I have already addressed the question of website vs. blog in another article, but is there a suitable blog to build your coaching business? I’m going to explain here what are the basic differences of the main blogging software options available and give you my perspective on which I think is the best option and why.
live journal: This is where I published my first blog, which was more like an online journal to me. There is a cost to use and host LiveJournal. Customization is limited and complicated for the average user. Adding simple programming to implement marketing strategies is also limited and complicated. I suppose it serves a purpose in social media, but I don’t consider it a good fit for business use.
type pad: This was my next stop as I learned the benefits of blogging for my business. I actually liked this blogging software, but there are some of the same limitations with Typepad as with LiveJournal. There is a monthly fee for hosting and using the Typepad blog. Customization is a bit easier with Typepad but it’s still very limited. They make good use of widgets that the blogger can add to enhance what the blog “does” in terms of marketing and monetization.
blog: This is easy to use blogging software. While I do have an account/profile there, I do not actively blog there. Apparently, Google, which owns Blogger, allows users to post advertisements (which is important for monetizing your blog). But Blogger, which is hosted and operated by Google, has frequent planned and unplanned outages – downtime, which is extremely inconvenient if you’re trying to run a business. I’ve also been told that it doesn’t take much to “exceed bandwidth” and have too many visitors to your blog.
There are probably several more less popular options that, because they are less well known, have limited resources for customization and enhanced programming to make your blog more “powerful” in terms of what it can do for your business.
In my opinion, and in the opinion of some of the most popular bloggers on the internet, WordPress is by far the most developed software platform for creating business blogs.
WordPress – WordPress is software that can work for a community-hosted site on WordPresss.com or you can host it yourself on your own domain.
These are the biggest differences between community or WordPress.com hosted blogging software. On WordPress.com there is no need to install any software; just pick a free theme and start writing posts.
- does not allow ads, like Google AdSense for blogger account
- does not allow programming lead capture forms
- add links to other people’s blogs to the bottom of your posts instead of other relevant posts within your blog
- Limited customization available: Many free themes can be used, but truly custom premium themes cannot be used.
IMHO: Self-hosted WordPress blogs are the ONLY way to go if your blog is an important part of your overall marketing plan. On sites like MySmallBusinessWebsite.com, the installation of the blog is done for you, however, you need to customize it… but more on that in another article.
- the blogger has full control over the customization of the blog; much of it is easy for the average user to control with minimal explanation
- Hundreds or possibly thousands of widgets and plugins have been and are being developed and are completely free to add to your blog.
- Tools are available to drive blog traffic, capture leads, and engage with your blog visitors.
- The blogger can place ads on the blog without worrying about getting it shut down like any other community hosted blogging software.
In a future article, I’ll explain “widgets and plugins”: what they are, what to use and why. Is your blog a strategic part of building your online coaching business? Do you spend enough time and attention developing content that appeals to your ideal prospect?