you want to know how to start a blog that makes you money, there are certain steps you’ll want to take first to set yourself up for success. We asked experts about starting a blog and becoming a successful blogger in 2022; here’s what they had to say.
How to Start a Blog in 3 Steps
Depending on your blog’s niche – and your overall goals – the exact steps you’ll need to take may vary. Generally speaking, five steps you’ll want to take to start a blog, in order, are:
✓ Select a niche.
✓Choose a content management system.
✓Purchase your domain name and blog hosting.
1: Select a Niche
What do you want to start blogging about? Do you have a passion for starting a blog on this topic? Once you’ve answered this question, dig a bit deeper to determine how your new blog posts in this niche can differ from what’s already out there.
“Millions of new blog posts are being published every day, so if you want to get any traffic to your blog, you need to find an underserved niche that is craving content,”content strategist and founder of AV Writing Services, a content marketing and search engine optimization (SEO) services company.
In addition to your blog post topics, also think about the audience you want to reach. Sometimes establishing your niche is more about specifying a certain audience than a certain topic.
“People are really hungry to connect with folks from their own communities who can also teach them about whatever topic it is that they want to learn.”
2: Choose a Content Management System
A content management system (CMS) is software that helps you create and publish content on the internet. WordPress and Ghost are examples of content management systems; they make it easy to have a blogging platform without requiring HTML or other coding knowledge. Note that in this article, when referring to WordPress, we’ll be referring to WordPress.org. There is also WordPress.com, which offers services to build your website within WordPress.org’s CMS.
The WordPress dashboard is an open-source platform that gives you freedom to control practically every aspect of your blog. WordPress is massively popular, powering 52.9% of all websites on the internet, according to data from Techs, a data collection company. However, it’s not a one-stop-shop sort of thing; for your WordPress blog to function, you’ll have to manually set up web hosting, pick a WordPress theme, and install WordPress plugins to make it more functional.
Look for a platform that offers a seamless experience for the end-user. While there are several to choose from, each has its own advantages and disadvantages that you should consider before deciding which is best.
3: Purchase Your Domain Name and Blog Hosting
Your domain name refers to the Uniform Resource Locator (URL) of your website; this is what readers will type in to navigate to your blog, and should coincide with the name you select for your site. As an example, if you’re planning to use the blog name “Awesome Money Habits,” it would be ideal to choose a domain name like www.awesomemoneyhabits.com. Domain names can be purchased from sites like Bluehost, GoDaddy, HostGator, and NameCheap.
You’ll also need to set up a web hosting or blog hosting account for your site to be live. There are two options here: You can either set up hosting yourself or choose a website builder service that will do in-app web hosting for you. A website builder service like Weebly, Wix, or Squarespace will help you quickly launch a blog, and many offer a free domain name or free blog hosting perk when you sign up. You’ll have fewer options to tweak your site to your liking, but there are a variety of templates to choose from.
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