How to Start a Blog

I’ve been blogging for 5 years now, and have learned a TON about blogging. Are you still wondering if you should start a blog? You should! Blogging has opened so many doors of opportunity for me! Below is a step by step guide on how to start a blog.

Choose a Niche

What do you enjoy to do more than anything? Is there one thing you have a bunch of knowledge about and could talk all day to someone about? What is your PASSION? Whatever this is, this is what your blog’s niche should be.

Why not talk about anything and everything, especially if you enjoy doing all kinds of activities? As a blogger, you want to be seen as an expert in your field. You want to build trust with your audience and have them come back for more knowledge.

If you’ve taken some time to think about a niche, and still can’t narrow it down, start a lifestyle blog. You can always narrow down your topic later. BUT keep thinking about that one thing you can zero in on in the meantime.

Pick a Blogging Platform

The next step in learning how to start a blog is picking a blogging platform. Pick one that is user-friendly, which is really important, especially if you are like me, who had ZERO blogging experience when I started.

I chose WordPress and I’m really glad I did. WordPress makes it easy to start and style a blog the way you want to, especially as a beginner. There are many free themes to choose from to style your blog the way you want.

Get a Host

If you are planning on making money with your blog, I highly suggest you go with a self-hosting platform as soon as possible. If you blog on a free platform, your blog can disappear without a warning, taking all your hard work away from you.

I was with another host for a few years before switching to WPX. I heard so many great things about WPX, such as fast loading time, site speed, and their great customer service. I decided to give WPX a try recently!

I’m so glad I switched to WPX. They offer great site speed and their customer service is friendly and easy to work with! Try out WPX if you haven’t picked a platform yet!

Why WPX?

There are so many reasons to choose WPX as your blog’s self-hosting platform! Below are some reasons to choose Siteground:

It is easy to use, even if you are a beginner!
You will be taken more seriously as a blogger by others.
Tech support is available 24/7.
You are self-hosted. To make money on your blog, this is very important, as mentioned above.
Great site speed.
Extras such as CDN can speed up your site, which is great for SEO!

Below are some details on how to get set up on WPX. It is really easy and you will be set up to blog in no time!

Pick a Plan

You have three choices to choose from. Pick one that will work for you. You will save with each plan when you pay for the entire year. Check out all the extras you get at great prices! WPX makes it so easy to set up your blog through simple steps!

I chose the Business plan, since it fits with the needs of my blog. Each plan comes with great extras, like free email, daily backup, free CDN, and more! You can always ask the great customer service reps about each plan if you are not sure which one to purchase.

Domain Name

Next, you want to pick and register your domain name. Think about this carefully, since the name you pick will represent you and your blog. One of the many great things about WPX is that you can register for a domain with them, avoiding the hassle of doing it elsewhere.

Since I already had my blog and domain name set up, I just transferred everything from my old host to WPX. The amazing customer service team can help too!

Once you’ve picked a domain name, you want to review and complete your order with WPX. You can choose extras if you like as well.

Now you are ready to get your blog set up!

Connect Host and Domain Name

After you choose a domain name, you will want to get your name and host connected. This only needs to be done if you bought your domain elsewhere, like GoDaddy.

There are other places that offer domain names, but you can avoid having to connect both if you buy a domain name straight from WPX. If you have any problems with this, the staff at Siteground are wonderful and will help you through the process in any way they can.

Choose WordPress Theme

Now you can install WordPress on WPX, choose a theme to use, and start blogging! Again, if you have any issues, the customer service over at WPX are wonderful and will help you out every step of the way.

There are many free themes you can start with. I did when I began blogging.

Even though you can save money by using a free theme, there are setbacks, such as the creator not updating the theme, which can cause problems with your blog.

If you truly want to make blogging a business, I highly suggest investing in a quality theme.

I recently purchased this beautiful theme from Restored 316 and love it! It is the Delightful Pro theme. Its colorful and feminine, as well as user friendly!

Restored 316 Feminine WordPress Theme Design using the Genesis Framework

I also had to purchase the Genesis framework to use with this theme. Both have created a blog that is fast and user friendly, which is great for SEO.

Start Blogging

Once you’ve picked a niche, found a platform with a theme you like and have your blog self-hosted, its time to start blogging! There are many opinions on how many blogs you should have completed before launching and how many blogs you should post per week. Use your own discretion on this.

I launched my blog with only a few posts. Some recommend launching once you have 20 posts. No matter what you decide to do, start writing those articles!

How many should you post a week? a month? Whichever number you choose, be consistent. You may end up posting once a month, once a week, or several times a week. No matter what you choose to do, stick with it.

I post once a week on Monday evenings. This works for me since I also have other work commitments. Some weeks get crazy, but I’ve managed to keep up with my blogging schedule.

If you are not sure what type of posts to begin with, there are many bloggers that give tips on how to start a blog for beginners. I have plenty of blogging tips for beginners here on Blooming Anomaly as well!

Advertise on Social Media

Now that you have your blog set up and running, its time to find your audience. Pinterest has helped get me a ton of traffic to my site. I pin several new pins manually every day.

I also schedule about 25 pins a day with help from Tailwind. Actually, Tailwind has helped me gain MILLIONS of views on Pinterest, which in turn helps me get THOUSANDS of views on my blog!

These views recently helped me qualify for Mediavine, a great ad management company that allows me to make a nice side income with Blooming Anomaly.

Do you want to try Tailwind out for free? Schedule some new posts with Tailwind and watch your traffic take off! Get more information below: