How to Start a Blog in 8 Easy Steps
- Step #1: Select a perfect niche for your blog
- Step #2: Choose a blogging platform
- Step #3: Pick a domain name
- Step #4: Get a web hosting account
- Step #5: Starting a blog on WordPress
Step #1: Select a perfect niche for your blog
To start and run a successful blog, you have to select the right niche for your blog.
First, make sure to pick a niche that you are the most interested in – the one you are passionate about. That way you will follow your passion and enjoy your blogging journey.
Second, you must pick a niche that has enough audience interest.
Once you select a niche, I also suggest you validate it. Below is a 3-step formula to confirm your niche for success.
A 3-step blog success validation process:
- Check niche size.
- Explore competitors.
- Analyze monetization potential.
This process will help you obtain a clear idea of the size, competition, and monetization potential for your proposed niche. If you are not sure how to select and validate a blog’s niche, read our detailed guide.
Step #2: Choose a blogging platform
When it comes to popular blogging sites, you have the following options:
- Hosted blog solutions (free or freemium plans).
- Self-hosted blog solutions (free open-source software).
Hosted blog solutions
For many new bloggers, it’s tempting to use free hosted platforms such as WordPress.com or Blogger.com.
It’s important to understand that “free” always comes with limitations. First, your blog name will be set as a subdomain (examples: yourblog.wordpress.com or yourblog.blogspot.com). Second, you’ll be subject to their rules and restrictions. Free options come in handy if you want to test the platform. But, if you’re serious about blogging, you’ll have to start paying for full services and a custom domain name sooner or later.
Self-hosted blog solutions
You have several choices when it comes to self-hosted systems (also called a Content Management System or CMS). The most popular is the free and open-source system WordPress.org.
Self-hosted platforms allow you to set up and run your blog using your own domain and web hosting. You’re fully in charge of your blog and its contents. It will cost just a few dollars per month for the webspace (hosting account), and around ten dollars per year for a custom domain name. The actual blogging software is free.
If you plan to run ads, sell products, or services via your blog, then this is the best way to go. Many hosting providers can help you maintain an e-commerce blog.
Step #3: Pick a domain name
Your domain name will be the name by which you will be known online, no matter what niche you choose. It’s your blog’s unique address on the Internet. Your domain will be yours as long as you continue paying the annual fee ($10 to $15 per year for a .com domain).
Users who know your domain (/URL – uniform resource locator) can simply type it into their browser’s address bar. Others will be able to discover you through search engines such as Google and Bing, so you definitely need to find a unique name.
Your domain name may be the highly popular “dot com”, or it may be country or niche-specific. The general rule is to go for a “dot com” domain, but some of the other extensions can work. For example, “dot net” or “dot blog”.
If you can’t find the domain name you like, Bluehost will let you choose a Free Domain later. That will give you time to do some research and thinking.
Step #4: Get a web hosting account
After choosing a domain name, selecting a reliable hosting service will be one of the most important decisions you make.
To a great extent, the functionality and performance of your site will depend on your blog hosting. The host makes sure your site is available 24/7 to potential readers and it’s where your contents and files are stored online.
Most hosting companies will also provide you a free domain for the first year when you buy their services.
The wrong web host can cause many problems with your blog. Just imagine choosing a mobile company that has no reception. Your web host is a major piece of the puzzle to creating a successful blog; therefore, you must choose a reliable provider.
Based on our our research and information available on the official WordPress website, Bluehost is a top choice in the opinion of many blogging experts.
Step #5: Select a theme and design your blog
The first thing your blog needs is a face (design and layout).
Installing and setting up a new WordPress theme is exciting and fairly straightforward.
Inside the WordPress dashboard, under the “Appearance” tab, click “Themes”. You will be presented with some popular options. You can click on the WordPress.org Themes button and search for free themes. There are more than three thousand themes
The look and feel of your new blog rely on the theme you choose. Your readers will first notice the overall appearance of your blog before they even take a look at the content. Select a theme that looks great, but also works for your specific content needs.
Here’s a quick guide for choosing your theme by searching within the WordPress dashboard:The look and feel of your new blog rely on the theme you choose. Your readers will first notice the overall appearance of your blog before they even take a look at the content. Select a theme that looks great, but also works for your specific content needs.
Here’s a quick guide for choosing your theme by searching within the WordPress dashboard:
Should you choose a free or premium theme?
In my opinion, there are more than enough free WordPress themes to choose from for any blog topic.
If you don’t feel like searching through thousands of themes, you can easily start things off with either Twenty Twenty or Twenty Twelve themes. Both free themes are presented by WordPress.org and are popular with creators.
Remember, you can always pick a different theme later as you continue to customize your blog. All of the content pages and unique content that you create will be transferred automatically to a new theme layout.
If the current stash of free themes does not satisfy your particular desire, you can check the available premium themes. These themes are usually designed by third party companies and sold on different WordPress theme sites. The price range for single-use licenses ranges from $30 to $500, depending on which premium theme you choose.
Blog theme customization
Remember, your WordPress dashboard is the back end location where you will manage your new blog. It provides you with fast access to all of the tools you need to add content and fine-tune your blog functionality for the ultimate user experience. Your first step towards mastering WordPress is learning the dashboard.
WordPress has unlimited customization options so it’s impossible to cover everything in one guide. Instead, I’ll cover the first most important changes you should apply to your blog. For this example, I’ll be using the Twenty Twenty theme.
Make your blog’s logo
Inside your Bluehost account, you can find the “Make your logo” tool. If you didn’t do it yet while launching your blog, now is the time to get it done.
Once you click the checkbox, you will be taken to an AI-powered logo maker. It’s an easy to use tool that you can use to create a beautiful logo for your blog in seconds. Start by entering your blog name and slogan (if you have one), the tool will automatically generate different types of logos.
Customize your blog
On the left-hand side, you will see the following Customizing menu options:
- Site identity – Upload your logo, change site title and tagline, and upload site icon.
- Colors – Change your blog’s background color, header and footer colors, and customize primary color.
- Theme options – Select if you want to show a search icon in the header of your blog and show an author bio for your posts.
- Cover template – Make additional changes to the page template such as the overlay background color, overlay text color, and overlay opacity.
- Background image – Upload any custom background image you want to use for your blog.
- Menus – Customize your blog’s menu, social media menu links, and change locations where they are displayed.
- Widgets – Customize your footer content, add a blog description and how to find you if you have a physical location.
- Homepage settings – Choose what’s displayed on the homepage of your blog. It can be your latest posts (classic blog), or a static page.
- Additional CSS – Add your own CSS code to customize the appearance and layout of your blog (advanced option).
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