If you have wanted to create a blog for a while now or have just started to think about it, this is a sign to take action and do it!
Starting a blog can be not only a way to share your experiences, practice in writing and build a community, but also a source of passive income.
Follow these simple steps to start your own blog today.
5 Steps to Start a Successful Blog
Choose your theme
You definitely want to write about something you’re passionate about, otherwise your blog won’t live too long. Try asking yourself these questions:
- What am I interested in?
- What kind of content do I want to see?
- What do I have expertise in?
- What other people want to read about?
Your blog can be about your business, lifestyle, book or film reviews, cooking, parenting, etc. It’s important to stick to one thing to build a brand, especially at the beginning. Check out blogs with similar ideas to get inspiration from.
Establishing the theme of your blog in the beginning will make it much easier to design it later. You can even start creating a potential content plan while brainstorming, nothing will go to waste when you actually make a page for your blog. It’s also a good time to think about the name.
Choose a platform for your blog
You have plenty of options where to start your blog which include:
- Social media
- CMS
- Website builders
Every option has its upsides and downsides.
Social media
Social media can be a good starting point and are easy to use. You probably already have a personal account on Facebook that can be turned into a blog. There even are specific platforms where people share their longreads like Medium or even Tumblr. Unfortunately, social media have their limitations. Depending on the theme of your blog, it might be better to opt for different solutions.
Upsides:
- Ease of use
- Completely free
- Social media algorithms can help with your blog’s promotion inside of the social media
- Good choice if you want to be an online influencer
Downsides:
- No customization
- Your page doesn’t actually belong to you and might get suspended or deleted for whatever reason
- Necessity to adapt your content to a social media or your choosing
- Lots of modern social media don’t promote long posts
- Your blog will probably not be seen in Google search results
CMS
CMS is short for a Content Management System. Sometimes CMS is used interchangeably with website builders, but things they provide are different. For example, popular CMS include WordPress and Joomla.
Basically, CMS is a program that gives you full control over a website. It is often an open source technology which results in you being able to change the code to your liking.
But there is a catch: CMS only gives you instruments, everything else you have to do yourself, including but limited to hosting, back-ups and maintenance. Due to its open source nature CMS might have some security issues which you will also have to handle on your own.
Upsides:
- Free
- Highly customizable
- Does not limit you to a single host
Downsides:
- Has a considerable learning curve
- Customization requires coding skills
- Some features are hidden behind paid plugins
- May have security vulnerability
Website builders
On the other hand, website builders specialize in making creating a website as easy as possible. They provide their users with ready-to-go templates, web hosting, security and customer support. Website builders don’t require any prior knowledge in programming, yet allow for a lot of personal customization. However some of them might be expensive, depending on what platform and plan you chose.
Upsides:
- Easy to use
- Customizable in both design and functionality
- You don’t have to worry about hosting or maintenance
- Help with SEO optimization
Downsides:
- Price differs a lot
- Might not allow for advanced code customization
Overall, website builders are a great option for those who want to start a blog fast and without much trouble.
So What to Look For When Choosing a Website Builder?
These are main aspects to keep in mind when choosing a website builder for your future blog:
- Price. Research the market and choose the best offer that covers your needs without making you overpay.
- Features. Check plans and what they offer. Aim for the features you will actually use.
- Stability. A website builder must have stable servers.
- Reliability. Look for reviews and aim for a website builder with good custom service. It will guarantee that the platform won’t leave you alone if something goes wrong.
Often you will also have to find a website hosting service or pay for it separately, but Site.pro functions both as a website builder and a host. It also offers 200 templates to choose from while remaining very customizable.
Moreover, if you create your blog with a partner or co-writer Site.pro has a real-life collaboration function to help you build a website together. It has a free plan, but paid plans start as low as $1,3 a year, making it one of the most affordable website builders on the market.
Build your website
With a website builder it’s not as difficult as it looks. You can use premade templates, arrange blocks as you like, add media plugins, maps and more.
If you struggle with the starting point, Site.pro has recently launched an AI website builder. Write a prompt and AI will build a website for you in seconds. After that you will be able to use it as it is or get inspiration and remake it completely.
Try typing in something like ‘Create a website for my blog’ and see how it goes!
Link a domain to your website
Domain should match your blog’s name and not be too long.
You can use a free domain or buy one. Site.pro offers cheap domains with large discounts up to 20%.
Make it public
And now comes the actual hard part: write your first post, then the second one, the third one and so on. Stick to your theme, make your content plan in advance, but not be afraid to change.
Promote
For your blog to rank high in Google or other search engines it has to be optimized accordingly. Fast loading speed provided by your host will put in some work, but you’ll also have to optimize your content.
Basic SEO tricks you need to know:
- Look for keywords to use in your posts and descriptions. You don’t have to be a SEO specialist for this one. A simple google search will show you what other people are searching for. In the bottom of a search page you will find a list of related queries.
- Make quality content that will stay relevant for a long time. Check out Google Trends to know what people want to see the most.
- Try to collaborate with other bloggers to get more mentions and links leading to your website. Building connections is always useful.
Conclusion
Everyone can start a blog, but not everyone can maintain it. Building a website is just the first step. Site.pro will ensure that your website runs properly, everything else depends on you. But don’t let it discourage you from trying out new things.
It’s time to create your own unique blog!
