How To Start A Blog In 2024

If you’re wondering how to start a blog and make money online, this in-depth blog post can guide you through the setup process step by step so that you can have your new blog up and running in no time!

Do you want to create something meaningful at home? Why not start a blog? Why not become a blogger?

Are you thinking of starting your own blog but it seems like an impossible task to amount to?

I’ve been there and I’m here to assure you that it is doable and it’s probably easier than ever to start a blog in 2024.

In fact, you can start your own blog for only $2.95/month in a few easy steps.

EASY GUIDE TO CREATE A PROFITABLE BLOG FOR BEGINNERS

This page contains affiliate links meaning we earn a commission if you use those links. We only recommend brands we use and trust. See our disclosure.

Creating this blog is one of the best decisions I have ever made. After all, my blog is how I earn a living and make a passive income. More importantly, it’s how I add value to other people’s lives.

I am not ashamed to admit that when I was first learning how to build a blog, I made a ton of errors. You can now take advantage of my more than a decade of experience so that you don’t repeat the 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.

Things have changed over the years, and it’s more imperative than ever to start your blog the correct way and lay a solid groundwork for future blogging success.

But please remember that the ultimate key to your blogging success is action. The most fruitful bloggers are the ones who complete more than they research.

I know that starting a blog can seem overwhelming and daunting. This guide is made especially for beginners.  I will walk you through each and every step, using plenty of pictures to make it all perfectly clear.

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

Let’s get started!

I hope this extensive guide will help you. If you have something to share with the world and have always wanted to start a blog, you’re in the right place.

COMMON BEGINNER QUESTIONS ON HOW TO START A BLOG

So, I guess there are some questions you have in mind that almost every beginner blogger asks, which is why I’m going to give you the answers sincerely so that you know exactly what to expect from this process!

WHAT IS A BLOG ANYWAY?

A blog in simple terms is a type of website that emphasizes mainly on written content, also known as blog posts.

Bloggers often write from a personal viewpoint that allows them to connect directly with their readers. This nurtures trust with avid readers of the blog.

Having a direct connection to your readers is one of the main benefits of starting a blog. This connection allows you to interact and share ideas with other like-minded people. 

With time, trust and loyalty of your readers also open up the door to making money from your blog, which is something I discuss later in this guide.

SHOULD YOU START A BLOG?

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.

One of the misunderstandings 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.

As long as you are writing about things that you are sincerely interested in, your passion will shine through and keep your visitors involved.

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

And the truth is that you don’t need to be an expert on any of the topics you write about to have a successful blog.

WHY DO YOU WANT TO START A BLOG? 

There is no right or wrong answer here! But you need to describe the role of your blog the best you can before you actually get started. This will help with step two as well.

• Are you just looking for a creative opening?
• Do you want to motivate and connect with people who have the same interests as you?
• Do you want to make money from it or use it as a tool to attract more attention to your online store?

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BLOG ABOUT?

Before you start a blog, you need to figure out what topics that you will focus on with your blog posts. This is also known as your blogging niche and it’s going to govern the whole concept of your blog, your online role, and your blog title.

A blog niche is very vital because it will serve to determine your income in the future, so choose wisely a blog niche that is easier to monetize with your preferred method of monetization; ads, affiliate marketing etc., more on this later on.

The other thing that you need to remember is that in order for your blog to be able to make you money, you need to write about a problem, a pain point, or a niche passion that your readers might have.

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

A Personal blog

A personal blog is a blog all about you. This will include a diversity of topics, from things you do on a daily basis, to random opinions and reflections. This is a great way to share your thoughts with the world without having to stick to just one topic.

Life experiences

Everyone has teachings they have learned through life experience. Sharing this knowledge can be incredibly helpful to others in comparable situations.

Think about the things you have experienced in life. This could be related to your family, work, or other life experiences.

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 ambiguous hobbies can be fruitful since your audience is literally anyone in the world with the internet.

If you already know what you want to blog about, make a list of your key blogging sub-categories and start thinking of some blog post ideas!

WHOM DO YOU WANT TO BLOG FOR?

If you’re only planning to blog for yourself and you don’t care who reads it or who you can help, I would suggest saving your money, time, and effort and putting it all in a diary or starting a free blog.

But if you really want to reach out to people, build your brand or help someone face a problem that you solved before, narrowing down who your dream audience is can be crucial. So, think about it for a minute!

Brainstorm who can benefit from your awesome experience and creativity, make a list of people that you truly believe you can help with your blog.

Writing the answers down on an actual piece of paper and thinking through them can bring clarity to your idea and help it come to life. But most importantly, they are going to speed along the process of starting your blog on the right path.

SO WHY WOULD YOU GO TO THE TROUBLE OF BLOGGING? 

There are a few reasons:

Share Your Story

A blog allows you to have a voice and be heard. You can share your story with the entire world if you so choose. One of the most common ways blogs are used is as a diary where the blogger writes about their daily experiences so that friends, family, and others can all be a part of their lives.

Make Money from Home

Blogging can be quite profitable if done properly. The top bloggers in the world noticeably earn quite a bit, but even a part-time blogger can expect to make a nice profit if things are done correctly.

The best part about it is that blogging is a form of passive income since you can spend just a few hours a week writing a piece of content and then continue to profit from it long after the writing is finished.

I go into much more detail on how to blog for money later in this guide.

Recognition For Yourself or Your Business. 

No, you probably won’t have paparazzi following you around because of your latest post.

But a successful blog makes your idea into a reality, and can gain you a ton of credit in your particular field.

Many bloggers are known as professionals just because of their blogs, and some have even gotten book and movie deals based on their blogs.

Find A Community

Blogging at its heart is collaborative. You write a post and people comment on it. This is a good way to connect with people who are interested in the same things as you are.

Blogging allows you to teach these people based on your experience, and it gives you the opportunity to learn from your readers as well.

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO START A BLOG?

It really is easier than you might think!

While it’s hard to put a timeframe on the creative process of choosing a blog topic, once you know what you want to write about, you can knock out the technical process of starting a blog and have a blog running in one weekend.

You can also seek the assistance of a seasoned website designer.

DO I NEED TO BE ONE OF THOSE TECH GURUS TO START A BLOG?

Nope! As long as you feel comfortable using a computer and cruising the Internet, you should have no trouble starting your own blog. No special knowledge is needed.

WHY SHOULD YOU TRUST OUR BLOGGING ADVICE?

Great question. In September 2018 I started to learn about blogging and set up my first affiliate marketing blog. 

Then in January of 2019, I left my full-time job to help start focusing on building affiliate niche websites and blogging on a full-time basis. It’s now 2023 and I am still going strong!

I am not special, but I sure have learned a lot over the past few years. We’ve been where you are right now and have had the same questions you have. We’re here to help you start your blog the right way.

Let’s get started! Here are my detailed instructions (and advice) on how to start a blog in 10 easy steps…

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO START A BLOG IN 2024?

Can’t I just use one of those free platforms to start a blog? Nope!

While the method that I recommend isn’t 100% free, you can start a blog for $80 for the complete first year, which comes out to under $7 per month.

Free platforms are okay for hobby blogs. But the truth is you have little to no control over free platforms, and if they were to shut down, you’d lose your blog. 

The method I’m about to show you gives you the most control, protects your content and is ideal if you ever want to earn money from your blog.

CAN YOU STILL MAKE MONEY AS A BLOGGER TODAY?

Yes, you can still make money today, but it is not a get rich quick scheme you need to put in sweat and learn to earn a decent living.

The good news is that the internet is exploding with growth right now. More people than ever are online.

This burst 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.

Steps To Start A Blog & Make Money For Beginners 2024

1.Choose A Blog Name 

First, it’s time to pick a name and niche for your new blog.

Your blog’s name is what readers will see first (like yourblog.com), so it should ideally embody either the general topics you’ll be writing about—or it could be your own name, that of your business, a clever combination of words, or otherwise.

Choosing a domain name for your new blog can be a challenge. You want to choose something unique that echoes what your blog will be about and something you’ll still love years down the road. 

What Makes for A Good Domain Name?

A lot of this is personal choice and branding. For many people, your name will make a great domain name.

For example, two of the most popular websites, Google and Facebook, have pretty unique names that would be hard to generate from some “formula”.

As those examples suggest, you’ll find plenty of successful sites breaking these rules. 

But in general, these are some good guidelines:

Use a .com – While other domain extensions are becoming more prevalent, it’s still best to choose a .com domain name if possible.

Make it brandable – You want something that’s easy to brand so people will be able to remember your blog.

Pick something that’s relevant – Choosing a name that has some tie to your topic helps people rapidly understand what your website is about.

For example, this blog is about making money online, hence – savvycentsboss.com

Avoid hyphens & numbers ; Avoid the desire to get creative with hyphens or numbers. It’s hard for people to remember!

Numbers confuse people because they never know if the number is spelled out when they hear the domain. The same is true for hyphens — it’s hard for people to remember.

Short and memorable ; I know it’s tempting to try and use a bunch of words in your URL and explain exactly what your blog is about, but it’s really not necessary.

Best PracticesWhen Brainstorming a Domain Name for your blog

Remember to Use a “.com” domain when possible. There are quite a few successful “.net” and “.co” blogs out there, but “.com” is more the standard for blogs, and it’s easier for people to remember.

When brainstorming domain names, I like to use a simple free tool called Bust a Name. With Bust a Name, you can type in some keywords you’re thinking of using, and it will come up with available combinations using those words.

Other tools to try out are; Lean Domain Search, and Name Station.

Before making your final decision, it’s a good idea to use a social media profile checker app like KnowEm. This will give you an idea about what social media profiles are available with a particular name. 

Most likely your preferred name won’t be available on many social networks. Don’t worry! You’ll be able to create a profile with a slightly modified name.

HOW TO PURCHASE YOUR CHOSEN DOMAIN NAME

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.

Once you find a domain name that you like and is available, it’s time to buy it!

While it is possible to register a domain name directly through your web host, I don’t recommend this approach for a couple of reasons:

• It creates a single point of failure for your website because both your domain and web hosting are located at the same spot. This is bad for security.
• It makes it harder to move hosts, which you’ll likely want to do as your blog starts to grow in popularity.

Instead, I recommend a separate domain hosting service called Namecheap, it’s what is personally use and will highly recommend them because they are:

• Secure – This is important because if someone ever gets access to your domain name, they have full control over your blog.
• Affordable – Namecheap only charges ~$10 per year to register a .com domain, whereas most hosts raise the price (even if they give you a “free” year at first).
• Convenient – Registering at Namecheap means that you can easily control your domain name if you ever need to change something in the future.

Here’s How to Buy Your Domain Name on Namecheap:

1. Go to Namecheap.
2. Enter your chosen domain name in the search box.
3. Click the button to add it to your cart.
4. Click Checkout to access your cart.
5. Click the Auto-Renew to ensure your domain + privacy renews automatically each year.
6. Click Confirm Order and complete the checkout process.
7. Once you pay, you now officially own your own domain name! Now, all you need to do is hook it up to some web hosting.

Great now that we have a blog name, it’s time to find a house for our new blog…

Before we get into a discussion about which platform is best, it is important to note that a blog hosted on WordPress.com is a very different thing than a self-hosted blog on WordPress.org. 

Yes, the names look very similar, but the options and limitations that come with each one are very different, so be sure to note which one we’re talking about as we discuss them below.

It’s tempting to choose one of the numerous free blogging platforms like WordPress.com or Blogger.com– everybody likes free, right?! But in this case, “free” definitely comes with some downsides. 

With both Blogger and WordPress.com blogs, you will GIVE UP a great amount of control and future flexibility by using a free blogging platform.

WordPress.com inhibits your ability to utilize display ads and various widgets, like those used for giveaways and link parties. Blogger is owned by Google, and therefore Google can shut down your blog any time they see fit. 

Blogger blogs can run ads, but they tend to earn less ad revenue than blogs of the same size that are self-hosted on WordPress.org.

Some of these downsides may not seem like a big deal when you’re first starting out, but they will definitely hinder your blog down the road, and switching platforms once your blog is established is not always an easy process.

If you think you’ll be in this blogging thing for the long haul or would like to monetize your site at some point, I recommend starting with a self-hosted WordPress.org blog from the get-go.

WordPress.org is the standard in the industry, and that’s not likely to change anytime soon. The number of tools, themes, add-ons, e-commerce solutions, designs, and marketing software options that work with WordPress.org are endless, allowing you to create a site that looks exactly the way you want and has all of the functionality that you need.

2. Getting Your Blog Online 

I assume (and correct me if I’m wrong) that if you want to start a blog you actually want to own what you create and you want to have the freedom to express yourself in a unique way.

Well, free platforms such as WordPress.com or Blogger.com have so many limitations and they actually own all the content you create and store on your free blog there.

To get your own blog up and running you need two things: Web hosting and content management software. 

Your hosting company is where all the files and content associated with your blog will live.

When readers type your new domain name into their browser, they will be shown content, articles, and pictures that are on servers owned by your hosting company.

A good hosting company is an important part of your new blog. If your host has problems, you have problems, so you’ll want to make sure you choose a host that has fantastic service and helpful customer support.

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

Not to mention that they have countless limitations on how you can design your blog and most platforms don’t allow you to make money from it either.

By purchasing hosting, you’re renting space on the internet to “host” your website which means that you own it, you can monetize it and you can make it look just the way you want to!

This is why, when starting your blog, you need to make a small investment in order to make a big change. Hosting can cost anywhere from as little as $7 to $20 per month and going self-hosted was the best decision I made for my blog.

The combination of blogging platform & and web hosting I personally use (and that most other bloggers use) is a WordPress blog, hosted by Bluehost. 

Bluehost is one of the most established, reliable companies in the blog hosting industry. This combination is what we’ll be using to start your blog. Now, let’s get your hosting set up.

WordPress is a free publishing platform that’s been around since 2003 and now powers more than 70% of all blogs on the Internet.

My absolute favorite hosting company and the only one that I can wholeheartedly recommend is BlueHost. They have safely and faithfully stored my website on their servers for over a year now and I can see why so many big bloggers opt for it.

Their customer service has been absolutely amazing as they went out of their way to help me when I had any questions and setting everything up was so easy!

Best Hosting for Bloggers! Click here to head over to Bluehost and hit the green “Get Started Now” button.

Now, if you haven’t yet set up your web hosting and want to check out some other options—there are other web hosting providers worth considering.

Detailed Process Of Buying Web Hosting 

>>Click here to get the special $2.75 per month rate on BlueHost 

1.THEN click “get started now”.

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

3. Type in your domain name in the left box and then click “next” to start the registration process.

If you already own a domain name and want to use it for your blog, type your existing domain in the right box and then click “next”. Only use the right box if you have previously paid to register a domain!

4. Fill out your billing details on the registration page.

5. You will also need to choose your hosting package and options.

Every BlueHost account plan has everything you need to get your blog up and running, including a free custom domain name, easy WordPress installation, web hosting, and custom email addresses (e.g. yourname@yourdomain.com).

uncheck the boxes next to the package extras except for “Domain Privacy & Protection”.  While not strictly necessary, domain privacy keeps your personal information (name, address, phone, email) hidden from the public database of registered domain owners.

6. You will then need to create your BlueHost account and password.

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.

7. Install the WordPress blogging platform.

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

Have trouble installing your blog? Get help here.

Understanding The WordPress Dashboard

If you haven’t already, make sure you create your hosting account by clicking the button below! The signup page will open in a new tab.

Start your blog! You did it! Congratulations on choosing hosting, installing WordPress, and logging into your dashboard for the first time.

As you start to write and publish posts, you’ll spend a lot of time in the WordPress dashboard.

At first, all of the settings and buttons may seem a bit intimidating, but after a few days or weeks, you’ll be a pro at navigating the interface.

To get you started, I want to briefly point out a few important parts of the WordPress dashboard.

This is the home screen of the dashboard. You can customize this page by clicking on the “Screen Options” button in the upper right-hand corner of the screen.

One of the first settings I recommend you change is the permalink structure. Click on “Settings” and then “Permalinks.”

Then select the “Post Name” option. It’s important to make this change before you start publishing posts.

Once you publish and have inbound links to your posts, it’s more complicated to change the URL structure.

Familiarize yourself with the “Plugins” section. We’ll talk more about the essential plugins later in this article.

The “Posts” tab is where you compose and format your new blog posts.

The “Pages” tab is where you compose the static and permanent pages of your site like your “about page,” and “disclosure” policy.

With WordPress, the primary difference between posts and pages is that posts are dated articles and pages are undated. Posts will show up in your blog feed, and pages will not.

WordPress.tv has published a thorough walkthrough video of the WordPress dashboard. If you want the grand tour of the WP dashboard, you can take a few minutes and watch the video.

3. Customize Your Blog with A Unique Design 

Now that you have your hosting set up, all you need is a blogging platform that will allow you to change the appearance of your website as you wish and publish new posts.

To make things extra easy for users, Bluehost automatically installs WordPress for you, so all you have to do is pick a free theme and start building your website! 

Sidenote: A theme is the layout of your blog, the format in which your posts will appear, and the foundation of your blog.

You can always change certain aspects of the overall design, but by choosing a premade theme, you avoid the difficulties of having to know the code.

No tech background is required, no complications. Building a website has never been easier.

Because the WordPress installation is done by them in just a few seconds, the next step that you will see is to pick a website theme from their free templates.

Once you’ve done that, you can start building your blog and changing the theme around so it looks just the way you want it to!

Pretty much everything is customizable and can be changed with a few clicks.

You can work behind the scenes and see previews of your website before launching it for the world to see. Here is where you will write your posts, change any aspect of your website that you want to, and keep an eye on your comments and statistics.

If you had a free WordPress blog in the past, chances are you already know how to navigate the dashboard. If not, look up some tutorials online. It shouldn’t take you more than a few days to get the hang of it before you become a full-on blogger.

Get A Blog Theme

Before you even go into details about growing your blog, creating awesome content, and everything else that comes with the territory, you need to make your blog look like a blog.

When you’re still new to starting a blog, you can choose to use a free theme instead of buying a paid WordPress theme right away.

Once you have some traffic and can justify the investment, then it’s smart to choose a premium theme with more features and options.

For right now though, a complex blog theme will be a distraction from your most important priority of bringing readers to your new blog.

WordPress offers a variety of free and premium themes that you can easily integrate with their platform, and while some of them are lovely, they are all too common in the blogging world.

WordPress comes with a ton of free blogging themes to choose from, so start with one of the options you like in Appearance > Themes > Add New Theme > Popular without spending much time on this for now. You can always come back and change it later.

I recommend choosing Kadence or Astra with Elementor Page Builder (all of which are 100% free blog themes—they’re lightning fast and also have the ability to upgrade to their premium theme versions at affordable price points later on

I like these fast WordPress themes most because they’re crisp, clean, simple and will get you set up without needing to invest in a paid blog theme as you’re just starting your blog.

Later, you can evaluate more of the other WordPress themes out there or upgrade these ones to their premium themes for more features.

Point to note; is that when something is free, there is always a catch, a professional theme offers more security from hackers later! If you are serious about your blogging career you need to get a professional theme!

The best part of starting a blog in 2024 is that you don’t need to do any coding yourself. You can either hire someone to design a custom website for you or choose a premade theme.

If you want a theme that stands out, try searching for a theme template that will match your blog’s personality and purchase that separately.

Here are Some of My Favorite Places to Go Theme Hunting:

• BluChic – Stunning themes that come with installation support & and additional help from their team.
• Theme Forest – Where I got my theme from. Endless choices and amazing customer service.
• Restore 316 – The ultimate vault for beautiful feminine WordPress themes.

Your job is to pick a template that you can envision on your own blog, purchase it, and install it to WordPress. It’s simpler than it sounds.

After you purchase the theme, you will have access to a file that you need to download. To upload it on your blog, simply go to your WordPress dashboard > the “Appearance” tab > “Themes” section > “Add New” button > “Upload Theme” > Install it after it uploads. It should look something like this:

If you have already started publishing posts, don’t worry. Changing your theme or uploading a new one won’t affect your posts, comments or overall content. It will just change the appearance of the website.

Spend time familiarizing yourself with the admin area of your WordPress blog. You’ll develop a much deeper understanding of how WordPress works and which things you can quickly change about your site’s visual appearance and functionality over time.

Once you’ve settled on the right theme for your WordPress blog, it’s time to dive into the world of WordPress plugins, to help unlock even more customizations of your blog design & functionality. 

This is the necessary prep work in order to give your blog a chance to develop into a real business over time.

Install Necessary WordPress Plugins

What is a WordPress plugin and why are they important?

WordPress plugins play a vital role in how your blog will function, and getting the most essential plugins dialed in as quickly as possible is a major step that’s designed to serve both your audience and perform well for search engines.

Now that you have your custom theme, it’s time to install a few important WordPress plugins.

Plugins are great because they allow you to add certain features to your blog without having to mess with any code.

The only problem with WordPress plugins, is that there are literally thousands of different plugins and blogging tools to choose from out there. To help you cut through all the noise though… these are the must-have WordPress plugins to install when you start blogging today:

Essential WordPress Plugins You Should Install On Your New Blog Today

Akismet – This is a plugin to reduce/eliminate spam comments.

Site Kit by Google : This is a 100% free plugin made by Google that allows you to see all of your relevant Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Google AdSense, and Google PageSpeed optimization data directly inside your WordPress dashboard.

Connect the plugin to your Google Analytics & Search Console accounts (you can sign up for a free Google Analytics account right here) to find out who’s coming to your site, how long they’re sticking around, and what your most popular blog posts are.

Yoast SEO :The standard as far as a WordPress SEO plugin goes. It will help you easily structure your blog posts so that they rank high in search results.

Yoast SEO plugin helps you to optimize your blog post titles, descriptions, content length and other elements across your entire blog so that you can be found more easily by search engines. This is by far the most established, best SEO plugin on the market, and worth installing on your blog first.

WP Rocket :Faster websites rank higher on Google and give your readers a better experience.

WP Rocket is a plugin that caches your blog pages, reduces your file sizes, and does much more to ensure that your blog loads faster for everyone.

UpdraftPlus: Again, sometimes things will go wrong on your blog (and it won’t always be totally in your control).

It’s always smart to have a backup plugin that’ll save all your hard work on a regular basis, and this free one stands high above the rest.

W3 Total Cache : This is a “caching” plugin that will speed up your site. The settings for this plugin are super complicated, so if you use this plugin, be sure to ask your host what settings they recommend rather than trying to configure it yourself.

WPForms- You’ll want your readers to be able to get in touch with you easily, which I highly recommend—as it’ll encourage other bloggers who want to collaborate with you an easy opportunity to reach out.

WPForms is an easy-to-use plugin that allows you to drag & drop contact forms onto any page of your blog.

Insert Headers and Footers: Sometimes to edit your blog theme, you’ll have to add code snippets to your header or footer (it’s not as scary as it sounds).

However, doing it in the code of your theme can cause issues. This plugin lets you add small snippets of code easily to select locations around your blog.

Pretty Link Lite : This is a plugin that allows you to make long and ugly links into pretty little links that redirect to the final destination.

This is particularly handy if you have a long affiliate link with lots of crazy characters at the end. 

Bunny CDN: Speaking of speed, Bunny.net makes a fantastic WordPress plugin-based CDN that’ll make images and other static elements of your blog load at lightning speed, earning this plugin top marks to consider as a complement to also using WP Rocket.

Lightweight Accordion: If you like the way I create the collapsible (accordion-style) content boxes here throughout this guide and in the FAQ section near the bottom of this post, then I recommend installing the free plugin I use to make those content widgets come to life: Lightweight Accordion. In just a few clicks with this plugin, you can quickly add collapsible FAQ box functionality to your WordPress blog.

MightyShare: Automatically generate social share images in WordPress for free.

Rather than having whichever boring social share image your blog uses by default, this free plugin automatically generates beautiful social images using multiple templates, fonts, color choices and robust customization.

It includes support for all post types, multiple templates and new templates added monthly.

Antispam Bee: Antispam Bee is one the best free anti-spam WordPress plugin around, with sophisticated tools for effective day to day comment and trackback spam-fighting.

Built with data protection and privacy in mind, you’ll be able to stop spam comments on your blog (for free) 

4.Add Standard and Legal Pages 

But before you jump into writing your first blog post, it’s a good idea to create some core pages.

Before you start posting on a regular basis and before your official “launch,” you need to create a few specific pages on your site.

These are the pages that everyone expects to see when they visit your site. As a new blog, it’s important to convey a sense of legitimacy and trust. These pages can help with that.

Unlike a post, a “page” has no publish date. It’s just something that’s always there.

About Page  

This tells visitors what your blog is about, as well as a little more about yourself. You can see my About page here.An Amazing “About” or “About Me” Page

It’s been proven over and over again that one of the most highly trafficked pages on your site by new visitors is your about page. 

People want to get to know you! They want to know the person behind the blog. Take some time to make this a fun, interesting, and engaging page on your site and then link directly to it on your menu.

Contact Page 

You want your readers and other businesses to have an easy way to contact you. I recommend that you set up a dedicated “contact” page, either with an embedded form or just simple instructions on how to get in touch with you. Take a look at my contact page.

If you want to use an embeddable form for your “contact” page, consider using the free Typeform tool.

You might have more information that you want to share – but those two pages provide a good baseline to give readers the information they need.

Disclosure, Privacy, and Comment Policy Pages

If you ever want to earn money from your blog, you’ll need some of these standard policies.

 In fact, Google requires them to be part of their Adsense program. Don’t overthink it, but make sure you comply with the law. 

As an example, take a look at our “disclosure” page savvycentsboss.com/disclosure

WRITE AND PUBLISH YOUR FIRST BLOG POST 

Congratulations! You started a blog, and now it’s time to start blogging. This is where the fun begins.

Want a list of all the amazing tools and resources I use to make my life easier as a blogger? I have them all listed in my free resource library for bloggers, alongside more blogging recommendations and a few discount codes you can grab as well!

By this point, you should already have your blog niche chosen and mapped out into 3-5 main blog categories.

The next step is where it gets a little tricky, especially for new bloggers, but once you get the hang of it, you’ll become a pro in no time.

What you want to do next is to brainstorm blog post ideas around your chosen categories that will be of interest to your audience, write out 3-5 blog posts, and publish them before your blog goes live.

In the first 6-18 months of blogging, it’s also imperative that you continue to publish high-quality articles – ideally hitting the goal of 100 great articles in that time frame.

There are a ton of blogs out there nowadays, so if you want to start a blog that stands out, you’ll need to create content that stands out.

You read a blog because you care about what it says. Creating high-quality content is what will bring you readers and help you to eventually make money blogging.

Before you get too far down the road of creating a blog business plan, laying out your content roadmap, and writing your first blog post—you need to answer one simple question… Why?

• Why do you care for the topic you’re blogging about?
• Why should other people listen to what you’re saying?
• Why is this a blogging topic you can add real value to?

What Type of Content Should Be On The 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 clearly 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.

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.

Here are some quick-hit tips for writing content that people want to read:

• Think of your ideal reader…and write the post to speak to them. Don’t try to please everyone – just make your ideal reader really happy.
• Be helpful and add value. If you genuinely try to be helpful, it’s going to pay dividends in terms of popularity.
• Bring a unique perspective and voice. You’re a unique person, so don’t fall into the trap of writing the same thing as everyone else.
• Seeing what other bloggers in my niche covered (and what did well). Take a look at my most successful posts to see what readers like most.

How To Create A New Page In WordPress

To create a new page:

Go to Pages → Add New in your WordPress dashboard.

Enter the title of your page in the top box.

Enter the content using Gutenberg blocks by clicking the plus sign, alternatively, you can paste your content in and Gutenberg will automatically convert it into blocks.

Choose a category or add a new one on the right.

Optional – add some tags that describe your blog post on the right.

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.

Once you’ve written your first blog post (and ideally get it to the 1,000+ word range) you’re almost ready to publish!

Take a few minutes to double check on the Yoast SEO suggestions and ensure your blog post is SEO-friendly, which will give you the best chance of ranking well in organic search.

After your SEO settings are dialed in, choose which “Category” this new post will fall under and tick that box. Then, you’re ready to hit publish!

Click Publish when you finish.

Congrats! You just wrote your first blog post. And boom! It’s that easy if you allow it to be

Now, if like me, you appreciate great design—before you hit publish on your first blog post, there’s one last step you could take.

Free Blog Photo Resources (Stock Images & Blog Graphics)

Studies show that blog posts with images get 94% more views than those without. When it comes to posts getting shared on social media, tweets with photos get 150% more retweets than those without one, while Facebook posts with images get 2.3X more engagement. 

Adding a few visual elements can almost double your amount of views and expand the shares a blog post gets. One of the easiest ways to add some visual flair to your blog posts is with beautiful images and designs. 

Thankfully in recent years, there are now a number of high-quality content sites that offer incredible photography that’s completely free to use for your blog—my favorite is Unsplash -for Free Blog Images and Stock Photos.

Unsplash is the best online resource for completely free, user-uploaded photos for your blog. Every photo that makes it onto Unsplash is curated by their team to make sure it’s high-quality content.

 Under the Unsplash license, you don’t even have to attribute the photographer (however, they recommend you do), which makes Unsplash the easiest option for free blog photography.

Other Great Free Blog Photo Resources Worth Mentioning

Wikimedia Commons: 21+ million photos and images from throughout history that are now in the public domain and free to use.

Life of Pix: Awesome free-to-use (open-source) photos donated by an advertising agency in Montreal, Canada.

Bonus: Creating a Blog Content Strategy

I’ve been lucky enough to work for some fantastic companies and get paid to learn about the importance of having both a comprehensive blog strategy and content marketing strategy for your blog.

I’ve successfully applied those same lessons to my own blog—making many tweaks and additions along the way.

And if you’re having trouble with your content planning efforts, grab my free blog planner bundle and check out my other bundle of free blogging resources to turn things up a notch today.

5.Promote Your Blog 

As a new blogger, it’s necessary to find a good balance between creating content and promoting content.

 In the early days, it may look like 75% content creation and 25% content promotion. Over time as you build up a library of over 100+ posts, you may end up promoting your content close to 50% of the time.

Remember that the best promotion strategy in the world won’t get you significant traffic if the underlying content is not helpful and interesting.

Promotion is great for getting eyeballs to your site, but great content is what will turn a casual visitor into a loyal reader.

Here are some effective promotion strategies that have worked for us. These strategies are particularly important in the early days of your blog.

Using social media 

The obvious first place to turn when you want to find readers is social media. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Reddit, Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok are some of the biggest networks today.

Whichever platform best suits your niche and audience interests, is the right one for you. And that’s an important note. 

There’s no point in trying to promote your blog posts on every social media platform. Look for the social channels that give you the best return.

Post a link to the 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.

Pinterest

For many bloggers, Pinterest is by far the largest source of traffic day in and day out. You’ll want to set up a Pinterest account for your blog as soon as possible and start pinning high-quality pins that are relevant to your blog’s niche.

Go to accounts of bigger bloggers in her niche and check out who they were following and who was following them, and follow those people too. 

Pinterest group boards – look at the group boards that they were a part of. Group boards allow you to get your posts in front of a larger audience than just your own, so you’ll want to find several to join in your niche.

click into them and there would usually be instructions for joining in the board description if they were accepting new pinners.  request to join, and eventually, you will have a large number of group boards that you can use to share her content.

Blogs Comments 

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.

Make a list of 5-10 other bloggers who are a little more established than you are. Make a commitment to read their posts and provide helpful comments.

 You can’t just say “Great post!” and expect to get noticed. But over time, the blogger will notice you if you leave kind and helpful comments.

Along with reading and commenting, make a commitment to share their content on your social media accounts. Nothing says “thank you” like sharing a post on Facebook or Twitter.

Over time, a few of the bloggers on your list will start to notice you and may even promote a few of your posts to their audience.

Join A Community

One of the best strategies for getting your name and your blog out there is by joining a Facebook or Slack group of like-minded bloggers. It takes some effort, but eventually, you’ll find your “tribe.”

These are bloggers that you resonate with and enjoy interacting with. Eventually, you’ll become friends with them, and when there is a collaboration opportunity, they may ask you to join in.

Please keep in mind that the way to get noticed in these communities is by being as helpful as possible. Don’t join a Facebook group and start posting links to all of your content. Instead, answer questions and join in the existing conversations. Posting links to your posts right away is like walking into a party and screaming, “Look at me! Look at me!”

Forums And Message Boards For Bloggers

Often, just throwing your ideas out into the social media void isn’t very effective.

Instead, being a part of targeted forums and online communities can give you a way better return on your time—if you find the right ones. Browse through relevant groups on Facebook to see if there are any vibrant communities that’d be a good starting point.

How to find the forums and message boards to promote your blog

Now, if your search doesn’t come up with any Facebook Groups with a decent number of members (5,000+), there are other options. Look for more general groups that relate to your niche on Facebook, LinkedIn, Reddit, or standalone forum websites.

The best online groups for entrepreneurs (Facebook, LinkedIn, Reddit)

Remember, forums and message boards aren’t just places to dump links to your blog posts. You need to provide value before you ask for anything in return. So, I recommend you start building relationships and engaging with people there first.

Engage With Your Visitors

When your readers leave comments on your posts, always engage with them. Reply to their comments and questions, and 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.

Guest Blogging On Other Relevant Blogs And Sites Like Medium, Quora & LinkedIn

One of the best things about starting a blog is that you’re joining a community of other bloggers who love to help each other out. Guest blogging on other relevant sites is the #1 best way to connect with an already established audience.

Check out my ultimate guide to guest blogging for a full walkthrough, but we’ll cover the highlights here.

Using An Email Newsletter To Grow Your Blog Audience

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. 

Building your own email list or newsletter is the most powerful way to keep existing readers engaged with the work you’re doing—and one of the things you should set up immediately.

By collecting the email addresses of your visitors, 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.

 You can start building your email list from day one with your blog by simply placing a signup form within your posts and across key pages of your site.

I use a tool I love, called ConvertKit, to manage the email subscribers I now have on my blog, but Mailchimp is the best free email marketing tool to get started with.

One of the best forms of blog promotion isn’t to other audiences but to your own!

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 a 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.
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”.
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 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.

At this point, you should have the basics down pretty well. You’ve knocked out the technical details and started creating content.

So, when you’re just getting started, how can you get traffic to your blog?

Here are two proven strategies:

• Learn the basics of SEO and apply them to your site. While you don’t need to become an expert, knowing these basics will make it a lot easier for your site to get found in search engines like Google.
• Register social media accounts and start promoting your blog on social media. Some social networks, like Pinterest, can be especially valuable for blogs.

6.Make Money Blogging 

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 profitable, 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.

For the first few months you are blogging, your primary focus should be on creating amazing content and building relationships with other bloggers. 

Once you’ve settled into a routine and feel like you have this blogging thing under control, you can consider earning some money or “monetizing” your blog.

1.Ad Revenue

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.

Use Google Adsense or other ad networks for display ads on your site. In order to earn significant income, your traffic numbers must be high.

2.Become An Affiliate To Your Favorite Products  

Let’s talk affiliate marketing. Promote various products on your site and earn an income if a reader clicks on one of your links.

I highly recommend thoughtfully pursuing affiliate marketing in your blogging niche. Most of the biggest brands have affiliate programs. 

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.

Since starting a blog here 3 years ago, affiliate income has gradually grown to become the largest revenue source for my business—and I’ve structured my blog to generate affiliate income because of how passive it is once you’ve done the (hard) work to find a sustainable traffic source for your content. 

Once you build a small readership, you can go out and broker a more advantageous affiliate deal with companies that have relevant products you want to promote to your audience.

While all blog income sources will be subject to changes in the market at any time, affiliate marketing has proven to be one of the most sustainable for nearly a decade of blog monetization here—and I’m constantly testing out new affiliate programs to keep growing my blog’s income.

make a purchase.

3.Sell Your Products & 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.

Plenty of successful bloggers make money by offering a service that’s tied to their niche. For example, plenty of other bloggers make a full-time living just by writing blog posts for other people. And I bet if you have a quality blog, you can do the same thing!

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

If you want to begin earning from your blog as quickly as possible, then selling your services (by landing blogging jobs, freelance writing gigs or otherwise selling your expertise as a service) is the easiest option by far. In fact, up until very recently, I was still freelancing as a blog monetization channel for my own business:

All you really need in order to land a freelance client, is a strong enough pitch, which is where choosing to start a blog (first) will help significantly. You’ll want to build out your key pages (About, Contact, Hire Me) and showcase at least a couple of examples of the type of work you’ve done that you’ll soon be pitching freelance clients on.

If you don’t have those work samples yet… don’t let that hold you back. Create those sample articles, designs, or other deliverables and host them on your own blog as if they were a project, you got paid to produce.

If you have a skill that you can sell as a service, then you’re already prepared to go out and start pitching potential clients. That skill could be something like…

• Writing (one of the top blogging skills you’ll want to command)
• Design
• Photography
• Marketing (whether content marketing, digital marketing or otherwise)
• Developing (check out these WordPress developer job sites)
• Public relations
• Social media management
• Virtual assistance
• Community-building
• SEO or paid advertising campaigns
• Business strategy or project management
• The list goes on… because any skill can be monetized

4. Sell Digital Products 

This is potentially the most lucrative income category. It’s also the most time consuming to create and sell your own digital products. Digital products include eBooks, courses, printable, paid webinars, and email courses.

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!

5. Create And Sell Online Courses

Once you have a skill (or experience) that others also want to learn, it’s relatively easy to package your best advice (like my blogging tips), strategies, tactics and tutorials into an online course where people can pay for access to accelerate their learning much quicker than they otherwise would going through the stumbling process of learning through trial and error.

Last year alone, I generated over $60,000 from the launch of my premium blogging course, Built to Blog, which takes students far beyond just starting a blog and into advanced strategies for getting readers & generating revenue from their blogs.

What’s great about an online course as a monetization path for your blog (or like I’ve done with selling blogging books too), is that you don’t need a huge audience in order to earn from online courses. The same goes if you choose to write an ebook and sell that digital product to your audience.

6.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

7.Sponsored Posts

Team up with a company and get paid to promote their products. Typically, you’re paid on a “per post” basis as opposed to affiliate links, which require you to make a sale in order to get paid.

If you’d like to read more about blog monetization strategies or turning your blog into a business you can read our in-depth article.

Unless you already have a decent-sized audience on your blog (or social accounts), it’ll take some time to grow your readership to a point where sponsored content is a viable monetization option.

The best way to do sponsored content without alienating your readers is to weave it into your typical publishing style.

Podcast Sponsorships

Another great way to start monetizing your blog is by starting a podcast for your readers. You can use your traffic and early listener numbers to book sponsorships from brands that want to reach your type of readers & listeners. Here’s the growth trajectory of my podcast over its first year:

You can even combine podcast ad placement offers with sponsored blog posts on your site to really sweeten the deal.

I understand that launching a podcast while you’re still mastering blogging sounds like a diversion, but keep in mind that a podcast can be as simple as casual conversations with other bloggers in your industry.

All you really need is podcast hosting and some solid editing tools like Descript to get a show off the ground. Check out my quick guide if you’re considering a blog vs podcast.

How to make money with podcast sponsorships (quick tips)

For many more on the mechanics behind launching a podcast and monetizing it alongside your blog (including choosing the right podcast hosting), check out this episode of my show with Michael Sacca of Rocketship. fm, who has grown his podcast into a $10,000/mo source of side income while he still holds onto his day job in sales and digital marketing. It’s a true masterclass in starting a podcast that you don’t want to miss.

8.Traditional Blog Advertisements (Ad Networks)

I used to have several small blog advertisements displayed across my content (from one of these top blog advertising networks) and in my blog sidebar that would earn me around $1,500 to $2,000 per month in incremental revenue, before I turned advertisements off in favor of optimizing for page speed & other sources of income.

I was a member of a small ad network called Carbon Ads for the first few years of my blogging journey, where they partner with bloggers and pair us up with ads from high-quality startups like Slack, Asana, Freshbooks, Monday, Upwork and other targeted brands that my audience is already familiar with.

All in all, traditional CPC or CPM advertising doesn’t become very profitable (at least as a viable source of substantial blog income) until you’re driving more like 1 million+ monthly readers, so it’s not a great monetization channel to focus on in the short-term if you’re just hosting a few ads in your blog sidebar.

But, when you’re starting a blog, it can be one of the easiest ways to make money from your traffic without much extra effort—just be sure to set the right expectations for now.

But please remember:

It takes time, effort and money to make a business work. And it may require some experimentation to get right.

If you’re after a quick way to make some cash – blogging isn’t the answer.

Final Takeaways For New Bloggers

You’ve made it to the end of our tutorial on how to start a blog. Awesome!

Whew! That was a lot! Starting a blog may seem fairly cut and dry from the outside, but when you get into it, there is a ton of work that goes into setting up, promoting, and running a blog. It’s not impossible, though. 

Ultimately, growing a successful blog all boils down to being excited and engaged with your new blog. If you want people to read what you’re writing, you need to give them a reason to.

Write exciting content, connect with people in your niche and enthusiastically share what you’re working on.

The traffic, monetization and everything else will follow.

I wrote this guide because starting a blog has been one of the most empowering, life-changing decisions I’ve made in my life.

Once you understand how to start a blog you’ll start to evolve into using more advanced tactics to promote and monetize your WordPress blog.

But for now, congratulate yourself on a job well done because you had the gumption to do something awesome – start a blog!

And if you’re still on the fence about blogging, check out our article on the benefits of blogging.

And I hope that by now you feel confident enough to go out there and start a blog of your own.

I’d love to have you in my free 7-day course that expands on the teachings of this guide. We also dive even further into topics like driving traffic, my personal writing process, monetizing your blog and more.