How to Set Up Your Blogger Blog with a Custom Domain on GoDaddy

GoDaddy Blogger DNS Setup can't be used to map your blog to a custom domain anymore.

Are you still on a Blogger free subdomain where your URL says myblog.blogspot.com? Well, it's up to you to be on it or move to a custom domain where things get much easier and visible. Whether you are on a free or custom domain, content is what matters most for users.

A domain name on the web space is considered as an unique identity online. Usually custom domains are not free and you have to purchase, but yet very cheap. Using a custom domain can help you improve visibility of your brand name and content plus it depicts that you are dedicated to it. There are different sort of domain registrars on the web and you will need to select one which suites to your requirements in managing your domain. Have you heard of GoDaddy?

Why Custom Domain?

We have already discussed about setting up a custom domain for your blog via Blogger directly without much effort on it. If you didn't read it yet, read How to Purchase and Set Up a Custom Domain for Your Blog in Blogger and there I've already discussed the importance of a custom domain too. So I'm not gonna repeat it all again here. It's alright, no?

However, now you gonna ask me, why I'm pushing on custom domains again. Selecting a domain registrar is depends on your choice and I'm gonna help you set up your blog if you have selected GoDaddy as your domain registrar or registered a domain there. I was confused when I set up my blog first time too. Yeah, I didn't know it first and now I'm sharing what I've learnt with you.

GoDaddy Domain Name

Before proceeding with the switch, I'd like to talk about features you will get with GoDaddy to be more familiar with if you already own one or else if you are thinking about purchasing a domain for your blog. First off, before I own my custom domain, I've done my kind of research. Here's how my friends responded me about GoDaddy's service when I ask them about it before I purchase my domain.

+Lisa Buben ~ I like GoDaddy, they respond quick on Twitter w/ questions too.

+Carol Lynn Rivera ~ Reliable and simple to use.

+Vanita Cyril ~ GoDaddy is great for domain management and the tech support is pretty good.

After being on GoDaddy, I'm pretty confident with the reliability and domain management tools they offer. Support? I wasn't on it yet. But I know it when my friends say so. Trust me on that. Further I'd like to list out features you can experience after purchasing a domain at GoDaddy.

● Easy Domain Management - GoDaddy Domain Manager gives you information about your domain configuration and access to DNS records plus other services available for your purchased domain. There you can easily change settings without prior advanced knowledge as it's rich with help resources and has very user friendly environment.

● Domain Locking - You can take control of your domain and prevent unauthorized transfers of your domain. By default your domain is locked where no one can transfer your domain to another registrar. But if you need to transfer, you can unlock and transfer whenever you need.

● DNS Management - GoDaddy offers total control of your domain DNS settings. As we focused on Blogger, another advantage is, GoDaddy will set up your Blogger blog to work with the domain you have purchased. So no need to waste your time on setting up DNS records.

● Auto Renew Protection - GoDaddy sends you notifications or take control of renewing process upon expiration of your domain. So you don't need to worry about keeping your domain under your name.

● Domain Status - GoDaddy monitor and report current status of your domain whether it's active or inactive.

● Change Registration Information - When you register your domain, you have to provide personal details. But in case if you wanna change registration details later on, GoDaddy let you change your information and the update information will be reflected on WHOIS directory under your domain name.

● Domain Forwarding - GoDaddy supports domain forwarding where you can forward your own domain to another domain. For example, if you are moving to another domain or subdomain, by setting up forwarding, you can send your visitors land on your old domain automatically to new domain of yours. Further it supports masking where after forwarding or directing your visitors automatically to new domain, visitors won't see new domain name on their browser address bar but still old domain name they used to visit, but actually they are exploring new domain of yours.

● Personalized Email - GoDaddy offers you a personalized email for your domain with 1 GB of storage.

Except for above features, GoDaddy can be,

○ Costy - Yeah, GoDaddy is kinda costy as if you wanna use private registration, increase email storage or so, compared to purchasing a custom domain via Blogger. It depends. However it's a relief that you can make use of free Google Apps for your domain to overcome some limitations rather than paying out more.

I've mentioned important features of GoDaddy custom domains you can experience and which are valid for Blogger users. Now it's your turn to go for best one if you are looking for purchasing a custom domain for your blog. Don't forget to read How to Purchase and Set Up a Custom Domain for Your Blog in Blogger before you take the decision. Else if you already purchased a domain at GoDaddy, let's proceed and set up your blog on your domain.

Before You Go:

* If you have third party applications or tools implemented or configured for your existing blog, you may need to check whether they are supporting domain migration to keep them as it is without losing any associated data.

For example, if you have a 3rd party comment platform implemented in your blog, please make sure that you can migrate without losing your existing comments. Else you need to take a hard decision.

* You need to have a custom domain purchased at GoDaddy.com. If you don't have one already, create a new GoDaddy account and purchase a new custom domain for your blog via GoDaddy Domains page.

Steps:

1. Sign in to your GoDaddy account.

2. Go to GoDaddy Blogger DNS Setup page.

3. Now enter your custom domain URL purchased at GoDaddy, that your wish to set up your blog and click Confirm button.

4. Wait until it update your DNS records.

5. After DNS record updation, go to Blogger Dashboard.

6. Click on your Blog Title.

7. Jump to Settings tab from left pane.

8. Find Publishing heading on Basic tab.

9. Click Add a custom domain link.

10. Click Switch to advanced settings link..

11. Now enter your custom domain URL in given field to redirect your blog and click Save button.

Note: If you gonna set it up for your naked domain which is without www - i.e: www.Mayura4Ever.com, then when you enter your domain name here, make sure to add a space before your domain name. Else it won't accept your domain.

12. Now your old blogspot URL will redirect to your new custom domain. However it may take few minutes or hours to complete.

More Information:

* If you set up a domain name with www or without www, you will also need to redirect to your blog even if users type your domain name with or without preceding www. So make sure to enable redirection at Blogger for your custom domain after setting up. Read How to Enable Domain Redirection in Blogger.

* You can access your GoDaddy domain settings via Domain Manager.


Enjoy :-)