Tech Tag: Blogging

More and more creators want to launch their own subscription-based blogs, monetize through subscriptions or memberships, and have full control over their content and branding.
“If only I could avoid platform fees and restrictions,” “I want to grow my own brand with a custom domain,” “I want to own my audience and data”—
If these resonate, building your own subscription-based blog is the way to go.

Benefits of Building Your Own Subscription-Based Blog

• Maximize Revenue
  Keep more of your earnings by avoiding platform fees and commissions.
• Full Branding & Design Control
  Use your own domain and custom designs to build a unique brand presence.
• Complete Control Over Content and Member Data
  No more worrying about platform policy changes or service shutdowns.
• Freedom in SEO and Marketing
  Set up your own SEO strategies, analytics, and marketing campaigns without limitations.

Main Options Compared

When building a subscription-based blog independently, you have two main options:

• WordPress + Membership Plugins
  The world’s most popular CMS. You can add paid membership and subscription features with plugins. However, plugin selection and setup can get complicated, and you’re responsible for speed and security.
• CMSs Specialized for Paid Memberships
  Some CMSs are built specifically for subscriptions and paid content. These usually come with built-in member management and payment features, making the workflow much simpler.

Who Should Consider This?

• Anyone looking to monetize their writing or content directly
• Those who want a custom domain and unique design
• Creators seeking independence from third-party platforms
• Anyone wanting a simple way to launch a subscription or membership service

The Best CMS for Building a Subscription-based Blog?

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The rise of ad blockers has indeed transformed the landscape of online advertising. However, whether placing ads on your own site or blog will become obsolete is a nuanced question. Here are some key considerations:

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As concerns about data privacy continue to grow, many users are turning to privacy-oriented operating systems and browsers. These technologies aim to enhance user privacy by limiting tracking and data collection, which can pose challenges for personalized advertising.

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Cleaning up old, irrelevant social media posts is a crucial feature for anyone who cares about maintaining a professional or fresh online presence. Here’s how Mastodon and Bluesky compare when it comes to automatic post deletion:

Mastodon: Built-In Auto-Delete for Posts

Mastodon offers a native, highly configurable automated post deletion feature right in its core settings:

• Location: Available in Preferences > Automated Post Deletion.
• Control: You can set the age threshold for post deletion (from 1 week up to 2 years).
• Exemptions: Choose to skip deletion for specific posts, such as pinned items, DMs, posts with media, posts that are bookmarked, or even posts above a certain popularity (measured by boosts or favorites).
• Manual override: Turning off the feature simply disables it for future posts, but already deleted posts are not recoverable.
• Federated deletion: Attempts to delete old posts from all federated servers, though some copies may persist if other servers do not honor deletion signals.

Bluesky: No Native Auto-Delete—Relying on Third-Party Tools

Bluesky currently lacks an integrated automated post deletion feature:

• Manual or third-party only: Users must use external tools or services (like Redact.dev or scripts such as Skeeter-Delete) for scheduled post removal.
• Disappearing Mode & Bulk Removal: Third-party apps allow auto-deletions, such as removing posts, reposts, and likes based on age or specific criteria, but this is not part of Bluesky’s native workflow.
• Configurability: Deletion settings depend on the chosen tool or service and may require payment, manual setup, or periodic intervention.
• Upcoming features: There are user requests for a built-in feature, but as of now, it remains external.

Feature Comparison Table

Platform	Native Auto-Delete	Granular Controls	Third-Party Tools Only	Federated/All-In-One
Mastodon	Yes	Yes (age, popularity, exceptions)	No	Federated, but not all servers may respect deletion
Bluesky	No	Depends on external tool	Yes	All-in-one platform

Why This Matters for Content Managers & Creators

For someone who manages blogs and values fresh content—especially if you prefer self-hosting and absolute control—Mastodon’s built-in automation gives you peace of mind. You can avoid the hassle of manual cleanup, keep your archive lean, and ensure that outdated, irrelevant posts do not linger to potentially harm reputation, clutter your profile, or dilute your brand. Bluesky’s reliance on third-party solutions for a basic function like auto-removal is a significant drawback for anyone who regards content lifecycle and curatorial control as top priorities.

Verdict: Mastodon’s auto-removal tools are more robust and convenient for content creators and managers who want minimal maintenance of old social content.

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Ghost intentionally chose not to implement a separate “categories” system and instead uses only tags for content organization. The main reasons behind this decision are:

• Simplicity and Flexibility: Having a single, unified tagging system keeps the interface and management simple for users. Tags are more flexible, allowing any number of tags to be applied to a post, rather than forcing content to live within a strict hierarchy. This avoids the complexity and confusion that can come from maintaining two taxonomies (categories and tags) that essentially serve overlapping purposes.
• Avoiding Unnecessary Complexity: Many users coming from platforms like WordPress found the dual system of categories (hierarchical) and tags (flat) to be confusing and redundant in practice. Ghost’s philosophy is that a single, powerful system is better for most publishing needs.
• Primary Tag as “Category”: Ghost lets you pick a primary tag for each post, so you can use this as your “category” if you want a main topic, while also using secondary tags for cross-topic organization.
• Theme and Navigation Control: Since tags provide feeds and pages automatically, and most themes allow you to feature or highlight specific tags, you can achieve the same navigational structure as with traditional categories—without rigid hierarchies.
• Developer Intent: There is no plan to add categories, as the tag system is seen as sufficient and more adaptable to modern needs.

As a result, Ghost’s content organization is designed to be less rigid, more streamlined, and easier for both writers and readers to use.

1. Log in to the Bluesky app and open the settings screen.
2. Click “Change handle”.
3. Select “I have my own domain”
4. Enter the custom domain name you want to use.
5. Copy the displayed DNS setting information.
6. Add the copied information to the domain’s DNS settings:
   • Add as TXT record
   • Enter hostname and target (or value) exactly
7. After saving your DNS settings, return to the Bluesky app and click “Verify DNS Record.”
8. If the authentication is successful, you will see the message “Your domain has been verified!”.
9. Click Save to confirm your changes.