How to Start a Blog
Hi and welcome to my step-by-step tutorial on how to start a blog!
The Fit Dollar is my second blog that I’ve started from SCRATCH! I’m excited to give you step-by-step instructions to help you set up your blog the CORRECT way and avoid some of the pitfalls I made when setting up my first blog!
In this tutorial, you will go over the following:
- Benefits of blogging
- Starting a blog with step-by-step instruction
- Hosting plans and options
- Getting a FREE domain name with your hosting plan
In a hurry? Click here to grab your free domain name and scroll down to the instructions below
The Benefits of Blogging
Can you really make money with a blog?
Now, before you start thinking that you’ll become a millionaire overnight, that won’t be the case with blogging (Sorry if I’m being a dream killer). Blogging is REWARDING but it is HARD WORK!
HARD WORK! That deserved to be said again!
However, with the right amount of effort, you can make some nice money when it comes to blogging! As long as you’re being consistent and setting the right amount of expectations, you can grow your blog into a VERY profitable one!You got this!
I’ve been blogging for about a year now and decided to start another blog (this one). With my first blog, I was able to make passive income from that blog so I know first hand making money from BLOGGING is REAL!
It required effort, consistency but it wasn’t rocket science! I’m just a regular girl and if I can start a blog and make it profitable, SO CAN YOU!
Why I Started Blogging?
If you haven’t read about what made me start this blog in previous posts, I’ll tell you here!
My interest in blogging started back in 2013 when I started following and reading Smart Passive Income blog. I was inspired from Pat Flynn’s transparency and the income reports that he published. However, the world of blogging felt so out of reach. I barely knew how to even set up a webpage!
Fast forward to 2017, after a few online ventures, I knew that working online was perfect for my personality type–introvert! I learned enough about myself by this point, realizing that I enjoy teaching others skills that I have mastered or was in the process of learning, that writing was something I enjoyed and a great outlet for me (had wrote a book by this time), that I wanted to work in a field where I could create my own schedule and I wanted to make SOME MONEY! (Who doesn’t?!)
After this realization, I decided to create my first blog which was a recipe blog. I didn’t have large expectations when I started, wanted to give blogging a try and since I enjoyed cooking, I decided to start there!
With a few viral posts, I realized the potential that blogging had! It was just ONE issue; creating recipes didn’t motivate me! Yeah I liked cooking, but I didn’t like cooking THAT much! So months would go by where I didn’t make ONE SINGLE POST! I learned QUICKLY that BLOGGING should be about what you’re passionate about and NOT what you think is popular. Your blog should be about a topic that’s going to keep you interested and one that you enjoy writing about.
For me, that was FINANCE, MAKING MONEY and HEALTHINESS. That’s ALL I ever talk about in my personal life! Finance is also what I went to school for and it’s something that I manage well! Why wouldn’t I have my blog focused on it?! So January 1, 2019 as the New Year came, TheFitDollar.com was purchased from domain land!
In hindsight, I wish I would have realized this just a little sooner! Some of you will feel the same!
The blog hosting company that I recommend
For both of my blogs, I use Bluehost and I HIGHLY recommend them for beginners like you!
I wasn’t a techie when I started and although I know my way around now, I still wouldn’t consider myself a techie! This is why Bluehost is GREAT for beginners!
They offer 24/7 customer support and can solve your issues QUICKLY! Even with setting up this website, I accidentally deleted some VITAL code where my website went AWAY! I called Bluehost and they had me back up and running within 10 minutes!
Avoid using free platforms for your blog
Starting a blog using a free platform may seem like a good way to get started with little cost but ABORT! ABORT! ABORT! I’m talking about sites like Squarespace and Wix.
This is NOT the route you want to go!
I say this for a few reasons, if you ever want your blog to rank in Google, this will be extremely challenging to do with a free blog platform. In addition to that, being accepted into affiliate programs can be tough.
So trust me when I say this, you want to set up your blog the correct way from the BEGINNING! You can sign up for a reasonably CHEAP hosting plan with Bluehost! Let it be the best initial investment for your blog!
How To Start a Blog
Various reasons brought you to this page but I take it that if you made it to this section, you’re here because you want to getting started with making your DREAM blog! Whether its a blog sharing your daily thoughts or one that you hope to monetize, making it here is a BIG STEP! So CONGRATULATIONS!
I’m going to be sharing with you just how easy it is to start a WordPress blog on Bluehost! You can leave this blog post open as the whole process takes under fifteen minutes!
I also want to let you know that if you purchase a web hosting package through my referral link, I will earn a commission with no extra cost to you.
In addition, Bluehost has allowed me to offer a special discount to my readers! You will get a special price that you cannot get if you went straight to their website.
Let’s get started…
Choose Your Niche
This is a very essential part to starting your blog! This will be the focus of everything you post! As I mentioned earlier, my first blog was a recipe blog. Although I enjoyed cooking, I didn’t enjoy it THAT much! It wasn’t something that motivated me to want to write about consistently.
This is why you want to make sure you pick a niche that will keep you motivated and wanting to learn. Here’s a few questions to ask yourself:
- What are your interests and passions?
- What are you good at?
- What do you find yourself talking the most about to family and friends?
- What’s something that would motivate you to learn and grow?
Once you asked yourself those questions, finally decide if the niche something that you will enjoy writing about every day! Would you want to promote it to family and friends? If you can answer yes to these questions, then you found yourself a WINNER!
Niche Ideas
There are hundreds of things you can write about! Here is an epic list of topic ideas (but in no way are you limited to them):
- Personal Finance (that’s my niche!)
- Blogging (yes you can write about blogging)
- Food
- Health and Fitness (Also me!)
- Lifestyle
- Motherhood
- Mental Health
- DIY and Crafts
- Beauty and Fashion
- Vegan
- Saving Money
- Book clubs and reviews
- Carer
- Makeup and hair
- Wedding/Event Planning
- Self care
- Home Decor
Domain Name
This part is not as critical as most would think. Yes, you want to choose a domain name that you love, but there’s no such thing as having a perfect domain name.
It’s nice to try to make your domain name clear to your blog topic. So if you’re writing about budgeting, a suggestion may be to put the word budget in your domain. However, if you ever plan to expand your blog outside of your current topic, you could be limited by your domain. I ran into this issue with my first website.
Take time to think of your domain name but don’t stress it either! Something that’s easy to remember and one that have a good ring is always a good choice.
Grab your FREE domain here!
Let’s get started with signing up for Bluehost!
Step 1: Get Started
Click on the green button that says, “Get Started” once you’re on the Bluehost discount page.
After you select “Get Started”, from there you will be asked to register your new domain name. One free domain name is included with hosting! (In the section above, find tips about picking domain name)
I recommend the basic plan to start. This has everything needed for a beginner blogger. As your blog grows, you can upgrade your plan as your blog needs change.
Step 3: Provide Your Contact and Payment Information
After you have chosen your preferred plan and domain name, enter your payment information.
You will see an option to select your account plan. For the CHEAPEST price option, select the 36 month plan! That’s the one I use! If you want to test the water, try out a 12 month plan. The longer the term of your plan is, the more you save per month.
Step 4: Create Your Password
Next, choose a password for your account. Make sure to review the requirements for creating a password.
After this is done, it will prompt you to log in.
Step 5: Connecting WordPress and Bluehost
Oh snap! You are almost done! You are seconds away from a fully functional site!
After your hosting account is created, WordPress will install automatically on your site.
Bluehost will then ask you to choose a theme! Choose one that fits your niche. Something that is modern, professional and has a clean look will work for most niches.
You can choose a free theme from WordPress or you can buy a theme. A free theme is a good start for a beginner blogger. This is something you can update as your blog grows. You can skip choosing theme for now if you would like to revisit it later.
Step 6: Final Steps
Now that you have your theme selected, you can start building your website by clicking “Start Building”!
From here, you’ll be asked what kind of site are you looking to set up. It doesn’t matter if you select “Business” or “Personal”.
You are DONE!!!!! Let’s celebrate and go out for drinks now!!!!
Your blogging journey has just begun! From here, be sure to bookmark this the Bluehost link for convenient access. Also bookmark this post in case you need to revisit it!
If you have questions with your site, free free to contact Bluehost customer support. They are available 24/7 via phone or chat!
So now you learned how to start a blog – what’s next?
You can sign up for my email list where I send out tips and guides as it relates to blogging! These tips are super helpful!
I encourage you to take courses and learn everything that you can about blogging! This is an exciting time and the more you put into learning, the more you will yield from your blog!
