Best to create a new blog as a subsection or as a new site?

[monetize-266006]

Our company has a blog "feature" or "theme" that we'd like to publish every week at least. Should we create a subsection of our current company blog? Or should we register a new domain specifically for the feature?

The latter would allow us to do some linking back to the main website, and would probably be good in terms of future career flexibility / personal branding for whoever writes it.

Things to keep in mind? Anyone have any suggestions? Best practices? What should I do?

[EGOL]

SEOMoz has the blog in a folder  seomoz.org/blog

If you place it on a new domain the links back will have very little value unless the blog attracts links from outside of your own network of websites.   And, if the blog does attract links, those links would be move valuable to the rankings of your main domain if they hit a blog within a folder on that domain.

My blog is in a folder.

[AdoptionHelp]

If you start it on a new site you are beginning at step 1 for optimizing your new site, and because its a new site the links you point back to your main site will be of limited value.

I would keep your blog on your main domain. That way all the benefits derived from a blog are going towards improving the SEO of your main site.

If the flexibility of being able to rebrand it later is more important to you than the SEO value of the blog, then you should consider a new domain. Otherwise stick with your existing.

[RyanPurkey]

I agree with EGOL.  Typically a blog is used to enhance the content and freshness of the site where the blog is located and getting links to the blog enhances the site as a whole.  Sites that are exclusively blogging platforms (wordpress, blogspot, livejournal, blogger, etc.) typically make use of the USERNAME.domainname.com structure.  This is the flipside of the coin that EGOL outlined: these companies want to disassociate themselves from the content on those new domains.

If you feel like your theme site is going to be far enough removed from your company that it could stand on its own, there could be justification for the new domain.  It also might be easier to get linked to on design forums and resource guides if that site is its own entity. As you mentioned it would also give you flexibility in linking back to your company site.

To recap, consider how much effort the new domain can be given, who is going to own keeping it fresh, and check to see if it can stand on its own in your target market space.

[RandyP]

I agree with the previous responses that the blog should probably be a subsection. A key question to ask is whether the blog will attract links either naturally or through a link building program.  A blog that stands a change of obtaining significant traffic and links, and features content that is independent from the main website is a candidate for a root level domain. However, from your brief descriiption, this does not seem to be the case with your blog