Infectious Disease Blog

INFECTIOUS DISEASE BLOG 2.0 OVERVIEW

GOAL:

This blog brings together the latest news about emerging infectious diseases, new outbreaks and advancements in the field of infectious diseases. Preventive measures and other helpful tips are also featured on the blog.

As I’ve written for the blog, I’ve noticed that news about events and people in the scientific community have been popular. Also, information about weird, rare diseases has generated the most comments. With that in mind, I intend on writing more stories that fall into these categories.

There are only a handful of blogs dedicated specifically to infectious diseases. In order to set myself apart, I’d like to continue covering the news, but also add original content to the mix. My audio interview and video brought a lot of page views. Original material and multimedia could be great ways to attract new readers.

Another goal of mine is to get more of a discussion going on my blog. There are comments here and there, but not enough to set up a dialogue. Using original content and spreading links to my blog to the community will assist me in getting more readers to accomplish this endeavor.

COMMUNITY:

It’s no surprise that the majority of my readers – 88 percent of visits – are from the United States. I do have an international showing, with readers from 16 countries, including the U.S.

While I have readers from a variety of backgrounds, most of my returning visitors are fellow bloggers and science writers. I gathered this by conducting a brief audience survey and contacting the people who have written comments on my blog.

PLAN:

Looking to the future, I hope to expand my readership while also holding onto my current regular visitors. How am I going to do that? I’ll make editorial changes and add more features to the Web site.

Here’s a list of new topics my readers would like to learn about, according to the results of my survey:

• Ongoing research of particular diseases that appear to be close to a cure
• Breakthroughs in pharmaceuticals
• Foodborne illnesses
• Ebola
• Encephalitis
• West Nile Virus
• Dengue fever

I’d also like to add some features to my Web site. I’ve noticed that some science blogs have forums where people can discuss issues. My audience is intelligent and would like a place to exchange thoughts. I would also like to expand my multimedia page, which my readers mentioned in my survey.

For an in-depth look into my community and my plan, click the links below:

Audience Profile
Blog Development Plan