Business blogs are very powerful resources if used properly. The internet is seeing a rapid growth in the number of blogs that turn up every day, each one with a different purpose. This means that the powerful bloggers are only going to get more powerful and if you want to become that influential blogger you have to differentiate yourself from the crowd. What sets you apart from the crowd? There are so many blogs out there, producing a ton of content. The problem is content is not always what sets you apart from the crowd. It can, but with so many trusted blogs out there you have a long uphill battle. Trust is what sets you apart from the others. Getting people to trust you and what you have to say is key to your success as a blogger. Without it you have no readers to blog for.

The power of the blog can be stunning, as I have recently seen with the wave of blog redesigns. The first blog I noticed with a sharp redesign was ProBlogger. Yesterday I stopped by John Chow’s blog to see that he too had redesigned his blog. Today, I go over to the Shoemoney blog to see that he too has started a redesign of his blog. Is this coincidence or is it the power of the blog. Darren Rowse may have started a redesign phenomenon here. It’s not that everyone has decided to be like Darren, it’s just that he has that trust factor and an influence over the way people think.

Speaking of trust, it can go the other way too. I did notice that as soon as John Chow started pushing to rank for “make money online” that ProBlogger started to back away from the term, even removing the term from his meta title. Was it because John Chow knows SEO? It is a well known fact that he used several techniques to improve his Google ranking, only to be later knocked out of the top by Google due to “manipulation.” I have noticed recently that ProBlogger has restarted the campaign to rank for the term “make money online.” Is this because John, a well known user of SEO techniques, is out of the game? John Chow may have just made his position of influence large enough to keep ProBlogger out of the game at the time. The thing is with a little tweaking Darren could have beat out John for that number one spot.

The power of the blog can work in many ways. Sometimes it’s content and sometimes it’s faking it till you make it. Is your blog an influence on others? Are there any more redesigns I’ve missed?