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In this article, I’d like to talk about the blogging platforms you can use to host your website. This is one of the most important decisions you will make in your blogging career.

Especially if you are not tech-savvy and dread the idea of having to switch your host and transfer your blog. There are many blogging platforms out there and this image below sums up pretty well what you can expect from each one of them.

It is really up to you to find the one that fits your needs. I personally use Squarespace and I will break you down the reasons why.

1. Simple user interface

I am not a web developer and I don't want to be spending hours and a lot of money to build my website.
What I want is an easy to use platform on which I can upload my photos and write articles as simple as possible.
Squarespace is a content management system or CMS. It is a software application or set of related programs that are used to create and manage digital content.
In simple words, no coding knowledge is needed, all you need to do is drag and drop the content and the rest is done for you.

2. Custom Squarespace templates

Are you struggling to find the right design for your website?

Websites are usually tailor-made. The content needs to be relevant and match your style. That's the reason why I love the custom Squarespace templates.

They are divided into categories (Photographers, bloggers, online shops, etc...).

All you need to do is to select the best Squarespace template you like, click install and customise the content as you like.

And if for whatever reason you would like to change the look of your website, you can select a new template and install it in just a couple of clicks. You won't lose any of your content!

Since I started blogging back in 2015, my style has changed a lot and I changed the look of my websites at least 4 times without any coding knowledge!

I believe these are the easiest way for new bloggers to get started and they provide the best Squarespace templates that are very user friendly and easy to install.

Here is a list of the best Squarespace template for a blog

• Rally

• Skye

• Brine

• Tudor

3. Logo

As a brand you will need a logo. You have several options, either ask for a freelancer to design your logo as I mentioned yesterday or do it yourself.

If you decide to do it yourself, Squarespace has a dedicated section on their website for you to create your logo and have an idea of what it would look like on a business card, clothing or other products.

You can get access here.

4. Domain name, hosting and professional email address

You can improve name recognition by replacing your xyz.squarespace.com URL with a custom domain.

You can get a free domain with an annual plan, purchase a domain with them, or connect one you already own. The choice is yours.

They also offer an email address with your domain name.

If you want to look professional, you will need one. An xyz@yourdomain.com email address increases credibility and creates a seamless brand experience for everyone who interacts with you.

5. Mobile friendly

With Squarespace, every design automatically includes a unique mobile experience that matches the overall style of your website, so your content will look great on every device, every time.

If desired, you can disable the mobile view from Website Manager. Having a mobile optimised website will increase your chances of getting at the top of the search results on Google. 

6. Multi-device Access

As a travel blogger, I am always on the go and do not always have access to my laptop.

Squarespace application allows you to manage your website on the go from your mobile device.

This way, I can still write and edit the content of my future blog posts from my phone or tablet and publish it or take care of the page layout on my laptop later once I arrive home or at my hotel.

Their apps also offer analytics so that you can track the number of visitors on your website or the number of sales you made directly from their application.

7. SEO - Search Engine Optimisation

As a blogger SEO is the most challenging thing you would need to take care of if you want to be found online. There are two types of SEO.

On page SEO -  You take care of making each post something people will find on google by using the most researched keywords for your blog posts. But one good thing to know is that Google ranks pages of your website and not your whole blogs. So you want to make sure each page has a targeted content for what you want it to be found on google.

Off-page SEO - This is the thing that separates bloggers. You need to create back-links so that publishers or other bloggers would link your content to redirect to your blog/page/content.

Most blogging platforms would advise you to add plugins to your blog to increase your chances of being discovered.

But Squarespace takes care of your on page SEO so that you do not have to worry about it and can focus on improving your brand awareness and collaborate with other influencers in your niche.

8. Marketing

When it comes to marketing you will need to set up several tools like an autoresponder, social media integrations and your website analytics. Most blogging platforms won’t offer all of these under one roof and you will have to use third party applications to cover these needs.

But guess what? Not with Squarespace!

They launched their integrated email marketing platform in Summer 2018.

What about Social Media sharing? With Squarespace and their social integration, you can update your content once to share it simultaneously across your social media channels!

Also, as a blogger the analytics play a big role in order to know what articles are popular or not, how many visitors and page views you have per month, how many sales you have made, etc… All of these metrics will be essential once you will want to start collaborating with brands to earn some money!

No need to be tech-savvy to install a Google analytics tag on your website. Everything is provided so that you can focus on what matter for your business!

Finally, Squarespace released in November 2018 their mobile application that allows you to edit your website on the go!

This was a huge update I personally was waiting for a long time. Their customer service is one of the best, very reactive and always ready to go the extra mile to help.

9. Is Squarespace free

This is a common question I receive. No, Squarespace does not have a free plan. And even if it would be, most of the features you’d need to customise your blog would not be available.

If you decide to build a website, I’d suggest you have a budget allocated for it as a business expense. We are talking about the main platform you will use to run your business and promote your products and services.

However, it is affordable.

Prices start from 11€/month if you decide to take the annual plan which I’d suggest for the reason mentioned earlier.

I personally use the Business subscription as it allows me to have an eCommerce store to sell unlimited digital products and also get access to premium features that I need to run my blog.

As I said, it is an investment to make in the beginning, but by the time you will earn money from your blog, you will be thankful to have made that decision.

If you’d like to try squarespace, you can use my referral link here to get started!

Squarespace is a great all-in-one platform in my opinion as it answers all my needs and match with my lifestyle.

I do not know much about the other platforms but I heard great things about WordPress, even though you need to be a bit techie to learn how to use all the plugins.

I would advise you to find the blogging platform that matches your lifestyle rather than looking for the best one on the market to use.

Which blogging platform are you going to choose?

If you are getting started with blogging and would like a guide to help you set up your blog, find ways to monetise it and have a marketing strategy to promote your content online in front of the right audience, I got you.

I have created a FREE 7-day blogging Bootcamp for beginners where I guide you step by step with daily tasks to complete.

By the end of the 7 days, you will have a complete understanding of what is required to run a successful blog online and a defined marketing strategy to help you monetise your blog from the start.

Just click here or on the image below to get access to my 7 days blogging Bootcamp for free!

If you enjoyed reading this article, make sure to like it, it actually makes a difference. And if you know anyone that could benefit from it, do not hesitate to share the word.