick and easy to use.

These websites can be built and up and running in under a minute. Any technical support if provided by the hosting service, as well as “how-to” tutorials and videos to help you along.

If you want to change your theme, it’s as easy as picking a new one, or using plugins such as those from Thrive Themes, that offer you the ability to change or add any additional features.

Every business is expected to have a website these days.

For instance, if you hear about a local business, and can’t look them up because there’s no website, do you trust them? It’s a little harder to do now, isn’t it?

Website Examples

Most ecommerce businesses are websites. These are styles with a static homepage with their categories shown in menus or in various section on that homepage.

Let’s look at some examples…

• Panera Bread – A local bread company that sells it breads and offers catering.
• Wikipedia – The online encyclopedia.
• Evernote – A business that helps you organize your life and focus on what matters.
• Airbnb – A global accommodations service site.
• eWedding – A wedding planner service.

Notice how the homepages are static. This doesn’t mean that it can never be changed up. It only means that the owner has decided on a specific style to represent their business.

As time moves on, they might change the style to modernize the image. The colors and font will rarely change as they’ve chosen to brand their business this way, but the way the homepage is designed can often change yearly.

Difference Between Blogs & Websites

As you can see, there really isn’t much difference between them. The biggest difference is how the information is presented to you.

• A blog shows you the content that’s been added, in chronological order, with the newest one at the top of the page.
• A website typically has a static homepage with it’s content organized in pages (menus).

Did you know that blogs can be part of a larger website?

Blogs aren’t used for just journaling anymore. Many businesses have come to realize that adding a blog section to their websites can attract a lot of visitors.

It’s a great way to inform their customers of product updates, or upcoming events. And it’s great for their SEO!

Have Two In One!

Why not have the best of both worlds? Build your website AND have a blog!

There are so many great reasons to do this, and as I mentioned above, that’s the direction most businesses are turning to.

You can have a static homepage to represent what your businesses is about, and still have a blog to share all your current information.

This is especially good for:

• Ranking – Google loves sites that are regularly being updated. And they reward you with better ranking on the SERP’s (search engine results page).
• More traffic – With more posts, come more visitors. Especially if you’ve used the proper keywords to ensure great ranking.
• Monetize – With more visitors comes the opportunity to monetize your website with ads and affiliate marketing.

Take a look at my website, that you’re on right now. I have both a website and a blog.

This means that my homepage is static, with menus to find the most relevant information for a new blogger. I have an “about me” page, privacy page, etc., just like any other website.

And my blog not only shows up below my static homepage, but it’s also a menu item.

You can find any article by using the search bar and the keyword you’re looking for. It will bring up any blog post relevant to your keyword or category.

In my opinion, this is the best scenario. Use both a static homepage with a blog added to your website. This way you can grow and scale your business to include more pages and posts.

What’s The Difference Between Pages And Posts?

A post is the articles you write and publish on your website. These are the items that show up in chronological order, with the newest one at the top of the blog roll.

Pages are typically a “one-off” type content, such as your “About Me” page, your “Privacy Policy”, “Affiliate Disclosure”, “Services or Products”, or your homepage (if you choose for it to be static).

Let’s say you expand your business and start selling your own products or online courses. You can then start adding pages with product or course descriptions.

If you decide to update anything, you can write a blog post informing your audience that you’ve just made a change. And your blog posts will have a comment section so your visitors can engage with you about any concerns or questions.

The Benefits of Using Both

• Hubspot claims that companies who use blogging have up to 55% more website visitors, 97% more inbound links, and 434% more indexed pages.
• Search engines love blogs due to the fresh content being added. Better SEO means better ranking!
• Newly published posts get “pinged” by WordPress, inviting Google to come and index your content. Static websites don’t have this advantage.
• You constantly have new information to share on your social media accounts.
• It gives your audience an opportunity to engage with you.
• A static homepage can immediately show your visitors what your business is about.
• Your site can be organized in an easy to navigate system for better visitor satisfaction.
• Your website can make money from product sales as well as monetizing your blog with advertisements.

You can see how much of an advantage having both is.

If you’re doing more than just sharing your thoughts and feelings with the world, and wishing to sell your own products, or possibly affiliate products, then I would definitely recommend you build a website with a blogging feature.

Your website will feature your business in the best possible light, showcasing all you have to offer. And your blog will continually drive traffic to your site.

Your posts should offer the benefits of your products or services, and as people search for those solutions, they’ll be coming across your posts.

Because your posts are easily shared on social media, you have access to another entirely different audience. Especially because many of these media sites have ways for you to target your desired audience…

So having both is truly is the best of both worlds!

Conclusion

There really isn’t much difference between a blog and a website. Remember when I said…

“Every blog is a website (or on a website rather), but not every website is a blog”

That’s because blogs are websites, lol. It’s just presented differently.  And if a static website doesn’t have a blog feature, it’s just a website.

I really hope I’ve cleared up any confusion for you. And you know what? You shouldn’t even worry about it. If blogging is something you want to start, then let me help you.

You can start by simply talking about what ever topic, or niche, you desire. It’s a great way to build a business of your own so you can make money from home.

I have a couple of other posts you might like to read:

• What Is A Mommy Blog?
• How Do I Start A Blog?

Because blogs start off on the same platform as a website (WordPress), you can just start writing articles, and then change up the design of your site later on.

That’s what I did. It started as a blog roll style, and then the artist in me wanted to make it “pretty”, lol. It’s been changing every other month or so…

Can I make you my sincere recommendation?

I would love for you to come and see where I learned about blogging, and then how to start making money with my blog.

I’m still there to this day because it’s just that good!

The best part is you can start for free! No credit card necessary. You get:

• two free websites
• blogging and affiliate marketing training (phase 1 for free)
• all the tools to get you up and running (domain names & website builder)
• and a powerful keyword research tool that’s a must-have for today’s online publishing
• a large and supportive community of over 1.5 million global members

If you click on the image below, you can read all about it. And when you join, I’ll greet you there and coach you along for as long as you want me to. See you soon!

Have you been wanting to start blogging and scared to start? I don’t blame you. I was nervous in the beginning too. But with excellent training come confidence. And with confidence comes a successful and profitable online business.

Don’t wait any longer. Let me help you!

Your friend,

Suzanne