Our Mommyhood

Posts Tagged ‘Blogger’

By Ashley, Contributor, Just Another Mom of 2 (@AnotherMomof2)

You have things to say- that’s why you want to have a blog, right? Well, while it would be nice to simply type out our words and have millions of people read them, that just doesn’t happen. There are a lot of considerations when deciding what and how to blog, and one of the most common and significant of these decisions is what blogging platform to use.

The Basics

If you’re scratching your head and wondering what a blogging platform is, don’t worry- it’s not some super-secret blogging tool. Your blogging platform is what program you use to publish all of that genius inside your head. The three that are most common are WordPress, Blogger, and Typepad. I am going to go a step further and say that in my experience and obsessive blog reading, WordPress and Blogger are really the big boys of blogging.

WordPress.com vs WordPress.org

WordPress comes in two forms- the free, .com version and the self-hosted .org version. Here’s the deal; there are only so many choices we can handle before our brains explode, so I’m going to make this easy for you. If you want to stick to a free blog, where you are not paying anything, you should have a Blogger blog. WordPress.com is much more restrictive in what you are able to do behind the scenes and also does not allow ads. Monetization is a key goal for many bloggers, so if this is something you ever think you want to do, then wordpress.com is not for you. In addition, many of the fun plugins for wordpress.org are not available on the .com version.

To pay or not to pay

Blogging might be just a hobby for you- that’s how it all began for me. Monetization sounded more like a banking term than a blogging term and I in no way considered the idea of paying to blog. Who had any interest in that?

Ahem.

Within months of reading more and more blogs and connecting in the blogosphere, I was ready to move to WordPress (remember, the self-hosted one). I had decided that I wanted to have complete control over my name, content, and advertising and wanted to have all of the bells and options that WordPress has to offer. With Blogger blogs, Google owns you (well your blog anyway). I decided if I was going to do all this work and make all this effort, I wanted ultimate control. I did the transfer myself and have not regretted the move once and had a noticeable increase in traffic within just a couple of months of switching. WordPress blogs rank much better in SEO than Blogger blogs, and are generally regarded as more professional. I am happy to have made the switch and have yet to encounter anyone who has regretted the move.

That being said!

If you have no intention of ever monetizing your blog and don’t want to brand yourself/blog/name, etc., then Blogger is probably the choice for you. You can still create custom looks and designs in blogger, and Blogger has offered a lot more ability to customize in recent months. You can now even create up to 10 static pages as well. You can also have some advertising on Blogger blogs, though you can run into issues.

Not everyone has problems with Blogger and have, in fact, built large and successful blogs on that platform. While people often report having some downtime with Blogger, this can always happen with any platform (though it depends on your server). You can even purchase your own domain name for the low price of $10 a year- though keep in mind that even with your own domain, Google still owns your blog.

So what am I supposed to do now?

At the end of the day, you need to know where you want to take your blog. If you are not sure how much you want to take on or want to test the waters a bit, then Blogger is the better place to start. If you are starting a blog with business goals in mind, it is probably better to go for it right away and purchase your own domain and hosting and use WordPress. While your blog can certainly be transferred from Blogger to WordPress at a later date (which I happen to do if you need to hire someone), if you have certain goals in mind right from the start, it is easier to just go ahead and establish your presence from day one in WordPress.

More great articles about Blogger vs. WordPress:

http://theunexperiencedmom.com/2010/02/moving-from-blogger-to-wordpress.html

http://ezinearticles.com/?Blogger-Vs-WordPress—Which-Should-You-Choose?&id=3723650

Ashley is a stay at home mom (and social media consultant) who is not always sure what state she is in. She has moved her family to what will soon be 5 states in 6 years- whew! She can be found blogging over at Just Another Mom of 2 and also offers affordable transfers to WordPress. Email her at Ashley @ justanothermomof2.com for details!

By Lindsay, Guest Writer, Happy Housewife Designs (@lindsayintx)

I have been asked a lot lately about making a “grab my button” box for your blogs.

First, you will need the button (How you choose to make one is up to you).

Don’t be overwhelmed by the HTML code because it is really easy to change and add to your sidebar.

So first… what is a “grab my button box”?

It is the scrolling box that sits under your button. This allows people to copy your code to add your button to their blog, and takes those who click on it back to your blog.  Having your button on others’ blogs is a great way to help get your blog out there for people to see.

So now you want to know how to make one?

First, upload your button’s image to Photobucket (This is my favorite program to use). You will need the code from this in the next couple steps.

Next, go to your Blogger dashboard and click on an “add a gadget”element.

Then, click the HTML option.

Now you have to copy and paste this code into the box below the title:

What you need to change:

Light Blue –> to the site your button needs to be linked to (i.e. your blog)
Green –> to the name of your blog
Pink –> to the “direct link” code from Photobucket

Then you should be able to save and have a scroll box under your button.

See that wasn’t so hard, was it?

If you’re having problems, try this:

- make sure you have changed all the info for the grab button to your info
- make sure you didn’t delete or add any ” marks in the code

Enjoy and happy blogging!

By KLZ, Editor, Taming Insanity, (@TamingInsanity)

My blog doesn’t rake in a profit. Nor does it get an exceptionally high number of hits a month.

It’s a hobby, a way for me to write, to remember, and to connect with like-minded people.

But if I were to live in the city of Philadelphia, my blog would still be considered a business.

Philly has recently begun to require that all bloggers pay a $300 licensing fee. The city is of the opinion that any enterprise that could potentially turn a profit needs to apply for a business license, whether or not it has ever actually turned a profit. It is the potential for profit that they are looking at.

This move sets a new precedent in the blogging world.

There is not a blogging platform that is exempt. With this move, there is no way for Philadelphia residents to continue to put their thoughts out on the internet without being considered a potential profit center. Even casual bloggers who are typing merely as a hobby would be required to purchase license.

While cities are certainly in need of additional revenue sources, this tax on usage of a free, internet space seems extreme. Those who join Facebook or other social networking sites are not taxed. But once you’ve created your own personal site? You owe the city a fee.

I’m not sure that I would continue blogging if the City of Chicago adapted a similar strategy. Would you be willing to pay this fee for the right to blog? Are you affected by the new Philadelphia law?

By Liz, Editor, a belle, a bean & a chicago dog, (@bellebeandog)

I’m a convert.

Back in May, I made the switch from free and easy Blogger to “scary” and learning-curve-required WordPress.

I got a lot of questions back then about why I did it, and what was WordPress like.  I had never written a post back then about it, and we here at Our Mommyhood have started our quest to serve the blogger in all of us, so I’m going to present you with some pros, cons and considerations about blogging platforms, and let you be the judge.

I’m going to start by saying there is no clear winner in this battle.  There are definitely people and their blogs who are better suited for Blogger, while others are better suited for WordPress. I just know that I made the switch and have never looked back.

Something else to point out: There are 2 types of WordPress – the free WordPress.com and the self-hosted (i.e. you pay for yearly hosting) WordPress.org.  The free WordPress has some real limitations, and I think I would actually prefer Blogger over the free WordPress, if those were my 2 choices.

Why do so many people start with Blogger?

-it’s free and easy to use.

-it’s simple to customize with templates, backgrounds and widgets.

Why do people get aggravated with Blogger and decide to switch?

-even if you purchase your own domain while on Blogger, Google still has ultimate control over your blog.

-zero tech support.

-Blogger’s many, many, many quirks.

So what’s so great about WordPress?

-your site and everything on it is owned and controlled by YOU!

-a whole lot less quirks.

-way more customizable.

-much more integrated in terms of features, widgets and plugins.

-greatly improved SEO over Blogger.

How hard was it to learn your way around WordPress?

-it really wasn’t bad at all!  People worked up learning WordPress so much that after 2 days, I thought, “What’s so hard about this?!?!”

What ultimately sold me on WordPress was having control over my blog.  Every time Blogger locked up, broke or flaked, it made me nervous.  I got to the point where I was exporting and backing up my blog once a week in the event that if my blog disappeared, all my hard work wasn’t lost.

What blogging platform do you use?  Have you ever considered a switch?