What Blogging Platform Is Right for My Business Website?

Writing, Editing & Publishing

Ok – you’re convinced of the SEO and online marketing benefits of blogging and your next step is choosing what platform to use. Deciding on the right blogging platform can turn into a full-time project, especially if you’ve never had a blog before. Each platform comes with its benefits and drawbacks.

Here we look at three of the biggest – their pros and cons and how easily they can be integrated into your existing business website.

1. WordPress

At the top of the list is WordPress, which offers a nice, easy-to-use blogging platform that anyone can use with a bit of practice. Even if your business website isn’t based on WordPress, you can easily create a subdomain for the blog and install the WordPress software. There are thousands of WordPress themes to choose from, many of which are available for free. As long as you have your own domain and server, everything you have to do is download the software, copy and paste it in the subdomain folder, and you’ll get your blog set up quickly.

Pros:

• Very easy to use CMS
• Thousands of themes available
• Many plugins available for customisation
• Easy to integrate with your website’s current CMS

Cons:

• Coding and design skills may be needed

2. Blogger

Unlike WordPress, Blogger can be a little more difficult to use and customise, and unless you take the time to get familiar with the CMS, then you’ll find this task pretty difficult. However, since Blogger is owned by Google, you get easier access to tools like AdSense and Analytics, not to mention that the platform makes it relatively easy to manage your content.

Pros:

• Owned by Google (possibly better visibility in search engines)
• Easy to manage your content
• Easy access to Google tools such as AdSense and Analytics

Cons:

• Coding and design skills are a must
• Fewer themes as compared to WordPress
• Interface is difficult to use
• Doesn’t provide plugins like WordPress

3. Tumblr

While Tumblr is indeed one of the best blogging platforms out there, it’s geared more towards microbloggers rather than companies that want to create long-term content. There is no cost associated with getting Tumblr installed as your CMS, but you may find the platform a little bit difficult to use, and not as intuitive as WordPress.

Pros:

• Growing community of microbloggers
• Free to use
• Over 1,000 themes to choose from
• Easy to manage your content

Cons:

• Limited number of available themes
• Limited plugin options
• Interface is not very intuitive
• Difficult to integrate it into an existing website

Make sure to research your available options carefully before making your choice. Usually, WordPress is the most common choice when it comes to starting a blog, and thanks to the many plugins you can install, you can turn your blog into an interactive place for your audience.