When you can set up a basic wordpress theme so cheaply, why should a blogger bother learning to code? We lay out the top 5 reasons why it’s important.

Read on...

Your blog is your brand

Sure, you could just pick an off-the-shelf theme and install it as is but the way your blog looks and feels is a huge part of your brand – and it’s unlikely that you are going to find a ready-made theme that fits you just right. Even if you are lucky enough to find a theme that you love, there is nothing to stop every other up-and-coming travel blogger from using the same theme… with tools like www.whatwpthemeisthat.com someone can discover and install your theme in less than an hour.

When you know how to code you can easily customize your style to perfectly suit your brand. Change colors and fonts, play with the style of your buttons, or add those little unique touches that scream you.

With coding you will never feel restricted by a theme

A theme for your blog can be a great starting point, but what seems easy at the beginning can quickly get frustrating when you try to make even the simplest changes.

Drag-and-Drop website builders and editors, such as Squarespace or Wix, can look incredible out-of-the-box. However, their simplicity is also their greatest downfall. It’s hard to predict what you need from your website until you start building, so you often don’t realise how limited you are. The simplicity and supposed ‘freedom’ can start to severely limit you in what you can do, especially when you want to grow your website.

This can feel like hell when you just can’t get your site to look and function how you want.

Coding gives you the flexibilty to go beyond the theme and create something totally custom and unique.

Save time and money (and frustration) on hiring developers

How much does it hurt when you realise that you have to call your developer again and spend even more money on a site that just isn’t coming together the way you want?

Coding skills are in high demand and come with a price-tag to match, so whether you are struggling with basic customisations (like changing the colour of a button), trying to fix the latest crash (and they will happen), or wrestling with another confusing plugin, those development dollars can start to add up.

High-demand also means your developer will often have multiple clients. That means you won’t always be their priority, even if something goes wrong. On the other hand, cheaper developers often struggle to meet deadlines, and will write buggy code, or find shortcuts of doing things, all of which will hurt you in the long run.

Imagine the sweet freedom of being able to make all these changes yourself! No more desperate emails at 3am on a Saturday night when you accidentally crashed your site, or dreading that $100 invoice to tweak your contact form. Ahhh freedom tastes so sweet.

Upsell clients with ‘Micro-sites’

Blogging can be a competitive landscape - it’s hard to stand out from the crowd and it’s even harder to find gigs that pay. With every other blogger offering the standard ‘blog post + daily instagram’ wouldn’t it be nice to stand out from the crowd?

Upsell your clients with custom ‘micro-websites’ about specific campaigns – these are mini websites you build from scratch and host on sub domains (like patagonia.myblog.com). Your audience loves the unique design and engaging content, your client gets way more value than the standard blog post, and you, dear blogger, get paid.

Micro-sites can add hundreds or even thousands of dollars of revenue to a single campaign, and with a bit of practice, you can be building them in just a few days.

MOst3xC3LL3Nt:
Save time and money (and frustration) on hiring developers

How much does it hurt when you realise that you have to call your developer again and spend even more money on a site that just isn’t coming together the way you want?

Coding skills are in high demand and come with a price-tag to match, so whether you are struggling with basic customisations (like changing the colour of a button), trying to fix the latest crash (and they will happen), or wrestling with another confusing plugin, those development dollars can start to add up.

High-demand also means your developer will often have multiple clients. That means you won’t always be their priority, even if something goes wrong. On the other hand, cheaper developers often struggle to meet deadlines, and will write buggy code, or find shortcuts of doing things, all of which will hurt you in the long run.

Imagine the sweet freedom of being able to make all these changes yourself! No more desperate emails at 3am on a Saturday night when you accidentally crashed your site, or dreading that $100 invoice to tweak your contact form. Ahhh freedom tastes so sweet.

I couldn't have agreed more with you, OP! I had to personally troubleshoot some little issues on [url]questechie.com[/url] and being able to code is indeed helpful!

questechie:

I couldn't have agreed more with you, OP! I had to personally troubleshoot some little issues on [url]questechie.com[/url] and being able to code is indeed helpful!

You're 15yrs old in the blogosphere

You should be making approximately $5,000 monthly.

HenryDion:


You're 15yrs old in the blogosphere

You should be making approximately $5,000 monthly.

And how does that relate to the topic

questechie:

And how does that relate to the topic

Haaa.. Oga, no vex

HenryDion:


Haaa.. Oga, no vex

I need a blog that will also be like a website,i already bought a domain name on Godaddy, can you help out

tociano009:
I need a blog that will also be like a website,i already bought a domain name on Godaddy, can you help out

Can't help due to time constraints..

HenryDion:


Can't help due to time constraints..

ok

HenryDion:


Haaa.. Oga, no vex

tociano009:
I need a blog that will also be like a website,i already bought a domain name on Godaddy, can you help out

Look around in the forum there are guys offering such services, and most ain't free, but I think I saw one that seems to be free, but you'd buy hosting from their end.

Bloggers can do without coding. Not every blogger should code. In fact how many of the so called web designers out there can code? They will just be using CMS to form power

I dey come I no go tey

tociano009:
I need a blog that will also be like a website,i already bought a domain name on Godaddy, can you help out

I can... Stevezuks@gmail.com

MOst3xC3LL3Nt:
When you can set up a basic wordpress theme so cheaply, why should a blogger bother learning to code? We lay out the top 5 reasons why it’s important.

Read on...

But is learning how to code affordable?

I, stopped/forget how to code ever since I quit using wåpka

I code for Africa

tociano009:
I need a blog that will also be like a website,i already bought a domain name on Godaddy, can you help out

We can connect you to reliable Web designer on Pukena. Log in to www.pukena.ng, go to digital services. Tell us what you need and get quotes from only the best designer at ur budget

True talk. It's a nice and important skill to have to last on d internet. Check this: www.poontoe.com
Got frustrated many times with themes, it wasn't funny so ignorance wasn't an option.

Blogging don cast move on

While it is good you learn to code, dnt 4gt dat u need to run ur blog like a business and nt a job.

You dont have to do it all urself.

sawdi:


But is learning how to code affordable?

Depending on how deep you want to go into it.. As a blogger, you would only need to learn the basics.

There are lot of websites online that offers coding tuts for free

Finally, Coding makes a great side hustle

Sorry this part was late, I was banned by nairaland from replying posts, I don't know why, .. But Now I can

Remember when we said outsourcing coding was expensive? The flip side to this is that coding is high in demand and can make a great source of passive income to support you while your blog grows. You can find freelance work for other bloggers, for local businesses while you travel or for clients back home. The best skill sets to find freelance work are the ones that are in high demand and low supply, and luckily for you coding ticks both of those boxes.

Op I agree with you. I know how much I make weekly customizing blogs for bloggers. Being able toncode, at least basic HTML and CSS is an advantage. To us the programmers with advanced scripting skills it is a source of income.
Just this year I've gotten two offers from companies to come work with them, but ibtold them I can't leave my school for a permanent job. I could only consult.
So far one of the greatest challenge I've faced is working on this site www.madestarzblog.com the site owner needed a mobile version of the site hut its been fun

tociano009:
I need a blog that will also be like a website,i already bought a domain name on Godaddy, can you help out

I can help you out with when, DM me or send me an email on mrchiwondah@gmail.com

tociano009:
I need a blog that will also be like a website,i already bought a domain name on Godaddy, can you help out

Hi there,

HK to the rescue.

I can help you setup your website / blog.

Im a webdeveloper, webmaster. I code too, so support services are free.

msg me on whatsapp (details in my signature)

regards
HK

hmmm

MOst3xC3LL3Nt:
Your blog is your brand

Sure, you could just pick an off-the-shelf theme and install it as is but the way your blog looks and feels is a huge part of your brand – and it’s unlikely that you are going to find a ready-made theme that fits you just right. Even if you are lucky enough to find a theme that you love, there is nothing to stop every other up-and-coming travel blogger from using the same theme… with tools like www.whatwpthemeisthat.com someone can discover and install your theme in less than an hour.

When you know how to code you can easily customize your style to perfectly suit your brand. Change colors and fonts, play with the style of your buttons, or add those little unique touches that scream you.

OP pls whats the difference between coding and web designing

akiOYIBO:

OP pls whats the difference between coding and web designing

Web designing is about the use of various design programs such as Adobe Photoshop to create the layout and other visual elements of the website. While Web Programming or Coding on the other hand, is taking a website design and actually making a functioning website from it. Web programmers use HTML, CSS, Javascript, PHP and other programming languages to bring to life the design files.