• by Hillary Chura , November 29, 2005

Fortune Interactive, an interactive marketing firm specializing in search engine marketing, has launched a blog marketing service for companies that want to launch and promote corporate blogs.

About 50 million Americans, or 17 percent of the population, visited Web logs in the first quarter of 2005 -- up 45 percent over a year earlier, according to the company. Its executives say many firms are intimidated by blogs even though they can lift brand awareness, establish credibility, improve search engine marketing campaigns, and strengthen internal collaboration.

The Raleigh, N.C.-based company (www.fortuneinteractive.com) has designed its software, site hosting, instruction, and integration to work with clients' existing efforts. Unlike static informational journals, blogs are updated regularly and offer interaction via features such as comments functions, trackbacks, and tag boards.