The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Hassle-Free Blogging

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Understanding what skills are needed to run a blog for your business can be challenging. A lot of the advice that’s available focuses on advanced customizations with HTML, CSS and other tech skills. You may have heard that WordPress is essential for SEO, but the reasons why are vague and confusing. 

This can make it difficult for entrepreneurs to choose a simple solution without worrying about making a mistake that will hold them back in the long run. 

The key to choosing a blog platform that will support your business goals is to consider ease of use, customization options and support. 

It is also a good idea to consider putting your blog on the same platform as your main website. I used to work with a company that had a blog on Google’s blogging platform “Blogspot” and a stand-alone website with no blog. Because the website was built by a developer, it was not easy for them to add a blog and update it regularly. Although they linked to their programs and products from their free Blogspot account, the main website had very little SEO traffic even though the blog was ranking for many keywords and featured snippets. 

Therefore, I disagree with the SEOs out there who say a WordPress.com or Blogspot blog can’t rank for SEO, but I do think you should consider your business goals before starting here. 

Ease of Use

Blogging has become simpler and simpler over the years. Companies have adapted to a wide range of users and made it easier to make changes without having to alter the code of a website. When I first started in WordPress, I had to make a “Child Theme” for each website I built. Using HTML, CSS and PHP, I would customize the theme of the website to match the brand and the sections that were needed on the website. Then I would add additional code for the mobile version.

Today WordPress has essentially become drag and drop. You no longer need to create code or pay extra for a page builder to add new sections and columns and the themes are responsive. (This means that elements automatically flow to match the size of the device.) However, WordPress still has a steeper learning curve than some of the other options. Here I am talking about WordPress, the open source editor, not WordPress.com which is a closed system like Wix or Weebly. Open source means anyone can use the WordPress framework to create something new. 

When you build with WordPress.org, you need to choose a hosting company and then install WordPress on your website. With a company like Wix, you pay for both the hosting and the website builder. In that sense, Wix is easier, but you may bump up against limitations that you can’t overcome and you may feel locked in to your plan. 

This brings us to the issue of deciding how much control you need to get the results that you want. 

Customizing Your Website and Blog

Consider how you want your blog to look and what features you plan to add to your blog. Take a look at some of the other blogs made with the platform you have in mind. Do you like the style? 

Remember that you can usually choose a theme from a selection of options and change fonts and colours without using code.

Many platforms have a free version or a free trial that you can try. Understand how you can customize the page to look the way you want. In some cases you have to change site settings. In other cases, you can change elements on a single page. 

Some platforms, like WordPress can also be customized with premium themes. Make sure you choose a theme from a reputable vendor. Over time, a WordPress theme can be abandoned by its creator and become subject to hacks and security problems or incompatible with future versions of WordPress. Check out the date of the last update and how many installations it has. 

One good option is to use WP Engine which is a hosting provider that specializes in WordPress and has its own collection of premium themes. 

Platforms like Wix and Squarespace have their own theme or template systems that are customizable.  

Support

When you get an all-in-one solution like Wix and Squarespace, they should provide good support because they control the entire eco-system. This means you can’t just write a line of code to fix a problem. You rely on them to keep your website running.

When you use the open-source version of WordPress (wordpress.org), you will have a host that will give you varying levels of support depending on the company you choose. Check the reviews before choosing a hosting provider. Once my clients site was hacked on a Friday and the hosting provider did not respond until midday on the Monday. This can have a huge impact on the credibility of your business not to mention your sales.

If you have a premium (paid) WordPress theme or plugin, you should be able to message the provider for help. 

If you don’t have a premium theme or you have a question about a free plugin, you will probably need to rely on the WordPress forum. In this case, you ask a question in a sub-forum related to the theme, plugin or other thing causing you difficulty. Your question may be answered by another user or the creator of the theme or plugin. It could take some time. There are also plenty of resources online. 

Managed WordPress hosting is an excellent option for business owners that want the power of WordPress with premium support. If you choose a managed WordPress hosting provider, they will take care of things like security, site speed and website migration. WP Engine includes premium themes. 

So far, we have discussed a few options:

A closed system (hosting and website builder):

• Wix
• Squarespace
• Weebly
• wordpress.com

An open source platform:

• Free or premium WordPress theme + paid hosting (Bluehost, HostGator, GoDaddy, etc)

Managed WordPress Hosting

• Free or Premium WordPress theme plus Managed WordPress Hosting (WP Engine, LiquidWeb)
• WP Engine with included premium StudioPress Theme

There’s one more option we haven’t covered

All-in-One Marketing Platform

Many online entrepreneurs believe that websites are a thing of the past. Instead, they prefer to send their traffic to a landing page where there is only one action the visitor can take. They also rely heavily on sending email promotions that encourage action instead of simply updating and providing their audience with news and tips. This style is called direct response marketing. Usually, it relies on paid ads to bring users to the landing page. However, many also offer blogging which is typically an organic strategy.

If this is your focus you might want to host your blog on an all-in-one marketing platform. This will give you the best of both worlds: content marketing (slow and organic) plus direct response tactics to increase conversions.