This blog is on how to use Tailwind focusing on it’s dashboard. When one first starting using Tailwind’s free 100 unlimited time span one can feel very lost. There are steps that Tailwind app walks on thru it. Like many new bloggers I have sign up for initially on their free service as I read … Read more
This is a blog post on how I got from 0k to 180k monthly views on Pinterest with the help of using Tailwind. I have started blogging not long ago only about 5 months ago. Along the way, I have learned about few things. One of it is traffic to my blog. I have tried … Read more
Yes sounds easy does it? ‘Making hidden vertical pins visible on Pinterest share. All I can say it took me nearly 2 days to make sure that all of the hidden vertical pins that I have created is visible on Pinterest share. Hidden vertical pins. I have recently created a post on hiding vertical pins … Read more
Hiding pinterest pins in blogs it is quite easily done if it is done properly. Why hide your pins? Do you need to hide your pins? Oh yes you do. Just have a look at the top pinners. Just click on their ‘Pin it’ button. Here is an example Think Creative Collective blog Lots of pins hidden … Read more
I use Canva as it’s easy and pretty straightforward to use.https://www.canva.com/ In order to use Canva you to sign up to set up an account. Either by using an email, google mail or Facebook account. There are options to use Canva either on the desktop or mobile app. Below is the screen snapshot of the Pinterest designs I have created on Canva.
But there are limited preset vertical Pinterest pins designs. For example, if you want to change the colour of fonts or background colours. Once you are happy with the colours then you can the texts that is preset. Then just save it to be posted directly to Pinterest or onto your blog. Once it’s posted don’t forget to link up to your blog and write a description about it.
If you post this vertical Pinterest pin onto a blog it does take up a bit of room on the blog. As a result, it can take a while for your blog to load as well. Something to consider.
However one couldn’t embed if one is blogging on wordpress.com. However, by having a blog hosted by wordpress.com, the share Pinterest buttons are all present on your blog and pictures. In this means that any images of sizes can be saved on Pinterest.
For those on self-hosted blogs on WordPress, one can embed the vertical pins onto the blog. This is good for popular pins. I will do a detailed write up on how to embed a pin onto a blog.
When I started blogging I had two different websites. Along the way I found out it is not easy to run two separate websites. Therefore here am I writing on how I changing domain name. I wanted to change as my blog grew I had dressmaking blogs on http://cityediblegarden.com it just doesn’t sound corect. My blog name is makergardener on the title of the website and on all of my social platforms. It just makes sense to change domain name.
When I began blogging about 4 months back I started using the free wordpress subdomain then I upgrade so that I have my own domain name. I bought my own domain name separately from names.co.uk for £6/ year and I got free custom email (it’s info@makergardener.com) as well. I could stay on my current wordpress.com tariff but it means paying more for another name and lots of add on’s like email address, etc. I am now on self hosted using wordpress.org software and it’s fabulous. I am not on any of big web hosting names as my other half bought a virtual server and install wordpress software on it. Here is more information about it Hosted and self-hosted domains
changing domain name
Here are some of things that one needs to do when changing domain name. I only can speak on wordpress as it is the only blogging software I have use.
Redirection plugin
Now I am trying to use redirection plugin to redirect posts from cityediblegarden to makergardener. As one could have change the domain name on most stuff but some it is beyond my control. Like pinterest pins that have been repin elsewhere I can’t change it to my new domain name.
There is also error 404 message on some themes where one can configure messages. So that one can to let everyone that the domain has change.
Social media
On facebook, twitter, instagram social media platforms it is very easy to change domain name. However on pinterest it only allows one domain on your account it’s not that difficult to verify your domain again. As I said it’s the pins that have been repin is the trouble.
Followers
I am only about 2-3 months into blogging I haven’t generated much genuine followers. I have out that on wordpress.com one can easily migrate your followers to your new domain. Just go on the ‘Settings’ then ‘Discussion’ at the bottom of the page you should see ‘Migrate followers from another site’. This is using Jetpack plugin on wordpress.com However, one can’t do it not on wordpress.org wp-admin panel. There are plenty of plugins around to try if not speak some who has a bit of technical knowledge to redirect your website.
Do a backup before the change
Back up all of your work on the old domain before the change. There is export and import buttons on wordpress.org I have export all of old domain content to the new one. The contents will have a new domain on them. So be mindful of links to the old domain in the blog posts. As they will need changing to the new domain address.
In a nutshell changing domain name is like moving home. You need to inform everyone that the domain name is changing.
When I first started blogging, I used the free service from wordpress.com. I found it very easy to get a blog up and running, in less than 30 minutes I was online. Post a few nice pictures and write something about yourself for home page. You are good to go.
Then after a week into blogging, I upgraded to wordpress.com personal plan so that I could have my domain name for my blog. It does not look professional to have a domain that includes the name wordpress.com. Also, it feels pretty precarious to not own the domain that points to my blog and rely upon a free service that may be subject to change or withdrawal in the future. As you are actually a subdomain of wordpress.com website.
Backup your blog
Make sure you export/ backup your blog frequently. I do it all the time even I own my own domain as my blog can hacked, or server down for whatever reason. Doing the backup yourself gives you the comfort of knowing your blog can be recovered if need be.
After two months into blogging I found the WordPress personal plan quite restrictive because I couldn’t add any videos, use Yoast SEO app or install any plugins that are not in their web design themes template. My permalinks all got a date on it which I can’t remove. With the limited customisation available for my blog, it just doesn’t look good enough. WordPress offer a solution with more features, but it means upgrading to a Premium plan, which in my opinion costs too much for an amateur like me.
I am planning to change to either a self hosted service which supports WordPress software or buy a domain name separately and host it myself as my other half has got his own website. Owning a domain name is a great advantage because if you don’t like the web host (blogs take too long to load you lose your viewers interest very soon, or hidden add ons that they don’t tell you when you sign up) you can move you site. You can do this by moving the hosting provider, or using an Internet service called DNS, which means you can just point the DNS entry to where your site have moved host.
Cost implications
There are places where you can just buy a domain name without having to sign up for web hosting. It just open up your options as you are able to install plugins and videos. I bought one recently it only cost me £5.99/ year (incL VAT) plus a free email address (yup ending with your domain) compared to other names around on averages charges around £15.00/ year (incl. VAT). Do have a look around.
Once you got a domain name you need a minimum of a web host to map the domain you bought onto the web. There are many around that says that they supports WordPress. WordPress software is free to download from wordpress.org, which something to keep in mind. But do you really need one that supports wordpress? No is the answer, there are other options. So do have a look at web hosts that have got either mySQL version 5.6, PHP version 7.2 or greater, Maria DB 10.0 or higher as these are recommendations that supports wordpress software installation.
WordPress
WordPress and the similar products make blogging easy, but all one really needs is a reliable host for webpages, with minimal downtime, support that provides fast page load times. There are also free web hosts around, but sometimes you get what you pay for – e.g. no anti spam, limited support, ads placed on your blogs and limited space. They do offer an upgrade service for a bit more. Most do come with wordpress software installation as well. But we then come full circle back to wordpress.com…
But there are many more options for web hosting, if you want to roll your sleeves up and get technical, you can even get a virtual server and put whatever you want on it and have a lot of control. My other half does this, but it’s not for the faint hearted and adds a layer of complexity when all you want to do is blogging without becoming a system administrator.
When I started my blogging journey, I found many guides on blogging on hosted and self hosted were just click-bait and ad laden, trying to sell services. Makes one wonder doesn’t it? Something to keep in mind.
