To most people, a "blog" simply represents a glorified online "diary" where geeks, computer nerds, and lonely teenagers record their thoughts in cyber-space.

However, many people don't realize that "blogs" are quietly revolutionizing way companies and customers interact about everything from existing products to new ideas and improvements in customer service.

In short, "blog" style communication has come of age and anyone with an online business better sit up and take notice fast!

In beginning, "blogs" were basically an online diary to record your thoughts; but "blogs" have now evolved into dynamic websites that non-technical people can update immediately without html editors or ftp programs.

Blogs allow their authors to make instant website updates through a computer anywhere in world with a Web browser and Internet connection.

Blogs also allow readers to respond to author's posts, provide additional information, links, expanded opinions, and more.

In short, an active "blog" creates an interactive community with author as hub and readers as spokes of wheel that keep whole cycle turning round.

Unlike traditional "static" web pages where content rarely (if ever) changes, an active blog evolves in a state of constant and never-ending renewal.

With blogs, smart online businesses re-discovered a principal that small "mom and pop" stores understood for years: know your customers and stay in close tune with their wants, needs, and desires.

Large companies throw billions of dollars down a black hole every year to literally "guess" what people want to buy. Most call it "Marketing Department."

A natural consequence of this situation is that enormous amounts of very valuable data are stored on computers. And as we all well know, computers tend to die from time to time. For every business that is using Web as a revenue-generating channel, their data is an important company asset. The loss of a customer order database could be devastating to a business, leading to unfulfilled orders, dissatisfied customers and loss of touch with thousands of clients. Depending on one computer alone, death-prone machines that they are, is a formula for disaster.

Since it is pretty self-evident that preventing loss of all of a business’ orders and customer information is an important task, why is it that backup solutions are among lowest priorities of most businesses shopping for Web hosting?

Backups could be compared to life insurance policies for your Web operation, but they are really something more. Quality backups are like a life insurance plan that would resurrect you if you passed away, rather than simply grant your loved ones some monetary assistance.

Like a Web hosting plan, backup solution should be chosen appropriately with what company is doing on Web. Businesses running small brochure Web sites will need most modest sort of backups; however businesses collecting data from customers and prospects through Web need very reliable backup solutions. The acid test for a backup plan is whether it provides means to restore your site to a fully operational condition within one hour after a server crash.

A modest backup suitable for a brochure-style site can consist of simply keeping a spare copy of all of files on a separate computer. If site is such that visitors do not submit to any databases or add any content, then this type of backup is perfect. Certainly, a basic brochure site could be restored very quickly with this type of backup.