Hello! Today I want to talk a little about what a blog is, and what platforms are available for bloggers to use. First off, a blog is a little space on the internet where anyone can write and publish content. Back in the day, when I started blogging (ahem, like 12 years ago, when Blogger wasn’t owned by Google), blogs were just kind of a random thing. They weren’t “cute” by any means, and people posted sporadically. Over time, the family/update blog emerged. This is just what it sounds like, a blog where people could post updates on themselves and their families for those who didn’t live near them to read. My blog(s) morphed into this while I was in college, and then when I got married I started a new blog for updates on Kyle and I. And then we have the lifestyle (and/or fashion) blog. These started becoming popular a a few years ago, and oh, how they have grown! These are the popular blogs that you are probably used to seeing such as Love, Taza and Camp Patton. These are the blogs that not only focus on their family, but also tips and tricks, favorite products, etc. It is what MLS is, and, if you’re reading this, the kind of blog I assume you are wanting to start.
To start a blog, first you need to know about platforms. There are 4 main ones that bloggers use: Blogger, WordPress(.com), WordPress(.org, also known as self-hosted), and Squarespace. I have personally never used Squarespace, but thought it was worth mentioning as an option.
Blogger and WordPress.com are very similar. They are both free to use, and you can customize them to a point. However, you don’t own your content, and I’ve heard of people losing all the content they’ve worked hard to create after Google (owner of Blogger) shut their blog down for no reason. However, if you’re just starting out and looking for a place to record your thoughts, these are good options.
WordPress.org is also known as self-hosted WordPress, and when you see bloggers saying they made the switch to WordPress, this is most likely the platform they are talking about. WordPress.org itself is free, but in order to post you need to purchase a domain name and a hosting service, so there is a bit of an investment upfront. WP.org customization also tends to be a bit more expensive than Blogger. There are also a lot more ways to customize your blog via WP and it’s plug-ins, which is amazing and so useful to a blogger.
I’m planning on talking more about Blogger and WP.org more in depth in other posts, but wanted to give you a quick rundown of the options available to you as you decide you want to set up a blog!
Let me know in the comments other blogging topics you’d like me to cover! And I’ll see you next month.
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