When done right, a corporate blog can be a useful marketing tool

Although online, interactive journals have been around since 1994, and the term "Web log" (or "blog") was coined three years later, most of us became aware of them only within the last few years.

Personal Web logs gained considerable interest after Sept. 11, 2001; since then, the number of blogs has grown exponentially.

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Blogs offer an information outlet or feedback forum and can even serve as a sort of online focus group.

Corporations like Nike, GM and Starbucks, as well as smaller and lesser-known companies, are using the power of blogging to connect with their customers.

Here are some tips to consider before launching your corporate blog:

Start by defining the target audience, goals and objectives, as you would with any other marketing effort.

Develop the structure of the blog, with defined content areas, and decide on the style and approach to be used.

Identify potential authors and select an administrator to manage the blog. Larger companies hire full-time bloggers, while smaller ones often find that it's more effective to work with a third-party professional blogger. Develop an editorial policy that addresses potential concerns and clearly spells out procedures, such as the length of posts and how often the blog is updated.

Your blog should also inform your customers about the criteria used for moderation, for example, how abusive or threatening posts will be handled.

Above all, make sure that your blog is not just an outlet for promotional information.

A good blog package should include a user-friendly posting and editing system as a front end to a database such as mySQL.

Other essentials include a moderated comment system, automatic archiving, a good search engine and a high level of security; "comment spam" is a serious problem on many blogs.

Your blog should also include a syndication feature that enables readers to "subscribe" to it, using a newsreader that automatically notifies them when new posts are added. The most common standards used for syndication are RSS (Really Simple Syndication) and Atom. Two excellent blogging packages include the open-source Wordpress (www.wordpress.org) and the commercial Movable Type (www.sixapart.com/movabletype/). If your Web host doesn't offer database capabilities, you could consider third-party services like Google's Blogger (www.blogger.com), but these systems will not be as customizable.

After you've tested and tweaked your blog, and it's live, you'll need to publicize it. If you want to open your blog to the general public, you can submit it to various blogging directories and search engines; however, you may get better results with a more targeted approach that integrates with your other marketing and public relations plans.

Finally, remember that a good blog is constantly evolving. If you can encourage feedback and avoid turning your blog into an infomercial, it has a greater chance of succeeding.