Blogging Platforms for Hotels: WordPress Versus Tumblr
So after the first few posts in our Blog Development for Hotels series, you have a better understanding of why a blog is so important and how it strengthens your online performance. But we are left with an even more basic question: what platform should you use to host your blog?
We recommend that you consider two options: WordPress and Tumblr.
Free and Open-Source
We’ll go into the differences momentarily, but first let’s mention the key similarity between the two, the reason why we recommend these particular two: they’re free.
Actually, it goes farther than not having to shell out for the system. You can modify and extend both these platforms at will, not only without having to pay for them, but also without having to get permission. That’s hugely important in an era of rampant patent and copyright litigation.
WordPress phrases it like this:
You are also free to do whatever you like with the WordPress code, extend it or modify in any way or use it for commercial projects without any licensing fees. That is the beauty of free software, free meaning not only price but also the freedom to have complete control over it.
It’s free! Don’t pay for storage. Don’t pay for bandwidth. Don’t even pay for advanced features like full theme source code control, custom domain hosting, and group blogs. Tumblr’s creator-friendly Terms of Service means you keep your copyright.
WordPress vs. Tumblr
That said, Tumblr and WordPress are two entirely different platforms, with varying strengths and weaknesses.
WordPress:
WordPress is the more powerful, flexible and extensible option. Note that many well-known sites are powered by WordPress, like the New York Times, CNN and Wired Magazine. We host our own site with it. But its power comes with a price: WordPress may not be complicated as something like Drupal or Joomla, but it does requires more technical knowledge than Tumblr to use — especially if you’re just using it to blog.
We’ve written at length about WordPress previously.
Tumblr:
This “micro-blogging” platform is more straight-forward for the average user. You don’t have as advanced functionality, but you get simplicity of use and less unnecessary “fluff”. Tumblr is a specialist whereas WordPress is a generalist. That means Tumblr doesn’t have WordPress’s power or flexibility; but it does what it does really well, in a streamlined way. It’s just easy to use.
Should I use WordPress, or Tumblr?
That’s the million dollar question, of course. It all depends on your specific needs. Consider some of the following questions.
Which one can do more?
WordPress. Both are fully extensible and customizable, but WordPress’s library of “plugins” is so vast you would never finish reading a list of them. Meanwhile, Tumblr uses “apps”, but its selection is more basic. It’s the same with themes for both.
Which one can create a hotel’s entire website?
Both platforms allow you to create static “pages” in addition to dynamic blog posts, and both allow you to use a custom domain, so you could build a full site out of either. But if it’s your intention to build your hotel’s website and blog with a single platform, go with WordPress. Tumblr is just too basic, and a hotel’s needs for its site, too great.
Which one is better for SEO?
WordPress. The platform is more aware of what’s needed to make pages and posts maximally accessible to search engines. Then, add in a few of the many SEO-focused plugins, and you have a system that speaks to search engines with as much fluency as it addresses human readers. That’s not to say Tumblr is not SEO-friendly, but Tumblr is very human-centric. It makes it easier for humans to blog and easier for humans to read and share. It doesn’t shut out search engines, but it doesn’t talk to them so directly either.
Which one is easier to use?
Tumblr. It presents a more streamlined process, while making it easier to post from a variety of sources, like email or your mobile phone. With less functionality, less technical knowledge and skill is required; and you can just focus on what’s really key in a blog: great content.
Which one is better at social media and post sharing?
Both do well, but in different ways. On the whole, Tumblr probably edges out WordPress. Tumblr supports super-easy sharing and re-blogging … but not comments. So readers can share, but they can’t discuss, and you can’t host a conversation. This is worth mentioning, but you might be surprised how few hotels really need comments on their blog. WordPress can do the sharing as well, though it’s not as easy as with Tumblr. But if you want comments, WordPress does it with style: you have not only fine-tuned control over users and commenting conversations, it comes with built-in spam protection.
So which one wins overall?
Answering this question is like playing rock-paper-scissors because either can trump the other; it just depends on your unique needs and priorities.
Based on our discussion above, the answer would look like:
| WordPress | Tumblr | |
| Power & Functionality | ✔ | |
| Website Creation | ✔ | |
| SEO Friendliness | ✔ | |
| Ease of Use | ✔ | |
| Ease of Sharing | ✔ |
So on the surface, WordPress looks like the better choice. But just because it wins 3 out of 5 arbitrary categories doesn’t mean it’s automatically right for you. For you, ease of use may outweigh greater functionality; and if your main site is hosted with another system entirely, whether or not either WordPress or Tumblr can do it is irrelevant. So you might actually consider the table like this, in which case Tumblr suddenly wins:
| WordPress | Tumblr | |
| Power & Functionality | ✔ | |
| SEO Friendliness | ✔ | |
| Ease of Use | ✔ | |
| Ease of Use (Important enough to mention twice) | ✔ | |
| Ease of Sharing | ✔ |
Hopefully this article has given you some good information about the two blogging platforms, along with some solid guidelines and considerations to use in choosing one over the other. But if you’re still confused or uncertain, we invite you to contact us. Blog development is one of our major services, and we can help you identify the perfect platform to meet your needs and achieve your goals. We also recommend that you subscribe to our Learning Center RSS Feed; we’ll have more to say about WordPress and Tumblr down the road.
