A Very Effective Strategy for Any Blogger

A very effective strategy for any blogger on the internet would be to own your domain and pay for your hosting. By owning your domain name you establish stability you would not necessarily have by using a free blog site and the name they assigned you. Don't get me wrong these free sites are great and can be very effective for several purposes. Many folks today however are blogging to make money and these free sites often impose certain restraints on the sites they are hosting. The blogging business is big money now a days and constrictions of any kind could mean a significant loss of income.

The general assumption is that any domain you use that you do not own is the property of a site that also provides you with free hosting.

Let's look at 3 major advantages you have as a blogger when you own your domain name and pay for hosting compared to using the domain a free blog site assigns you that limits your individuality.

No Censorship

Free blogs can place restraints upon any of the blogs on their server. Any comments or opinions left on your blog by a reader could result in your site being suspended or shut down by the host if it is viewed as a violation.

Obviously the sharing of candid and sometimes inflammatory opinions could 'ignite' this reaction at any time.

In effect you inherit a type of censorship when using a free site.

More Professional Image

The name itself if it is a 'sub-domain' usually does not have a clean looking appearance. It shouts TEMPORARY to any visitors to your site.

Your own domain however can be whatever you choose and will not contain the additional characters that clearly denote it as a sub-domain. 

If your blog site is used for business there are likely certain formats or layouts you may need or want to use to reflect the 'message' of the business itself.

By using a 'free' site' you are automatically limited to what they offer you.

Greater Flexibility

Look and content are totally under your direction when you own your domain and pay for hosting. This is important since a large part of a blogs influence and popularity is dependent upon it individuality. Readers 'want' to hear your opinion and not a modified version toned down to placate the host.

It is the difference between 'owning' your home or 'renting' it!

If you become unhappy with your hosting company you can take your domain name elsewhere. You do not risk losing all your current 'followers' do to a complete name change.

As you can understand especially if you are blogging to make money a very effective strategy would be to own your domain and pay for your hosting. By doing so you spare yourself the inconvenient restrictions you would face at a free site where you are renting space. This type of unpredictability and limitations is not something anyone involved in the blogging business needs. Blogging is based upon consistency, individuality, and longevity and this necessary combination would be jeopardized at any of the free sites.