Monday, 22 October 2012

Blog Reader Analysis



For my third blog, I've chosen to address question #1.

On an excitement level 1 to 10, I've chosen to analyse a blog which clearly falls into the 1 category.  This is the Canadian Tax Blog, which is created specifically for tax and financial planners to stay updated on developments in the Canadian tax system. Although nothing has been posted in the last few months, it appears that most activity (surprise surprise) occurs around tax time, before April 29th. 

Now, I will explore who would possibly want to utilize this blog. Mostly, I would imagine someone who is adept and carries an interest in tax, financial or investment planning would find this information relevant. However, everyone who resides in our country could find this information useful. It is our duty to file taxes on a yearly basis, and it would only make sense to me that everyone would take the time to do the homework and ensure the amount they pay is accurate. In reality though, I don't think everyone has this approach in mind. Taxes aren't exactly what broaden people's imagination or build and entice excitement. Therefore, I think its safe to conclude that this site has its time and purpose. It isn't visited and used year round, rather it is mostly updated and visited during the spring. Traffic appears to be mostly small businesses and financially competent individuals.

It is also significant to note that the posts are from the website editorial team, and not from individual contributors. This leads me to believe that the website is very strongly moderated and content is most likely reviewed and accurate. This that tends to be a bit of a rarity based on my experience in the blogging world. In terms of back and forth communication, it appears that this is basically non existent. There is no comment board, and the posts are mostly put up for informational purposes. This does not seem to be of the most importance though, as the website is aimed mostly inform as opposed to being a comment and discussion board. 

In conclusion, I feel that perhaps this site has been mislabelled a blog. To me, it seems there is a disconnection between the reader and the individuals who post the information. Although the information is most likely accurate, I feel that there is a critical element of communication which is lacking. Another point of conflict I feel is in the overall layout and presentation of the site. It seems very drab and perhaps somewhat outdated. This in the sense of the font, text boxes, ads and photos clearly look behind on the times when contrasted to some of the example blogs. Overall, there doesn't seem to be much of a community here. With that said though, there is bountiful information for the financially talented to utilize. I will most likely wait for April before I visit here again.

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