Dedicated WordPress Web Hosting: The Perfect Solution for Your Blog
WordPress is the most popular content management system (CMS) in the world, and for good reason. It’s extremely flexible, has a large community, and is very easy to use. If you’re looking to create a blog, then you most certainly need to consider using WordPress. But, what if you don’t want to use WordPress itself? Many people avoid using the CMS for blogs because they think it’s too difficult to set up and maintain. If this sounds like you, then read on!
Why Did You Choose To Build A Blog On WordPress?
WordPress was first released in 2007, and the plugin that allows you to create a blog was named WordPress.com. Since then, WordPress has become incredibly flexible and is now available in nearly every major language around the world. If you’re looking for a free, open source CMS without the headache of learning how to use it, then WordPress is the clear choice. Furthermore, WordPress is completely compatible with any other content management system. This allows you to seamlessly integrate your blog with other platforms, like Shopify and WooCommerce, where you might have a business website.
What Type Of Blog Platform Do You Use?
The good news is that WordPress makes it very easy to switch from a blog to a business website. To do this, you’ll first want to log in to your WordPress dashboard and click the menu button in the top right corner. From here, you can either select Tools from the menu or type in your search bar to look for WordPress applications and extensions. You’ll see lots of options, but don’t worry, below are the main ones you need to know about.
1. WordPress.com
WordPress.com is the free version of WordPress, and it was initially designed for bloggers who don’t want their content to be published on WordPress.org. Because it’s built on the same platform as Google Analytics and Adsense, you can easily install the Google Tag Manager on your WordPress.com site to start collecting traffic and usage data. You’ll also need to have a Google account to use the service (which you can create for free).
The downside to this is that if you want to write a book, you’ll need to purchase a WordPress.com account. Fortunately, this can be done through a special offer from WordPress.com that provides you with a free Google Book Storage space.
2. WordPress.org
WordPress.org is the “pro” or “traditional” version of WordPress. It’s free, has a more rigid design, and has almost twice the functionality of WordPress.com. Not many people use WordPress.org because it’s a bit more difficult to set up. Nevertheless, if you’re looking for a more traditional solution where you can’t change the theme or customize the look of the website, then this is the one you need to go with.
Do You Use A CMS Or Do You Write Everything By Hand?
This is a common question in the WordPress community, and the answer is: it depends. If you want to create a quick and dirty blog, then you might want to try using a content management system (CMS) to do it. Why? Because you won’t need to worry about learning how to use WordPress or finding an online tutor to help you. The CMS will do all this work for you. It will also make it easier to add new content, especially if you have a large following. In addition, if you use a content management system, then it’s much easier for your readers to discover your blog if they are searching for content on the same topic. You’ll want to avoid using a cheap CMS like HubSpot because they don’t give you the functionality you need to customize the look of your blog.
The Downsides Of Using A Free Blogging Platform
There are a few significant downsides to using a free blogging platform, like Blogger. First, if you’re going to use a CMS, then you’ll need to register with Blogger to use it. This means that all your content will be owned by someone else (namely, Google). The good news is that you don’t need to use Blogger to have a blog. You can use any of the many free blogging platforms out there, like WordPress.com or Medium, to create your own blog. Second, because these platforms are free, there is a chance that they could be compromised. Hackers often target these types of platforms because they are very popular and have a lot of users. When this happens, you’ll want to make sure that your passwords are unique and strong, and that you always log out of your device when you’re not using it. Third, some of these platforms can be very difficult to customize the look of. If you’re looking for something modern and sleek, then you might want to look into a premium blogging platform like Squarespace.
How Do You Monetize Your Blog?
So you’ve built your blog. Congrats! You now have content that people are regularly reading and hopefully enjoying. How do you monetize it? The answer to this question varies from blogger to blogger, but here are some general best practices:
1. Affiliate Marketing
This is one of the most traditional ways of monetizing a blog. You’ll want to sign up with an affiliate marketing platform like Affiliate Window or JetPack, create a free account, and then promote products that you think your audience will enjoy. When someone clicks on an affiliate link and makes a purchase after reading your blog post, you’ll earn a small commission. Usually, you’ll get about 5% of the sale or capture.
The advantage of this strategy is that you don’t need to run a lot of ads to make money. You simply need to create content that people want to read and then promote products that you think they’ll enjoy. If someone clicks on a recommended product and makes a purchase, then you’ll earn a small commission.
2. Product Reviewing
If you’re a fashion blogger and want to review products related to your niche, then you can use the free product reviewing platform from Shopbop to save you time and effort. You’ll want to create an account, add your blog to your account, and then click the Add New Product button to begin reviewing products. You can also use this tool to write product reviews for other blogs so you can make money online.
3. Ads
You can’t beat free marketing, right? The nice folks at HubSpot created an ad platform specifically for bloggers. It’s called Advertise and allows you to insert ads, placed either manually or with automated software like Google Adsense, in the form of slideshows, pop-ups, or text links. You’ll want to create an ad account, add your blog to it, and then click the “+” icon to see a list of available ad spaces. You can also use the dashboard to create and design ads or use one of their pre-designed templates to get started.
The advantage of this method is that you don’t need to run any ads to make money from your blog. You simply need to write articles and other content that people want to read. If you can do this efficiently, then this can be a very profitable strategy.
4. Membership Drives
If you’re running a blog about fashion and you also have a clothing store, then you can use the Shopify Membership plan to create online stores that sell exclusive clothing items for members only. Once you have a Shopify account, you can use their easy-to-use platform to create a membership site. You’ll want to choose a membership level that provides enough benefits to entice potential members to join your site, and then design the site around that membership.
5. Sponsored Posts
If you’re a brand manager at a company, then you might want to consider sponsoring posts on a blog. This is a type of advertising where a brand or company pays you to post on their behalf. You’ll want to search for “sponsored posts” on the forums or ask questions in the comments section of a blog post to see if this is something interest to you.
This type of advertising can be very effective because it is fairly easy to implement. Simply look for relevant blogs that match your target audience, connect with the owners of those blogs via social media, and then ask them if they’re interested in having a brand sponsor their content. They might say yes, in which case, you’ll need to negotiate a price with them. Typically, sponsored posts don’t generate as much revenue as the other options listed here, but they can be a quick and easy way to gain some extra money.