The primary option for establishing an online presence are either through free blogging sites or by creating your own business websites.
In today’s running world, People are more keen on digital facilities because it is important and crucial for both individuals and businesses. Whether you have any hobby or interest and looking to share your passion world wide or there is any professional aim to build his own personal brand. You can build your online either through a free blogging site or managing your own website. Both have their own pros and cons and they are suitable depending upon your goal and resources.
Lets understand in depth so that you can make the right decision for your online presence.
Key Considerations When Choosing Between Free Blogging Sites and Creating Your Own Website
Budget
Initial Costs: Starting your own blog site costs you a minimum of 99$ annually with digiHero essential Service Plan. If you opt for a popular service provider like godaddy, then it might cost you 300$ annually with Domain cost and VPS hosting.
Hidden Costs of Free Blogging Sites: Free blogging sites cost you long term when you are an established blog. They take a percentage of revenue and you are very much restricted with what you can and cannot do.
Purpose and Goals
Hobby vs Serious business: If you just want to try out blogging then you can try with any free blogging sites, but if you want a serious long term business then you must opt for your own website.
Short-term vs Long-term Goals: If you just want to try blogging for a few days then go for free blogging sites. If you want to be in the game for years, then opt for creating your own website.
Learning Curve
If you are not interested in learning about how websites work and how you can take advantage of great features WordPress offers then you must go for free blogging sites. WordPress is open source and has a robust community that educates and informs on best web management tips.
Customization and Flexibility
If you are okay with limited customization options and have no requirements of adding a lot of features in your site, then you must go for free blogging sites. On the other hand, if you want a lot of functionalities in the future, then creating your own website is the best option.
Future Growth and Scalability
Businesses built on free blogging sites are very difficult to scale and hence hinders long term growth.
Branding and Professionalism
No one takes free blogging sites as a serious brand. You don’t have your personalized Domain name and you are always at the mercy of company, you are starting your free website with
Free blogging sites affect business image and credibility. You are in fact considered as a learner or student and nobody would prefer to associate or have deals with you.
Now let’s look at both the options one by one, understanding their specifics and how to get ahead in them.
Free Blogging Sites
What are Free Blogging Sites?
Free blogging sites are online platforms that are free to use and you can create your own blog sites with multiple pages. Their accessibility is the most important feature of free blogging sites. By doing some clicks you are able to set up your blogs very quickly and easily. Also, it doesn’t require any upfront cost which is the aspect which attracts more people towards it.
These are designed for people who don’t want to invest in their online presence. It requires no technical background or web development skills. Yet in most of these cases you share the profit with the company you are starting your free blog site with.
Pros and Cons of Free Blogging Sites
Pros
- Cost efficiency: You don’t need to pay anything to setup your own website
- No requirement of Technical skills: You can simply set up your page by just drag and drop function. This feature is mostly provided by free blogging sites.
- Ease of Setup: These platforms offer interfaces which give step-by-step guidance to the user. There are pre existing templates you can use
- Maintenance and Technical Support: By using these platforms , there is no need to worry regarding handling of technical maintenance. Additionally, these platforms provide customer support by help centers.
Cons
- Limited Customization : It offers very basic and limited customisable options for your website. You cannot add features of your choice
- Ads and Branding: Some of these free blogging sites may display ads in your webpages which makes people less preferable to visit your website.
- Storage and Bandwidth Limitations: They impose a lot of restrictions on storage Space and bandwidth usage.
- SEO and Analytics Restrictions: They provide with less control over SEO ( Search engine optimization) practices and analytics tools. Which affects the visibility of search engine very badly
- Profit Sharing: They take a share of your revenues (up to 40% in many cases)
- Not suitable for long term serious business: If you have a long term vision of making a successful digital business then starting with a free blog site is the worst idea.
- Ownership : At the end of the day, you have no claim over the digital asset created by you. It can be deleted, or you may lose ownership without any prior notice.
Popular free blogging website
Here are the best options of free blogging sites
WordPress.com
Features.
- Designed with variety of customizable themes with a user friendly interface
- Presence of SEO tools with Built in social sharing facility
- Easy response in Mobile phones also.
- Included hosting with basic free plan, a subdomain and proper community support.
Blogger
- It provides basic customize option during blogging with a selection of templates
- Having a feature of free hosting with an additional blogspot subdomain
- Having a very simple and very straightforward interface.
- Google integration allows Google services accessible like AdSense and Analytics
Medium
- More seeking a minimalistic design focused.
- Easy accessible for audience and community support.
- No need for design or any technical skills and support.
- Highlight the Responses for reader engagement .
Creating your Own website
Creating your own business website is a great idea to start your digital business. It will build your digital acumen and help you understand how websites make money. It is very important while establishing your online presence, since you have all the control and features that can multiply your business very fast.
What Does Creating Your Own Business Website Entail?
Creating your own websites includes several steps, In which it starts from the registration of domain name, which is followed by choosing a hosting service, and then the last option remaining which is building the website itself. By using Content management systems(CMS) like WordPress and website builders, you can design and develop the site for yourself in a few days.
Key Components of Creating your own Blogging Website
- Domain Name It is the most unique address or identity of your own website which make your website differentiate from another one on the internet. Generally costs 12$ for the first year and 15$ for subsequent years.
- Hosting Services: A remote server to host your website. Don’t opt for a bad quality hosting service. It will hurt your website performance and you would shift to a higher plan. So better to opt for cloud or VPS hosting on day 1 itself.
- WordPress Installation and Setup: If you are a beginner it will take around a week to learn to set up wordpress but this will pay off in long term as you will understand how you can add features in your business site.
Pros and Cons of Creating Your Own Business Website
Pros
- Full Control and Customization: Creating your own business websites allows you to complete control on each aspect of your specific design. You can customize and plan your website according to your basics and needs.
- Branding and Professionalism: When you enhance and customize your domain. It results in increasing the business credibility. you can have your Personalized domain instead of using any platform subdomain.
- Better SEO Opportunities: Having full control and access on your website allows you to use and implement specific SEO strategies which help you to increase the ranking of your search engine.
- Scalability and Flexibility: As the increment in your needs, you can switch from your custom website to on your own websites to make growth and involvement in your business.
- Long Term benefits: Your website is an asset like a house. If you build it well you can earn passive income from it. You can also sell your website in the marketplace and earn a handsome amount from it.
Cons
- Cost : Creating and Maintaining your own website a few basic expenses like domain and hosting cost. Installing and setting up wordpress website is free but it requires some time and learning
Basic WordPress Knowledge: To maintain a website you need to have an understanding of how wordpress works. WordPress is like Google Drive for website development. It has plugins and themes that offer great features for free.
Case Studies
A fashion blogger started her journey on a free blogging platform and gained a significant following due to the platform’s ease of use and built-in features. She spent hours daily for one year building her blog on free sites. She gained good visitors but she was not able to monetize it well because of limited features and customization options.
When she realized this, she had already wasted a lot of time and effort. She restarted her own website on a high value domain and regrew her followership. She created a great website, added a lot of features, and did great SEO to build great traffic. Because of wordpress, she is able to build a proper sales funnel and monetize them well. That’s how she built a long term business out of her passion.
Conclusion
The choice between using free blogging sites or creating your own business website depends on your specific goals, budget, technical skills, and long-term plans. Free blogging platforms offer a hassle-free and cost-effective way to get started, making them ideal for personal blogs or testing the waters before committing to a more significant investment. However, for businesses or individuals seeking greater control, customization, branding, and scalability, investing in a custom website can be a worthwhile long-term strategy. By carefully considering factors such as budget, purpose, technical expertise, and future growth, you can make an informed decision that aligns with your needs and sets you up for success in the digital landscape