How to Start a Blog on WordPress
Do you want to start a blog and probably have no idea how to proceed? Well, this is a short tutorial that will guide you on the procedure involved in starting and running a blog. You will be surprised that starting a blog is very easy, although running it is the most challenging part of all.
Note
This is a shortened version of the article How to Start a Blog that first appeared on Fortunelords.com . For an in-depth explanation of points highlighted here, read the full version.
Choosing a platform
There are various blogging platforms to start with. You could choose WordPress, Blogger, Joomla you name it. However, of all the blogging platforms out there, most people tend to choose WordPress. There are even rumors that WordPress sites rank better. But this generally boils down to many factors, including the age of the domain and how well the site is optimized for search engines.
Reasons why you should choose WordPress
WordPress is free to use. In fact, this software has the most number of free themes, layouts, and add-on to use. It’s also reach in features that will make your blog rank better if you take advantage of them.
Secondly, WordPress was created for the non-technical people. Forget about Blogger.com because this platform requires you to have some HTML knowledge. WordPress is all about dragging and dropping. Everything is self-explanatory.
Thirdly, this platform is highly customizable. With the unlimited number of free and premium themes/plugins, you can customize your site to look the way you want. These functionalities could cost you hundreds or thousands of dollars elsewhere.
Finally, WordPress platform is very secure, and this is just one of the many reasons people are using it, including Government agencies.
Choosing a domain name
When you want to start a blog, you will need to pick an appropriate domain name. Write down a few phrases for brainstorming purposes. Experiment with prefixes and suffixes until you find a domain name that has your keyword in it and is easy to remember.
If people can remember the name of your blog, it will make it easier for them to come back to your blog. You should not use extremely lengthy names. And if you run out of ideas, a domain selection tool like https://domainr.com/ can help you come up with a decent name for your blog.
Also, make sure you choose a unique domain name. You don’t want your site to get confused with another one. Plural versions of other domain names are strictly not allowed if you want to fair well. So don’t get into this disaster.
Domain name
Your blog should reflect your brand. But at the same time, you should not forget about your keyword. Some stats from Nielsen depict that branded websites are the most trusted advising sources for users, especially when blended with editorial content.
Therefore, if people trust brands, then you should choose a branded domain that people will associate your blog with.
Don’t choose domain names that only contain your keywords in them. Refrain from using numbers and hyphens too. These are mostly used by spammers on the internet, thus Google will view them with a bit of suspicion. This could mean no ranking and no adsense approval (in case you’ll want to monetize your blog later).
Top level domain
A top level domain or TLD is a domain with something like .com, .net, .org etc. Top level domains tend to be trusted, plus they tell people how serious you are with your blog.
If you’re starting a simple blog, then it doesn’t harm going with a .com domain. If it’s an organization, you should pick .org. If it’s a technical or internet infrastructure blog, a .net domain is appropriate. If you’re dealing with resumes, personal blogs, or sites, .me will suffice. Others include .club (ideal for community niches), or .co (for companies, community, or commerce)
Hosting your blog online
Your domain name can only be used online when it’s hosted on a server somewhere. This means doing some legwork in search for the best host who is also offering something within your budget.
BlueHost is just one of the many good companies hosting all kinds of websites on the internet. Their starter plan costs $60 a year, plus you get a free domain name with this package. They are fast and reliable.
If you choose a bad host however, you’ll suffer the consequences of outages when your visitors can’t reach your site. Your speed will be very slow (because that particular host is using outdated equipment). When speed is slow, visitors don’t stay on your web pages for long. It increases bounce rate, which is bad in the eyes of Google.
Security should be your concern as well. Host providers who don’t offer quality services will make your site vulnerable to hackers, adware and viruses. Sometimes you also risk your site being injected with invisible back links. As a result, Google will have to temporarily or permanently exclude you from their search results. You cannot afford to lose Google’s traffic which accounts for 50% of world’s traffic anyway.
Finally, choose a hosting package that meets your blogging needs. Text and images will need to be hosted with sufficient bandwidth and storage. Hosting providers usually have different packages for accommodating different needs. Each package has been labeled with features, so if you’re not sure, ask your hosting provide to explain to you everything.
Themes and plugins
You can choose to use free WordPress themes and plugins if you like. However, you may also opt for premium themes and plugins. Free themes sometimes come with spammy scripts at the bottom. Some features also tend to be restricted which limits your blogging freedom. The same can be said with free Plugins.
More about WordPress Plugins
Since you’re going to set up a contact page, use a plugin called Contact form 7. If you want automatic back up of your blog every once in a while, use a plugin called BackWPup.
You can boost server performance or download times with a plugin called W3 Total Cache. If you plan to host many images on it, you’ll need a plugin called Lazy image loading to optimize loading speed. You can also install WordPress Google analytics to track your stats too. You want to know how many visitors come to your blog, what they do and how long they stay there.
Market your blog
There are so many avenues for marketing your blog. Social media is just one of those channels you can use if you’re serious about getting known. Use Facebook and Twitter as default social media links. However, you could also use Instagram or Google+ if your blog is about photos and videos respectively. It generally boils down to the purpose for which you’re blogging and where your audience is hanging out at.
Conclusion
You need to identify the purpose for which you’re blogging. If you’re blogging as a hobby, go on and do it. Hobby blogs are some of the most successful blogs around. But other types of blogs also exist. For instance, if you run a company website, you can also start a company blog to back up your product offering. The possibilities are endless.