Professional Blogging – Choosing the Right Platform
Everywhere you click on the web, you're bound to come across a blog or three. Blogs run the gamut of topics, everything from family news to celebrity gossip. No matter your topic, if you've ever considered the world of professional blogging careers, depending on your personal flair, there are many free, simple to use platforms like Joomla, WordPress, Posterous or Weebly to choose from.
Some platforms allow you to make minor changes to their existing templates or even incorporate your own template designs. The latter option is great for more advanced users especially those who understand HTML and CSS and have access to design software like Adobe Creative Suite. But if you are a newbie, no worries, blogs usually run on a WISYWIG – what you see is what you get – system that lets you input your text in the same fashion as you would in a word processing program.
Once you've found the right platform, understanding the basic anatomy of a blog will help you create a successful website. So, what should your skeleton look like? Here are the bare bones:
Platform
Unlike just a few years ago, there is a wide array of choices of platforms for blogging. Templates are fun and generally easy to navigate. Some of the more well-known platforms include Blogger and WordPress but newcomers to the arena like Posterous and Weebly are giving them a run for their money. Many offer tutorials on topics ranging from technical support to getting started and blogging tips. If you are new to the blogging world, choosing a platform with great support will definitely be a plus. All in all, determining the best platform for your needs is a key element in the overall success of your blog.
Admin Area (Back Door)
This is the dashboard that lets you control the look and feel of your blog. You'll enter with a username and password that you'll set up. In this area you'll find be able to make adjustments to your master settings, change your template, customize the layout of your template, add blog posts, add or remove pages, view blog comments, look at your traffic stats, add or remove widgets and if you've monetized your site you can view your earnings. You'll can also toggle between your dashboard and the edit mode of your blog so that you can get an idea of how your changes will appear when published. The admin dashboard design and components will vary between platforms but in general, they are simple to navigate.
Header
This is the area at the top of your blog template. This is where you place your blog name i.e. Deep Thoughts by Stewie Griffin – Depending on how interactive the template you choose is, you might be able to change color, dimensions, or add an image or logo. Once you get the hang of navigating in the backdoor or admin area of your blog, you can make changes to its appearance as necessary.
Sidebar
A sidebar is located either on the right or left side of each page on your blog. Its purpose is to move your reader to other sections within your blog with a fair amount of ease. The sidebar area can also be used for secondary navigation as well as interactive elements including the widgets like Twitter or Facebook feeds or your favorite YouTube video. Depending on the style template you choose, your blog may be one, two, or three columns. Understanding the template space will help you determine what you would like to see in your sidebar.
Footer
The footer of your blog is located, well, at the foot of your blog. This is where your reader will find a mirror of your navigation links, your copyright (highly recommended) and if your platform supports it your site map.
Site Map
The big picture: Site maps help search engines find your blog and index it for others to find. The even bigger picture: Since search engines can't process content built-in programs like Flash or Silverlight. Having a site map allows search engine crawlers to find and index this content.
Now that you understand the bare-bones, you'll be able to choose the best blog platform for your needs. Learn more about the major blog elements that help you create your content in Professional Blogging Careers – Blog Elements.