Hi All I run a business / website selling IT services in the Scotland, UK area. I have read a bit about blogging and wanted to know how I can drive more traffic to my site via my blogg. I currently use Dreamweaver to create my pages however my design / html skills arent that great. So I want to write about IT problems and solutions and have people comment on them and maybe put some adwords down the side. Is this possible in Dreamweaver or am I better using something else. All info appreciated.
Hi, I suggest that you sign up for a free blog at WordPress.com (very powerful and easy to use blog blog platform. You won't be able to insert AdSense there, however.) or at Blogger.com (less powerful but you can insert AsSense). Writing posts is as easy as writing text in Word. It, literally, takes minutes to start blogging.
Hi There I just realised that my hosting has blog add-ins, both wordpress and B2Evolution. So i think i'll go with the B2Evolution one as it supports Adsense. Also my main website url is www.lanarkshireitservices.co.uk and i want my blog to be www.lanarkshireitservices.co.uk/blog cheers
I didn't try B2Evolution, but I still suggest WordPress. It is more powerful and you can find more help on it. And you can use AdSense in a self-hosted WordPress blog (it is wordpress.com-hosted free blogs where can't insert AdSense). However in both cases, you'll need to paste your AdSense scripts into the blog's PHP templates. Or you can find some AdSense-ready WordPress themes where you only need to enter your AdSense Id.
A blogging platform like Wordpress will certainly do what you need. I'm from Lanarkshire myself (Wishaw). If you need any pointers just pm me
Actually, you can put adsense with Wordpress - it depends on the template you use. The default template you get may not be able to give you an adsense page, but there are "adsense ready templates" for wordpress - and of course for B2Evolution, though my experience with it is comparatively lesser. I found one page like that here. Does your host use something like Fantastico - the blog add-ins you mentioned - to help you install wordpress? If yes, you just have to put in the directory install as blog to get your blog url to be as above. You can also install the wordpress files from wordpress.org. Create a folder called blog in your root directory, upload the files there and follow the instructions given on the page. With a little bit of effort (considering that you said you had limited HTML/PHP knowledge), it will be an easy install.
I agree with the advice to use Wordpress. My speciality is Wordpress and with a decent hosting you should have fantastico, creating a blog in five minutes. WP is supported by a ton of plugins, including plugins to post adsense so you do not have too mess with html coding. Make sure your WP theme is widgetized.
Wordpress has pretty much become the standard for those wishing to get off the teet of Blogger sites. However more SEO work is required for building traffic and presence and of course monetization. Good Luck in your endeavors.
B2evolution couldn't evolve like wordpress did! Period! Lol. We are here to help. Best of luck with the new blog!
Apologies for being off topic , my parents are from Lanarkshire, although lived in England most of their lives, my mum is from Coatbridge, and i have aunts, uncles, cousins in Coatbridge and Motherwell. I think my dad is originally from Bellshill.
I just want to emphasize the importance of plug-ins in Wordpress. Wordpress can be installed in a jiffy, but it's the plug-ins that make it the way you like. So take the time to install them. There are enough experts on this forum to point you in the right direction.
Hi All Got Wordpress installed (with my limited knowledge). Thanx to you guys. Now all I need are your comments on how to improve it. See blog here: www.lanarkshireitservices.co.uk/blog Thanx
1.Get a theme. There are plenty of free themes out there but for your business to really stand out, I would suggest a custom theme. 2.Delete the "hello World! Post and create a "About Us" page 3. Add a Contact Page 4. Edit your blogroll 5. Work on tutorials that should get you started
Looks good, but yes... need a new Theme . That old default theme is not recommended anymore now. One good place I go to for free themes is http://www.gfxedit.com/category/themes/wordpress/ Another one is http://freewordpressthemes.com/. Look for "Free wordpress themes" on google and you'll run into some good ones.
Hi All OK I have changed the theme and will add more "how to's" and tutorials. So whats the best way to get my blog seen more? And whats the best way to make money from it? All info appreciated
The best way to make money from a blog is to convert readers into cusomers. Write useful and interesting posts related to your business. Show them that you are an expert and can solve their problems. Post case studies - people like them. Then make it easy to contact you and order your services.