As part of the "Blogging 101 for Pastors" series [click here to see all the posts], I've been asking several proflic blogging pastors or believers to answer five basic questions about blogging.

Today, we have Ben Gray, a youth minister in Georgia, answering the 5 questions. Ben is the designer of Unsleepable, a popular WordPress theme (more than 4,000 downloads and counting and how I originally got in contact with him). He also helps write for BlogMinistry.

1. Why (or how) did you start blogging?

I'll answer both of those questions. I started blogging largely because of the writing of Molly Holzschlag. I don't know what it is about her site but it was (still is) inspiring to bloggers. I also had a somewhat naive perception that through blogging I could somehow change the whole world and convince everyone who read my blog to be a Christian. Needless to say, I was wrong.

I started out with a blogspot address (Blogger) but soon got sick of the comment spam, the splogs, and the fact that my commenters had to enter a security password each time they commented. I struck out on my own with openswitch.org.

2. What subject do you post most about?

Religion, culture and parenting. It may seem like an odd combination but those are the three areas that interest me the most. Religion: because I'm a minister. Culture: because I'm surrounded by it. Parenting: because my son is the coolest guy around.

3. What are your favorite blog tools?

Favorite CMS (content management system): WordPress

FTW. WordPress is free, easy to use, has hundreds (thousands?) of free themes, tons of plugins, it is very expandable and has the best community I've ever encountered.

If I didn't have my own domain though and was forced to use a free blogging service I wouldn't be on blogspot/Blogger, I'd be using WordPress.com. It's easily the best free blogging service around.

Favorite feed reader: Newsgator. Nothing, not even Google's revamped Google Reader, can tear me away from it. It simply rocks. If, for some odd reason it folded then I'd turn to Bloglines. I couldn't live without my feed reader.

Favorite stats: I personally use Mint. It's not free, but it's much more accurate, functional and practical than free services. People ask me all the time if I think Mint is worth the $30 (one time purchase). I always tell them that for a casual blogger who doesn't really care who's reading his material or how many people are visiting his site then a free stats service is fine; I used one for a while. But for a serious blogger who likes to know where his visitors are coming from, what they're looking at, how long they're looking at it, and where they go after they visit your blog then Mint is indispensable. You can see my Mint stats at any time by clicking here.

4. How often do you post?

I try to post at least once a day. Sometimes I'll miss a day but I make sure to never miss two days in a row. But you know, it really doesn't matter how often you post just as long as you're consistent about it. Some of the best bloggers post once a month, others post six times a day. It doesn't matter in the long run how often you post. Oh, but whatever you do, make sure you consistently post quality material. In a world of over 55 million blogs, content is king.

5. What one piece of advice would you give for prospective blogging pastors?
Only one? Be passionate and compassionate. (That counts as one, right? ;))

[[ THANKS, BEN, FOR TAKING THE TIME TO DO THIS!!!!]]


***

If you enjoyed this post, sign up for the FREE Church Communications Pro Email Newsletter.

Technorati Tags:
blogging for pastors, blogging church, blogging pastors, i help pastors blog, series, church marketing, church communications

Add to: | Technorati | Digg | del.icio.us | Yahoo | BlinkList | Spurl | reddit | Furl