I would suggest having a “Home” page like you suggested, then create some static page to be that home (e.g. your about page on the blog). Then have the /blog page be the stream of posts. That’s just one suggested implementation.

Thanks very much for your help Ron, I appreciate it. I was thinking of doing away with the ‘website’ altogether and having all my videos and wedding posts in the one place on the ‘blog’. I would therefore replace the ‘website’ tab on the menu with ‘home’ to bring you back to the most recent posts.
Do you think this help with the issues you brought up?

Thanks again.

Jeff

Hi Jeff. I think having the grid at top will attract the most hits. But as a blog/website combination, I found it a little confusing.When I click on a grid blog post (the article about Joe Simon for instance, after reading it, there’s no clear way for me to get to your most recent posts from there if that’s what I’m interested in. (Thanks for the referral to my article by the way. 🙂 The “Website” link has a totally different feel and usability than the blog. Since the “website” link is part of the blog’s main navigation, I expected it to be part of the blog. But it’s like going to a different site with a different navigation scheme. So I don’t really see this as a blog-site combo. In which case, I’d have the link back to your site set aside separately. Just my two cents since you asked. 🙂

You make a good point about your latest work being the first thing people see when you run a classic blog. This is something that has caused me great stress and I think I have found a solution. http://www.jeffwoodvisuals.com/blog/ If the top grid points to only my favourite posted videos then hopefully these will attract the attention of first time visitors. With the main blogroll beneath being aimed at returning readers.

Do you think this will work as intended?

Thanks for your help. 🙂

All great points Marty, especially about SEO. Thanks for participating.

A couple other things to take into consideration in favor of combining website and blog…

Blogs in general and especially WordPress are amazing for getting found online. WordPress is a well-known favorite of Google and one of the best content management systems in the world for SEO.

If your blog is related to your business, keeping it separate from your blog has a few big downsides:

First, even if the design somewhat matches, it is not integrated as just another part of the site, so it can still feel like a tacked-on after thought, and if users are forced to leave your site to another page, on another domain name, it can be intrusive and a bad navigational experience for that user.

Second, because of the great SEO benefits, your main site could be losing some great marketing punch. By using a combined website and blog, you can get the benefits of both working together.

My last point would be to think of this going the other way too… Everyone seems to think first about what does a blog add or detract from a website when combined. But you have to consider how a great portfolio site will benefit your blog as well. Blogs are casual and great at showcasing knowledge and personality. But they only show your latest work and are not great at showcasing your best work. If your blog is getting lots of visitors and comments thats great, but imagine if you made it as easy as possible for all those visitors to find your best work, your contact form, etc.