How to run a blog from your mobile device
In the age of the Internet, everyone gets a voice. It doesn’t matter who you are, or what is your occupation; your message can be distributed cheaply, or for free.
For those not familiar with the terms, blogs are online journals that can act as article bulletin boards and/or personal update platforms. Blogs can host consumer-oriented content such as pendrago reviews, DIY guides for fixing stuff around the house, movie criticism articles, and so much more.
Nobody can guarantee the success of your blog. Ultimately, it will depend on the quality of your writing, and your ability to hold people’s attention. As long as your page is well-managed and organized, you should be good to go.
While computers have been around for decades, smartphones are a relatively new invention.
The convenience of these devices is astounding. If you told someone from the 1970s that a single device would allow you to access everything that was ever written, and you also get to take photos, film, talk to people from across the globe, play games and even start a business.
All of these features stem from a square of plastic that is roughly wallet-sized.
Is it possible to run a blog from your phone?
Browsing research paper sites may help with the overall writing process, but none of them will guide you on which application to use. To answer the question, yes, you can manage a blog on the fly, in between other tasks, from the convenience of your phone.
To be fair, it does take a little time to get used to the smaller screen, but that accommodation will occur after a few days.
Which Applications do I need?
The first question that demands an answer is: where will you publish your blog? There are at least half a dozen options available at any moment, but the safest choice would be one of the top dogs: Blogger or WordPress.
Blogger is very customer-friendly. You do not need to be tech-savvy in order to set up a site. Also, their app is rather stable and not prone to errors.
WordPress is similar, but a little more complex. It can be harder to navigate because it offers more options for customization. That is not necessarily a bad thing.
While at first, you will seek the simplest and easier platform for publishing, you will soon start to crave more personalization and control.
There is also a thriving community of plugin developers for WP, adding to the platform’s viability.
So, for small blogs that only need to publish blocks of text, choose Blogger. However, if you have plans for growth and expansion, go with WordPress.
Text processor apps
Typing or editing large amounts of text seems impossible for many people. This limitation is not caused by software; the screens of mobile devices are simply too restrictive when it comes to space. Keyboards will always be better.
However, if you are one of those people who can actually competently write from their phone, or you just want to edit some words here and there, you will need an application for that purpose.
In this regard, there will only be 2 viable options: Microsoft Word and Google Docs.
Both of these apps have similar settings and applicability. You can write easily, control fonts, colors, sizes, headers, and any other aspect of the text. Also, it is possible to paste hyperlinks and images.
Still, Word is part of the Microsoft suite and is not free. Meanwhile, Google Docs is a 100% completely free service. It saves automatically, so you will not lose any progress, or have to keep track of your saved pages and drafts constantly.
The only downside is that Google can see your content. If you value privacy and have some money to spare, go with Word. If convenience and ease of use is your priority, then you can choose Google Docs.
Grammar and spellcheck
Nobody is above making spelling or grammar errors. Even if you do possess the grammar knowledge that would allow you to avoid errors, it is much easier to misspell on a mobile screen. Hitting mechanical keys on a keyboard is much less prone to mishaps.
Regardless of the reason, you will mistype words, or use improper grammar. This can lead to your ideas and posts getting ignored, even if the basic concept is valid.
You can rest easy knowing that there is a very capable app that can correct any spelling errors. It’s called Grammarly, and it catches most problems with ease. It can be a little expensive to pay for its subscription but the basic spellcheck function is available for free.
Subscribers can unlock extra features such as tone-setting remarks. The app can steer you towards a more academic, business, casual, or friendly tone. In addition, it highlights overused words and other things that are not necessarily mistakes but are considered bad form.
While the basic free Grammarly capabilities are more than enough for most people, this app is definitely worth paying for. The only disclaimer is that you are inviting a third party to read your text.
Similar to Google Docs, better to avoid this software if the info presented is of a sensitive nature.
SEO plugins
How well is your blog doing? How can you make it do better? What is SEO and how does it contribute to your page’s success?
You can probably write an article that has over 7000 words regarding SEO, and still not cover the entire topic. In short, SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. Just like a fisherman increases his odds by finding ways to lure fish, so too must a website find ways to lure the Google algorithm into indexing his site.
For WordPress, Yoast SEO is by far the safest and most popular plugin. You don’t even have to know much SEO practice. Just follow its recommendations.
Conclusion
Nowadays, you do not need to sit down at a cumbersome desktop to maintain a blog. You can treat it as a pleasant distraction, and update it on the go. All you need is a few applications and a mobile smart device.