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Let me start off by reminding you that I’m not a techie nor am a blogging expert. I’ve picked up enough tips and tricks over the years because I managed a website and blog for my business.
So you want to start a blog…
I already covered some basics in my previous post. Now I want to talk about something that most people don’t think about when starting a blog and that is hosting.
Huh? You’ve lost me already
There are essentially two types of blog hosting: free or paid. An example of a free or hosted blog would be: www.ilovetonest.wordpress.com. Notice the url (web address for non-techies) includes wordpress.com? This indicates that WordPress is the blog’s host.
Another example of a free blog is: http://ilovetonest.blogspot.com/. Here the url includes blogspot.com which means the host is Blogger.
Now look at Inspired Nest’s web address: www.inspirednest.ca. Although I use wordpress, you will notice that wordpress.com is missing from the url. This means I am using free blogging software by WordPress and the blog is being hosted by a separate hosting company. To clarify, the blogging software is still free but I pay a nominal fee to the company that hosts my blog/website.
Why should I pay for a blog when I can get one for free?
Free is good, paid is better. If you’re okay with good, then by all means, sign up right away for a free blog. Both wordpress and blogger are easy to use and you can publish a blog within 15 minutes. My suggestion is to start off with a free blog and when you are ready to move onto to bigger and better things, take the plunge and turn your free blog into a self-hosted one.
Pros and Cons of a Self-hosted Blog
If you’re a control freak, a self-hosted blog is a must. You have total control over your blog. It belongs to you. Free blogs technically belong to the company providing the blogging software. In most cases this means Blogger or WordPress own your blog.
A self-hosted blog allows for more design and layout possibilities. I’m a girl. I like nice things and I care about how my blog looks. Is it superficial? Yes but a good, easy to read design may help differentiate your blog from the millions of free default blogs out there.
There are a lot more benefits of a self-hosted blog but these are the two big ones for me. The cons of self-hosting are mainly cost and the need to be somewhat technically savvy. But hey, I’m just a mom who likes to do everything herself. If you can setup an email account, you can definitely setup a self-hosted blog.
Got a question about blogging? Leave a comment and I’ll try my best to help. You can also send me an email: diygirl at inspirednest dot ca
Blogging Newbie? Be sure to check out: DIY Girl’s Guide to Starting a Blog
