I've been thinking about leaving HubPages and have been giving this whole thing a lot of thought. Should I continue on HubPages or create my own site and post articles there? Here are some pros and cons of creating my own blog, to kind of help flesh things out a bit:
Blog Pros
- I get 100% of the earnings
- I have complete control of the site from the design to the SEO
- Sharpen my web dev skills. Chances are I would use Drupal (I don't care for WordPress.) I would want a lot of customization in the way of plug-ins.
- It could be a lot of fun managing my own site.
- I wouldn't have to worry about a bunch of crappy or stolen content dragging down my domain. I would be the only one posting.
- Having your own site is something to be proud of.
- No Westside story Facebook drama.
- I think I could make a pretty strong domain. I've done it before. I think a lot of the "crap" weighs HubPages down. Cutting the crap wouldn't be a matter of hitting a report button, but rather, just deleting it.
- I would have to pay for a domain name and hosting
- Creating and maintaining a site is a lot of work.
- I would have to rely on AdSense clicks again.
- I'm really sick of the whole SEO thing. As lazy as it sounds, I feel like I'm on autopilot with HubPages.
- It would get lonely. My comments would come solely from search engine visitors.
- Too much control could lead to micro-managing.
- No more eBay... not that I earn a ton from it, anyway.
- No HubScore. Even though HubScore is generally worthless, a score below 70 does kind of let me know, "Hey, Melanie, you really need to work on this on."
What do you think? Should I stay with HubPages or develop my own site?
10 comments:
This could actually be good advice for a list of things anyone making the same decision could face. The real question is how it fits into your personal priorities? Remember, though, if you don't take a risk you can't get lucky.
I support your pros, and I think you should go al the way with your descision.
If you decide to go with your own blog, I recommend Word Press. Word Press has just about everything you need in the way of plug-ins and a variety of free themes, so set-up and development is super-easy.
Also, you can have your every post automatically tweeted and shared on FB through Networked Blogs.
There are numerous affiliate programs in addition to AdSense (examples: Clickbank and LinkShare), so no worries there, either.
It's always better to own what you do whenever possible.
Just stay with it (something I'm guilty of not doing myself) and best of luck. :)
I also like the idea better of having your own blog. You have full control over it, even though you have to rely on Adsense earnings again.
Go with your own site! There are rarely, if EVER, any restrictions when you have your own thing going. It's more professional and if developed right, can bring you a lot more justice than using templates from 3rd party sources. Yes it takes time to maintain, but the results are SO much more rewarding!
And if you get stuck on a design/programming area...this is where I come in professionally so contact me :D
Hey, Mel, why are you posting this as an either/or? do both? Have the best of both worlds? HP is great in that it doesn't depend on Google Ads, which don't do too great, as far as I can see. However, if you have both, you can link back and forth. Do both, keep both, and keep expanding, because you are talented and awesome and should spread yourself across for the web. You have a lot to share. Don't sell yourself short.
It's Vicki, by the way.
Hi Melanie. You are a very talented writer! You have taken Hub Pages for a wonderful spin. In life, we know nothing ventured is nothing gained- so, with that being said, it would be a new adventure having your own site. I believe the personal satisfaction you will gain from this will outweigh any cons- and the best part is, you will never have to look back on your life and say, "What if?" Wishing you the best!
Hey! I'm with Vicki - you could leave your HP stuff up, let those mature, AND build your website. Heck, I am thinking about doing this, too. And you are SO PROFESSIONAL!! Your work, SEO knowledge, amazing computer-know-how are unparalleled. It's almost like - why WOULDN'T you have a Melbel site? :D You really can do it.
I have a photo blog, I'm thinking about doing a lot more "regular" blog writing - but I like to write on a lot of things. I'm not sure how that measures up against people saying you have to have a niche.
What would you do if you want to write on a lot of different things?
Cyndi,
I would probably create subdomains for each niche. Like recipes.codegurl.com or environment.codegurl.com. That way I could benefit from having having focused niches, while not having to maintain like, wow, 15+ domains.
Thank you, everyone, for all your positive feedback. I totally appreciate it!
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