| If you have been thinking that creating a blog would be fun, and maybe even profitable, but you just don't where to start, I can help. Setting up your new blog is not difficult at all, even if you are an absolute beginner. The simple steps to take can be learned and completed by most people in a few hours time.
Here are some key points you need to keep in mind before you jump in feet first:
1. The first thing you'll want to give some thought to is what will be the topic of your blog? Are you going to share some of your expertise on one of your hobbies? Are you going to use your blog as a way to keep in touch with family and friends? Or are you going to use your blog to build an online business? This step is crucial in determining several other factors related to your blog.
For example, if you are building a blog to share your expertise or keep in touch with family, you can probably just stick with the many free blogging platforms around such as Blogger.com, Wordpress.com, Squidoo.com, Hubpages.com, etc. There is really no need for a 'personal blogger' to invest in their own domain name and hosting account, of course you can if you want, but you don't really need to.
If, on the other hand, your blog is going to be for business and you are setting it up with the sole purpose of making an income online than you need to invest in a domain name and hosting account. Think of it like this: you wouldn't open a fast food franchise in someone else's building would you? You would at least need to have a contract stating that you were renting the space and therefore you could control, to a degree, what you did with that space. The internet is no different. When you own your domain name and you have your blog hosted it's the same as owning some real estate online. This is important for the long term success of your business, this is also the biggest mistake many newbies make.
2. The second most important thing you need to consider, especially if you're setting up a business, is to choose the topic of your blog. This topic, or niche, will largely determine whether or not you succeed online. Too many people just jump into a niche because they like it without having spent time researching whether or not it's a viable market for them to make money in.
One of the best gauges of a good niche market is how many people are buying products related to that market? No matter how many people might like a certain niche, do they actually spend money on it? You can use free tools to determine this such as Amazon.com and the Google Keyword tools. Take some time to find a good niche market and the majority of your work will be done.
3. And last, pick the theme that you want for your blog. You can find hundreds of themes for free. Just pick a style that works for the subject of your blog. If you are building a business blog you may also want to install some plugins that will increase the functionality of your blog. A plugin is similar in concept to an app for a smart phone, it's just a small software program that will enable you do to more things with your blog. There are thousands of plugins available and most of them are free.
These tips will help you when you are creating a blog, no matter what type of blog you are putting together. Most of all, enjoy yourself, blogging really is fun. |