How to Transfer a Blogger Blog to a Custom Domain

Usually newbie bloggers are advised to start blogging on a free blogging platform. This enables them master the game of blogging, start driving traffic before they consider spending money on custom domain and hosting.

While there are many free blogging platforms for a newbie blogger to start with, Blogger(owned by Google) and Wordpress stand out from the rest.

These free blogging platforms have their own limitations, just as there are limitations in putting on another man's cloth to a party or cultivating in a free portion of land belonging to another man.

This is why at a particular point in time, those who started on a free platform will always want to move on to a custom domain where their web address is no more www.myname.blogspot.com or www.freename.wordpress.com, but www.myname.com  and all that.

Guess this has been your dream! Wow.

But the begging question is, 'how do I transfer my blogger blog to a custom domain without losing my contents'? This simply means setting up a custom domain so that your original Blogger address automatically forwards to your new domain I once asked that question. Now I am here to help you.

Just follow these simple steps:

Steps:

1. Purchase a custom domain from a Domain Name Registrar

I RECOMMEND 'WHOGOHOST' for you

2. Sign in to Blogger.com

3. Select the blog to update (if you have more than one)

4. In the left menu, click Settings > Basic > Publishing.

5. Under your current domain, click Set up a 3rd party URL for your blog. (See the figure below)

6. Enter your URL, including the www. (something like http://www.yourblog.com)

7. Click Save

You will notice the following:

1. An error will appear with two CNAMEs.
2. Visit your domain registrar's website and find the DNS (Domain Name System) or the Name Server settings in the control panel.
3. Delete existing CNAME entries.
4. Enter the CNAMEs provided in the error message and click Save.
5. Wait for a few hours for your settings to activate, then follow steps 1–6 above.

It may take up to 24 hours for the process to complete. If you see an error after 24 hours, try the process again. Contact your domain registrar for further help.

Note:

Host Name/Alias: www

This is the part of your website's address that you designated. For example, if www.mydomain.com is your address, enter www.

Value/Destination: <YOUR DOMAIN>.ghs.googlehosted.com

For example, if you chose www.mydomain.com as the address, enter www.mydomain.com.ghs.googlehosted.com.

Optional: You can also enter A-records, which link your naked domain (example.com) to an actual site (www.example.com).

Enter your domain name in the format example.com, and list the IP addresses shown below in the "A" section. You'll need to add four separate A-records which point to four different Google IPs.

• 216.239.32.21
• 216.239.34.21
• 216.239.36.21
• 216.239.38.21

Try it and it should work for you...

GET A LIFETIME FREE DOMAIN WHEN YOU HOST WITH US

 

5 Possible Reasons Why You are Not Making Money as a Newbie Blogger

Blogging has become a major source of income to many, thanks to the evolution of social media and the successful bloggers from whom many have become enticed.

Before, you’ll hear people say you should do it for the passion, but in  recent times, while a few still say it, many have given up on that idea. Most bloggers are now into it for the money. lol :)


While a lot do it for the money, many are towing the wrong path, expecting to get the right results, which is an aberration.




Even if you have Adsense account and your blog is relatively new, there is a high possibility that your ads account would be frustrating, due to the fact that your traffic is low, you don’t have loyal readers yet etc. but after reading this post, I believe your eyes would be open to why you are not earning yet.

Without further ado, lets get into why you are where you are as a blogger.

1. You are in the wrong Niche

If you are not in a niche where you are having fun, there is a high possibility you would fail (sorry to say).

If you came into blogging because of one famous entertainment blogger, consequently you named your blog “naijathis and naijathat”, with time, you’ll realize you are not enjoying yourself if you've got no passion for entertainment blogging.

Blogging is lucrative when you enjoy doing it, this way, you’ll be creative to generate ideas that would yield profit.

All you need to do, is to find something you love doing. No niche is bad. Some might look more profitable than others but if you are enjoying it,you’ll get people to like you and in no time, you’ll have made yourself an authority and a trail blazer.

Your niche should be one you can easily perform even when you are half asleep. When you find that area, never let it go.

2. You lack resources

I hear some people say they don’t have a laptop to blog with, they don’t have a modem with which to connect, they lack finance to subscribe etc…

With these excuses, how do you want to outshine one who is always online?

I wanted to give a guy a job to work for my client, since I won’t be available. To my surprise, he asked me to tell my client to pay him upfront so as to enable him buy data.  I found that ridiculous but I still cared and wanted to help. So, I obliged but my client refused and we ultimately gave it to somebody else.

How do you handle running out of data and abandon your blog for another 3 weeks because you do not have data. If you need a laptop, smart phone or any tool to help you blog right, do get it.

HOW?

Get a job.

It's more effective blogging if you have a job that funds your blog before you start making the profits’.

3. Zero, Poor or Wrong Publicity Method 

If you blog and don’t publicize, then I wonder who would read your posts.

Entertainment bloggers tend to spam Facebook groups, but that’s not easy or adviceable for niche bloggers because the traffic won’t be targeted.

So publicity is very pertinent, but the method of publicity is very crucial too because you need to take your contents to a market were it’s needed. Imagine publicizing an agric blog to a mobile phone and tech community. You’d lose cash, waste precious time and be frustrated ultimately.

SOLUTION: Identify the particular market where your content is needed; don’t just start an ad because your friends are doing it, understand the need of your readers and meet it.


4. You’re following the crowd

If you came into blogging because of someone who made a lot of money, you are likely to do this because you will follow his rules and his rules alone.

However, the very first rule of blogging is that “Blogging has no rule”. Stop following peoples template and find what works for you. Your style should be your style.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t adopt people’s style, but you should make sure they are working for you, once they don’t, forget them, there is no rule to blogging.

Develop your style and don’t religiously follow their style because again there is no law.


5. You are not rendering services

I have said this time and again; I’ve made more money rendering blog services than I have from ads.

I get paid from what firms would call consultation (I don’t call it that yet) people contact me and ask me to tell them how I do things, I get paid designing blogs, adding some codes to templates, domain registering and setting up, and many other services and these requests come in so frequently that they give me tough time updating my own blog.

If you are not rendering services then you are losing a lot. Create a page on your blog telling your readers services you render and, post on twitter and on your Facebook wall services you can render and you will start getting requests in no time.

It can be anything, you can offer to update blogs for people ( 15 posts at $50 for 5 blogs would give you $250) and that is cool money for a start, and the interesting part is that you can use the same content(if it is an entertainment blog) for your own blog with only little  or no changes.

You can do a lot of things, just be creative and see the cash start trickling in. To Your Success.

Over to you,

What are the little things you do that bring income?

What are the things you used to do that you later found out you shouldn’t or should have started earlier.


Ogbonge Blog

How to Make a Blogger Header Font in 5 Simple Steps

The Blogger user log-in site gives you numerous options for customizing your blog, including editing HTML code such as your header fonts. By changing your font to one that matches the character of your blog, you can set your blog apart and make it more unique.

Just follow these 5 steps, and you're there:

Step 1

Launch your computer's Web browser and go to blogger.com. Type your Gmail email and password into the fields provided and click "Sign In."

Step 2

Click "Layout" and select "Edit HTML."

Step 3

Go to the "#header h1" and type "font-family" in any section between the opening and closing curly brackets.

Step 4

Type the name of the font you want to use for your header. For example, select "Arial." Type two or more font names just in case your viewer's browser cannot display your preferred font. For example: #header h1 { font-family: arial, times new roman, georgia; }

Step 5

Click the "Preview" button to view your new fonts, then click "Save Template" to apply your modifications.

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