Theme-based web site or Blog - which is better?

5 replies
  • WEB DESIGN
  • |
Hi,

Do you recommend a blog or a theme-based site for building an authority site consisting mainly of articles?

I have had a static theme based site and a blog for several years but focused primarily on adding content to my blog over the last few. The static site still gets way more visitors and adsense income. The blog lags behind although it contains much more content.

Cons of blog
Content on the blog doesn't rank well unless I build backlinks to it
Adsense income drops if posting is not done frequently
Difficult for visitors to view all articles

Pros of blog
Content gets indexed immediately
Retain a number of followers who regularly read the content
Get feedback from comments
Content gets pinged to RSS directories
Easy maintenance

Pros of Theme-based site
Most pages rank well and retain their rankings
Adsense income remains steady even if site is left alone

Cons of Theme-based site
No automatic pinging of RSS directories
No feedback ie comments
Not easy to maintain ie uploading pages to server

I'm planning on redesigning both sites and leaning towards adding quality content to the theme-based one (for sustainable rankings) and shorter posts to the blog.

What's your experience and what CMS do you use for your themed site?
#blog #site #themebased #web
  • Profile picture of the author smoke.sessions
    I have always used WordPress, it has everything I need and it's pretty much the same as a regular website I think, just a lot more powerful.

    I've had static HTML websites as well, but they never turn out to be very easy for a site where you have to add articles daily. Editing the HTML can become a hassle when you have to update it regularly.

    I had a WordPress blog up to PR2 by only getting 30-50 backlinks in under 3 months. I do offer a DoFollow blog commenting service at a low rate if you need someone to build links for you.

    I hope this helps some, it's just my 2 cents!
    Signature

    PM me if you need a custom WP plugin or a website built!

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1488617].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Richard Whyte
    Hi

    I also find that the sites I design that are "Static" vs blog end up with higher page rank on Google... Even when I base them off of very similar information... I am not sure why this is and getting an answer from Google just is not going to happen!

    If you have Dreamweaver and are comfortable with web design, I think you have basically answered your own question as to which is best for you. Page Rank is important and if you can get better page rank with static pages, then go for it.

    Have a Great Day!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1489089].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author vision2000
      Thanks for the feedback. I like designing static sites because I get more flexibility in the design however the maintenance takes longer especially if you have 100s of pages. I currently upgrade the RSS feeds manually and use includes files to update pages site wide. Maintenance is easier with my WordPress Blog but the ROI is less.

      I had thought of converting to a CMS like Joomla or WordPress (non-blog) but am still not convinced.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1489227].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author smoke.sessions
    Joomla or Drupal might be good CMS's to turn to if you aren't satisfied with static pages or WP. I don't have much experience with Joomla, but Drupal is pretty nice, and easy to use.

    It's worth a try, test it out and see how it is maybe with a test website or something.
    Signature

    PM me if you need a custom WP plugin or a website built!

    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1489269].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Baguadude
    I believe either is good as long as the content has got substance. No matter how fancy your site is, if it is like a hot air balloon won't last long.

    Just compare this two for example:

    bid for Cosmetic surgery Cosmetic Surgery; Plastic Surgery prices and fees (terrible for many reasons).

    Lifehacker Australia, tips and downloads to help you at work and play (simple but still rich in content, a cleat winner).
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[1493913].message }}

Trending Topics