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" Nowadays, it seems as if everyone is reading\u2014and writing\u2014blogs. For design enthusiasts, blogs are an immensely popular source of information offering new ideas, advice, and inspiration. For design professionals, it&amp;#039;s the creation of a blog that offers the greatest opportunity\u2014a means of cultivating a following and increasing awareness of and interest in their work. But, doing it well is a whole other story, one that requires a time commitment. To talk about the pros and cons, we caught up with three interior designers who run popular blogs: Vicente Wolf, who blogs at vincentewolfblog.com; Brad Ford, who writes Design Therapy (designtherapy.com); and Shawn Henderson, who maintains a blog at shawnhenderson.com/wordpress.  PROS Starting a blog is easy. The steps to beginning a blog are dead simple. You can choose a template from websites like Blogger (Ford&amp;#039;s choice), WordPress (Wolf and Henderson&amp;#039;s pick), or Tumblr. Adding posts is almost as easy as sending e-mail.  A blog gives people a reason to visit your website. &amp;quot;For the most part, your business website is pretty static, unless you&amp;#039;re constantly adding new projects,&amp;quot; says Ford. &amp;quot;A blog gives you an opportunity to add more depth and dimension to your voice.&amp;quot; Because it&amp;#039;s updated frequently, it can keep people coming back. It can help create a sense of community. &amp;quot;Our industry is very closed, and designers are usually very isolated from one another,&amp;quot; says Wolf. &amp;quot;My blog puts subjects out there for people to discuss. I&amp;#039;ll also use it to address problems that we have in the industry.&amp;quot; Reader responses\u2014both from other designers and the general public\u2014can help generate new ideas. &amp;quot;You get feedback on things that make you think,&amp;quot; says Wolf. A blog is a living archive of personal sources of inspiration. &amp;quot;It&amp;#039;s a place to gather the things that inspire you,&amp;quot; says Henderson, pointing out that, unlike printed photos, blog posts don&amp;#039;t clutter up your desk. And, you can quickly find past posts via Google.  The outreach can be incredible. You never know who might land on your blog, including potential new clients and press. &amp;quot;On Facebook, I have almost 6,000 people that like my blog,&amp;quot; says Ford. &amp;quot;So, when I post something, all of those people see it. Even if just a fraction of them re-post it, suddenly their followers see it, and who knows who may end up coming to my website.&amp;quot; CONS A good blog requires regular updates. Although starting a blog is easy, &amp;quot;the more difficult part is being disciplined enough to stay on it,&amp;quot; with frequent posts, says Ford. For Henderson, that means a more formal commitment. &amp;quot;I have a schedule to make sure I update it regularly,&amp;quot; he says. Being too honest can lead to trouble. &amp;quot;You might expose yourself too much,&amp;quot; with regular posts about your daily work, says Wolf. &amp;quot;If I&amp;#039;m bitching about a client, a prospective client may read that,&amp;quot; and be put off.  Because it&amp;#039;s a reflection of your business, a blog shouldn&amp;#039;t be done haphazardly. &amp;quot;I use it as another facet of my business, so I have to make sure it&amp;#039;s done professionally,&amp;quot; says Ford. &amp;quot;That means taking the time to make sure that the grammar and spelling are correct and that I have really good-quality images.&amp;quot; Unexpected technical issues can require extra time. &amp;quot;Technical issues sometimes crop up, and that&amp;#039;s probably the most time-consuming thing,&amp;quot; says Henderson. &amp;quot;For instance, right now, some of my recent posts have disappeared for some reason.&amp;quot; "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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