Blogging Resources

When I started out this blog I knew how to code (I’m an educated web developer), but I knew little to nothing about blogging. What tools should I use, which platform,  and what was important to think about?

I have therefore created this resource page as a free guide for you if you are at the beginning of your blogging journey.

Again, I’m still new at this and I learn as I go, so this page will likely be updated when I learn more.

This page contains affiliate links which I receive a commission if you use them. I am only recommending brands and products that I myself use, have been using or trust.

Hosting

Your blog must have a home on the Internet. I strongly recommend you to set up a self-hosted WordPress site when you start blogging. I would say it’s more or less standard. Of course, there are other options but a self-hosted WordPress site gives you access to a rich plethora of free plugins, and you will have complete control over your WordPress site. Another benefit of a self-hosted WordPress site is that it grows with you as your blog grows.

Siteground

This is where WithOlle lives right now! What I have been so impressed with is not only there incredible up-time but also the lightning fast support and quick loading times. Siteground will also help you migrate your existing site if you would like to. They have budget alternatives as well as really good options for larger sites.

If I were to recommend a hosting provider, it would be Siteground.

WordPress Themes

The theme is the look and feel of your blog. There are many out there but there is one that I, in particular, is very happy and satisfied with.

Genesis

I started to love the Genesis framework from the second I started to work with it. It’s robust and in my opinion, the go-to starter framework when building a WordPress site. Witholle.com is built with a child theme that rests upon Genesis.

If you’re not a developer yourself you can get lots premium themes from Studiopress, the developer behind Genesis. Since they have created the framework the themes they offer are of equal great standard and top-notch in terms of semantics and SEO.

WordPress Plugins

One of the biggest upsides with WordPress is the vast amount of third-party plugins that you can install on your site.

Social Warfare

The best social share plugin that I have worked with. It’s lightweight, easy to use and comes ready out of the box. If I had to choose only one social media share plugin for WordPress I would choose Social Warfare.

Here is a complete list of all the plugins I use on this site.