Tag Archives: blogging

How To Choose The Right Blog Platform

blogging, Internet Marketing, Internet Resources, web hosting, , , , ,

Starting a blog is one of the most accessible ways to make money online. If you are starting your first blog, you are being confronted with many choices about how to set up your blog, including selecting your blogging platform. A blogging platform is the software that will help you turn your writing into a website that can be easily navigated and accessed by visitors from around the world.

There are two basic platforms to choose from when it comes to successful blogging: WordPress and Blogger. Both of these options have advantages and disadvantages. Before you make your decision, you should read through the pros and cons of each and think about which will be best for your needs.

Blogger has several advantages. It’s very easy for new bloggers to use. Setting up a blog with Blogger is as simple as following a few prompts. There is nothing to install. Some of the other advantages include:
Price: Blogger is totally free to use. You don’t have to purchase a domain name as the system will give you an address based on the name of your blog.

Ease of use: Posting to your blog is easy. You can also change the look of your blog very easily. This is all done through Blogger’s dashboard. If you have more than one blog with Blogger, you can access all of the blogs from the same dashboard.

However, Blogger does have some major disadvantages when it comes to creating money making blogs.
Lack of flexibility: Compared to other options out there, the design and function of a Blogger blog is very limited. You can download and install custom themes for the blog, but most look very similar. This means your blog won’t stand out as well in your niche.

Domain name: You will get a free domain name with your Blogger blog, but the domain name will be “yourblogname.blogspot.com” instead of “yourblogname.com.”

Ownership: You will never truly own your Blogger blog because the files and content are hosted on Blogger’s server.
Wordpress is the other popular platform for blogging. There is a free option that functions similarly to Blogger. However, there is also a free option that allows you to have your own website name. You install WordPress on you website hosting and hook it up to a domain name that you own. If you don’t know how to do this, your hosting company should be able to walk you through the process.
Other advantages include:
Customization: WordPress themes are diverse and plentiful. Some themes will even make your blog look like an online newspaper.

Features: WordPress users have created tons of “plugins” that will increase the functionality of your blog and help you make the most out of your site.

However, WordPress is not without it’s problems. It is not as user friendly as Blogger, which can make it intimidating for newbies. You will also have to spend money to get your domain name and your website hosting.
Despite these disadvantages, most professional bloggers go with the WordPress option because they maintain ownership of their blogs and can customize them to their heart’s content.

This article was sponsored by Albert Grande’s Digital Store. Check out the latest e-books, software and more right here.




Ads By CbproAds

How to Find Ideas to Write About for Your Blog

Business, General Categories, Internet Marketing, traffic, , , ,

 Starting a blog is easy – keeping a blog interesting and fresh is a whole other matter. While many marketers have no trouble beginning a niche blog, the sheer number of abandoned blogs around the ‘net speaks to the fact that many marketers don’t know what to do to keep a blog going. According to blogging experts, the key to keeping a blog going is to post frequently. This means that you’re going to need a ever present stream of content coming into your blog.

You may be intimidated by the thought of having to come up with lots of topic ideas. Finding topics for your blog posts are easy if you use the following ideas.
1.       News in your niche
Your blog should be timely and there’s no better way to attract attention on your blog than to tap into some ongoing news. No matter what your niche is you can find news stories and breaking information that will help fuel timely blog posts. Sign up for Google Alerts (it’s free) and set up alerts on important words in your niche. This way you’ll be able to see the news in your niche and blog about current topics.
2.       Comments section
The comments section in your blog can be a great source of writing inspiration. Let’s say you have a post on your marketing blog about keyword research. Within the comments section, a few people start asking about how to use keywords in articles for article marketing. Voila! You have your next blog post. Look through your comments section to identify topics that you can write about or questions you can answer in the form of a blog post.
3.       Resource lists
Are there some websites or other resources that your niche needs to know about? Write a few resource list posts. Resource lists posts are very easy to write and they provide maximum value to your readers because they can get the information that they need easily. When you can’t think of anything else to write about you can pull together a helpful list for your readers.
4.       Other blogs in your niche
Keep your finger on the pulse of your niche. Watch other blogs in your niche and see what they are writing about. You can take a different angle on the same topic, or cover an area of the topic that the original author missed. If you disagree with the author, feel free to go ahead and express you opinion on your blog. Other bloggers can be a great source of information so be sure to get involved in the community.
5.       Quick tips
Start collecting a list of quick tips you’d like to share with your niche. These can be inspired by your personal experience with the niche, from other blog posts you’ve read or from other products in your niche. When you find yourself stuck for blog post ideas, you can write a quick tips post.
These tips just scratch the surface of where you can find ideas for blog posts to populate your blog. Start keeping a notepad file with blog post ideas and you’ll never be at a loss for material.

Here is a blogging resource for you: