Disadvantages of Hosted Blog Platforms

Jan 7, 2010 by Shivendu Madhava

Previously we have already covered Advantages of Hosted Blog Platforms and now here are Disadvantages of Hosted Blog Platforms.

Although there are several benefits to having a hosted blog, there are always downsides below are the disadvantages of Hosted Blog Platforms:

• Less configurable—With an online service the only configuration options you have available are those the service allows you. This may or may not be a problem for you, but in most cases you have fewer choices with a hosted service.

• Default design limitations—This can be true for standalone blogging systems, but also I find that many hosted blogs end up looking very similar to one another. This is because the default templates get used over and over again and hosted platforms do not give you complete control over your look and feel.

• Less ownership—Another complaint I hear regularly from hosted blog owners is that they are frustrated by not having ultimate control and ownership over their blog. Though they do own the content, the URL is not technically their own and they are somewhat at the mercy of their platform in terms of whether or not their blog is working.

• Generic URL—There are some very successful blogs on hosted platforms, but most bloggers believe that having your own URL is much more professional if you are using your blog in a professional way.

• Upgrading or moving challenges—One of the issues of starting out with a hosted platform is that, if there comes a day when you want to move, you have some work cut out for you in retaining your audience and traffic.