Blogs or online diaries can be a fantastic business tool which can show consumers a human side to a major company, according to Debbie Weil, a marketing and communications analyst.

Increasingly becoming part of how businesses market their brand, blogs are able to make more approachable companies which some internet users might otherwise view as untrustworthy.

However, Ms Weil states that featuring products and carrying out more obvious advertising campaigns in this way can prove to be counterproductive.

An effective blog, analysts suggest, can make consumers trust a particular company ahead of another, giving them a distinct market advantage.

Speaking on Sky News, Ms Weil said: "A blog is a conversation between the web site publisher and the reader, so it is a fantastic business tool for a company.

"It means they can talk directly to their customers and hear back and learn from their customers."

Leader of the opposition, David Cameron, recently tried to give a human face to British politics by creating his own podcast, an online marketing endeavour which drew ridicule from a number of political analysts.