Blogging has, for many years, been a great way to get your voice across to millions of people. Thinking of starting a blog? This article aims to assist in getting your blog up and running in a few quick steps:
- Set goals and plan ahead
- Get a Domain Name and Hosting from Namhost.com
- Install WordPress
- Customize your blog
- Write compelling and relevant content
- Promote your blog
1. Plan ahead and set goals
Planning ahead is never a bad idea, especially when it comes to website-related projects. A solid foundation for your project will ensure its success down the line and for this reason this first step is probably the most important. Ask yourself these few questions before starting your blog:
What will I be writing about?
Your topics will determine your audience type and size. Make sure you have enough knowledge on the topics you choose and make sure the audiences for your topics are large enough to meet your other goals.
What will the tone of my blog be?
Will the tone be serious, funny, casual, etc? Certain tones work better with certain topics, keep this in mind.
What is the overall goal for my blog?
Are you writing as an outlet? Are your goals to become famous? Are you writing to build a large audience to advertise to? It is important to know and work towards your overall goal every step of the way.
2. Get a Domain Name and Hosting from Namhost.com
Any blog (or website for that matter) needs a good domain name and web hosting. The name of your blog will normally be determined by its goals (see step 1.), and your blog name will normally determine the domain name you would want to register. Ordering a domain name and web hosting from Namhost is super simple and there are two ways to start the process:
- Start the process by choosing a domain name
- Start the process by choosing a hosting package (we even offer a FREE package!)
Feel free to contact us if you have any questions or need any assistance.
* See 5 Tips for Picking the Best Domain Name
3. Install WordPress
See this video guide: How to install WordPress via cPanel
WordPress is by no means the only blogging software out there. Check out some alternatives here.
4. Customize your blog
WordPress themes and plugins are available all over the web. A simple "WordPress themes" or "WordPress plugins" Google search should point you in the right direction.
The theme you choose to use should fit in with your blog's topics and reflect its tone. Don't choose a clean and corporate theme if you plan on writing to a young audience and using a light and comedic tone.
Your blog goals would probably determine the plugins you need. Want to build a newsletter subscriber list? Then you should probably install and configure a newsletter sign-up form.
After installing your new theme and plugins you should be able to easily change your blog's logo and colors to reflect your style.
5. Write compelling and relevant content
The time has come to start writing! What you're going to say is going to determine the success of your blog, so make sure your articles are relevant and well-written.
Make sure your blog is free of spelling and grammar mistakes - Tools like Grammarly can assist you greatly. Also use Google to your advantage - Searching for "good blog topics" and "blog writing tips" should become something you do on a weekly basis.
6. Promote your blog
Readers are not going to fall out of the sky, you need to tell people about your blog and make sure they want to read it. This is probably the most difficult part of blogging.
Social media has proven to work wonders when trying to promote anything these days. Create a fan page for your blog and post on it regularly. Invite your friends and ask them to invite others.
Paid advertising could also get you many readers. A great way to make use of it is to write an article on a current event or trend, post it on your Facebook fan page and then "Boost" your post. You can set custom audiences on your Facebook advert to make sure you reach the readers you want.