Choosing The Best Blogging Platform As a Beginner In 2021

Choosing the Best Blogging Platform As a Beginner

As a beginner in the world of blogging, you need to choose a blog platform carefully. You need to choose wisely in order not to end up with a product that is beyond your skills or one that simply won't do what you want it to do. 

It's an investment into your future. The wrong choice can cost you dearly, so be very careful. I'm going to show you how to choose a blogging platform so you don't make any costly mistakes.

Before you choose a platform you need to look at the budget you have.

Another thing you need to look at when choosing a blogging platform as a beginner is functionality. What tools and features do you need? 

Some blog platforms are built with simplicity in mind. Others are made to be very user-friendly for the more technically savvy bloggers out there.

Does the blogging platform you are considering offer a blog builder? A blog builder allows you to build a basic website right on your blog. This can be great for those who aren't very good at making websites. 

Once you have a basic website built it's easy to turn your site into an online journal. You can add in video, audio, and photo-sharing capabilities right onto your blog without any additional coding.

If you're looking for the best blogging software for a beginner in a marketing career then take a closer look at Joomla! or WordPress, there are popular blogging softwares that has all the functionality you would ever need. For someone just getting started with blogging and is especially interested in marketing, Joomla is the perfect blogging tool. It is user-friendly, offers great templates, and comes with great customer service.

There are other popular blogging tools for beginners as well. WordPress is a great option. It has built-in SEO and other blog optimization tools built right into its platform. 

You can also turn your blog into a membership site. This will allow you to earn affiliate commissions by allowing other people to post your blog on their site.

There are a few other popular blogging platforms that are suitable for beginners. You will need to research these tools extensively to find out which one best suits your needs. One of the biggest decisions you will have to make is whether you want to use WordPress or some other free tool.

Whether you choose WordPress or another free tool you should definitely have some sort of blog hosting. The reason for this is because you will not want to host your blog on your own server. 

That can be a real pain. Instead, you will want to host your blog on a web host that you can afford. So it is always a good idea to start out with a good host for your blog to get you off to a good start in beginning your blogging career.

Another big decision you will have to make is whether you want to write your own content or hire someone to do it for you. 

Many people choose to outsource their writing and create all of the content for them. This is an excellent idea if you are a beginner in a marketing career because you will get lots of help and guidance. Plus you can have control over what is in the blog and what isn't.

It is also a good idea to look at your budget before you begin to set up your blog. It is easy to put up a great blog but when it comes down to actually selling stuff on your blog is it worth your time and money? 

Of course, you want to sell something on your blog. But if you want to stick with a free blogging platform then you should take that into consideration. The platform must be affordable and it must be packed with content that is useful to your reader.

So, if you have waited to get my recommendations before choosing a blogging platform, here we are:

1. WordPress.org

WordPress.org is the world’s most popular blogging software. Started in 2003, WordPress now powers quite 30% of all websites on the web.

Note: It’s easy to confuse WordPress.org with WordPress.com, which may be a blog hosting service mentioned later during this list. See our guide on the difference between WordPress.org and WordPress.com.

WordPress.org is an open-source free blogging platform that permits you to create your website or blog within minutes.

It is a self-hosted solution that suggests that you simply will get to check in with a WordPress hosting provider. 

WordPress may be a great option if you would like to possess full control over your blog’s future.

Pros

WordPress.org gives you control over every aspect of your website.

You can grow your blog and add extra features like forums, an online store, and paid membership. 

This makes WordPress the simplest blogging platform to form money.

There are thousands of free themes available for WordPress. 

This allows you to make a gorgeous website that stands aside from the gang.

You also get access to quite 54,000 free plugins. 

These plugins are like apps for your WordPress blog that allow you to add more features like contact forms, galleries, etc.

WordPress is search engine friendly. 

You can easily create SEO-friendly URLs, categories, and tags for your posts. Plus, they're an honest number of great SEO plugins for extra features.

Cons

Managing your own website comes with a touch of a learning curve.

You will get to manage your own backups and security.

It is not free

You will need a paid host server to host your content

 

Pricing

WordPress software is free, but you’ll get to have a website name (about $14.99/year) and hosting (usually ranging from $7.99/month).

You need a website name and web hosting for starting any sort of website.

2. Google's Blogger

Google's blogger is a freemium blogging service by Google just as the name suggests. It offers a fast and straightforward platform, thanks to creating a blog for non-tech-savvy users.

Blogger is one of the pioneering blogging platforms alive. It was first established in 1999 by a company called Pyra Labs. 

Later in 2003, Google acquired Blogger and redesigned it as the product we all know today.

All you would like maybe a Google account to start out a free blog on Blogger.

Pros

Blogger is free.

It’s easy to use and manage with no technical skills required for the start.

You get the added advantage of Google’s robust secure platform and its reliabilities.

Cons

You will somehow be limited to basic blogging tools and can’t incorporate new features rapidly like WordPress as your blog grows in popularity.

Design options are limited, with fewer templates available. Third-party templates for bloggers are often inferior.

Because it is a free tool, it doesn't receive many frequent updates or new functionalities.

Google can suspend your blog at any time, or maybe cancel the Blogger service altogether. (They have a history of abandoning projects all of sudden, like Feedburner.)

For more pros and cons of Blogger, see our comparison of WordPress vs Blogger (Pros and cons).

Some users start out with Blogger because it’s free, but eventually, as their blog grows, they find themselves switching from Blogger to WordPress to urge more features and control over their website.

Pricing

But Blogger is completely free with a Blogger subdomain like https://example.blogspot.com. If you would like to use a custom domain, you would like to shop from a third-party domain registrar.

3. WordPress.com

WordPress.com may be a blog hosting service offered by Automattic, a corporation created by WordPress.org co-founder Matt Mullenweg.

WordPress.com offers a basic blog hosting service free of charge. 

You can purchase additional options sort of a custom name, additional storage, and other premium services.

Started in 2005 with a goal to bring WordPress experience to a bigger audience, WordPress.com may be a good blogging site for users who don’t want the advanced features of self-hosted WordPress.

Pros

No setup is required.

Easy to use and manage.

It’s completely free if you're proud of a WordPress.com subdomain. 

Your free website name seems like this: https://example.wordpress.com.

Cons

Limited options to extend your site. You cannot use custom themes and plugins for customizing your blog.

You cannot run advertisements on your blog. Instead, WordPress.com will show its ads on your free website.

You do not own your blog, and WordPress.com can suspend your account if they find you're violating their terms of service.

Pricing

The basic WordPress.com account is free, but it'll have WordPress.com ads and branding.

You can upgrade to their Personal plan for $4/month (billed yearly) to remove the WordPress.com logo and advertising from your website. 

You also get a custom domain (such as www.yoursite.com).

For $8/month (billed yearly) you'll get additional design tools and additional storage.

Because of the similarity in names, beginners often start with WordPress.com thinking they're getting the powerful WordPress.org software. 

After seeing the restrictions, users often find themselves switching from WordPress.com to WordPress.org to possess more features and control over their website.

4. Joomla

Joomla is just like Wordpress.org, it offers great functionality.

And can be flexible for people who want to grow with their sites, but it is more suitable for people who want to add marketing to their blog.

You will have great landing pages and many marketing-friendly functionalities on Joomla than you can find on any other platform

Pros

Good for marketing

It also gives you full control over your site.

You can grow your site by adding many functionalities.

Cons

It requires some time spent on learning the software as it is not as easy as others

You take care of your site backups

It is also not a free platform

Related: How To Start a Profitable Blog in 2021 (Guide For New Bloggers)

5. Hostgator

Gator as the name slightly proves is a website builder and blogging platform created by HostGator, used by many reputable websites. Gator offers a drag & drop tool that you can use to build any type of website including blogs, business sites, and even an online store.

It’s important that you simply don’t confuse the Gator builder with HostGator website hosting. You can use the HostGator hosting service to start out a WordPress blog like we've done.

However, if you're trying to find a non-WordPress all-in-one blog platform and hosting solution, then Gator is that the perfect option.

Pros

Easy drag and drop builder to customize your blog & website design.

Quick setup – no technical hassle.

Backups, performance, and security are all handled by HostGator (no headaches).

Free Domain and SSL certificates are included altogether plans.

Can easily add a web store to your blog with just a couple of clicks.

Cons

There is no free account, but they are doing have a 45-day refund guarantee.

Ecommerce features are restricted to higher plans only.

A limited number of apps and extensions.

Now that I believe you have decided on a blogging platform, you will want to set up your blog. Remember, as a beginner, you have very limited resources so you must get your blog set up and working as soon as possible. 

As you get more experienced you can expand your blog and make it more interesting. 

Once your blog is established you will find that you can make a lot of money from it and this is one of the easiest blogs to run that you could ever startup.