It’s the 21st-Century – the age where the internet is taking over everything – like the Dawn of The Planet of Apes! However, many have taken this idiom to mind and endeavored to try out freelancing gigs just to make money and have been a miserable failure.
Still, there are songs of resounding victory of those earning 6-digit figures annually only from blogging. The successes and the failures of starting a blog all go down to the principle basics the blogger initiated before and during the blog setup.
When searching out ‘how to start a blog,’ you usually find technical terms and jargon which more or less discourages a multitude from getting in the gig. You would think it’s rocket science only to realize it’s as easy as taking a long pee – you just need to be focused and dedicated enough to the last drop.
Therefore, we have decided to compile a simplified step-by-step guide on how to start an actual career in blogging with WordPress and see yourself making it big time.
If you are a gambler used to the novoline games and are hoping to start a get-rich-quick kind of a Ponzi scheme. We are quite apologetic for turning down your high hopes. Some virtues of getting you started include PATIENCE, hard work and a handful of passion.
Laying the Ground Rules to Start a Blog
Perhaps you are wondering this early why our choice is to blog on WordPress as the best of them all. WordPress has been around for a long time. Grown in the market, and has diversified to cater to a broad clientele.
You might be surprised to find out that while you can start a free blog post under WordPress, the New York Times and the likes of the Washington Post and CNN.com are all sites sponsored by WordPress.
With their longevity in the market, friendly deals and capability for expansion, no other site beats WordPress at their game!
Purposeful Passion
As promised above, we will show you how to set up a blog without complicating it any more than it already has been. Like with any other venture, you need to ask yourself some questions which can form the basis of your ‘business plan’.
After all, there is this African proverb that refers to the river and its source and goes something like: ‘you cannot know where it is you are headed to if you are oblivious to where it is you are coming from.’
Are you in it for the fun of writing? Or are you aiming to make a couple of dollars from it? What’s your passion level?
Once your purpose is clearly defined, then you can proceed to identify a need or a market gap. This simply entails finding and realizing a blogging topic which you will be rotating around. This could be something as diverse as food, photography, or even something as intimate as relationships and counseling or still something more outgoing like sports and workout sessions.
It’s at this point that we’ll give you the next spoiler alert: we might give you some sleek ideas to kick you off in the right direction on a blog to start, but we would never directly tell you to try this or that out. This decision is fully yours to make, and you need to make it wisely.
What to consider to start a blog on WordPress
Purposeful passion is all about finding out what you love doing. It’s about finding purpose in your work, which will make it fun for you. Still, you can self-analyze yourself and define your potential and strengths. Combining what you love with something you are good at, or finding a balance will form a fundamental basis that will be the beginning of your successful blogs.
Carry Out a Market Analysis
Products are usually tested before given a chance for mass production. This is basically to see how the consumer reacts to the product and the general acceptance. It’s straightforward to test your product (blog ideas) on the internet. Google now offers a plethora of tools to assist in such activities.
For instance, Google Trends enables you to explore and find out precisely what the entire universe is searching for on Google. This will also give you the upper hand when deciding how to structure your posts and what titles to give to your blog.
Also, if torn between two particular ideas – say travel and fashion. Google Trends will also help you see which makes more searches daily. Whatever you choose, be original!
Setting Up the WordPress Blogging Platform
From this part, it might get a little bit technical since this is the main part, but we’ll break it down as best as we can. Your blog needs to be simplified for a start so that you can get a grasp of things before you can think of employing more expensive tools to fashion your site.
The beauty with WordPress is that it allows you to scale up your blog site as time goes by with powerful plugins and tools.
Once you have decided on the purpose and what will be the main feature in your blog. Then come up with a domain name. This is essentially how people will be reaching out to you. It’s more or less similar to the user name on Facebook or Instagram or your phone number in WhatsApp.
Examples of common domain names include CNN.com, certifiedprince.wordpress.com, and Wikipedia.com. You can form this from a catchy headline with which you want your readers to recognize you by – a brand name of sorts.
Otherwise, you can also use your name or initials to come up with this. A strong point to remember is that the domain name should be easy for your readers and other visitors to remember and even recommend.
Get Hosted
To put this in plain terms. You need to ‘rent a house online where users will get easy access to your data, products, and information.’ This is the simplest definition of a server host website. You pay a few bucks each month and they, in turn, ensure that there’s always a space in their servers where your content can be accessed by the general public.
Here, you have plenty of online options including Kinsta, DigitalOcean, DreamHost and SiteGround. Nevertheless, if you are looking for convenience, flexibility, and assurance, we would recommend you to BlueHost servers.
You will follow a certain process depending on the host you will choose for your blog. Then you will choose the monthly or yearly plan you can afford – the list of features to be enjoyed will be displayed. Once finished, open the WordPress domain name using your selected host.
Furnishing Your Blog Site
There’s still a lot to be done. Remember, the goal here is to attain the height of successful blogs. This means you should also be well-acquainted with what other successful bloggers are doing and their writing techniques.
This doesn’t mean you need to copy anything but you can still borrow a lot since you are just getting started. Learn from their experience to avoid making some silly mistakes.
WordPress offers you the opportunity of setting up customizable themes. Some of these are available for free while others come in a premium package. Choose a theme that suits your blog niche. On the blog setup section, create the number of pages you may desire for your site.
While still furnishing your blog pages, you can make use of free WordPress plugins or still opt to use the premium ones.
What Should I Write About?
Now you have a blank page staring at you, and you are probably wondering, what next! This is where SEO techniques come in handy. Make use of keyword search tools such as Google Search Console and Google Keyword Planner to find out exactly what people want to know in that particular area.
Also, while still following your passion. You can replicate content from other successful bloggers in your niche as you pick ideas on what to write about.
Blog Promotion and Blog Making Money
We had to save the best for last. Since the hassle has to go on, consider the following means to not only promote your work but also keep you in the limelight and draw attention and dough to yourself:
- Remain present on social media platforms and strive to associate with other bloggers on sincere grounds.
- Leave regular honest comments to other blogs, which may lead to email conversations and eventually help you take part in guest posts. You might also end up in podcast interviews – stay open.
- Take part in active forums as well as question and answer sessions as this draws attention to you.
- Consider getting paid to write sincere reviews on different products.
- Take part in affiliate sales and advertising revenues such as Google AdSense.
- Last and most important, have your own product to sell!
Conclusion
Let’s hope we’ve helped water down your previous fears of starting a blog. A slow but sure step by step is the name of the game. If you do not lose sight of the goal, you will eventually attain it. You won’t be weighed down by the sweat you had to shed to accomplish it.
Train yourself to enjoy and celebrate the small victories you make. If by now you’ve been able to get started on your blog, let’s raise a glass to that! Have you managed this fete or are you stranded somewhere in-between? Share below and receive all the help you need.