How to Start a Blog In 2023

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.

This is a detailed guide with some theory and practical knowledge. A bit of reading, and a few following steps to start your blog.

What is a blog?

A blog or “web log” is a web page for content that you regularly add to and update. Unlike other publications and articles, blogs tend to take on a more personal tone that helps them connect more deeply with their audiences.

People start blogs for all kinds of reasons, including:

Sharing their opinions, passions, or glimpses into their lives.
Teaching others what they know.
Building an email list.
Developing their personal brand as an expert.
Selling products or services.
A combination of any or all of the above.

For these reasons, blogging can be incredibly fulfilling—especially when complete strangers start consuming your content—but it’s also a commitment.

Think about why you are starting a blog

A blog can help you to accomplish many things, such as: inform, educate, promote, and even sell.

Here are some reasons why many people create a blog and enjoy blogging:

To use it as an outlet for creative expression.
To establish expertise and build an audience.
To network with others and grow a business.
To enhance writing and thinking skills.
To become self-employed or make more money

How to Start a Blog

The hardest part about blogging is finding the time and the ideas you need to do it consistently. Getting started, however, is fairly straightforward.

Starting a blog with the potential to be a business comes down to the following steps, which we’ll explore in detail:

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:

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.

Life experiences. Everyone has lessons they have learned through life experience. Sharing this knowledge can be incredibly helpful to others in similar situations.
A personal blog. A personal blog is a blog all about you. This will include a variety of topics, from things you do on a daily basis, to random thoughts and musings. This is a great way to share your thoughts with the world without having to stick to just one topic.
Hobbies & passions. Hobbies or other interests you are passionate about are a great place to start. Cooking, travel, fashion, sports, and cars are all classic examples. But even blogs about more obscure hobbies can be successful since your audience is literally anyone in the world with the internet.

2. Pick a niche for your blog

Before you start building a blog and make it as a blogger, you have to select a blogging niche.

To pick the right niche for your new blog, begin by making a list of all of the topics that excite you and make you want to talk about them. There are no restrictions – you can include any personal or professional interests in this list.

Think of things that you enjoy doing in your spare time. For example, are you an amateur photographer, or an avid programmer?
Consider all of the things that you would like to learn. For example, do you aspire to take cooking classes and become a better cook?
Lastly, contemplate all of your plans and projects. For example, do you plan to go back to college to complete your education?

3. Choosing a blogging platform that fits your needs

This is where many would-be bloggers get stuck. They’re not exactly sure which platform they should invest their time and money on.

The choice usually boils down to a self-hosted or hosted platform:

Self-hosted: These platforms generally offer more customization options, but you will still have to pay a monthly fee to host the site yourself and it requires some initial setup. WordPress.org is the go-to platform if you’re considering the self-hosted route. This guide from Smashing Magazine will walk you through it.
Hosted: These platforms let you get started right away and some of them have built-in audiences. Some are free like Blogger and WordPress.com and some are paid. When choosing a platform, think about the future and how you want to monetize your blog eventually. Not all platforms will give you everything you need, while some will give you more than you will ever need.

4. Customize your blog

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 breakdown of some of the 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 log in 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.

Changing your blog design

Once you log in 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.

5. Laying the groundwork for growth

We usually talk about growing an audience after we start publishing. But if you want to build up momentum quickly, you need to start thinking about it even before you launch.

Many bloggers struggle with distribution, and I think there are two parts to the reason:

They don’t have a concrete, repeatable distribution strategy within their publishing process.
Publishing is already a nerve-wracking experience, and amplifying your reach makes it that much scarier.

6. Start a blog by setting up WordPress

Once you log in to your web hosting account, Bluehost will offer a 4-step process to help you create a blog. I suggest that you go with this procedure if this is your first time starting a blog.

Four steps blog set up assistance process:

Step 1. You will start this process by answering 3 questions: What kind of site? What type is it? And who is it for? In my example, I selected: Blog, Personal, and Myself. You can select the same choices or pick what fits your individual case.
Step 2. With this step, you can pick what else you would like to add to your site. Bluehost gives you a few options to choose from.
Step 3. In this step, you need to answer a few questions such as the name of your blog, tagline, and how comfortable you are with creating websites. Note: you can always change this later.
Step 4. Check out the suggested themes from Bluehost and see if you like any of them. You can always change your theme and use a different one later. More information on this further on.

7. Write and publish blog content

So far, you’ve established a domain name, chosen your blog hosting site, and set up a blog theme, and you are ready to go. Your framework is complete.

Now comes the moment of truth and you can actually start blogging. You need to learn how to write your first blog post. On the web, any useful information or experience that you share with readers is called “content.” It must be something valuable that people will want to interact with and come back for more.

Prepare and publish content on the main pages

Depending on your individual needs you can decide what pages to publish. The following are the most common pages bloggers use:

Homepage – This depends on what type of layout you choose. As I described above, when customizing your blog you can choose to display the homepage as a static page. In that case, you will have to prepare content for it.
About us – The most traditional page on any blog is the “About us” page. This page tells new visitors what it is all about, who you are, and why you run a blog about your niche topic.
Contact – This page allows visitors to your blog to communicate with you. It can be a straightforward page with your email address plus your social network links, or you can use a simple contact form that visitors can use to communicate with you.
Products, Services, Resources – Static landing pages with any additional information that you want to include on your blog.

8. Promote, market, and grow your blog

By now, you’ve learned how to start a blog, how to create blog content, and how to get it discovered by search engines.

It is important to understand that you can write the most compelling copy in the world and design a blog interface that would sell people their own shoes. However, if no one sees it, all of your hard work is in vain. So, you need to know how to promote your blog.

9. 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.

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.

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.

Read more related posts about Google Adsense