Do you need to set up your own blog? I’ve been blogging and creating web sites since 1999 and would love to help you.  That’s why I started this blog in the first place!  However right now I’m taking a break from one-on-one consulting or design services.

In the meantime, if you are up for a DIY solution, here are some services that I recommend. These are all companies that I have used, continue to work with and approve of because of good experience.  (Disclosure: I’m also affiliated with them; when you use these services I’ll get a referral commission.)

Webhosting

I’ve used several webhosts over the years… and experienced some horror stories. Downtime, terrible customer service, tough to use administration panels. To add insult to injury, then I had to move the website to another host which is another hassle.

After all this time, the one host that I have found to be the best is Hostgator. I’ve been with them for over 3 years and have no intention of leaving!

• Reliable, fast servers with 99.9% uptime
• cPanel (the easiest way to administer the backend technical website stuff)
• One click Wordpress blog install with Fantastico
• Customer service that can’t be beat
• Affordable – for one website, plans start at just $4.95 a month if you sign up for 3 years in advance or $6.95 if you just want to commit to one year.

To repeat, their customer service is amazing. Every time I’ve emailed or called, they made sure my questions were answered or issues were resolved fast.  The company and customer service are based in Houston so I’m also glad to support my fellow Texans!

Click here to see all the Hostgator features & benefits and/or sign-up

Blog Themes

After you install Wordpress through the webhost’s cpanel with Fantastico, you’ll need to upload a theme in the wp-content folder.  I’ve used a lot of different themes from various providers, including free themes and premium themes.  In general I prefer themes that you do have to pay for – as I’ve found fewer problems with them.  Free = you often have to fix a lot of stuff. If you don’t know the code or don’t want to take the time (can be considerable and frustrating) go with a theme with a small fee.

Here are some of the premium themes that I have used and recommend.  (Several of them have at least one free theme, so you can get an idea of how good their products are before you buy.)