Writing Your Own Blog - HubPages Vs Blogger - How Hp Teaches Perfect Blogging Skills - 60DC
76Blogging is Easy - The Rules of Blogging
Are your considering your own blog? Are your held up by all the rules and restrictions regarding how a blog should be written and designed?
Well dont be! There are no rules!*
Its hard to find information about blogging these days that isnt totally perverted by recent trends in seo blogging tactics or commercial niche blogging tactics. You are most likely to run into big lists of what not to do, boring, restrictive lists of donts.
Forget that! You can do anything you want with your own blog. Its Yours!
Blogs in their various forms have been existence for over a decade. Blog is a shortened version of the word weblog - the accepted originator of the term suggested the pronunciation, Wee-Blog. Blogs were originally just online journals; personal collections of writings and whatnot that attracted the writer.
Blog formats have expanded to include the following:
- video focused - VLOG
- link focused - LinkLog
- photo focused - PhotoLog
- fashion blogs
- project blogs
- education blogs
- niche blogs
Starting a Blog - Adsense Blog
However you choose to approach your own blog - its yours and you can create it any way you like!
- Where to buy
- Best options
- Best TLD's
Your Own Blog - Select a URL
One can create blogs on free public sources or on their own self hosted server space, in this article we will focus on the free options available.(and we will discuss best tactics for setting up and optimizing your site from the get go)
There are two main leading formats for free blogs on the internet in 2010, Wordpress.com which uses the wordpress platform for site design and the Blogger/Blogspot.com option which is owned by Google and uses its own "blogger" design template.
Both methods are very easy to get started with. But, Blogger offers a much fuller set of capabilities as Wordpress.com blocks any scripts and disallows affiliate links.
Options for selecting a URL with Blogger
The title of your blog is also the main URL of your site so it should be selected with care. Your title will be appended to the main domain name as a subdomain.
ex) www.yourownblog.blogspot.com
You can also purchase and connect a custom domain that you have registered to a blogger site.
Your Own Blog - Automated Preliminary Promotion
Blog platforms automatically incorporate a simple manner of syndication and sharing that is known as rss or real simple syndication.
An easy, effective and intelligent technique for automatically sharing this content across the web is to publish this feed to rss submission sites so that it updates with each new piece of content that you add to your site.
Your Own Blog - Theme and Design
The design and layout of your blog can have a massive effect on your visitors impression of your page and if you are so inclined , the effectiveness and conversion of traffic in relation to any monetary and affiliate opportunities you may be pursuing.
Hubpages users who pay attention to their layouts should be aware of the sweet spots for ad placement. Its easy - just look at any Hubpage , whether you are a publisher here or not you can quickly see what positions are deemed most effective in conversion.
Simply mirror the layout you see on these pages and you will quickly primed from the beginning to create strong conversion rates.
You will see that prime locations include header, top right or left of opening of text , top areas of right sidebar, and at the conclusion of a capsule or post.
All of these locations are "above the fold" for a fuller analysis of ad layout and design based optimization:
When you first create a site on blogger, you are given the option of selecting from some basic themes or using a template designer to create your own image for your blog. These basic options are completely sufficient. Staying clean and simple with free white space is highly suggested. Avoid being cute-sy, flashy or overly busy. Certain aspects of your blog should draw the eye, make sure those aspects are not just meaningless background images or design elements.
A Knowledge of HTML is not required!
There is a second option of uploading pre-existing templates into your blog. This is very simple and there are thousands of themes available on the web, simply search for "free blogspot themes" or something similar. Be careful, as it is not uncommon for users to select fancy templates with complicated options that involve more html and css knowledge than you need to make a simple blog. If its not working right, just abandon it and find another.
Skip to the one minute mark - might want to mute also!
Your Own Blog - Easy Search Engine Optimization
Hubpages has taught you some really strong factors about how to optimize a website, bring those concepts to your blog creation process.
If you take the concepts suggested by the flagship hub style of publishing and incorporate it into your blog - in the effort that you put forward for one hub - you could create an entire niche focused blog that is a great resource and record of your research and publishing efforts.
Flagship Rules:
What we’re looking for:
- A minimum of 1500 words, of your own, high-quality purely original writing
- A minimum of 3 relevant video capsules (YouTube or Google)
- A minimum of 5 relevant images
- At least 10 relevant links to other sources, each with your own 30-50 word description
- A news capsule (or highly-relevant RSS feed)
- Excellent thematic and aesthetic organization
HubPages Vs Blogger
On Page Optimization Factors (for reference)
Capsules = Posts
If you approach those suggested 1500 words that will naturally be arranged as capsules in Hubpages - each as "Posts" instead, you can have 3-8 Text Posts for your page.
Video
A Post can be composed of a single Video with a small amount of text commentary or a simple description. Simply, select the "embed" option available at all eligible Youtube videos and paste that text into your post on Blogger.
Images
Images can be placed into any post by using the small photo icon in compose mode - or by pasting in html code into the html edit mode.
Links
Links can be placed into any post, or can be be placed into a widget in the sidebar or into the blogroll.
News capsule/Rss Feeds
Both options are standard default "widgets" in the Blogger site.
Tags = Labels, kinda
At Hubpages, your works are self categorized upon creation and further definition can be achieved via the Tag function, on Blogger one uses "labels" - use these in a more organized manner than you would at Hubpages - less is more at Blogger as these labels can be used as distinct categories or areas of your site.
Custom Summaries = Description
On Page Optimization includes creating a meta description for your Hubs and websites, what is known as a "custom summary" at Hubpages is a standard html "Meta-Description" at Blogger - You can find this option under the edit html options - in the beginning of the code. Unfortunately, the metadescription isnt tweaked on a page by page or post by post basis and rather is used site wide. One can make a unique meta-description per each individual page.
Advanced SEO Techniques for Blogger
Interlinking
Hubpages automatically creates a related Hubs area in your sidebar, Wordpress users, use related post plugins. Keeping interested viewers on your site is a good thing and is also a factor for strong on page optimization.
One can incorporate this option into their Blogs - Related Posts Hack for Blogger
Social bookmarking / User Generated Sharing
Allow your visitors a way to share and bookmark your content - Share This
Blogroll/Related Sites
Just as Hubpages as a community, the Blogosphere has a community, often blog owners will place each others sites in this section when they find sites they enjoy that are related. Traveling around the blogosphere and leaving valuable comments and trying to make connections can be valuable if you are genuine in your altruism.
You can have your own blog today
If you have been slow to start your own blogs because you felt a certain knowledge or style was needed, Get over it,
Above I tried to show how the effort one would make to create one high quality Hubpage could easily equate into a full blog. Perhaps, your publishing style is different - but since there are no rules* when you are on your own blog, there is no reason not to get started and learning along the way.
*Rules - Blogs have no rules because they are your own form of expression. But, those you partner with , do often have rules. Free Hosts are liable for your content, so certain forms of p0rnography, discussions about illegal activities in the host countries and providing access or even linking to other sites that provide access to copyrighted materials or are malicious in nature can be no-no's. Additionally, if you offer advertising each of these networks can have their own rules about what content they want associated with their ads. Paid Hosts are liable for your content also and will often enforce violations that could endanger them.
This has been an installment of The 60 day Challenge Tutorial Series
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You have some great tips here Sunforged. I have started several blogs recently to drive traffic to my hub pages. It is fun and easy.
Useful tips.
"Simply mirror the layout you see on these pages and you will quickly primed from the beginning to create strong conversion rates".
Perfect advice - makes loads of sense.
I am kicking myself why I failed to notice it myself, LOL!
In HP getting readers is an easy job, which is hard in Blogger. At blogspot, you have to be mostly specific on a theme. At HP you can write on anything.
Excellent article, i learned much from you. Thanks.
Very helpful information. Thanks sunforged.
I love reading about all this stuff. Someday, if I keep writing, I will actually understand some of it. Thanks for the great information.
The thing most people forget is that if you follow all the advice of those who have made a success of blogging all you will end up doing is being an inferior clone, trying to emulate their success whilst also losing your own voice in the process.
That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t read the advice which is out there but to be successful now you need to be different to everyone else and that means setting the trends, making your own rules rather than just following others.
Simple easy to use advice, thank you for another great Hub.
Another excellent resource from you Sunforged. I love the idea behind this, that you can learn how to layout your blog with the hubpages layout. :) Passing this one.
I gleaned so much from this hub. You've been really helpful, as I am a new blogger and felt as though I was swimming in the dark. Thanks!
@Andy Webb - I agree, the carbon copy syndrome is many peoples downfall, often a method or technique is shared and people begin to copy (usely poorly) and create successive levels of crap copies. Always add yourself to your work , be unique.
@Tracy, Blogging is different than HP writing but much of what you learn here can be used anywhere on the net. Approach the overall layout and design of your blog the same way as you would a HUbpage and you wont go wrong!
This makes blogging sound so simple. I have a blog but really haven't made the best use of it and this is a very helpful hub. Thanks.
Thank you for this hub. Perhaps now I will get around to creating my Blogger page
Great information here, still learning how to set up blogs properly, and did not take RSS seriously.
You're right and HP has SF too to share this relevant information to us. Thanks again, Maita
I have never dare to venture into this world of blogging but with your well explained hub I think I will plug up the courage. Thank you. You always write so clearly.
As always, your Hubs are so useful and informative. Voted as such. I've got a few flailing blogs out there (HP is by far the most user friendly and personally successful), but your tips here will give those others a boost no doubt. Thanks!
Excellent hub! Thanks for the information. I have been thinking about a Blog and you have helped me decide. Great job
Thank you for that. You give a very useful run down. Blogs like Hubs are addictive. Mine seems to be taking over my life.
I noticed the layout as well infact tweaked my own themes when i first found HP. Yieldbuild shows better results on those *above-fold* areas. It becomes super easy if one is using theme frameworks like -Thesis and Genesis. Once these things are set all we need to do is traffic. As usual nice advice, SF.
Great advice and bookmarked, SF - this will come in useful in a month or two :)
This is great advice on how to set up your blog. Since starting at HP I have learned a great deal about how interlinking works. Thanks for reminding us that this same system can be used on blogs.
Another one to make my head hurt. I will have to read and read to make sure I catch everything. Thanks for sharing your considerable knowledge Josh.
This has been very helpful. Thank you.
Very nice! Although you get to keep a larger part of adsense with a Blogger blog, you have to spend a lot more time promoting and creating traffic.
Another powerhouse from Sunforged!
I 4 1 appreciate the reassurances.
Now riddle me thusly:
#1. What are the pitfalls of blogging v. your own website? #G Especially in regards to the Benjamins $$$ ???
Thanks 4 another elegant piece.
Ben
Excellent hub, and I enjoyed some of the comments that your hub provoked too. I agree with Amie Warren about having to spend quite a bit of time promoting Blogger blogs - although I do use Blogger, I prefer my self-hosted WordPress blogs, as they need far less promotion (so it seems) than Blogger blogs do.
I like the way you say that people should just get to it and get their own blogs - it's not that hard, and more people should make use of blogs.
Thanks for sharing the blog love, Sunforged! MM
I'm currently maintaining two blog sites and a hub page. Both blog and hub are complementary. I enjoy hub more because of its challenge along quality writing. Very detailed observation and inspirational tips here. Thanks.
Ohh, sorry, sunforged, I forgot to sign in. I was browsing for a good read until I found you. I realized it a little late, so here's my follow up. Thanks.
Another awesome hub, Thanks for allthe amazing advice on writing your own blog now i just need self confidence. Thanks a million!
Hi some good informations, thanks for sharing.
Superb information presented in a hub. The beauty of hubbing and blogging together can make a great team and benefit the writer in every possible way. Voted up sunforged!:)
Always a pleasure to read your hubs, I am lovin Blogger at the moment with all the new changes and trust me one can make a lot of money for nothing !
Great advice, thank you for writing this good Hub. :)
I think a lot of the issue here is that while you can do what you like at your own URL, when you are in a community post forum like this, they do control what you can say. My posts have as many links as I want on my URLs, Here they will bounce you if you link and have those links elsewhere on the net. I know, I just pulled the links off one of my hubs today to comply. Seems to defeat the purpose of using these "Web 2.0" sites, the reason we are doing this is for "link Juice" to our own URLs so I think there are in fact some rules....
Ken @EliKen
@ken - sure , this is why the article is not about HP
@most - if you havent tried your own blogs and sites yet , their is no better time than now
Very helpful. I've been looking into Blogger, and there was a lot of great information here.
very nice - thanks for sharing
@Skyfire, I agree completely, I use a Thesis/Yieldbuild combination also, on many WP sites.
Great info! This will provide a very solid tutorial for first-time bloggers. I was able to mine a few new tricks as well and am looking forward to putting them to the test.
A really great and detailed Hub, thumbs up.
I personally divide blogs into only two categories, business blogs and personal blogs.
I mean you can make money from both, but the business blog has something to offer, service, product, etc..
While personal blogs are more like diaries.
Again, both can be used to make money, but the business one needs to have a plan, while personal blog can be chaotic and still succeed :)
Hi sunforged,
Thanks for the tip regarding ad placement optimization by looking at how hubpages position ads.
Great hub! I just started using Blogger yesterday actually.
To my students:
Please review assignments at the end of the day. Make sure to complete them in time. All the work that is has been posted on this blog it is worth 25% of your grade. Remember to always stay on task. Please do not fall behind in any of the work because it is very difficult to catch up. If you have any questions about the work posted on this blog please let me know. The assignments for this week are: Complete chapter 1-3 on the math book. Work on all the exercises on the book. After you have completed the exercises on the book; do not forget to check your answers on the back of the math book. The time limit you have to finish your work is at the end of the day. Right after you are finish with your homework do not forget to study for the test on these same chapters. We will review the test on a day before so you have any idea what type of math problems we will be doing on the test. If you are having trouble understanding any particular problem, let me know so I can try to help you as soon as possible. After you have done the excercises and have taken the test. You can start studying for the following week's work. Here it is what you will working on next week. Read chapters 4-7 and do all the math problems posted there. Just follow the same directions at the beginning of this assignment to complete your work. Remember to study for the next week's test. Your will receive your grades on the following week. If you have any questions about the grades. Let me know so we can review the work and if we can find any mistakes we can rivised them. Just remember to stay on task!!
Beautiful and inspiring hub, my friend. I have a blog that I haven't paid much (that is, any) attention to, but you're really inspiring to get back to work with it and explore my options.
I love how you compare the merits of HubPages and Blogger in an easy-to-understand way. Kudos, rated up!
I have many blogs from boggers, how do yu get them to take off that is what I want to know and my blogs are not bad I must say?
Sunforged is swamped with comments! Arrgh, in Ireland Sunforged is pronounced SUNFARGED. That's all I've got to say about that.
Ben
A really nice hub. This helped me a lot!
Excellent tips. I agree that we should not be obsessed to get returns in all of our online presence. We must first write what we like, enjoy what we write. Too much focus on techniques and more techniques is tiring. Thanks.
I did a lot of reading when I first got started on my own blog recently and none of it was as easy to read or as helpful as this hub. I certainly would have done a few things differently. Thank you!
Nice hub. Some good information here.
nice info
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Nice easy to follow hub SF. I really like the way you related hubpages and blogging. It makes blogging looks so much easier. Also would like to thank you for listing the related sources, that would help a beginner who has just started blogging. Class stuff!!
Rated up and bookmarked.