1. Wordpess

There are two versions of WordPress you could use, worpress.com and wordpress.org. WordPress.org is the self-hosted version. It is free to download and install, to create your own website/blog. However, it is usually the case that you would need to have a bit of technical skills or hire someone who does, in order to help you get up and running properly. Many hosts now have a one click install option where you follow a series of step to follow in order to start up. Using WordPress.org, you will have more control over your blog, you host it and use your own domain name and can freely promote it the way you want to. With WordPress.com, the blog is set up on a preinstalled platform. Your website is hosted and the technical details are taken care of for you. Creating a blog on WordPress.com is very easy, within minutes you could be done with the initial set up.

Domain name
Wordpress.com allows you to start your blog with your username as subdomain of the already established wordpress.com, for example if your username is myprettyshoes, then your URL would be http://myprettyshoes.worpress.com. You can however purchase an available domain name through WordPress.com, to change your URL to http://www.myprettyshoes.com. The same is done for WordPress.org where you would need to have have purchased your own domain name if you wish to create your own website or blog. WordPress.com is optimized for SEO so you can follow simple principles in order rank your website on search engines such as Google and Bing. They offer support via chat, email, support pages, and forum. WordPress.com have millions of user who you can also connect and share with. WordPress.org has a very active, vibrant and developed online community, thousands of free and premium themes, plugins and tools to help you along the way.

Pros

• WordPress software is free, you can get a completely free blog at WordPress.com and for WordPress.org all you might need to pay for is hosting and domain fees.
• WordPress is completely customisable and has many plugins and themes to support it.
• Can be used for just about any project.
• Frequent updates.

Cons

• A hosted blog version at WordPress.com is a good option, however, to get the most of WordPress it is best to self-host your website.
• Sometimes you might need technical help in order to adapt or create the theme and plugin to look the way we you want it to.

WordPress.com – https://wordpress.com/
Wordpress.org – https://wordpress.org/

2. Blogger

Blogger is a Google owned blogging platform. You will need to create a Google account if you don’t have one already. Blogger allows you to create a custom blog. Design your blog the way you want. The templates are easy to use so you can create a beautiful blog that fits your style. Templates are easy to use. If you have knowledge of HTML and CSS you will be able to change the look even further. You can also use a custom domain name to promote an image or brand. Easily integrate with other Google services such as Google + and Google communities.

Blogger also provides an opportunity to earn from your blog through Google Adsense. It is easy to use, choose where you want ads to go and how you want them to look. Ads shown are usually relevant to users interest.

Pros

• Blogger has strong support from Google which is integrated so you can benefit for different Google services.
• Simple to understand, excellent platform for beginners.
• Use Google Adsense to make money from your blog content and show ads relevant to your users.
• Easy to integrate other Google services.

Cons

• There is limited customisation, themes are limited in style and options and it isn’t easy to set up with your own domain name.
• The community support is not that large, certainly not as large as WordPress.com.

Blogger – https://www.blogger.com/

3. Tumblr

Tumblr is another popular blogging platform with over 270 million blogs, so it always provides an opportunity to follow, link and share your interest, products or services with other awesome bloggers. You can literally find blogs on any subject. Post stories, photos, GIFs, TV shows, links, quips, dumb jokes, smart jokes, Spotify tracks, mp3s and more.

“Once you follow a blog, all of its posts show up in your dashboard. See something great? Reblog it to your own blog. Add commentary if you like. Make it your own. Other people will do the same to your posts.”

Pros

• It is easy to startup, can take 3 – 5 minutes.
• Create and run multiple blogs simultaneously.
• A good number of theme options available.

Cons

• The emphasis is more on visuals and less on text.
• Slow loading time due poor caching.
• Devalued content due to constant resharing.

Tumblr – https://www.tumblr.com/

These are three great free options to choose from if you are thinking about starting your own website or blog. Whatever you desire to do online one of these blogs will be able to satisfy that need. That being said, there are a number of other great blogs out there, some of which I will later explore.

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