You’ve heard about blogs—after all, you’re reading one. But how do you decide whether you’re ready to write one yourself? And once you start, how do you keep it going?

As a business person, you can use your blog to update your clientele on new developments, share insights related to your line of work, and establish yourself as an expert in your field. If you have ideas and the ability to put them into words or images, you can blog.

Before getting started, however, consider the time commitment involved in keeping your blog alive. How often will you post? Once a week? Daily? Many widely-read blogs are updated multiple times per day. Other blogs are used primarily for announcements and are updated only as needed.

Usually, frequent posting attracts higher readership.

If you’re part of a team—you have a business partner, or you’re part of a cooperative—you might want to consider a blog with multiple contributors. Sharing the responsibility lightens the load for everyone, and can keep the content fresh and interesting. Be sure to communicate with your team and establish a posting schedule.

The best way to learn about blogging is simple: read lots of blogs. You can get loads of ideas about organization, topics, and presentation just from viewing what other people are doing.

If you need help finding blogs to read, try…

• clicking on blogroll links on sites you already read
• using the “view recommendations” link in Google Reader or the “find feeds” search in Bloglines
• checking community sites such as BlogHer, Technorati, Kirtsy, or Digg

Once you’ve decided it’s time to put your own voice out into the blogiverse, you have many options for making it happen. More about that later.