Integrations · 6 minute read
Host a blog on your own domain
Give your articles a home on your own domain. This guide takes you from choosing a blog address to publishing and applying your saved branding.
A blog on your own subdomain
GrowthScout can host your articles at an address such as blog.example.com, alongside your existing website. GrowthScout runs the blog and manages its HTTPS certificate. You control the domain and choose which articles to publish. You do not need to install a CMS or run a server.
This integration uses a subdomain. It does not add an example.com/blog folder to your current website. Each website in GrowthScout can have one hosted blog address.
Before you start
- Add your website to GrowthScout and select it in the website switcher.
- Have access to the domain's DNS settings, or ask the person who manages them to help.
- Choose an unused subdomain. If it already serves a blog or another service, plan that migration before changing its DNS.
- Review your primary logo, colours and fonts in Website settings → Brand & style. These saved settings will appear publicly on your hosted blog.
1. Choose your blog address
Open Settings → Blog connection, find Blog hosting and select Set up blog hosting. Choose your address, for example blog.example.com, without a protocol or path. Continue to DNS setup to save it and generate your unique connection target.
2. Add the DNS record
At the provider that manages your domain's DNS, add the CNAME record shown in GrowthScout. Copy the actual values from your setup; the table below is an explanation, not a record to paste.
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Type | CNAME |
| Name / host | Your chosen blog hostname. Some providers append your domain automatically and expect only blog. |
| Target / value | The unique target copied from GrowthScout, ending in .host.growthscout.io for new setups. Existing setups may show .blog.growthscout.io; keep using the exact saved target. |
| TTL | Auto or your provider's default. |
For Cloudflare DNS, open your domain's DNS → Records, add the CNAME and set Proxy status to DNS only (the grey cloud). Save the record. Automatic Cloudflare configuration is not available in this version; the manual record is always shown in GrowthScout.
Keep your main website's DNS records as they are. A CNAME cannot share its hostname with an existing A, AAAA or another CNAME record. Only replace a conflicting record after confirming the chosen subdomain is no longer needed by that service.
3. Check the connection
Return to GrowthScout and select Check connection. The guide checks domain verification, the HTTPS certificate, and the DNS/public connection. DNS changes and certificate issuance can take time. You can leave the page and use Continue setup later; your saved DNS values will still be there.
When all checks pass, select View blog to open the HTTPS address. An empty blog shows “Articles are on their way” until you publish your first article.
4. Connect publishing and publish an article
Review the publishing preference shown before connecting. With auto publish off, articles stay as drafts until you publish them. With auto publish on, Allow auto publish & connect permits generated articles to publish under your current settings. Connecting does not publish all existing drafts.
Connect the blog, open a reviewed article and publish it. Visit its public URL to check the title, text, images and links. Add a Blog link to your main website's navigation so visitors can discover your articles.
Customise the appearance
Choose Customise blog branding from the connected blog guide, or open Website settings → Brand & style. Save your primary logo, palette and heading/body fonts, then refresh your public blog to review the result. Unsaved edits and AI analysis suggestions do not change the live appearance.
The standard layout uses your business name and main website link. Choose a PNG, JPEG, WebP, GIF or AVIF logo. Only the selected primary logo is exposed through the blog; reference images and other private brand files remain private. Removing the primary logo removes it from the blog.
Accent (or primary), background and text colours supply the theme. Unreadable text or link combinations fall back to a contrasting colour. Fonts available from Google Fonts are requested for the page; unavailable or custom fonts use a local font or the system fallback. This first version shares Brand & style settings across the website and blog; separate blog overrides and custom templates are not included.
If a check is still waiting
- DNS: compare the saved hostname and target exactly. Check for an accidentally repeated domain, a conflicting record, or a Cloudflare record left proxied.
- HTTPS: allow time for certificate issuance and use Check again. If it stays pending, share the hostname and displayed error with support. You do not need to share a DNS API token.
- Public connection: do not connect publishing until it passes. If DNS and HTTPS are ready but this check fails, contact support with the displayed error.
- Missing articles: check that the article is published to this website's hosted blog. Saving a draft alone does not make it public.
Published pages include canonical URLs, an RSS feed at /rss.xml, and a sitemap at /sitemap.xml. These help discovery but do not guarantee search rankings or AI recommendations.