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I thought this day would never come, but yes, I have finally managed to migrate from Blogger to WordPress and to move to a new beautiful virtual home. I didn’t really planned for this moving right from the beginning, especially that I kind of liked my good old Blogger platform and Wordpress was a little bit scary for me, but I am more and more convinced that things tend to fall into their place when you least expect it.
Long story short, I was convinced for a long period of time that Blogger was the thing for me. I knew nothing about blogging in 2012 when I started this blog, but in time I have somehow managed to learn the basics about the Blogger platform and customized the look of my blog according to my own tastes, even though Blogger can be a little limited in terms of customization. That was OK for a while… until I wanted more. Don’t we all want something more at some point? :)
After a long research I felt that only Wordpress would be able to fully satisfy my needs so first I started looking for WordPress themes. I was going for a clean, minimal, feminine & chic, easy to customize but also sophisticated and professional look and I found lots of lovely themes that met my criteria. The theme search finally stopped when I found Foodie Pro, which incorporates everything I wanted and even more! I’ll tell you all about Foodie Pro in a future post, I have one million things to share! :) OK, so after buying the theme and getting super excited about it I soon realized I had no idea what to do next. I mean I’ve read lots of tutorials on how to make the migration on your own but the truth is I was too afraid to start the whole process by myself. I also had some crazy busy days with the online shops so I decided to put everything blog related on hold for a while.
That was until things just started to move into the right direction on their own, when I’ve heard on Facebook about a campaign started by TheCon, a web design company from Romania that was helping bloggers identify the weak points of their blogs in terms of graphics, design, SEO and functionality and even offered solutions for free. So I decided to apply for this campaign on their website, not knowing exactly what to expect.
Their email reply came up pretty fast and one of their questions were ”Have you ever considered moving to WordPress?” Of course I said yes as they offered to help me with the whole migration process. I could not just believe how all the pieces of the puzzle started to come together, you can only imagine my excitement!
(I already had my own domain bydreamsfactory.com that I bought from Go Daddy, and a hosting plan from HostGator, these are some of the very first things to consider when trying to make the big move.)
So TheCon started working on my blog migration on one of their servers and sent me a link to see the actual progress. I could see every change they made and so I was able to see what I liked or not, what will remain or is about to be removed. After the migration, they even helped me with some of the basic customization of Foodie Pro theme & Genesis Framework and also helped me implement lots of other design tweaks (that required some coding) and had no idea how to make on my own. I had lots of question about my new blog, along the way, because that was the first time I actually got in touch with WordPress so I really want to thank Bogdan Pana, Technical Production Manager at TheCon for all his patience and professionalism.
It was a lot of work and you usually have to pay a lot of money for all of this so I really appreciate their help and cannot thank them enough for all their support. If you want to pay TheCon a visit and browse through their services, you can find them here.
So now I am pretty excited about my new WordPress blog and all the amazing things that it can do and I discover so many new things every day. I do have some more working to do, but if I would have to summarize the whole moving from Blogger to WordPress experience in one sentence I would say: ”I wish I had done it sooner!” :)
Just in case you are considering to make the move from Blogger (which is all free) to a more professional self hosted WordPress blog, there are some additional (minimal) costs that you might have to consider when:
- buying your own domain – you can easily check available names and buy the one you want from GoDaddy – I paid $ 11 for 2 years
- getting a hosting plan – I opted for Hostgator – about $ 10/month, but you can find many other great deals
- buying a WordPress theme – Foodie Pro, the theme I choose is $75 (but I got it for $5 on a super great one day offer!!) and is considered to be a child theme, which also requires the Genesis Framework which was $59.95.
- migrating from Blogger to WordPress – starting from $150-$200 – mine was free, thanks to TheCon; you can also DIY, but only if you know what you’re doing! :)
Stay tuned for more details on how I fully customized my blog and the Foodie Pro theme, must have plugins and widgets for my new WordPress blog, how I made a vintage logo/header for my blog and even a customized pin it button to match my logo, scheme colors, typography and many more.
So, what do you think about my new virtual home? Do you love it as much as I do? :) Are you planning on moving your blog fom Blogger to WordPress? Would love to hear your thoughts, so feel free to leave a comment below. wmy blog with Bloglovin
Don’t forget to smile, Diana
VERSIUNEA IN LIMBA ROMANA
Credeam ca ziua asta nu va mai veni, dar da, am reusit sa imi mut in sfarsit blogul de pe Blogger pe WordPress si sa ma mut astfel intr-o noua casa virtuala, mai pe gustul meu. N-am planificat neaparat mutarea, inca de la inceput, mai ales ca mie una imi placea platforma Blogger pe care o foloseam de ceva vreme, iar WordPress era o chestie necunoscuta, care ma cam speria. Dar acum, sunt din ce in ce mai convinsa ca lucrurile chiar au un mod de a se aranja cumva de la sine, atunci cand te astepti mai putin.
Ca sa nu lungesc prea mult povestea, am fost convinsa pentru o buna perioada de timp ca Blogger era ceea ce aveam eu nevoie. Nu stiam prea multe despre blogging in 2012 cand am inceput, dar in timp, am ajuns sa invat cateva lucruri esentiale despre platforma Blogger. Am ajuns sa-mi personalizez blogul in concordanta cu gusturile si nevoile mele, chiar daca Blogger este un pic limitat in ceea ce priveste customizarile. Totul a fost OK pentru o perioada … pana mi-am dorit mai mult. Toti ajungem sa ne dorim mai mult, la un moment dat, nu-i asa? :)
Dupa multe cautari, mi-am dat seama ca doar WordPress va putea sa-mi satisfaca nevoile pe deplin, asa ca prima data am pornit la drum cautand teme WordPress. Am vrut una care sa fie aerisita, minimala, feminina, chic, dar si usor de personalizat. Cautarile au incetat atunci cand am gasit Foodie Pro si am stiu imediat ca e cea mai potrivita pentru mine, pentru ca avea incorporate o gramada dintre lucrurile pe care le vroiam, poate chiar mai mult. O sa va povestesc mai pe larg despre Foodie Pro intr-o postare ulterioara, am un milion de lucruri sa va spun despre ea! :) Asa ca, imediat dupa ce am cumparat tema si m-am exaltat la maxim pentru ea, am realizat ca habar n-aveam ce sa fac in continuare. Citisem, intr-adevar, o gramada de tutoriale despre cum sa faci tu singur mutarea, dar adevarul e ca mi-a fost prea teama sa incep eu toata nebunia cu migrarea pe cont propriu. Am si avut o perioada foarte aglomerata cu magazinele online, asa ca m-am hotarat sa pun tot ce tine de blog in asteptare, cel putin pentru o perioada.
Asta pana ce lucrurile au inceput sa se miste cumva singure, in directia cea buna, atunci cand am aflat de pe Facebook de campania de sustinere a bloggerilor, a celor de la TheCon – Creare Site. Prin aceasta campanie, TheCon ajuta bloggerii sa identifice punctele slabe ale blogurilor lor in ceea ce priveste grafica, design, SEO si functionalitate si chiar ofera solutii, gratuit, in functie de nevoile fiecarui blog. Asa ca m-am decis si eu sa aplic pentru campania aceasta, nestiind exact la ce sa ma astept.
Am primit un raspuns pe mail destul de rapid si una dintre intrebarile lor a fost aceasta: ”Te-ai gandit vreodata sa te muti de pe Blogger pe WordPress? Bineinteles ca am spus DA, se ofereau sa ma ajute cu tot procesul de migrare pe care mi l-am dorit atat de mult! Parca nu-mi venea sa cred cum piesele incep sa se potriveasca, ca intr-un puzzle, va puteti imagina cat de incantata am fost!
(Eu aveam deja domeniul propriu – bydreamsfactory.com -, pe care il cumparasem de pe GoDaddy si un plan de hosting de la HostGator, daca vreti sa faceti si voi migrarea, aveti in vedere ca acestea sunt printre primele lucruri de care trebuie sa tineti cont.)
Asa ca, dupa ce am stabilit detaliile, cei de la TheCon au inceput sa lucreze la migrarea blogului Dreams Factory, pe unul dintre serverele lor si mi-au trimis un link pentru a putea urmari indeaproape progresul. Am putut vedea astfel toate modificarile si sa decid ce-mi place si ce nu, ce ramane si ce mai trebuie schimbat. Dupa migrarea propriu zisa, m-au ajutat cu customizarile de baza ale temei Foodie Pro si chiar m-au ajutat sa implementez o gramada de modificari, care necesitau modificari de coduri, pe care cu siguranta ca n-as fi stiut cum sa le fac singura. Pe parcurs am avut o gramada de nelamuriri legate de noul meu blog, mai ales ca era prima data in care intram in contact direct cu WordPress, asa ca vreau sa-i multumesc lui Bogdan Pana, Technical Production Manager pentru rabdare si profesionalism si intregii echipe pentru tot ajutorul.
Au avut ceva de lucru si in mod normal trebuie sa platesti o gramada de bani pentru toate astea, apreciez foarte tare efortul depus de cei de la TheCon si ii recomand cu cea mai mare caldura. Asa ca, daca aveti si voi un blog care credeti ca are nevoie de anumite modificari, imbunatatiri sau orice altceva, inscrieti-va in campania de sustinere a bloggerilor. TheCon va vor contacta in cel mai scurt timp si va pot oferi ajutor in design grafic, web development, optimizare SEO, totul gratis, timp de 2 ore pe zi. Mentionati intr-un articol impresiile voastre despre campanie si dati sfoara in tara, apoi, pentru a-i ajuta si pe alti bloggeri sa afle despre aceasta initiativa! Detalii despre campanie gasiti si pe Twitter, dar si pe Facebook , cu hashtag-ul #theconsustinebloggerii
Acum sunt super incantata de cum arata noul meu blog de pe WordPress si toate chestiile super tari pe care poate sa le faca. Descopar in fiecare zi noi si noi lucruri. Mai am inca de facut una alta la el, dar, daca ar trebui sa surprind esentialul migrarii de pe Blogger pe WordPress intr-o singura propozitie, as spune ca ”Trebuia sa fac mai demult asta!” :)
Daca va ganditi sa faceti si voi marea mutare de pe Blogger (care e gratis) catre un blog WordPress mai profesionist, pe domeniu propriu, exista niste costuri aditionale (minime) de care trebuie sa tineti seama:
- cumpararea unui domeniu propriu – puteti verifica numele valabile si il puteti cumpara pe cel pe care il doriti de pe GoDaddy – eu am platit in jur de 11 $ pentru o perioada de 2 ani, pentru bydreamsfactory.com; cele cu .com se inchiriaza cumva, pe anumite perioade de timp, cele cu .ro, de exemplu, pot fi cumparate pe viata
- hosting – eu am mers pe una dintre variantele de la HostGator, platesc in jur de 10 $ pe luna; aici gasiti si variante mai bune, in Romania
- cumpararea temei WordPress – Foodie Pro, tema pe care am ales-o eu costa 75 dolari (eu am prins-o la reducere intr-o zi si am luat-o cu 5 dolari) si este considerata ca fiind child theme (tema copil); pentru a functiona are nevoie si de Genesis Framework, pentru care am platit 59.95 $
- migrarea de pe Blogger pe WordPress – pret de pornire de la 150-200 $; a mea a fost gratis, datorita celor de la TheCon;
Stati pe-aproape pentru mai multe detalii despre cum mi-am aranjat blogul si am personalizat tema Foodie Pro, plugins pe care musai a trebuit sa le am pentru noul blog WordPress, cum mi-am facut un logo/header cu aer vintage, pentru blog, si chiar un buton pentru Pinterest, in ton cu logo, cum am ales chema de culori pentru blog, fonturile si multe altele.
Asadar, cum vi se pare noua mea casuta virtuala? Va place la fel de mult cat imi place si mie? :) Planuiti si voi sa va mutati blogul de pe Blogger pe WordPress? Mi-ar placea sa va aud parerile, puteti lasa un comentariu mai jos.
Nu uitati sa zambiti, Diana
Marie
What a beautiful blog! I made the switch a year ago from Blogger to WordPress and am so happy I did! Although it isn’t free, it’s totally worth it!
It’s great that you had so much support in the transition. I still have a ways to go, but am proud of what I accomplished by just watching YouTube videos :)
Diana / Dreams Factory
Thank you so much, Marie!
I’m truly amazed on how flexible WordPress is. It’s not cheap, that’s for sure, but I’m so happy with the final … everything! :)
I don’t know how I managed but I somehow met just the right people when I needed the most!
And yes, YouTube tutorials rule! :)
Teddee Grace
This is lovely, but I’ve noticed that on all WordPress blogs, the social media logos that run down the left side of the page obscure the copy, making it very annoying to try to read the posts. Any way to fix this either on your end or mine?
Diana / Dreams Factory
Hello, Teddee Grace, thanks for stopping by!
I’m not sure how the social media icons obscure the posts reading, on my devices there is a considerable distance between the buttons and the actual post. Are you seeing anything differently?
Mihaela
Este atat de linistitor, culorile pale il fac foarte de elegant ! Ii felicit pe cei de la TheCon si pe tine ca ai reusit sa iei aceasta decizie :) !
Diana / Dreams Factory
Mihaela, iti multumesc frumos! Iubesc culorile pale, asa ca era musai sa le am si pe blog! :) Eu zic ca a fost o decizie buna, sunt foarte multumita.
Jessica White
I’m in the process right now. I’m manually moving my posts from my blogger blog {http://LifeintheWhiteHouse.com} to my new one. I just don’t have the money to pay someone to move 1500 posts, from the past 8 years of blogging. I’m just going through and picking the best of the best to transfer over and then will start fresh on my new blog.
Your design is beautiful!
Diana / Dreams Factory
Jessica, good luck with the moving, hope that everything goes well.
I’ve made a little bit of cleaning myself and still have some older posts I have to review, but I guess I’ll just do that in time :)
I see that you also have the Foodie Pro theme, you can find here lots of tips and tricks for setting up all kind of things on Foodie Pro: http://minimalistbaker.com/resources/foodie-pro-genesis-child-theme-master-setup-and-customization-guide/.
Diane
Congrats on your new wordpress home. Everything looks great.