The Best Blog Platform

What is the best blog platform is probably a bit of a loaded question. Overall, I'd have to say that the self-hosted version WordPress wins the award hands down. But not in all cases. There are times when I think it would be better for bloggers to use other platforms.

Why is the self-hosted version so good? Well, you install it for free into your own paid hosting. The software is free to download and use, although if you have a website designer do the work for you they are entitled to charge you for their set-up time.

Free Installation

Once it is up and running you can install, again for free, plugins to do many jobs for you. From extra security to search engine optimisation they are all available to download for free. Themes, the basic layouts of your website, are also available for free from loads of different pages.

So the self-hosted version of WordPress is fully customisable and has plenty of add ins available. And it is free. What can be better?

The Downside Of WordPress

Well, for some people, the process of a registering a domain name, setting up your own hosting and then FTPing the files to your new website, whilst not being overly complicated, is still slightly technical. It is possible for anyone and everyone to follow a few basic instructions and load and install a WordPress installation, but I can understand why some people would back off from the idea and prefer something else.

So what is there?

Blogger Is A Good Second Choice

Well, I would say hot second favourite is Blogger. It seems that if you don't use self-hosted WordPress, then you are probably going to use Blogger. Blogger is easy to set-up and to start blogging. Sign up to the service, find an available name and you are up and running.

So it is perfect for those frightened of the technical aspects of self-hosted WordPress, whilst also avoiding the website hosting and database hosting fees. The only downside is that you have a Blogger website name. This is not as profitably as having your own website name if you are getting into the field of sponsored posts and so on.

But they have a fix for this. With Blogger you can follow their instructions, by your own domain name and use that for your blog.

So for the technically minded, willing and able to handle the hosting aspect, I would recommend installing WordPress, whilst for those wanting a quick and easy entry into the blogging world, go for Blogger.

There is one exception!

If you are blogging about certain niches, then there can be specialised systems set-up ready for you. I use WordPress for all of my blogs, except for my running blog. Why, well if you look at a specialist service provider who concentrates on blogs only from one niche, you can get one very big advantage.

This huge advantage is summed up in one word - Traffic. If you pull a lot of people with the same interests together and they all start to blog, they read the other blogs on the system.

But I still think self-hosted WordPress wins the day!

If you want any more advice the best blogging platform or want someone to set-up a self-hosted version of WordPress for you, please do contact me through my Merseyside Web Design website.

Keith Lunt

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