Campaign Corner: Is it better for a candidate to have a website or a blog?

The Campaign Corner series looks to give three tips about commonly asked campaign issues. Do get in touch if you have any questions you would like to suggest.

Today’s Campaign Corner question: I’m standing in May and not sure what matters most – my website, having a blog or both?

1. Ignore most of the advice people give you: You’ll find lots of people who have very strong views about the pros or cons of political blogging despite having very little knowledge on which to base them. To sort the bad advice from the good, a handy guide is simply to ask people how many different websites / blogs they have knowledge of and on which they are basing their own conclusions. Very firmly held advice based on one experience a few years back, for example, tells you much about their self-assurance and attitude toward evidence; it tells you very little about the subject at hand.
2. Blogs are to websites as newspapers are to books. Blogs are best suited for regular updates, often briefer stories and building an audience which expects a new edition most days. Websites generally work better for more detailed, less time-sensitive and more timeless information. Think which will suit you best.
3. Blogs require a more personal tone of voice. Blogs require a regular, personal contribution from someone who can write well in a personal tone of voice, and so are not the best answer for everyone. A less personal tone may not work as well in theory, but a less personal tone done well is far better in practice than a personal tone done badly.

<Want to know more about local campaigning? Campaigning In Your Community by myself and Shaun Roberts should be right up your street. It’s available for only £4 from ALDC and you can read an extract for free here.

Previous Campaign Corners have included:

• Should you still target during a PR election?
• What to do on the doorstep
• How to make Focus leaflets looks better

You can read them all here.