Are you wondering how to start a blog? Maybe you have thought about blogging for a while but have been unsure how or where to start. Well, you have come to the right place!
Blogs have become almost synonymous with the web. Everywhere you look on the web, there seems to be a blog. Looking for help fixing your car? There are
blogs for that. Looking for fashion advice? There are thousands of blogs about
fashion. How about pet care or how to plan a wedding? Yep, those blogs exist
too! People love to share their opinions and know-how with others and blogs are
the perfect place to do it.
Think of it as your little corner of the web where you can be yourself and feel
free to share who you are with the world. You can also make some money while
you are at it!
This post will show you exactly how to start a fantastic blog that will not only
allow you to share your thoughts, know-how, insight, and opinions with the world, but will teach you a little bit more about the technology behind blogs and how they work.
How to Start a Blog in 6 Easy Steps
Here is a quick rundown of the steps needed to create your blog:
- Decide what kind of blog you would like to start. You need to find a niche that you are interested in.
- Pick a name for your blog.
- Pick your blogging platform.
- Find a place to host your blog and get it online.
- Decide how you would like your blog to look. Choose a template for your blog and then customize it.
- Write your first post and publish it.
- Promote your blog.
The Idea - Deciding on Your Blog Subject
First you will have to have an idea. It does not have to be a great idea, just one that you are passionate enough to write about often in order to grow your audience. You likely already know what you want to write about, but just in case you don't, there are some simple questions you will want to ask yourself in order to arrive at the best idea for your blog:
- What are your interests?
- What are you good at?
- What are you passionate about?
All of these questions will help you answer the question of what your blog
should be about.
Pick a Name for Your Blog
Choosing a name for your blog causes a lot of stress for new bloggers. Many feel that they have to have the perfect name and the perfect domain name (url) or their blog will never be successful. This is simply not true. Most digital marketers agree that having a good domain name and writing great content is MUCH better than wasting time not writing because you are hung up trying to find the perfect name before you start. Choose a name, register your domain name and GET STARTED!
All that being said, there are a few things you should try to avoid when picking a domain name:
- If you can, try to get a .com as it is the most recognized TLD (Top Level Domain) and almost everyone thinks about it when they think of the web. However, the web is growing and there are many new domain endings that are extremely recognizable and might be relevant to your niche. You might try .co, .info, or even .coffee if you are building a blog dedicated to coffee!
- Avoid numbers or dashes in your domain name. These are hard to type and could lower your credibility.
- Weird or funny spellings of names are hard for people to remember and could make it harder for people to find your site. They also could make people suspicious that your site is fake or a phishing attempt.
- Brand names and trademarks are a big no-no and should be avoided unless you want legal action taken against you.
Registering Your Domain Name
Speaking of domains, lets talk about how to register a domain name. We usually use GoDaddy as our domain name registrar, but there are lots of others out there. Here is a list of well-known registrars:
All of these registrars have a very simple process for registering and purchasing a domain name and once you have decided on what you want, it will likely take you no longer than 10 minutes.
Blogging Platform
Once you have decided on a name for your blog and a domain name, you need to decide on a blogging platform. There are a host of blogging platforms available these days and most of them are exceptional at helping you produce and format great content for the web.. Some of them excel at ease of setup and use and others excel at just letting you write, which is what most bloggers love to do.
This blog is set up on the Ghost CMS platform. Having tried almost all of the blogging platforms out there (including WordPress), we have found Ghost to be the most flexible, easy-to-use and most digital marketing-centric platform available. It allows you to get straight to writing and producing content, rather than juggling plugins and worrying about whether your content is being presented on the web in a search-engine friendly manner.
Do you need photos for your new blog? You should check out our guide on The Best Free Stock Photo Sites for 2023! Check out this link to read the full article:
Dan King
Hosting
Once you have your great idea, and have decided on the blogging platform you would like to use, you need a web host to house your blog. If you are not tech-savvy, you should probably look into a fully hosted version of your platform. Ghost provides several fully-hosted options on their website and they make it very easy to get started. Check this page out to find out more about their hosted options:
Midnight
Midnight is a comparative newcomer to the Ghost hosting world. Their Ghost hosting plans are managed, which means that they handle server maintenance, security, and updates for you, allowing you to focus on creating content for your website. They also offer 24/7 support through email, chat, or phone.
To see more options for Ghost blog platform hosting, check out our post on The Best Ghost Blog Hosting.
Dan King
