Ok you want to know the top 5 blog sites but i would like to ask you what niches are you interested in knowing the top sites or you want to know in general?
Always while gust posting make sure that you are submitting your content only to sites relevant to your niches otherwise you will get rejected straight away.
I too would prefer Wordpress not because it readily available and easy to build a website using WP but also that the other two properties are owned by google which makes me opt for Wordpress.
Been using them for about 2-3 months now and happy with the results so far. They have always paid me on time everytime. Their support is also very responsive and top notch.
I think google itself provides an extensive guide for beginners but if i were you i would also subscribe to Brian Dean's blog where he shares strategies that he is applying to his own business.
When it comes to CPA marketing i would Clickdealer is a good choice for affiliates to promote offers in various niches. What i like about them is they pay affiliates on a weekly basis from start which helps in cashflow.
Each of them has it's own benefits, PPC is paid traffic where you need money to keep your campaigns up and running while SEO is kind of free but can also be done the paid route by buying links. But, i normally would opt for paid traffic as it's fast and in regards to SEO where you need to rely...