by Brad Aldrich - One Flesh Marriage
As you are searching for the best platform to launch your new marriage ministry, Blogger is an excellent option to consider. In part 2 of Deciding Where to Blog I’ll discuss the positives and negatives of this very popular platform.
Blogger
Blogger is a very popular blogging platform. It is free to use and easy to set up. Blogger offers many attractive options including a template designer, which allows users to tweak their blogs appearance.Blogger prides itself in being user friends, and makes every effort to make it possible for anyone to publish their own blog. Little or no technical knowledge is necessary to create on Blogger. For this reason, and the free price tag, many beginners start on the Blogger platform. Many established blogs decide to stay on Blogger because they enjoy the system and find it sufficient to meet their needs.
There are several CMBA members who have developed very nice sites using the Blogger format. Romantic Act of the Day and Journey to Surrender are two good examples of Blogger sites
There are a few downsides to Blogger. For one you will never be able to get away from the Blogger “B”. It will appear on your blogs header and as its Flavicon (the little picture next to its name on the top of your page). There are also fewer design options and functions in Blogger as compared to other systems. You can adjust the colors, and type face, and other features, but all Blogger blogs have a similar look. This doesn’t have to be a problem, it might just limit your ability to get your blog to look, or do things the way you wish.
Another potential downside is that officially Blogger, and Google who owns Blogger, controls access to your content. This can become an issue, if Blogger decided to shut you down, which they can do. This is true about all platforms except self-hosted platforms. Of specific concern to marriage bloggers is Google’s stand on “adult content”. Officially Google allows any content on Blogger, but they reserve the right to put it behind an “adult content” warning. This is primary implemented to restrict inappropriate images, but if your blog’s mission involves discussing sexual intimacy like J’s Hot Holy Humorous (hosted on Blogger) just be sure to read the fine print!
Finally, I can’t discuss Blogger without admitting that One Flesh Marriage started there, but didn’t stay long. We decided to start on Blogger simply because I couldn’t get away from the temptation of a free blog and I didn’t consider other options. After only 3 months on Blogger I wished I had done my homework. I was never satisfied with the way the blog looked. I would tinker with the design or try to add a new widget I discovered and I couldn’t do it. After tolerating the frustration for several months, I decided to switch from Blogger to Blogger to WordPress.org. The move was painful, a chore I would rather not do again.
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If you use Blogger what do you like about it?
If you’ve left Blogger like I did, what made you go?
Next: WordPress.com: Deciding Where to Blog 3
If you decide to choose the Blogger format make sure not to miss: I Choose You: Taking Your First Steps In Blogger
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I use Blogger because, like you said, it’s free, and includes a template designer. It allows more time for blogging and less time for junk like designing a website.
As far as the blogger “b,” I couldn’t care less if it’s there. I’m not so concerned with my own brand being represented on my header; rather, I am represent my Heavenly Father and His brand.
I am concerned, however with the “adult content” issue. Marriage bloggers sometimes write about sex and it’s important to express and share ideas freely. When / if I ever find this to be an issue, I will move my blogging business elsewhere. In the meantime, I’m fairly satisfied with Blogger.
So here’s an interesting tidbit: I started two blogs in Blogger. I then switched my writer blog (I write fiction) to WordPress and kept HHH on Blogger. Why? Because there were features with each that I liked well, and I never loved WordPress quite enough to go through the hassle of switching again for HHH. If someone does switch from Blogger to WordPress, I strongly suggest using the feature in WordPress that dumps all your posts to the new blog for you. I still had to do some rearranging with posts, but the content was there very quickly.
I started (and still am for now) on Blogger because it was quick and easy to jump in. I had no desire to learn html code or to invest a lot of time or money on a site. Plus it was all “free.”
Now I’m up against some of the limitations of Blogger and have had to learn html to customize stuff enough to get around some of those.
In the next year or so I’ll probably switch over to WordPress. As soon as I can find the time to convert 250 posts.
I’m on blogger and got rid of the Little B on it. I’ve been blogging for 1 1/2 yrs. 7 mos. into my blogging ministry I moved to self-hosted wordpress. It was nightmare over there. I spent more time on the technical stuff rather than writing for the Lord so I went back to blogger 4 mos. later. Now I’ve been on blogger for the last 9 mos. As the ministry grows, I’m seeing the limitations on blogger. Waiting and praying about moving to wordpress/studiopress although it’s not free they do offer support. I’m not looking forward to migration because it’s a big fat headache.
I’m new to all of this, so I appreciate the information you’ve shared!
I’m on Blogger for the same reasons…it’s easy. I’ve learned a lot about how to manipulate it so that it doesn’t look so much like a Blogger blog. But I have been considering moving to WordPress so that I can manipulate more stuff. I’m honestly terrified to do it because I’m afraid I’d screw something up. The one time I looked at WordPress, I was so lost in the technical language that I never went back.
I like the ease of blogger, plus I can link to my Google account and do everything through that. HOWEVER…you mentioned being blocked. A few years ago, I got hacked and they shut down not only my email but my blog and everything! The process to get them to unblock me took almost a month and I was extremely frustrated. I could have just been patient and waited, but I like to write and needed to process my frustration with the whole thing, so I started a new email address and a new blog. When I decided to start blogging about marriage, I didn’t really even consider using anything except Blogger. The HTML confuses me and I had to involve my husband to write code to get my personal blog (littlebishopchronicles.blogspot.com) looking the way I wanted it. And I hate to ask him to write the code or figure it out because #1. I like to be in control and #2. I hate to trouble him with it since he writes code for his job. So, while I am frustrated that I don’t remember how I got the “recommend on facebook” option at the end of each post so I can add it to the new blog, I’m still fairly comfortable navigating blogger. I like these posts. Thanks for taking the time to share the comparisons.