Stepping off the Ledge
Let me know if this sounds familiar:
“Honey, I think we need to track this new adventure we are on called marriage. I’m going to start a blog.”
“Okay”
“Do you think anyone will read it?”
“I’ll read it. Maybe your mom & sister.”
“Wonder how I do that?”
“Google it.”
“My friend said she uses Blogspot & I should blog about crafts too.”
“Well there you go.”
“What should my blog name be?”
and so on….and so on…
Sound Familiar?
I set up my Blogger account, chose a name, and started blogging.
I never thought anyone besides III, my mom & sister would be reading. At the time I knew nothing about HTML & to be honest still couldn’t tell you what it stands for. All I know is that I’ve worked really hard at creating my little piece of the internet & try to continue inspiring my AMAZING readership that now includes a few more than III, mom, & sister.
And now a year into really taking this blogging thing seriously I am hearing rumblings of WordPress & all it’s glory :o)
There are posts saying “if you are a serious blogger you need to make the switch.”
So, am I serious about blogging???
I don’t really know, so I did some googling and compiled a list of questions to ask myself.
1. Is blogging more than a hobby? YES
2. Do I generate an income? YES, a little bit
3. Do I wish I earned more of an income? YES
4. Do I want my blog to continue to grow and reach a larger audience? YEP
5. Am I willing to make an investment to boost traffic & grow that audience? Depends on how much, but YES
As you can see, after a little assessment, it looks like WordPress might be in my future. But I’m scared!
{source}
So, I’m looking for advice & suggestions.
Do you use WordPress?
Did you do the switch yourself or hire out help?
Were you scared? (Because I might be…)
Who is your host?
Are you glad you made the move?
Any and all other advice & encouragement is welcomed!
Because I might be stepping of the ledge…
I have really waffled on switching, so am curious to see what you end-up doing. I just got a custom domain name, but would really like to “own all of it” like Gwen said. Keep us posted!
I started out on WordPress so I never had to make the jump, but I am hosting at bluehost and am very happy about it.
A while back I noticed some feature, can't remember if it was through Jetpack (an addon for WP) or WP itself that imports all your data from other blogging platforms. You should research it, but it's definitely worth it.
Shirley said:
Please check if we can make comments by e-mail. I get upset if I can't offer a comment. I have started to drop those blogs that I can't comment. I love your blog, you do a great job and I enjoy reading all of them. Thanks for sharing. Sorry I can't offer any help since I don't have a blog but I have gotten so many ideas from reading them.
I don't know about WP…I haven't really jumped on the bandwagon. I see lots of successful blogs on blogger…Vintage Revival, House of Smiths, etc…so I'm good staying on blogger for now. Annnd yes, I'm with Heather if I ever switched I'd definitely hire someone to do it for me…way too scary. Good luck. :)
Yes! I LOVE WordPress. It was the most liberating feeling leaving Blogger. I own everything now (yes, and that comes with the responsibility, but it's been great.)
I did take a few months to study HTML and Css. Css is the language for styling out your site…
I moved myself and my friend, Jane from Jane's Adventures in Dinner. It went very smoothly and I'm so excited to be helping other people, now!
If you have any questions about moving or would like to hear more about my experience and the framework/child theme I chose give me a holler! I'm here for you, girl…
{Hyper Text Markup Language…hehehe}
Good for you Laura Beth! I haven't made the leap just yet and when I do I would want someone to do it for me – that's too scary for me!