Our choice of blog platform depend greatly on the purpose and reason for starting a blog. There are so many best blogging platforms each delivering unique functionality.
How would you know the platform that is best for you among the numerous blogging platforms available on the web.
Below is a list of a few briefly highlighting their features, pros and cons to help you make a wise choice that would be suitable for your blogging experience when you want to start a blog either for business or personal.
WordPress– WordPress is content management system web software that operates on open source. It has indeed set the pace as one of the most popular blogging platforms that offer great, wonderful and numerous features. These features include hundreds of free templates or themes, thousands of plugins that add beauty and glamour to blog out look and functionality, easy to setup for web savvy individual and absolutely free.
The WordPress.org need paid facilities like a registered domain name and web host, but this package come with higher efficiency, better performance and good control. Business intended blogs (when you want to make money online) should run on this package while personal blogs may still consider WordPress.com, but limited in terms of control and package.
It does not allow upload of downloaded templates and plugins, advert placement on blog like Adsense, changing of fonts etc. With all these, WordPress is still by far the preferred blog software and one of the best blogging platforms.
Blogger– This is a customizable free blogging platform own by Google. It has a dashboard that come with inbuilt template designer interface used for optimum site architectural design purposes. Blogger offers great features like mobile enabled blog, nice widgets, money making opportunities from Google Adsense and other advertising channels and ease of quick search optimization and indexing of pages by Google search engine.
Also, a registered domain name can be hosted free on blogger with lots of eye-catching templates, making it look professional. But that does not guarantee access to full control, as in the blog is indirectly not yours. Blogger is limited in resources and control compare to WordPress blog, although an upgrade to paid hosting is possible where you can enjoy control.
Nevertheless, blogger is the best place to learn ‘how to blog’. It is simple to use, understand, manipulate and setup.
Typepad Micro– This offers micro-blogging facilities that integrates with Facebook. The blogging platform has professional design themes, mobile enable blog, widgets and requires less maintenance. It has both free and paid version, the cheapest is about 9 dollars/month. It could be use for blog business, but deficient in number of features and control.
Tumblr– This blog software seems to be photo and video blog because, features offer users enable social sharing and micro-blogging. This is a well integrated form of sharing empowered blog.
Posterous– Posterous was recently acquired by twitter, but offers great tools for social sharing of photo and contents across social networks like twitter, Facebook and Flickr. The platform is so flexible that it allows post variety entries from users via emails or mobile phone directly to their blog. It is easy to setup and free.
Drupal– Is a content management system powered by PHP, easy to setup and operates on open source. It’s add-on called contrib modules make drupal outstanding platform. This increases the blog functionality making it service oriented.
Movable Type– The free version is limited in features while the advance package provides more features tailored for business purposes. They are good for standalone blog and also have free plugins and professional themes.
Blog– Works just like advance or paid blogging platform with professional templates and fantastic plugins. The disadvantage is that though it offer free services but, the clustered adverts underscore it professional purpose.
On the good side, you can upgrade to paid version where all the adverts will be removed. It implies that you cannot generate any income from this platform since those ads are there by default.
Serendipity– Is a free open source content management system powered by PHP application. It is easy to maintain. The ‘no need to edit code’ of more than 20 plugins that enhance blog functionality makes it easy to install by just a click.
Jux– Essentially, Jux is good for visual content sharing such as photos, artworks, designs, etc. It is free and simple to setup.
TextPattern– This is a free content management system with great feature offering as much as WordPress, but limited in hosting requirement. So, you’ll have to install it on your web host server.
OnSugar– Is a free blog software that allows you to share content and even make money from it. Highly flexible and simple to use. It features include Facebook account log-in, unique blog build, access to Getty images and the use of custom domain.
Weebly– Has cloud base hosting infrastructure and come with hundreds of customizable, professional looking themes. Features include, photo gallery, slideshow, video and audio player, form builder, free domain hosting with no default adverts.
BlogEasy– Allows quick syndication of content, feed site content from other blog, allows multiple authors and photo upload. It can also be monetized but limited in look and feel.
Blogetery– Is a WordPress powered blog that has three categories of blogging packages; the free, the pro with adverts and the photo without advert accounts. It also has good plugins, great themes and can embed widgets and upload podcast.
LiveJournal– Is also an open source community blogging platform with wonderful commenting system.
Blogsome– A platform blogger can simply air opinion, personalize blog outlook and very easy to setup and it’s free.
Freeblogit– Is one of the free blogging platforms powered by WordPress and has great features for simple blogging purposes. The premium package can be a wise start for business needs.
BlogDrive– A free blog simply meant to service and relate with friends, family and community of network.
Thoughts– Great sharing tool for educating, exposing and relating opinion and thoughts across social networks on diverse set of topics or niche. It’s free and log-in can be done via Facebook or twitter account.
Blog.co.uk– Just like LiveJournal, blog.co.uk is a discussion platform and sharing of contents among a community. It allows for design and personalization of blog setup with customization of themes and voice or writing structures.
Aeonity– Is a free blog hosting community with no adverts. The template may not be up to date, but sure way to personalize and brand your blog to look great while sharing content with dating and love intents.
Expression Engine– A paid content management system that offers brilliant features that can make your blog stand out in the crowd. This platform provides great flexibility, security and good support services. Their themes are top notch.
SquareSpace– Paid platform for blog and website creation with world class features, themes, plugin and you can try it free.
Upsaid– A social community base environment and structure whose member’s username reflect on their blog URL e.g. www.upsaid.com/username. Apart from the basic blogging tools, they offer member Guestbook, web poll and hit counter for effective blogging experience.
UserLand– Providing web publishing services since 1997 and feature as a good platform for content sharing among students and also feature manila, a product used by schools and school districts to create and manage websites and intranets.
tBlog– Is a community blog, providing matching network base and banner-less blogging.
SourceForge– A way of finding, creating and publishing open source software absolutely free.
Geeklog– Is an open source content management system that operates on PHP and supports MySQL, postgreSQL and MSSQL.
Blosxom– Easy to setup blog software with minimal requirements. Can make use of virtually every operating systems and servers from Macs, OS X and Apache or windows XP and IIS.
b2 CafeLog– A WordPress classy news and weblog tool dynamically created for micro and macro blogging purposes.
21Publish– Is a milt-user integrated blogging platform that has the capacity of hosting many blogs. It is good for community membership like forums.
This is rather a long list, but I hope you’ll have more than enough choice to choose from. Better still, you now have a glimpse of available blogging platforms.
You may use search engine to find more if none of the above suit what you what or contact us if you need help in setting up a blog for your business or brand.
Image Credit: Managewp
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i think it should have more educational articles like yours, so everyone would be able to learn something new. mestreseo
I like your articles so much. please try to post them more frequently. lista de email
Thanks and well noted. But, I’ve programed my blogging schedule to at least once per week.
i always learn something new from your post!