One of the common questions I get after “how old are you?”, is how do you start a blog? Blogging is so popular regardless if you are doing this as a hobby or to launch a business. So I wanted to share my advice, knowledge and awesome tips for newbies. As of now, I have been blogging for 5 plus years so I know a thing or two about blogging and keeping it going.
How to Start A Blog Awesome Tips For Newbies
Start with Niche
In order to start a blog, you got to know wht you want to write about. What do you want to write about? This may be a straightforward question but it’s true. If you have no idea think about what you are great at or what is something everyone always asks you about. Mine is organizing. I love organizing and weddings so I joint forces and made my blog more target to organizing both home and weddings. So ask yourself what are you good at that can help someone else.
Get Specific
Now that there are more and more blogs out there you need to get more specific with the niche you want. So if its beauty then you should think about who you want to talk to. When you first start you can’t say you want to talk to everyone because you will get lost in the ocean of blogs. Think super specific like natural beauty products for coloured skin women in their 20’s or makeup for pale skin mom beauties or even yoga for young moms. What is yours?
Blog Name
This is fun! Write down some options of what you want to call your blog. I went through a few before I was convinced City of Creative Dreams would be my blog site name. I knew that my site had to have a city because I am a city girl, I am creative and I wanted to help people with their dream of an organized home or wedding.
Now you are going to living with this name for a while so take your time when deciding. It’s suggested to have 2-4 words for the title and have it easy to say and read. Get creative with it and double-check someone doesn’t have that already.
Find a Platform
You need to think about where do you want to go with this blog. If this is a hobby then you probably don’t want to invest in a domain yet or a big platform. When I started blogging I was using Blogspot. It’s free and it’s easy to use. However, if you delete something it’s gone forever and there are no plugins you can add to it so there is a downside to it. Also, if you want to transfer it to another platform it’s a hassle.
If you want to grow this into a business one day and have this super professional with domain and all. I say use wordpress.org it cost money but so worth all that you get with it. It was awful to transfer three years of content to it because that’s a lot of posts but worth using it now. It’s a better platform for me, in the end, to expand in what I want to do with my site.
The WWW. Domain
Domains are not too expensive to get. I bought mine through GoDaddy and it was super easy to create and if you need help they are right there to give you a hand. The site will tell you if the domain you choose is available to purchase and if it is, you can purchase it. Easy. Other places you can consider buying your domain is Domain.com, Namecheap.com, Bluehost.com or HostGator.com.
Website Design
Once you have your plateform you can look up free or paid design templates that match your blog and personality. Your website design sets the scene for your blog. It welcomes your readers like the entrance of a store and sets the tone for your articles. So what website designs do you like or colours you want to have?
Now you don’t have to be a professional website designer or even have to hire one. There are fantastic free and paid templates you can add to your website platform. Trust me I’ve been through many different website designs until I found one that I love and really matched what I was looking for. You can find some on Colorlib.com or Themeforest.net.
What to Write
Once you have your platform and domain up, you need to sit down and think about what you want to write first. It is always great to start with the most common questions you get, an introduction or a project you are currently working on. My very first post was my DIY pencil case design so don’t think your post has to be absolutely perfect. Write from the heart, explain what to do clearly and finish it with an easy sum up of what you discussed.
Here is a few other blog content you can write:
- Why did you start blogging?
- A day in your life
- Share a day in your life
- Share your daily routine or plans
- What you are looking forward to with your blogging journey?
- Share a “Do’s and Don’ts…” post
- Create freebie (printables or worksheet) to give away to your readers
- Share life-changing experiences
- Review a product, book, movie or event
- Favourite life/hair/beauty/cleaning hacks or routine
- What do you love most about yourself?
- Your home space essentials
- A recipe or DIY project
- Favourite products
- Travel bucket list
- Write an open letter to your younger self
- List of the bloggers that you admire
Dedicated Days & Scheduling Blog Posts
Establish days you want to focus on writing or times you can carve out some time to write. If you have kids maybe this time is while they are at school or after your kids go to bed. If you are working maybe this time can on your lunch break or on your commute home if you take transit. For me, I love writing when I was on the subway, waiting for my friend to arrive or as a passenger on the road. Whenever there was a moment, I would make an effort so it’s possible.
Scheduling has been such a lifesaver for me. If you can, write your articles ahead of time and then schedule your article to post instead of sitting around waiting to press publish. Depending on how many you write, you can schedule for an entire month at a time sometimes. I make sure that my social media is aligned with the publishing dates so everything works smoothly together.
For more information about scheduling your blog post or social media, check out my article 4 of the Best Life Hacks for Bloggers Without Assistants.
Final Thoughts
This is all I am spilling today about starting a blog. I hope all this information is not overwhelming for you, I wanted to cover everything in a simple and less stressful way. Start a blog, yes it is work that you have to put in but it is so worth it. Once you get established and jump over the starting line you of creating your fabulous blog you only can go up from there. Have fun with it! Let me know if there is anything else you want to know about blogging below!
Related: 6 Year Blogiversary – Blogging Tips & Blogging Empowerment
