So you want to start a blog? Don’t worry, I got you! After almost 4 years as a blogger, I’ve learned a thing or two about blogging. I migrated my entire website from Squarespace to WordPress back in July of 2020, and I couldn’t be happier with my decision. In this post, I’ll discuss why I chose WordPress and my favorite programs for blogging!
Let’s jump in – these are my favorite platforms for blogging:
WordPress
There are tons of great options for platforms to use for blogging. For many years, I used Squarespace. I felt that Squarespace was an easy way to break into blogging for the first time! The platform was user friendly and versatile enough for my needs at the time.
Eventually, there came a time where I wanted to have a little more flexibility with the look and feel of my blog. Squarespace was more limited, as you can’t customize as much in terms of aesthetics.
Enter WordPress. I chose to go with WordPress as I was able to REALLY customize the look of my blog. Though the transition from Squarespace to WordPress was a difficult one (seriously, I would hire someone to do this for me in the future), it was well worth it! After almost 4 years of blogging, I finally have a platform I can feel proud of. I did my research prior to making the switch, and I found that most bloggers use WordPress for their content.
Bluehost
The caveat with WordPress is that you do have to have your website hosted through an outside provider. I chose to go with Bluehost and I’ve been happy with their services! When I was migrating my content from Squarespace to WordPress, the Bluehost team was instrumental in assisting me with any questions I’ve had. They really are only a phone call away, and every customer service representative I’ve worked with has been super helpful!
Empress Themes
Like I said, I did a TON of research when choosing to make the switch from Squarespace to WordPress. I learned that most bloggers choose to purchase a WordPress theme from a third party. After reviewing my options, I went with Empress Themes. I really liked their Pearl theme. I felt that it achieved the aesthetic I was going for but still fell within my price range. The theme is also highly customizable, so it can be tailored to your needs!
Yoast
While we touched on SEO in my Master’s program, I am certainly not an expert on the topic at all. Yoast has been a LIFE SAVER! The Yoast tool is a plug-in that you can download for WordPress. The tool has quickly become one of my favorite programs for blogging. Yoast provides you with suggestions to optimize your SEO while you are writing a blog post. The Yoast plug-in is so easy to use and it is free to download. Checking my Yoast score is a non-negotiable for me prior to hitting publish on my blog post!
Canva
I use Canva for every single one of my blog graphics, as well as Instagram stories and some of my other blogging needs. Canva has many template options for blogging or Pinterest graphics. I love that everything is totally customizable to my brand. Canva is one of my most used programs for blogging. With Canva, I even have my brand kit (fonts & elements of my brand), as well as brand colors saved to keep everything cohesive when I create new designs.
Pinterest has been a huge area of growth for my brand! After each post goes live on my blog, I immediately share to Pinterest. Consistently sharing on Pinterest has allowed me to amass as many as 350K+ views per month, leading to an average of 3,000 unique views to my blog per month. Curious about Pinterest strategy? Read more about mine here!
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