As any trained eye can see, I am now using Wordpress as my blogging utility. I converted over to Wordpress from Blogger a couple of weeks ago. It wasn't an entirely easy thing to do and I am still trying to figure Wordpress out, but I believe that I did the right thing. Shortly after I had set-up my blog under Blogger (blogspot), I started to believe that I had ventured in the wrong direction. All the serious bloggers out there were using Wordpress and most of them were using their own private domain or their blog was integrated into their company website. As I read more about how a blog should be used in an integrated social media program, it became obvious that I needed to start thinking about converting over to Wordpress. The clincher came when the
AlphaGraphics email server started rejecting all of my sent messages because I had a link to my blogspot blog in the footer of all my outgoing emails. I had the techies at
AlphaGraphics fix the problem, but the Spam software immediately shut me down the following day. I had to remove my blog link in my email footer in order to send out emails.
Blogger Spoiled Me
When people ask me about the difference between Blogger and Wordpress, the immediate comparison that I give them is that it is like the difference between a Mac and a PC. With Blogger, it was sign-up, pick a template and start blogging. With Wordpress, it was buy a domain name, rent some shared server space, download the Wordpress application onto my server, import my Blogger posts into Wordpress (which amazingly was the simplist part of the process), figure out what plug-ins I needed to even get back to where I was with Blogger, set-up my profile and then start writing. I believe that I have spent 3-4 times as much on the Wordpress set-up as I ever did on Blogger. With Wordpress I had to figure out what categories, tags and trackbacks were used for. With Blogger it was inherently obvious how to set up Feedburner, how to monetize the blog with Adsense and Amazon, how to work with the template HTML and how to set-up the Gadgets, sidebars and footers. With Wordpress everything is a plug-in so I have spent a considerable amount of time researching the plug-ins, dowloading them and then activating them.
The Real Reason
So, if Wordpress is so hard to implement, why change from Blogger to Wordpress? Exposure is the answer. I can already tell that my blog is receiving a lot more attention from the blogging community than it was previously. I am getting comments on posts, and I am seeing a lot more activity on Google Analytics. I will say that Wordpress does attract a lot of Comment Spam and I had to learn how to restrict my comments so that I do not get spammed (yet, another plug-in). And, like the PC, once you start figuring it out, there is a great sense of accomplishment. As I progress and build the site, my understanding of how the process works and a little about how the Internet works grows.
So, there you have it. I am now fully engaged with Wordpress and there is no going back. If you are just starting a blog and you just want a vehicle to write your thoughts on a frequent basis, then Blogger is for you. If you want to look like you are an expert in your field and you want to be noticed and you want to add a lot of bells and whistles, then Wordpress is for you.
You can always contact us at the following AlphaGraphics websites:
AlphaGraphics Mesa Printing and Marketing FaceBook Fan Page
AlphaGraphics Tempe Printing and Marketing FaceBook Fan Page
AlphaGraphics Phoenix Printing and Marketing FaceBook Fan Page
Twitter:
@steveadams291
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stepheneugeneadams
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