How to Start a Blog on Blogger

How to Start a Blog on Blogger

June 28, 2018

I wanted to be sure to keep you guys posted about the behind the scenes of Chellbee. If you've been with me for a while then you've probably noticed that Chellbee has a new look. I moved blogging platforms for the fourth time and now I've returned to blogger as on September 2017.

After writing How to Choose a Blog or Website Platforms over a year ago, I decided to take heed to my own advice. In an effort to save money and ensure the longevity of Chellbee I made the switch from SquareSpace to Blogger. I will be the first to tell you it was a bit time consuming and I had to do a lot of research.

Hopefully by sharing this post with you today I can save you some time and the headache of making the moving by giving you the tools and tips you need to start your blog on blogger. If your still wondering what is blogger- it is a free blogging platform powered by Google also known as blogspot.

I do want to preface this blog post by saying blogger is not for the weak hearted. If your not tech savvy, research oriented, and willing to put time into customizing your blogger blog. Than Blogger is likely not the way to go. If you're new or have more money than time I would definitely say Wordpress is likely a better fit for you than Blogger. Not to worry I have instructions on How to Start a Wordpress blog too!

First Thing First

Before you can open a blogger account you need to have or create a google email or gmail account, which is easy to do. Be sure you use an email name that corresponds with your blog name. Here are
detailed instructions for creating your blog on blogger. To get started with blogger you will need to select one of there themes but don't be alarmed by the appearance, I got you.

Blogger Templates

Finding a blogger template is the key to setting up a custom blog that stands out and fits your brand or personality. Don't worry you don't need to know HTML code in order to install blogger templates. Many of the blogger template designers are more than happy to install your template for you for free.

But the template package itself will come with instructions in case your a do it yourselfer like myself. Just in case the instructions are not included here are template install instructions. One of the best things about blogger templates is that they are relatively affordable especially in comparison to other blogging platforms like Wordpress. Here are a few blogger template designers that are affordable.

Etsy Shops 

1- Blogger Template

2- Best for Blogger

3- Syncboost

4- Sky and Stars

5- Templates by Kate

Creative Market

1- Vefio Themes

2- Georgia Lou

Must Have Gadgets

If your familiar with Wordpress then you have likely have heard of plugins. But if your a blogging newbie then you maybe wondering what is a gadget or plugin. Gadgets are downloadable codes that add certain features to your blog like an Instagram grid or a contact form. Here are my must have gadgets, not to worry they are easy to install. 

1- Social Media Share Button - AddtoAny

2- Pop up bar - Hello Bar

3- Instagram - SnapWidget

4- E-Commerce Shop - Ecwid

Favorite Free Resources

Of course no how to blog post would be complete without a list of resources. Here are my favorite free resources and tips that I use for my blog. 

1- Placeit - free mockup generator
2- Unsplash - free stock photos
3- Nappy - free people of color stock photos
4- Picnoi - free people of color stock photos
5- CreateHer Stock - free (and paid) people of color stock photos
6- Google Anayltics - traffic tracker
7- My Blogger Lab - pretty much have a tutorial for every question you can think of
8- Canva - every type of graphic you can think of
9- Problogger - tips and resources on monetizing and growing you blog
10- PicMonkey - graphics creator and photo editing

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How to Choose a Blog or Website Platforms

How to Choose a Blog or Website Platforms

November 30, 2016

I have been blogging for almost 3 years now and I have used several website builder and done a lot of research. I consider myself a DIY blogger I handle every aspect of my blog and business myself mainly because I'm cheap (i.e. I don't use graphic designers, social media managers, or writers).  With all the researched I have compiled I felt it important to share my experience. 

I hope this is super helpful for anyone considering blogging or switching to a new platform. I wanted to share my experience with Wordpress, Squarespace, and Blogger. WordPress and Squarespace are both optimized to make for a great experience for bloggers, because you don't have to be extremely tech savvy especially if you utilized their forums and instructions.

Wordpress is the most widely used, customizable, optimized, and user friendly platform. Squarespace is not HTML based so once your on Squarespace switching to another platform is difficult, time consuming, and an outright pain. 

Blogger is optimized by Google but doesn't have the full capabilities necessary for SEO optimization. Moving between platform is simple enough for written content but all other content (like documents, optins, formatting, and photos) not so much.

“You never know what you don’t know until you don’t know.”

My Blogging Backstory with Blogger (blogspot)

When I first began blogging I used Bloggers, because it was easy to use and free. In hindsight what I will say is I wish I would have invested more time into utilizing Blogger. 

I personally believe there is a lot of functionality with Blogger that makes it a viable platform. Blogger can be a good option for new bloggers who aren't sure if blogging is truly for them.

Blogger is free and still offers the ability to utilize custom domain name. In the past, I used a free DNS host to redirect my blogspot site to my custom domain. Also, you can install custom templates on Blogger here's an example of a template I love.

Cost

In 2015 I spent a little over $400 on Wordpress purchasing 2 custom templates, Bluehost, and the business Wordpress plan (also known as Wordpress.com). Please learn from my mistakes and don't do this. I had no clue what I was doing so I wasted a lot of money and time. Especially considering that Wordpress.com is self hosted so you don't need a third party host. Lesson learned my friend.

Wordpress.com can be expensive which is likely why most bloggers use Wordpress.org along with Bluehost to get the biggest bang for there buck. WordPress as a platform no longer supports third-party templates, therefore the only way to bypass this is to purchase hosting from a third party. Needless to say your best bet with Wordpress is to go with Wordpress.org and Bluehost. If you use my link you will get a special price of $3.95/mo AND it includes a free domain and email for the first year.

Plugins

When researching the benefits of choosing Wordpress you will likely find tons of articles and blog post about plugins. Plugins are like coded widgets you can add to your Wordpress site, in simple terms its typically an upgraded feature that is not otherwise available. 

Many plugin are not available if you have a free Wordpress plan. In my experience BlueHost customers have access to all plugins directly from the WordPress dashboard. If you use WordPress.com make sure you read this post about which plugins are included with each plan.

Opt ins

The beloved opt ins. I used Icegram which is a free plugin on Wordpress for optin. Squarespace you can create opt-ins on any page or blog post but keep in mind the data can only be exported to Google drive and Mailchimp. 

With Blogger you will have to use HTML codes to place opt in where you would like them. There is also the option of a header bar Hello Bars is a great option and can be used on any platform. But keep in mind Squarespace already has a similar function called announcement bars.

Templates

One of the major reasons why I loved Squarespace is their templates are beautiful, modern, and classic, best of all they are free with the purchase of your website. But they don't offer alot of variation which means it is easy to spot a SquareSpace site. 

Most of the Squarespace templates don't include a sidebar which is a real pain. WordPress reigns supreme because you can create a custom website or blog experience despite using a website builder. But Wordpress can be very piece meal, which can be aggravating if your a novice at designing a website.

Click to Tweet

Click to Tweet is best used in Wordpress as a plugin. If you want to use Click to tweet in SquareSpace or Blogger you will have to purchase a Click to Tweet plan because they only allow 5 click to tweet links for free.

Custom Domain Name

The process of redirecting your domain name is very simple as long as your domain carrier offers full functionality. I've used IxWebHosting and GoDaddy they are both fairly inexpensive. GoDaddy is definitely more functional. If your a new blogger then planning to go with Bluehost skip purchasing your custom domain altogether because with my link you will get a special price of $3.95/mo AND it includes a free domain and email for the first year.

Lessons Learned

If you are considering Squarespace give it a test drive with there 14 day trial and determine if its a good fit for you. If you are a truly thrifty DIYer and willing to invest your time to get the biggest bang for your buck check out Creative Market for Blogger Themes and get started with Blogger. If you want to go big and create a one of a kind website check out WordPress. The choice is always your!

By no means am I a tech genius but I pretty good at using Google. I'm so happy to share my WordPress and SquareSpace experience with you all.

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