So if you had to create a blog today, where would you go to get started? There are many blog sites on the internet these days like WordPress, Weebly, Blogger, Tumblr, Empower Network, etc., but which one is the best? Lets analyze them and see what the pros and cons are.
1. How Good Is WordPress?
WordPress is in my opinion the best Blog site, as long as you are good at using it. It can be the toughest to learn how to use by far because there are so many technical aspects and options. If you are a beginner, you might stay away from WordPress at first or at least go through a guide on how to set up a WordPress blog step by step.
Plugins Are Only Available On WordPress
You can use plugins to add infinite customization and functions to your website or blog. For instance, if you wanted certain social media buttons for sharing your content, you can get a plugin for that, pick the social sites you want on there and put them wherever you want on your blog pages. Just like there's an app for everything, there is a plugin for everything with WordPress.
Complex Parts Of WordPress Blogs
Things that are pretty complicated that come along with having a WordPress blog are: plugins, coding, themes, hosting, domains, etc. You have to pick a good domain from somewhere like Godaddy, get hosting from somewhere like Host Gator, and get some kind of theme to help you structure the website just to get your website up and running.
Who WordPress Is For:
WordPress is the best blog site, in my opinion for people who have a little experience with blogging and internet skills. If you want a top website on the internet that positions you like an expert in your industry, you definitely want to go with WordPress.
2. Empower Network Blogging
Although Empower Network is mostly a network marketing company that teaches people internet marketing and how to own a successful business, it does have a very well produced blog. The EN blog actually started out as a simpler, WordPress-powered blogging platform that helped people rank quickly for keywords without it being very complicated.
Most Simple And Easiest To Start
Empower Network has a great platform for everyone, especially new bloggers because you don't have to set it up yourself, you can easily do videos, pictures, or audios in the posts, and you still can customize it to your liking. You can still use your own domain with it, but don't have to worry about hosting, themes or anything like that.
Problems With The Empower Network Blog
You can't actually customize it much. You can't really control the widget area or do any html stuff anymore. Used to, you could do these things, but they wanted to simplify it more, so anyone could get it and start using it right away without a problem. You are very limited with customization and optimization of this blog, but you don't always need that in many cases.
A Few More Cool Features
Empower Network does actually cost $25, but that can be cheaper than WordPress is to start and that comes with unlimited blogs. So you can have separate blogs for different businesses if you wanted. You also can use the app to post straight from your smart phone to your blog.
It's definitely a good place to start if you are new to blogging. That's where I started when I got serious about blogging daily.
Who Empower Network Blogs Are For:
They are for beginners that don't know little to nothing about blogging. It's a very easy blog to use with just a little customization.
3. How Good Is Blogger?
Blogger has a one of the best blogging platforms as well because of its simplicity and the fact that it is free helps for people on a very low budget. They are associated as Google's primary blogging network, so that means it will always be a quality platform to use.
Features of Blogger's Platform
Yo can add your own domain to your blog, which in my opinion is a must. A blog that cannot have its own domain name is almost useless because people will not take you as seriously if you are just using some free, generic blog on a company's platform. You can customize it with many different templates, although the themes will never be as extensive or sophisticated as WordPress.
You do have HTML options for these as well, so that is definitely a plus that Empower Network doesn't have.
Problems With Blogger:
Blogger is not in anyway good for “the big boys” because will say powered by blogger on every page, have templates that are just okay, and not much features or tools you can use to improve your blog and make it stand out from the rest. And of course, standing out from the other blogs is important, if you want to succeed at it.
Who Blogger Is For:
Blogger is a solid blogging platform that is known as one of the best blog sites for its simplicity and user-friendly nature. But, it just isn't the best option if you are going to make blogging a full time career or use it as an income source. This platform is better for beginners, part time bloggers, and people who just blog for a hobby or for small scale projects.
4. Weebly Blogging Needs More Credit
The first time I ever made any kind of website was with Weebly when I was in my high school years and I just loved the way it worked. You can make if free or step up to the next level with a paid website. The great thing about Weebly blogging is that it is simple, yet very sophisticated with countless options for anyone looking to make a good blog or website.
What I Love About Weebly:
I love that you can literally just drag and drop the components into your pages of your website and blog in seconds without having to ever think about coding or finding a theme from another website. I also love that there is quite a bit of customization and room for scaling up.
You can actually start out free with Weebly and have a subdomain while building and learning more about websites and blogging. Then, you can scale up to “big boy level” and get your own domain with Weebly. But, you don't have to worry about hosting (unless they changed that recently) which is a huge plus and money saver.
As someone that isn't actually that tech savvy, I learned very quickly how to use Weebly effectively and loved it. You can easily make a nice, clean site without having to search all over the place for premium themes, hosting, figure out coding or any of that hard stuff. Everything is in one place.
What I Don't Like About Weebly For A Blog:
It probably won't give you any kind of coding options or the ability to change all aspects of your theme, like you could in WordPress. You are stuck with the layout options that Weebly has for you, nothing else. It may not be the absolute best option for going viral as a business online.
Who Weebly Blogging Is For:
It's for people who want to step up from Blogger or even Empower Network to be a little more serious about their blog. You can make it an actual website as well to include store pages and other business essentials that simpler blogs can't do. It is a platform that gives you a lot of freedom without overwhelming you if you aren't confident enough to take on WordPress just yet.
I would say people who are on an intermediate level of blogging would be well suited for Weebly. I would also recommend it to beginners in a lot of cases as well, because of the option to make it your own and start out at the free level and work your way up with more experience to a more professional level.
5. Tumblr Blogging Isn't Half Bad Either
Tumblr, is really not your typical blogging platform. Tumblr is more for media and is, in my eyes, like a social network for blogging. It is more picture and video based than the other blogging platforms. It is simple and free to use, so there is little risk involved with Tumblr blog startup.
What I like about Tumblr:
Although I don't have a lot of experience with Tumblr, I know it is a very popular platform, especially for younger people. It is very media-oriented which, in a way, is how the future probably will be. People love pictures and videos and are getting less willing to read long articles or books.
From what I understand, you can map your own domain to Tumblr blogs now, so that is an essential component to taking a blog platform seriously in my eyes.
What I Don't Like About It:
I just don't think Tumblr would be great for business blogging. I think it is more of a social blog for friends and fun or just as a hobby. As far as picking a blog to use for my marketing purposes or my career, I wouldn't choose Tumblr because I don't think others take it seriously enough and it is just not the type of blog you would use for a serious business venture.
Who It's Best For:
I think Tumblr is best for young adults and teenagers that want a blog for a hobby on the side and aren't looking to turn it into a business.
Conclusion For The Best Blog Sites
Based on what I've seen, WordPress is the best overall for serious businesses and large projects, Weebly is a good intermediate level blogging option, Empower Network has a good platform for either beginners or some intermediate level bloggers, Blogger is great for beginners that blog on the side and Tumblr is more for personal blogging as a hobby with friends.
Don't forget to learn how to get more blog views after picking the best platform for you! Hope you enjoyed the article and feel free to let me know what you think about the best blog sites below in the comment section.
1 Response to "The Best Blog Sites"
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