How to Start a Blog in 2024 (original) (raw)

Updated September 6th, 2024

Are you looking for an easy guide on how to start a blog?

The step-by-step guide on this page will show you how to create a blog in 20 minutes with just the most basic computer skills.

After completing this guide you will have a beautiful blog that is ready to share with the world.

This guide is made especially for beginners. I will walk you through each and every step, using plenty of pictures and videos to make it all perfectly clear.

If you get stuck or have questions at any point, simply send me a message and I will do my best to help you out.

Ready to start? Click here to skip the intro and start building your blog now
How to start a blog for beginners

My name is Scott Chow, and I am going to show you how to start blogging today. I have been building blogs and websites since 2002. In that time I have launched several of my own blogs, and helped hundreds of others do the same.

I know that starting a blog can seem overwhelming and intimidating. This free guide is all about blogging for beginners, and will teach you how to become a blogger with just the most basic computer skills. So whether you’re 8 or 88, you can create your own blog in 20 minutes.

I am not ashamed to admit that when I was first learning how to build a blog I made a ton of mistakes. You can benefit from more than a decade of my experience so that you don’t repeat these same mistakes when you make your own blog. I created this free guide so that a complete beginner can learn how to blog quickly and easily.

So, just how do you start a blog?

Learn how to create a blog in about 20 minutes following these steps:

  1. Pick a blog name. Choose a descriptive name for your blog.
  2. Get your blog online. Register your blog and get hosting.
  3. Customize your blog. Choose a free blog design template and tweak it.
  4. Write & publish your first post. Share your thoughts with the world. The fun part!
  5. Promote your blog. Get more people to read your blog with the proper marketing.
  6. Make money blogging. Choose from several options to monetize your blog.

Should you start a blog?

One of the misconceptions about starting a blog is that you need to be a great writer to be successful. Nothing could be further from the truth. People read blog sites to get a personal perspective on things, so most bloggers write in a very informal and conversational style.

And because of the format, many successful bloggers will write about a variety of topics on the same blog.

In addition, you don’t need to be an expert on any of the topics you write about to have a successful blog. For example, visitors to a cooking blog don’t want to read a textbook from a food scientist, they want to hear the experiences of someone who has actually cooked some real meals, mistakes and all.

To be successful as a blogger there is really just one requirement: a passion for your topic.

At its heart, blogging is about sharing your knowledge with the world. Writing about things that you are passionate about makes the process of starting a successful blog so much easier. As long as you are writing about things that you are genuinely interested in, your passion will shine through and keep your visitors interested.

So why would you go to the trouble of blogging? There are a few reasons:

Ready to begin? Click here to go to Step #1 of the guide

What is a blog anyway?

In short, a blog is a type of website that focuses mainly on written content, also known as blog posts. In popular culture we most often hear about news blogs or celebrity blog sites, but as you’ll see in this guide, you can start a successful blog on just about any topic imaginable.

Bloggers often write from a personal perspective that allows them to connect directly with their readers. In addition, most blogs also have a “comments” section where visitors can correspond with the blogger. Interacting with your visitors in the comments section helps to further the connection between the blogger and the reader.

This direct connection to the reader is one of the main benefits of starting a blog. This connection allows you to interact and share ideas with other like-minded people. It also allows you to build trust with your readers. Having the trust and loyalty of your readers also opens up the door to making money from your blog, which is something I discuss later in this guide.

The good news is that the internet is exploding with growth right now. More people than ever are online. This explosion in growth means more potential readers for your blog. In short, if you are thinking about starting a blog then there is no better time than right now.

Let’s start your blog!

Step 1: Pick a blog name

If you are not sure what to name your blog, or what topic to blog about, skip to the next section.

If you’ve already got an idea for the name of your blog, you can check to make sure that no one else has already registered it:

See if your blog name is available:

Note: You cannot use any spaces or punctuation other than dashes in a domain name.

If you find that the name you wanted is already taken there are a few things you can do:

How to Choose a Blog Topic & Name

If you don’t have an idea for a name already, the first step is choosing your blog topic.

If you’re not sure what to blog about, there are a few ways to find a good blog topic:

Once you have a topic it’s time to choose your blog name, also known as your domain name.

A good blog name should be descriptive so that potential visitors can instantly tell what your blog is about just from the name.

If you are blogging about one specific topic then you will definitely want to include that in some way when you pick a domain name. Try not to get hung-up on just one word though. For example, a cooking blog doesn’t necessarily have to have the word “cooking” in it. The words “food”, “recipes”, and “meals” would also let people know that your blog is about cooking.

If you are planning to create a personal blog where you discuss a variety of topics then I recommend using your name, or some variation of it, since your blog is all about you. For example, I own the blog scottchow.com. You can also add your middle name or middle initial if you find your name is already taken. Or you could use a variation like “Scott Chow Blog” or “Blogging with Scott”.

Can’t decide on a good name for your blog? Contact me and I will help you personally (for free)!

Once you have some name ideas you will need to choose a domain extension.
A .com domain extension is the most preferred, but .net or .org work as well. It is also important to note that for the purposes of a blog domain you cannot have any spaces between words. So “Blogging with Scott” becomes bloggingwithscott.com

Step 2: Get your blog online

Now that you’ve got a name picked out it’s time to get your blog online. This might sound hard or technical, but the steps below will walk you right through and make the process easy.

Simple steps to help you create a blog easilyTo get your blog up and running you need two things: blog hosting (also known as web hosting) and blogging software. The good news is that these typically come packaged together.

A blog host is a company that stores all of the files for your blog and delivers them to the user when they type in your blog name. You must have a blog host in order to have a blog.

You also need to have the software to build your blog. In this guide I will be showing you how to build a blog using the WordPress blogging software, because it is the most popular, customizable, and easiest to use.

The web host I recommend, and the one I show you how to use in this guide, is BlueHost. I personally use BlueHost and I recommend them for all new bloggers because:

Use any BlueHost link on this site by September 20th to get the special Fall Sale price of $1.99 per month.

Disclosure: BlueHost compensates The Blog Starter when you purchase through this link, so my services are free of charge to you! In fact, if you have any trouble at all setting up a blog with this tutorial, just contact me and I will do it for you (free!).

1. Click here by September 20th to get the special Fall Sale price of $1.99 per month on BlueHost and then click “get started now”.

Web hosting special discount

2. Select your plan. I recommend that beginning bloggers get the Basic plan. Click “Select” to choose your plan.

pick a hosting plan from Bluehost

3. Type in your domain name in the box and then click “Search for Domain” to start the registration process.

choose a domain name

4. Now you will also choose your hosting package options.

Choosing your settings and package

5. Fill out your billing details and create your account password on the registration page.

Create an account

Once you do that you will be taken to an installation helper. Since you are following this tutorial you can just click “Skip this step” on the next few pages to be taken directly to the dashboard.

How to use the WordPress installation wizard

6. Install the WordPress blogging platform.

Now the system will install WordPress automatically. Once the install is complete click the “Log into WordPress” button on the top right to be logged-in to the administrator area of your blog.

WordPress blog installation complete at Bluehost

Having trouble installing your blog? Get help here.

Step 3: Customize your blog

How do I start a blog? You can watch me build and customize a beautiful blog from scratch here:

The video above should answer a lot of questions you might have about how to set up a blog and get it customized. Here is a step-by-step break-down of some of things I show in the video.

Logging in

If you are not already logged-in from the previous step, go to Bluehost.com and click “Login” on the top right to bring up the login screen. You can then login using your domain name and the password you set in the previous step. If you have misplaced your password you can reset it by clicking the “Forgot Password” link.

Login to your account and get started building your blog

Once you log-in you will be taken to your BlueHost Portal. From the portal you can click the blue “WordPress” button to be logged-in automatically to your WordPress blog.

Changing your blog design

Once you login you will be in the WordPress dashboard. This is where you can make any changes you want to your blog.

Everyone has a different idea of how they want their blog to look. One of the great things about WordPress is that you can change your entire layout and design with just a few clicks.

In WordPress, blog layouts are known as “Themes”. What is a blog theme? Themes control the entire design of your WordPress blog. To change your theme you are going to click on the “Appearance” tab on the left menu.

How to choose a theme

You will see several free WordPress themes are already installed on your blog: Twenty Seventeen, Twenty Sixteen, etc. These are well-designed, clean-looking themes that can work for just about any type of blog. In fact, many of the world’s top bloggers use one of these themes.

Unless you have a very specific design in mind for your blog, I suggest you use one of these themes to start with. For our example, let’s use the “Twenty Sixteen” WordPress theme. In order to activate the theme on your blog, hover over the theme and click the “Activate” button. That’s it! You have changed the entire design of your blog with just one click!

How to activate the theme

If you don’t like any of the themes that are already installed you can easily choose from thousands of other free WordPress themes. To install a new WordPress theme, click on the “Appearance” tab on the left menu and then click “Add New Theme”.

How to install a new theme

This is the WordPress theme search screen. There are thousands of themes to choose from. You can change your entire design at anytime simply by activating a new WordPress theme. To find a theme you like, I suggest you click on the “Popular” tab and start browsing. When you find one that you like click the blue “Install” button.
How to change your theme

Once the theme is installed click “Activate” to activate the theme on your blog. To see your new theme in action, go to your blog and take a look!

Changing your theme is the simplest way to customize your WordPress blog, but there are lots of other customizations you can do. Check out my full post on customizing your WordPress blog for an in-depth step-by-step guide. You can also watch the video above to see me completely customize a WordPress blog from scratch.

Step 4: How to write a new blog post & publish it

Now that your blog is up and running it’s time to actually do some blogging! Let’s create your first piece of content.

Go to the left menu and click on “Posts”.
Write your first blog post

You will see there is already a post there. This is a default post on every new WordPress blog, and we don’t need it. To delete it click “Trash” just under the post.
delete the Hello World default post

To begin writing a new post, click the “Add New” link.
add a new post to your blog

You are now on the post editor screen. Enter the title of your post in the top box and then begin writing your post in the lower box.

If you would like to add a picture to your post, click on the “Add Image” icon and click “Upload” to upload a picture from your computer. You can make adjustments to the picture size on the next screen. When you are ready click “Insert into post” to add the picture.

Insert image in blog post

Once you have finished your post just click the “Publish” button on the top right side of the screen to publish the new post.

Content That Should be on Your Blog

There are two main types of content your blog should provide: static and dynamic content.

Static Content: Your blog should contain a few necessary pages explicitly designed to provide the visitor with the tools they need. The content on these pages is static, meaning – the content doesn’t change, or at least not very often. These are mainly top-level pages that can be accessed via a menu on your blog.

These static content pages should be in place well before you launch your blog to the world.

Important static pages to include:

Aside from your blog, which is generally introduced on the home/main page, these two all-important pages should be visible on your top (header) menu and easy to access. You can take a look at the top of this page to see how I have these pages included in the header menu. See this detailed guide to customizing your blog menus if you need help.

Other static pages that are equally as important but less commonly thought of are:

These required static pages are typically linked to in the footer menu of a blog. They should, at the very least, be visible and accessible from the home page. Again, look at the bottom of this page to see how this looks in practice.

There are other static pages you can choose to include depending on what suits your blog and business. Common static page examples are an advertising page to solicit paid advertisements, a donations page, a resource page to direct visitors to your favorite links within your field, and a page for submitting ideas and content.

Dynamic Content: Your dynamic content is your blog and the most important content you have to offer. This is where you, as the creator, will infuse the blog with your brand of informative content that supplies your audience with knowledgeable tips, facts, opinions, and stories. This is how you engage your visitors and keep them coming back for more.

Your blog content should be regularly submitted at specific intervals. Waiting months to create content will never build a following. Posting content weekly and driving traffic to these posts will help build your brand.

How to write great blog content

Each post should be lengthy, informative, and engaging. It’s not always easy to come up with new blog post ideas on a regular basis and you are free to mix up the tone and even the subject matter to keep things lively and interesting. It’s your space, after all. But there are a few elements that each and every piece of content should endeavor to include.

Define the Content: Create an alluring post title that stimulates curiosity and encourages clicks. Use the first paragraph of your post to clearly define the topic of your article and provide a possible hook to keep the reader reading.

The Longer the Better – But Break It Up: The more information and detail you include, the better. But visitors will begin to skim if the content contains lengthy paragraphs a mile long, and will pop out faster than they came in. Visitors enjoy tidbits. Keep your paragraphs short with spaces in between, use lists and standout quotes, use images, and always include headings and sub-headings so that visitors can find what they’re looking for.

Engage The Reader: At the end of each post, a common tactic used to engage visitors is posing a meaningful question to your audience and asking them to reply in the comments. This simple measure can increase engagement tenfold.

Original Content: Your content should always be original. Never plagiarize – you will eventually be called out on it and could even face consequences. Your content should come from your heart, your brain, your knowledge base, and your experience. You can get topic ideas from others in your field, but make sure the content comes from you.

Original Photos: While it is easy to include stock images from free image sites, it is even better to include your own photos and graphic work. Another idea is to take free images and manipulate them with a free photo editor.

Edit Your Work: Your blog content should be sufficiently edited. Nothing says unprofessional like several typographical and grammatical errors. If you need a few refresher courses in grammar, consider using a writing application.

Publishing Your Blog

Even after you have written a post your blog may still be showing a placeholder page.

When you are ready to make your blog public for the first time, just click “Home” at the top left of the menu in your WordPress dashboard, and then click “Launch with confidence”. Click the blue “Launch your site” button to remove the placeholder page and launch your blog.

launch your blog

Congratulations! You now know how to start your own blog and publish content!

Step 5: Promote your blog

Creating a well-designed blog and writing great content is just the start. In order to get visitors to your blog you will need spend some time promoting it, especially when you first start.

The strategies below will help get your blog in front of more readers. You don’t need to use every strategy – try out a few and see what works well for you.

Alert Your Inner Circle

The very first people who should become aware of your blog are your inner circle. This includes family, friends, and colleagues within your field. Encourage them to become followers, ask them to mention your new blog, and – most importantly – thank them.

Use Social Media

social media promotion

While you don’t want to overdo it, you still want to create accounts with the “biggies” like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest, and Instagram. You should post a link to your newest content on your accounts, but you can also post relevant news and links to other sources that your readers may find interesting. Don’t forget to use hashtags and engage with your followers!

One of my favorite ways to get visitors to my blog is to post links on my social accounts, like Facebook and Twitter. This is great, because not only do your friends see the link, but if your friends share the link with their friends it automatically multiplies your visitors. If you have created high-quality content on your blog then social media is a way for your blog to go viral.

Comment on Other Blogs

Find other blogs in your community and engage with them. Using the comment section, introduce yourself and leave engaging and constructive comments. Many will allow you to leave a link to your blog. After creating relationships with prominent bloggers in your community, you will find yourself within their ranks quickly.

Engage with Your Visitors

When your readers leave comments on your posts, always engage with them. Reply to their comments and questions, give them “likes” and affirmations. When it is obvious that the author cares about his/her community and readership, visitors are naturally encouraged to return.

Collaborate with other bloggers

Become enmeshed in your blogging community by collaborating with respected members of your field. Collaborating includes guest posting, promoting each other’s blogs and products, and regularly interacting through comments and social media.

Post Regularly

Post content regularly. Create an editorial calendar and stick to it. A good blogger posts at least once per week to start. If you have long lapses between posts, your followers will drop off and your growth will be severely hampered. It’s not easy to post on a schedule, but it’s something you absolutely must stick to.

Create an Email List

promote your blog using an email list

In addition to getting new visitors to your blog, you will also want to make sure your current visitors are coming back. This is where email marketing plays a big role. By collecting the email addresses of your visitors (with their permission of course), you can then notify them when you post new content on your blog. This keeps people coming back to your blog, which not only gives you more readers over time, it also allows you to build a closer relationship with your visitors.

Email marketing is too big a topic to cover well here, so I created a separate guide to email marketing for those who are interested (hint: every blogger who wants more readers needs to read this guide).

Optimize your blog for search engines

You want your blog to appear in search results as soon as possible.

Google: Sign up for a Google Webmaster account and open the Search Console. To add your blog, click “Add Property” and follow the steps to add your blog.

Bing: Sign up for a Bing Webmaster account and add your blog.

Submitting your blog is the first step in process known as search engine optimization (SEO).

Keep in mind that with a brand new blog your traffic will be minimal to start with. However, this will change over time as long as you continue to add informative and relevant content on a regular basis.

To optimize this process, each page of your blog should include these fundamental elements:

  1. Header Tags: Section headings and subheadings should be wrapped in header tags. To do this, click on the left item of the block you are writing in and change it to “Heading”. You can then choose from H1, H2, H3, etc.add headings and subheadings
  2. Categorization: Your content should be clearly categorized into specific and relevant categories. In the post editor screen, click on “Document” on the right menu, and then go down to “Categories” and “Add New Category”.assign a category to your new post
  3. Permalinks: Each blog post “slug” is the end portion of the URL. You want to make sure each post has a defined slug and doesn’t end with an article number. You can easily change this in your WordPress dashboard by going to “Settings” -> “Permalinks”. Select the “Post Name” option and click “Save Changes”

There are many more factors relating to consider, such as installing something like the Yoast WordPress plugin, but these are the big ones that will help improve your search rankings sooner rather than later.

For more tips on promoting your blog make sure to check out my in-depth guide to blog promotion.

Step 6: Make money from your blog

Once you have put in the effort of creating great blog content and promoting your blog, making money from your blog is actually the easy part.

Blogs have the potential to be extremely lucrative, but don’t assume that you’re going to start making money in the first week, or even in the first month. It could take six months to a year to start seeing a steady stream of income. Blogging takes work and dedication, but once you develop a large enough audience, there are several methods you can employ to monetize your blog.

Sell advertising space

Once you have a popular blog, advertisers will be hounding you for the opportunity to advertise. The best way to take advantage of this situation is to use Google Adsense. Google finds the advertisers for you and all you have to do is place the Google Adsense code on your blog to start running ads. Google Adsense takes all of the hard work out of the process and just cuts you a check.

I go into the full details of how to set up Google Adsense for your WordPress blog here.

Sell affiliate products

An affiliate program is a commission-based way to advertise. When one of your readers clicks on a link on your blog, they get sent to an advertiser’s site and you earn a commission if they purchase. Affiliate links are a nice way to earn income through the use of product reviews. However, you must remember to disclose that you are an affiliate for the product.

Sell Products and Services

Selling your own products and services directly on your blog is a great way to increase your income. As your blog grows and you begin to see a wide audience, your products and services will begin to sell themselves.

Use the sidebar of your blog to increase the visibility of what you sell using visual images and a link to your storefront page.

Sell digital downloads

Ebooks, video tutorials, and e-courses are the most commonly consumed digital materials sold by bloggers. With little to no overhead and no shipping costs, you can keep the price low and inviting.

If you are extremely knowledgeable in your field, an ebook can practically write itself. Give it a try, you might surprise yourself!

Sell memberships

Another way to monetize is by creating membership options on your blog. This allows you to offer members more exclusive content only available with a paid membership. For example, you could offer unlimited downloads of digital goods, free consultations, a private network or forum where community members can mix and mingle, and private content available to members only.

There are many ways a blog can capitalize on popularity and traffic. Choosing the way you monetize from your blog depends on your goals and the purpose of your blog. Those who are selling services, physical goods, and digital goods, for example, may not want to participate in affiliate programs where traffic could be lost to another site.

For more information see my full guide to making money blogging here

Need more help?

I hope this guide has answered any questions you had on how to start your blog, but if any of the steps were unclear to you, you can find a more detailed version of each step by using the menu at the top right of this page (or at the bottom of this page if you’re on a smartphone).

More specific tutorials can be found on my blog page. Here are some of the most popular tutorials from my blog:

Contact me if you have any issues at all and I will personally respond to your email.
The step-by-step guide on this site should give you everything you need to get started, but if you run into some issues, or just want some personalized advice, please do not hesitate to contact me at any time. Blogging is my passion, and I would love to talk with you about it!

Blogging FAQ

Still have some unanswered questions about blogging? Below are the most common questions I get about starting a new blog. If you can’t find an answer to your question here, feel free to send me an email via my contact page, or leave a comment below.

Click on a question to read the answer:

What makes a successful blog?

You. It is your passion, your creativity, your knowledge and expertise, and what you bring to the community that makes a blog successful. As long as you provide content that is interesting, informative, and engaging to the readers you’re looking to connect with, your success is only limited by the number of posts you’re able to produce.

Keep writing, keep interacting, keep engaging, and your blog quickly become one of the success stories. As long as you’re passionate about the subject matter, the sky is the limit.

What do you need to start a blog?

Time, passion, and a clear goal.

Blogging is nearly a full-time operation. A successful blogger commits to posting lengthy and detailed content at least weekly. Promoting the blog must also be done regularly across social accounts and through peer interactions.

Equally important is the passion behind your blog. To come up with great content on a regular basis your blog should revolve around a topic that you are obsessed with. You don’t have to be the leading authority on the subject matter. You only need to possess passion, excitement, dedication, and deeply rooted opinions.

You also need a clear goal in mind. What is the main objective of your blog? Is it to inform the public? To eventually retain paid subscribers? With a clear final objective you can grow a blog that satisfies these goals in the long term.

What should my blog be about?

Answer these questions: What are you passionate about? What do you think about daily? What topic do you annoy all of your friends, family, and co-workers with on a regular basis? What do you find yourself dreaming about? What do you find yourself constantly researching? What do you read about?

If there is a common denominator in your answers to these questions – THAT is what your blog should be about.

Your blog should be about what interests you – what you’re passionate about. And once you begin to build your blog, no matter what the subject material, you will find a community of people who are interested in what you have to say.

How do I find a profitable niche for my blog?

If you know the general topic for your blog, a simple way of making your niche more profitable is by narrowing the niche to eliminate competition.

For example, let’s say you’re passionate about food and you want to start by creating a recipe blog. You’ll be competing with a million recipe blogs. So let’s narrow that topic down to something that is more manageable yet still important to a lot of people. Making the topic of your blog more specific will help to eliminate a lot of competition and elevate your blog results in search engines for more specific queries.

How do I name my blog?

This can ultimately be a fun exercise.

As an example, let’s say your blog will be about custom pet gift baskets. In this instance, let’s list all the main words this blog will be about.

name your blog

Now let’s list some variant synonyms of these words. Use a thesaurus if need be!

Now list nouns and adjectives that apply to you as the creator.

Now start putting words together, introduce new words, and keep playing around until you come up with a name you like!

If you are still struggling you can always try using a blog name generator for additional ideas.

What do you do if your domain name is taken?

If the domain name you want is taken and the full web address is your trademarked business name, you can assert your trademark rights and privileges and eventually get this domain handed over to you. It is a lengthy process that will involve lawyers and hefty fees, but as long as the name is trademarked by you, you would likely win the domain name.

If your name isn’t trademarked, don’t attempt to buy the .info or .biz variation of the domain. Instead, try a slight variation of the domain name such as adding a dash between words, or inserting the word “the” or other nominal words.

In some cases, the domain is owned but isn’t being used. Trying searching for it in the browser. If the URL is pointed to a different domain, it isn’t being used, only redirected. You may be able to buy the domain for the right price from the current owner. If the domain is parked, you may also attempt to purchase the domain.

Where is the best place to create a blog?

In the tutorial on this page I show you how to create your blog using BlueHost and WordPress.org. This is known as a self-hosted WordPress blog, and it is what I personally use for this blog and it’s what I recommend to all my readers. When you sign-up with BlueHost you get a free domain name, they will automatically install WordPress (WordPress.org) on your BlueHost account. You can begin blogging as soon as your account is set up. You can easily customize your self-hosted WordPress blog just by following the steps in the tutorial on this page.

How much does it cost to start a blog?

You can make a blog for absolutely nothing. It doesn’t cost one red cent.

But let’s be realistic. If you want your blog to be taken seriously, you can’t just get a subdomain from one of the free blogging sites like Blogspot. You’ll want to pick a custom domain name and register it instead. Domain names cost around 15peryear,onaverage.Sonowyou’reawhopping15 per year, on average. So now you’re a whopping 15peryear,onaverage.Sonowyou’reawhopping15 in the hole.

But the best way to start your blog is through one of the many web hosting companies. The best web hosting choice is a WordPress hosting account through Bluehost which is 2.75permonthandincludesfreedomainnameregistration,soyourtotalcostfor1yearisjust2.75 per month and includes free domain name registration, so your total cost for 1 year is just 2.75permonthandincludesfreedomainnameregistration,soyourtotalcostfor1yearisjust33.

These are your main costs associated with starting a successful blog. Of course, you may incur other costs with additional services such as email marketing. As with any business, the biggest expenditure is often advertising, but this would be a cost incurred later on down the road if you choose to go that route.

Do bloggers make money?

Bloggers have the ability to make a full-time income from blogging alone. Some bloggers make hundreds of thousands of dollars. While it isn’t easy to become a highly paid blogger, it is quite possible. As with any business, it takes a lot of hard work and plenty of time.

Many bloggers give up on their project after just a few months. They become discouraged when the money doesn’t come in right away, and it almost never does without an instant and immediate following that comes from being a high profile persona. Therefore, time and patience are needed to reach “influencer” status. Those who make money online are the ones who stick with it.

There are several ways a blogger can earn money:

How do bloggers get paid?

Bloggers are most commonly paid by advertisers. How the blogger is paid varies depending on what type of ads are used.

Should I start my blog on WordPress?

If you’re new to blogging and you don’t have much experience with HTML or coding, then yes – self-hosting a WordPress blog is the best choice for you! When it comes time to choose a blogging platform, the pros turn to WordPress. And even though WordPress is used by millions of smaller blogs, it also powers many of the biggest sites on the internet. In fact, WordPress is the most popular CMS (Content Management System) in the world with over 75 million blogs and websites currently using it. And there are many reasons why:

Is WordPress free?

Yes! A self-hosted WordPress blog is a open-source, which is completely free. And there are two different WordPress options, both free, but COMPLETELY different, which you should be aware of. Choosing between them is one of the most crucial decisions you will make.

WordPress.org: This option is completely, 100% free. WordPress.org is the blog platform I show you how to use in the tutorial on this page. While it is completely free to download, it doesn’t run on its own. You will need a web host (see the step-by-step guide) and you’ll also need to buy a new domain name. Because you need your own web hosting plan, this option is known as a self-hosted WordPress blog. So while WordPress is technically free, there are fees involved with getting your new self-hosted WordPress blog up and running (less than $3 per month).

WordPress.com: WordPress.com is a different platform that lets the user create a free blog on a subdomain of WordPress.com. While it does technically let you blog for free, if you would like to enable some basic options, or have your own domain, you will have to upgrade your account to a paid plan. For this and other reasons, I don’t recommend WordPress.com.

How often should I blog?

If your goal is to eventually make money from your blog, you’ll want to start blogging as often as possible – at least once per week. Blogging can be casual if your goal is solely for personal pleasure. But if you’re seeking a large audience and wish to become a leader in your field, blogging weekly is a must.

While frequency is important, it should not come at the expense of quality. Not every piece of content needs be 2,000 words, but all of your posts should be informative and of value to your audience. This is no easy feat. However, if you’re able to stick with blogging on a regular schedule, it will become easier! As with anything else, the more you do it – the more skilled at it you become.

Blogging weekly also helps improve your traffic from search engines, which you can track in your Google Analytics account. When you first begin blogging your latest posts will take time to show up on search engines. As you continue to post regularly you will naturally have more blog posts showing up in the search results, which means more traffic to your blog.

Why do blogs fail?

Almost any blog has the potential to become a success, yet most blogs fail. And there are many reasons why. Here are the most common reasons why a blog fails: