Despite many people claiming that blogging is dying, there are many other who are looking forward to starting new blogs or improving their old ones by switching platforms. At the end of 2014, people claimed that content is dying, and what happened?
Content proved its throne once again. The methods for blogging change constantly and all the new ones offer new approaches and features to writing. Furthermore, platforms change because sites and blogs need to be optimized for the web in order for the users to have a pleasant experience while reading posts. Here are some of the best blogging platforms you can use to set up your brand new blog, or to use it as something new, if you are tired of your old platform.
Before getting to the platforms themselves, let’s get over a few confusing terms which are involved in the whole process. These technologies are likely to come up when setting up a blog of your own.
Web Hosting
This service is typically provided by a company that can manage your whole blog. There are various free choices and paid options that have their traits. Just sign up and you are ready to start blogging. You won’t have to worry about setting up servers, coding, etc. Just make sure that you get proper web hosting which is reliable and professional.
Self-Hosting
A blog which is self-hosted means that you will have to pay a certain company rent a server, and after that, you will have to download blogging software and install everything on your own. This is a suitable option for people who have at least basic technical knowledge in order to set up a custom domain name and database.
Domain Name
The URL address of your site is also called a domain name, and by using this, people will have an easier time finding your blog or site online. A domain name looks something like www.facebook.com. In order to get one for yourself, you will have to pay on a yearly basis to a domain name provider which can also be your modern web hosting service.
Markdown
This is a simple way for formatting text lines. If you want to bold your text, you will have to write *in this fashion*, or if you want to link something, do it [like this]. It may look complicated and intimidating, but you will get used to it in no time, as it will simplify your writing and remove the need for complicated interface usage.
WordPress
This is a platform that many bloggers choose by default. It’s the most popular platform and there are many reasons why. It may seem like the most boring blogging platform, but it’s simply very reliable. It is definitively the most mature platform, with high stability and many customizations for themes and plugins. It is one of the best choices for beginners, but it can be hard to learn to perform advanced setups.
Squarespace
Many people make a terrible mistake in thinking that this is a service can only be used for setting up your business website. However, it has one of the best blogging platforms out there. With Squarespace, you can easily create a nice looking blog without the need of any coding knowledge. It is very easy to use, however there is no free option like with WordPress.
Kirby
This is a one of a kind, flat file CMS which was built with simple PHP in order to make things very simple. Still, there is a lot of room for customization. Kirby basically works as a blog, but its true qualities show when you try and develop themes of your own. It has a very simple interface and it’s easy to use, but you will have to learn a bit in order to create well-designed custom themes. Only when you have some coding knowledge can you start to use Kirby to its fullest capabilities.
Once you’ve set up your blog, focus on creating good content and develop your blogging skills to attract more readers. These are the blogging platforms I found most interesting. There are many other choices out there that you can choose from, and in the end, they are all similar. It comes down to what you get used to and a couple of other features including optimization, customization and pricing.
