If your site has no blog, Rank Prompt can run one for you on a subdomain such as blog.yourbrand.com. Articles on your own domain build its authority, and the blog is ready for publishing from the editor as soon as it is live. Rank Prompt installs WordPress, issues the SSL certificate and keeps it running.
The hosted blog needs Starter or higher. The brand owner creates and launches it; editors can change its settings.
Open Integrations > Publish content and, on the Hosted blog card, click Create new blog
Enter the Blog URL: the subdomain and your root domain
Add the three DNS records the form shows, in your DNS provider (Cloudflare, GoDaddy, Namecheap and so on):
Step 1: TXT record for verification: proves you own the domain
Step 2: CNAME record: points the subdomain to the blog
Step 3: CNAME for SSL certificate: lets the certificate be issued and renewed, so the blog has HTTPS
If your DNS provider supports automatic setup (Domain Connect), the form shows Connect with and the provider's name above the records: click it, approve the records in the tab that opens, and come back. If not, the form names your provider and links its guide for adding records
Click Check. DNS changes usually take 5 to 30 minutes to show; if a record is not found yet, the form says which one
Click Create managed blog, then Launch blog once the card says Ready to launch
The blog takes a few minutes to set up; you can leave the page. It is styled to match your website (logo and brand color captured from your site).
Tip: In Cloudflare, set every record to DNS only (the grey cloud). A proxied record hides the CNAME, so the blog can be neither verified nor published to.
Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
Ready to launch | DNS verified; the owner can launch |
Setting up... | The blog is being created |
Active | The blog is live |
Error | Something failed: the card says what to check, and Try again |
Check DNS on the card shows each record's state at any time.
View blog opens it, WP Admin opens its WordPress admin
Blog settings (the gear) opens Hosted site settings: logo, favicon, font, up to 6 navigation links, a CTA button, the author shown on posts (name, title, bio, avatar, website) and the footer text, with a live preview
Blog analytics shows its traffic
Publish to it like any other destination: open an article, publish, and pick the hosted blog. See Publishing your content.
The brand owner can click Remove blog on the hosted blog's card, once setup has finished or failed. It deletes the blog and its posts, and the domain stops serving it; it cannot be undone. Your articles stay in Rank Prompt, and the DNS records at your provider can be deleted afterwards. To use the domain again, set the blog up from the start.
Deleting the brand takes its hosted blog offline (archived) right away. Undo within the 48 hours brings the blog back with its posts. If you ask us to erase your account's data, the hosted blogs on your brands are deleted with it.
DNS not detected yet: wait up to 30 minutes, check the record type (TXT or CNAME) and the host name, then Check DNS again
Blog not reachable or no HTTPS: the Step 3 record is missing or proxied
Already have WordPress? Connect it instead: see WordPress integration
Email [email protected] and I'll help.
