You already know that I don’t trust Google anymore. I wish I did, but I don’t.
This got me thinking. What is something else that a lot of people use, that Google doesn’t make money on, that hasn’t gotten a lot of attention lately, and that Google might want to replace with Google+? Blogger.
Don’t tell me, “So many people use it that they wouldn’t kill it,” because a ton of people used Reader too.
Let’s look at solutions, not problems, though.
If I were blogging on Blogger, WordPress.com, or any of the other free services, what plan would I have in place, just in case?
1. Own my own domain name. For around $10 a year (that’s right A YEAR), you can own your own domain. I use NameCheap (affiliate link) and I think their service, price, and the fact that they don’t advertise with cleavage, makes them the clear choice.
Even if I didn’t shift hosting, I’d get a domain name and use it to redirect to my account. That way you have it already and it’s easy to tell people, “Go to myawesomewebsite.com” instead of “myawesomewebsite.blogspot.com”.
2. Do monthly backups. I’m not sure Google would kill Blogger so quickly that you couldn’t get your data, but what if your password gets stolen and your account is used for illegal activity? More often is better, but it’s worth always having a good set of data.
3. Get your own hosting. I use Westhost (affiliate), but there are tons of options. Just make sure your domain isn’t tied up with your host in case of a billing problem. I made that mistake once.
Whatever you do, have a plan, just in case. I’d hate you to lose tons of data because you didn’t.
Paul