Keeping Abreast Of Blogging Trends

Technology is moving along at a rapid pace, as it always has. You only need to pop in to the Google official blog, or check out the new offerings and versions that WordPress issue to see that the world of online business moves faster than most other industries.

In a competitive environment, where every organization which deals with gadgets, software or online solutions are in direct competition to stay ahead of their competitors, it’s not surprising that trends seem to shift and progress more rapidly in this environment than in any other.

As business bloggers, this puts a lot of pressure on us to stay ahead of what has been going on, to make sure we don’t get left behind as our rivals seize on bigger and better ways to service their customers. The blogger who stays static while those around them moves on with new initiatives and streamlined processes runs the very real risk of losing revenue, as people lose faith in them as industry leaders.

Keeping abreast of new technologies is harder than it may seem, however. There is a wealth of information out there about how to optimize our sites, generate more revenue or grow our customer base, but often much of the information can seem to conflict as every business seems to have a different idea about how we should be spending our money and time in investing in our products and services.

It takes a certain level of knowledge to avoid the pitfalls of spam and spin to make sound business decisions about how to take our sites forward, without getting sucked in to money traps which promise the world and deliver very little.

When it comes to getting sound business advice about how to invest our money and time, who should we trust?

The media offers a range of different ideas about what trends are emerging, and what businesses need to do to stay ahead of the competition. While some sources can be trusted, there is also a lot of supposition out there which can put even the most savvy blogger on the wrong track and prompt us to spend cash which will not deliver any return on our investment.

It’s kind of reassuring to know that even the market leaders can still make huge mistakes – you only need to look at AOL’s acquisition of the social networking site Bebo, for example, to see how even the most well-informed industry experts can screw up, spending millions of dollars on ventures which prove to be fruitless.

The trick to avoiding the pitfalls of predictive trends is to read widely, do lots of research, and strike a balance between being early adopters, and stagnant business owners. It’s a good rule of thumb to be cautious when we consider making a significant investment for our business, and we need to make sure that any large expenditure in terms of both time and money is well thought out and considered.

Following the key players in our industry, by reading up on what they are doing, checking their financial status and staying ahead of new software and technology can be invaluable when it comes to predicting trends and making the right decisions for our business.

For example, if the entire online population are discussing the development of new smartphone apps, the chances are that there is something of substance behind the glut of news coverage. Adapting our blogs to meet these future needs is crucial.