I recently came across a couple of blogs that are worth a mention. Blog by the Bay won the 2010 Inman Innovators Award and it’s no wonder. It’s sexy. Then there’s Move North Shore based in NZ. It’s clean and simple but it does the job exceptionally well thanks to some great content.

Here’s why I think these blogs are noteworthy.

• Great images. Most of the pics have been taken by a professional. They make the posts sparkle.
• Hyper-local. Most of the posts are of specific interest to locals. They feature coffee shops and getaways and make the agent a genuine local expert.
• The posts are written in the first person. It takes the reader right into the action with the writer. I like.
• They provide lots of specifics: What, why, where and when. This makes the site much more useful to the reader. And it’s worth coming back to.
• They give their readers other options to connect–Twitter, RSS, Facebook–but importantly offer incentives to subscribe to an email list.
• The local area and lifestyle are the central themes, not properties for sale. It makes these site much more social.
• There’s some real estate information but it doesn’t overpower the lifestyle content.
• Each post contains social sharing buttons, which allow visitors to spread the posts through their online networks.
• The NZ site uses a basic WordPress theme. It could be set up by anyone with a moderate level of internet experience.

If you’re thinking of blogging the best thing to do is get started. It’s not that hard and Google will love you for it.