When Blogspot, or known as Blogger (blogger.com), was launched in 1999, it quickly became so popular.
Suddenly, everyone could log-on to the internet and create their own web-page. It became so popular that in 2003, Google bought it from its creators and Since then blogging has taken over the world. There are millions of blogs in existence on every subject imaginable.
If there isn’t the exact blog you’re looking for, you can create it. But blogging is no longer just a hobby. For a considerable number of people, blogging is a full-time and very lucrative job.
Why was Blogspot so Successful?
It’s free. When it comes down to the basics, Blogspot had everything you need for free. Of course, it didn’t have the best of everything, but can you complain when it’s free? Before blogging became the world-wide phenomenon it is today, no one knew if it was possible to make money from it, or if it was just a fun hobby.
Nowadays, bloggers make vast sums of money from sponsored posts, advertisements, and product placements. But in the early days, you would have been crazy to buy or pay money for something no one would see.
And so, Blogspot grew.
Because it was free, it attracted a variety of users, covering a myriad of topics. The ease with which anyone could create an account, customise the templates and upload content made it attractive for everyone.
What Changed to make Blogspot (Blogger.com) so Bad?
If it was such a success, why has the original blogging website has fallen out of fashion? Well, the keys to its success are now the reason any self-respecting blogger will never choose Blogspot.
Nowadays anyone looking to make money from blogging, or at least get a decent audience, avoids the website like the plague. But how did it fall from grace, and why should you avoid it? and If there’s anyone who can advise you against Blogspot, it’s me. That’s because I started my first blog using Google’s free Blogger platform.
Why did I do it?
Well, because I was a newbie and I was dead broke. So, it made sense at the time to take advantage of a free blogging platform.
My first blog was in the travel blog niche and it had the traditional ugly “website.blogspot.com” subdomain. I eventually saw the light and moved to a custom domain, which ended up being a nightmare. More on this in a second.
With that said, here’s why you should avoid Blogspot at all costs.
We’ve broken down everything you need to know about Blogspot:
Reason 1: You’ll Hurt Your Brand/Credibility
If you’re trying to build a company or trying to make a living as a blogger, then you need to avoid Blogspot. All you need to do is examine whatever industry you want to enter. Do any of the successful companies or bloggers have Blogspot blogs? I can predict that the answer is no.
You need to host your blog on your own custom domain. I recommend WordPress because I believe it’s the best, but there are some other options out there such as Wix, Medium, or even Shopify or Host on your own / shared server.
You need to think long-term about your decision.
- Are you serious about building a company?
- Are you serious about making money as a blogger?
- If the answer is yes, then you need to act accordingly.
Reason 2: They Don’t Perform Well in Google
This isn’t a hypothesis. Just go to Google and search for ANYTHING and let me know when you find a .blogspot.com ranking.
It’s actually ironic that blogs created on Google’s own blogging platform don’t perform well in Google.
SEO is already challenging enough. Don’t make it harder on yourself/impossible by using Blogspot.
While you may think that being owned by Google gives you an advantage when it comes to Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and the appearance of your blog on the search results pages, you’d be very wrong.
Google shows absolutely no favour towards blogs created on its own platform.
Now, this does make it fair for those using other platforms such as Squarespace or WordPress, so overall it is a good thing. It’s just no good if you thought using a Google platform would give you a good standing.
Google might interfere with your blog but only to remove it, rather than boost it.
One of the biggest factors for performing well in Google are backlinks.
Blogspot will fail you on this front as well.
Reason 3: It Will Be Challenging to Acquire Backlinks
I can tell you now that most bloggers are NOT willing to link to Blogspot blogs. Bloggers are skeptical about linking out in general. So, their already engrained skepticism plus your .blogspot.com subdomain is a recipe for low conversion rates on your outreach.
And sadly, if you can’t acquire backlinks, you’re really going to struggle in organic search.
Reason 4: You Won’t Build Website Authority
One of the most important objectives of link building and SEO, in general, is to build website authority. That’s because building your website’s authority makes ranking much easier.
This is why websites like Forbes can rank on the second and even first page within hours of publishing. Since most bloggers won’t link out to Blogspot blogs, you’ll struggle to build website authority.
Naturally, I’ve decided to focus on the SEO reasons why you should avoid this free blogging platform.
However, there are some non-SEO reasons to avoid it as well.
Reason 5: You Don’t “Own” Your Blog
That’s right. Blogger.com owns your content. That means you can spend months or even years creating SEO content and it can be erased in a second.
This alone should be enough to make you avoid this platform.
The beauty of a custom domain and self-hosted blog is that you actually own your content.
You’re not restricted by another company’s terms and conditions.
Reason 6: You Must Follow Blogspot’s Terms and Conditions
Because Blogger owns your blog and all your content, you must follow their rules. Meaning, by even signing up, you are agreeing to their terms.
If you do something they deem “out of line”, they can delete your blog in an instant.
But let’s say you follow the terms and you start seeing some traffic growth from your Blogspot blog. Well, unfortunately, there’s more bad news…
Reason 7: You Can’t Monetize
Blogger.com is extremely restrictive about how you can monetize your blog. You can use AdSense on your blog, but there are restrictions against services and product sales.
Once again… why get into a situation where your brand is tied down? This can be avoided at the onset.
So, you know that Blogspot sucks for your SEO and your freedom, but it also sucks because:
Reason 8: Customization is Limited
There are endless design and UX possibilities with a WordPress blog. The same isn’t true for Blogspot. They have a limited selection of themes and customization is a struggle if you aren’t a web developer.
Apart from all the reasons I’ve listed, there’s something else that no one talks about:
Reason 9: Many .Blogspot Blogs Are Brutalized with Spam
Creating web 2.0s for link building purposes is a popular grey hat method.
That means grey hat link builders will create a free Blogspot blog, throw some content on there, and link to their actual website. This is an easy way to score a backlink (although it’s artificial). I would say that building out web 2.0s is one of the most overused grey hat link building tactics there is.
But wait, do you know, you CAN get penalized for using web 2.0s if the sole objective is to host a backlink.
Reason 10: Moving to a Custom Domain is a Nightmare
I’m going to go out on a limb and say that most people starting Blogspot blogs do not have experience with site migrations or web development.
The reason I’m making this assumption is that it was true for me back in the day.
When I realized I was headed down a dead-end, I had the daunting task of migrating my Blogspot blog to a custom domain.
So, what did I do?
I copy and pasted one page at a time. Not my proudest moment.
The good news is that I’ve done enough stupid stuff, so you don’t have to.
Not only is migrating a huge headache, but it will also negatively impact your SEO performance (if you had any).
301 redirects are supposed to pass 100% of the authority and backlink equity. Unfortunately, this doesn’t seem to happen in practice. That means that even if you perform your migration correctly, your site’s SEO performance will likely suffer for awhile.
This can all be avoided if you just start your blog on a custom domain.
But I have one last reason why you should avoid Blogspot and it has nothing to do with marketing, branding, or anything technical. At the end of the day, if you choose to create a free blog, it shows that…
Reason 11: You Aren’t Fully Committed
You need to have skin in the game. Nothing puts more fear into people that losing money. How do I know? Because that was me. I was so scared when I transitioned into buying a domain and paying for hosting every month.
I’m not trying to give you financial advice here. I just know from personal experience that when you commit money, it changes your entire mindset.
Especially when you’re paying for hosting every month. It lights a fire under you because you don’t want to continue being in the red every month.
That means you’ll figure out a way to grow your traffic and income. It’s the push that most people need in my opinion. It worked for me.
Reason 12: No Support
Again, you might have thought that being bought by Google would give Blogspot a wealth of support and knowledge to draw on when you do, undoubtedly run into issues.
Wrong again!
Aside from some basic manuals and explanations on how to actually use the site, there is very little support.
This isn’t a major factor for many people but compared to other hosting sites, it’s yet another red flag for Blogspot.
Most other sites offer community forum pages so you can ask other sues for help, explanations, and advice. This is part of what makes blogging so amazing; the community and collaboration.
Blogspot doesn’t have this.
So, if you have a problem, you have to go directly to Google. And as we’ve seen, if they don’t like it or can’t resolve it, they will get rid of the problem by getting rid of your blog.
Simple for them, endlessly frustrating for you.
Reason 13: Comments and Community
Talking of no community support from other users, do you want to reply to comments?
Do you want to chat with your readers, take an active role in connecting to others, and growing your audience? Well, tough luck.
Blogspot lets you turn comments on or off.
That’s it.
You can reply to comments but only after going to each individual page and searching for the comments. It’s not super complicated, but compared to other hosting platforms, it’s unnecessarily long.
Reason 14: Limitations
Blogspot comes with so many limitations.
Not only in terms of design but also word count and images. Blogspot has a page limitation of just 1MB.
This means one high-quality image or a couple of low-quality pieces. Additionally, you can’t post more than 100 posts on a single page, and there’s a maximum limit of 20 pages.
Assuming you want to start a blog because you have something to say, it seems a little ridiculous to place strict character limitations on blogs.
Yet Blogspot manages to do this anyway.
The “about me” page is limited to just 1,200 characters. You might have lots of hobbies, but you can only list them in 2,000 characters or less.
What is your blog about? Tell me in less than 500 characters.
Limiting how much you can actually write on a blogging platform is as insane as it sounds.
Reason 15: Stuck In The Past
Blogspot really is stuck in the past. Technology moves fast these days, which means tech companies are continually releasing new programs and services to help make everything easier and smoother for the user.
Other hosting services update at least once a year. Blogspot doesn’t.
This could mean that Google has recognised its blogging reputation is in freefall is preparing to give it a massive overhaul.
Alternatively, it could mean that Google has seen the writing on the wall and will axe the service. A blessing for all.
Either way, Blogspot is currently about two years behind other hosting platforms in terms of updates and new technology.
If you’re looking to contribute to your blog over several years, you don’t need a platform that refuses to join the modern world or is about to change everything completely.
Just pick an easier option.
Reason 16: Lack of Plugins; Hello Spam!
Most blogs that have comments enabled will be familiar with an inbox full of spam. Many Blogspot blogs are riddled with spam. This is because they lack the anti-spam plugins that negate it. Blogger is one of them. Amidst its lacking functions, there is the problem of spam, and this generates a whirlwind of problems that stem from this minor malfunction. Spammy backlinks can ruin a websites Google reputation. If your site is associated with those who generate spam, do not be surprised to find that no one will willingly link to your site.
Alternatively, platforms such as WordPress offers users the ability to control this. As a WordPress user, simply log in as an administrator, click ‘plugins’ and locate the ‘Stop Spammers plugin’, install it and utilise a blog free of spam. Blogger, in this regard, is most suitable for the building of simple blogs for personal use.
Last Words About Blogspot
Building a Blogspot blog is a waste of time and resources.
With so many other options, there is no reason at all why you should choose Blogspot.
But if you do opt for Blogspot, don’t say I didn’t warn you!