It’s been 15 days (from the date I’m writing this post) ever since I made the switch from Blogger to WordPress (was it really that short time ago?) and I think it’s about time I make a post whether I prefer Blogger or WordPress.
Blogger Server Errors: These are the most annoying; I go to my Blogger homepage and it gives me some kind of server error. I have to refresh at least five times for it to show me my Blogger homepage.
I Can’t Customize My Blogger Template: Yes, it’s as horrible as it sounds. I can’t change the color of the post title color, the post divider color, font size, everything, unless I go directly into the HTML and edit this myself. Sure, I can change my Blogger template to a new one, but within a day, it becomes uncustomizable again. I’m not the only one having this problem, a simple Google search would reveal more people with this problem – and all of them unresolved.
Changing Widget Positions: I’m sure all of you have experienced this at least once: You want to move your widget over to the other side of your blog, but when you try to, the whole widget screen gets highlighted! Not to mention, there’s no way to unhighlight it unless you refresh the page.
GFC Problem: I couldn’t follow or unfollow anyone using GFC. Luckily, I found a solution to this problem (just delete all your cache, history, etc. up to the very beginning of your browser and everything should be fine.)
Fear: Did you know that if you use Blogger, Google can delete your blog at anytime without warning? Yeah, that’ll freak out most of us.
Losing GFC Followers: I was worried about losing all my GFC followers once I moved to WordPress, but I found an amazing guide that actually lets you keep all your GFC followers. You can check out the lovely guide here. It really works, my GFC gadget on a WordPress blog is enough proof.
Hosting Cost: Some people think that hosting is really expensive, around $200-$250 a year. For the hosting that I picked, it’s definitely not true. I decided on Bluehost because everyone else seem to be using it, and it’s only $6.95 per month plus $9.99 for keeping your domain identity safe, which totals up to about $82 for one year. Please note, you have to pay the full amount at once when you place your order. Oh, and I also didn’t find this out until it was too late, Bluehost gives you a free domain for the first year, but every year after that, you have to pay an addition $15. Yeah, they never put that in the small print either.
[Important Hint: I strongly suggest buying one year of hosting first. Yes, the hosting company may have three year deals that are even cheaper than the one year deals (I know Bluehost has these), but if you wound up having issues with your hosting company, you’ll have to wait three long years to change your host (and risk losing your money) or you can wait one year, then be able to change your host without losing any money.]
Messing Up: This is probably my number one worry, I will mess this up and lose all my content and my work would all be for nothing. I didn’t.
When I decided to make the switch from Blogger to WordPress, I was super nervous. Before I could question myself even more, I did it.
Here’s the thing, I was well-prepared. I had six tabs open, four word tutorials and two video tutorials that taught me how to do everything step by step. If I messed up, then really, shame on me.
It took me three days to do everything, not including formatting all my posts back (if you use tons of HTML in your Blogger posts, you’ll have to reformat some of it on WordPress).
[Important Hint: If you’re thinking of hiring someone to make the move for you, it’s not worth it. Well, unless they are charging you $20 for it. Otherwise, you should do it yourself; it’s pretty easy if you know where to look. There are tons of online resources to help you and I’ll be glad to give you advice.]
Now the real fun begins. Did I tell you that I love making lists? This is why this whole post is in a list format by the way.
Customization: Without a doubt, WordPress is the winner here. It’s so easy to change your appearance around, put whatever widget you want wherever, while in Blogger, when you try to move a widget, 90% of the time, the entire widget screen is highlighted and you can’t move the widgets around anymore. If you also want to delete a widget, unlike Blogger, WordPress has a section where you can keep that widget just in case you want it back.
Themes: WordPress also have a lot more professional looking themes than Blogger. Just look at my Blogger blog here and compare it to my current WordPress blog; there is absolutely no doubt which one will win. Of course, this all depends on what theme you want.
Time to Write + Publish A Post: Previewing your draft, saving your draft, and spell check take a lot longer to use on WordPress than on Blogger. However, publishing a post takes about the same time to do.
Scheduling Posts: I’ve heard that Blogger sometimes fails to publish a schedule or the scheduled post gets published ahead of time. However, in WordPress, schedules never get published ahead of time, but sometimes, your scheduled post won’t be published on the scheduled date. That happened to me already once, and boy, was I surprised.
Spam: WordPress gets A LOT more spam comments than Blogger. I get about ten spam comments a day. But have no fear, there’s a plugin, Akismet, that captures nearly all spam for you. Blogger, meanwhile, doesn’t have much spam protection.
CommentLuv: Even though Blogger doesn’t have CommentLuv, I just have to include CommentLuv here. It’s a WordPress plugin that lets the commenter pick one of their last ten posts to share with their comment. No more need to put up “My STS” links or “My TTT” links.
Overall, I definitely prefer WordPress better than Blogger. It’s more customizable, professional, and hosting doesn’t cost that much.
Have more questions? Feel free to email me or tweet me them! Or just do it the easy way, comment below. I’ll be glad to help you! :D<3
I agree with you! WordPress is definitely better and I love being able to customize as much as I want, any WAY I want. That’s what I hated about blogger, it restricted me too much. Also, I feared they would delete my blog for no reason. Great post! I’m glad your switch went well. You were definitely prepared. :)
Nancy @ Tumbling Books recently posted…Review: Girl, Stolen
Yep, I can go all crazy with my design and there would be no consequences! Well, except it becoming ugly LOL.
Yeah, I was so nervous that I would do something wrong. I would have used twenty different sites to help me if that helped. :D
Kelly recently posted…Stacking the Shelves [28]
Whoa, Kelly. This post is so helpful and honest! :) These are the exact reasons I want to make the switch to WordPress, especially the “fear” part. As for the GFC widget working on WordPress that is a total shocker! I am sure many had no idea that could work. However, aren’t you afraid that it’s too unreliable? Like one day WordPress would find a way to stop it from working?
Oh, and that cost myth. You already cleared that up for me on Twitter. I really thought it would be $200+. I also see that people offer free hosting for book blogs, but I don’t want to be too trusting. Bluehost is definitely my top choice
Thanks again for sharing your wealth of knowledge! I will seriously be bugging you more next month or so. I even have my new name already. :)
Christine recently posted…Book Review: Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys
Thanks Christine! :D
And yeah, I’m afraid about the GFC widget thing, which is why I’m mainly focusing on Bloglovin’ now. GFC is just there to show people that I’m not THAT noob. ;D
Yeah, you can never trust anything on the web that’s free. Free stuff mostly has bad quality and bad service.
And no problem, bug me anytime! :D
Kelly recently posted…Stacking the Shelves [28]
Completely agree. We made the switch almost a month ago. Had a few problems here and there but nothing major. Overall, I am really glad we switched.
Kate recently posted…The Hero’s Guide to Storming the Castle Artwork Reveal + Giveaway
Yeah, I’m really glad for my switch too. WordPress is so much better than Blogger once you get used to it.
Kelly recently posted…Stacking the Shelves [28]
Wow, it sounds like you had a lot more issues with Blogger than I ever did; I don’t remember ever having trouble customizing my template or re-arranging/deleting widgets, but I can see how that would be a HUGE motivation to make the switch.
While it took a little while to get used to, I definitely prefer WordPress. The only reason I paid someone to help me was because I had paid for a custom blog design and wanted it to move over with me.
Kelly recently posted…Vuto: A Kickstarter Project
Yeah, Blogger was a nightmare. >__< As soon as I thought it couldn't get any worse, something even worse happens. And yeah, if I already had a custom design on Blogger, I would definitely pay the person to help me move it onto WordPress. Kelly recently posted…Book Review: Twice Tempted – Jeaniene Frost
I have been thinking about making the switch lately, so I may just have to do it. I might wait until December or January though to actually do it. I’m glad that you suggested making the switch by yourself, because I was unsure if I would be able to. I’m also glad that GFC followers can be kept! Can pageviews be kept, or do those have to start over once you switch?
-Krystianna @ Downright Dystopian
Krystianna recently posted…Radical Read-Along: Unearthly!
Sadly, pageviews can’t be kept. However, Blogger pageviews are not accurate anyways, so… :l
Kelly recently posted…New Blog Design + A Giveaway
Oh, okay. I think I might definitely have to make the switch then. Thanks! :)
Krystianna recently posted…Radical Read-Along: Unearthly!
Hi Kelly, I know this is a late reaction (I’m just new to the blogging world) but I am so glad to read this post. I am planning to transfer to WP this coming August-September and I’m already driving myself mad whether the cost of hiring someone to transfer my posts would be worth it. I know that I still have a few posts compared to the others who transferred to WP but then, I wouldn’t want to loose them. So this process really scared me off because I’m not sure if I can do it or not. But your post gave me a boost of confidence to do it by myself.
About Bluehost hosting, are you happy with it? Because it’s one of my options to host my WP blog.
Thanks for this post by the way. :D
Charlotte recently posted…Keepin’ up with the Joneses Part 1 {Let’s Discuss 2}
Hi Charlotte! And welcome to the blogging world! :D<3
You can definitely transfer posts yourself. It's so easy - just download WordPress, get a plugin, click, and ta-da!
Hmm, as for Bluehost, I honestly recommend you choose a better host. Bluehost has been down for me and my friends for at least 3 times and it's been less than a year. If you need help choosing a host, check out Ashley's post here. It’ll help you A LOT.
No problem! (;
Kelly recently posted…Top Ten Favorite Beginnings/Endings In Books
Thank you so much for that reply, Kelly. I’ll take your word for Bluehost. It’s a shame though because there have been good recommendations about it but the issue about that free domain is somewhat unacceptable.
I’ve already checked Ashley’s post and was quite glad that she also listed RFE hosting there which apart from Bluehost is also an option of mine.
Thanks again.
Charlotte recently posted…Keepin’ up with the Joneses Part 1 {Let’s Discuss 2}
Yeah, I didn’t know about the domain thing either, until a month after I signed up for Bluehost. It’s in no way a “free” domain.
And if I can choose a host now, I’ll definitely choose RFE hosting. It sounds A LOT better than Bluehost.
Kelly recently posted…Stacking the Shelves [43]