by Darpan Sachdeva
With my deep interest in online entrepreneurship and internet of things,i have always been fascinated with the blogging at its core and dissect it well deep down so as to understand the true power of blogging and its success in today’s online arena.
What i have learnt after my years of study and analysis that following are the 6 essential elements to start with before you really get down to blogging:
1.Decide what to blog about
2.Choose the right blogging platform.
3.Find a host
4.Choose the domain name.
5.Get started with WordPress
6.Design and use your blog.
Lets try to explore each of the above one by one to get to the bottom of it:
Step 1: Decide what to blog about
The most important things to remember here are:
- You should be truly excited on the concept you are blogging about.If you are not excited what you are writing about and do not trust the value of the content you are providing to the readers,writing about it would be a drudgery.
If you yourself at first are not passionate upon what you are writing about ,how could you expect your readers to be one.Correct?
- Blog about some thing that has a lot of room available to discuss upon and exchange thoughts about in its literal meaning.
- Try to be authentic in your views and ideas on the niche you are blogging about.Just do not worry that you are not the first one who is writing about it ,but instead try to have your own authentic view of angle on the topic.There are always people there who would agree to your standpoint on the subject.
The important point here is that your reader is able to get that true value over the subject he is interested in by reaching your blog.
Step 2: Choose a blogging platform
If you have to cook,you need to have a kitchen.If you want to blog you need to have platform to blog upon.
There are many blogging platforms to choose from. WordPress, Blogger, Squarespace, Wix and Weebly are a few.
All have pros and cons, but WordPress is by far the most popular (source), and for good reason. It’s flexible, functional and has a large community of users who share tools and ideas.
I personally love and recommend wordpress
WordPress is a very popular platform for launching a blog.
They offer two versions of their software:
- WordPress.org ( Self-hosted WordPress blogs, cost a little money but give you much more control, and do not limit your income potential.
- WordPress.com ( Hosted WordPress blogs,are free but limit your income potential.
Although wordpress.com is free resource to use, you need to know that WordPress.org is what a lot of website owners in the world are using.
The reason why WordPress.org is so popular is because it easily gives you complete control of your website.
It’s open-source software and is updated every few months to keep giving its users all the latest new features.
They also have a mobile app that lets you blog from your mobile phone – you can upload images, write posts, and reply to comments.
Step 3: Find a host
Now since we have discussed the merits of using word press as a platform for our blogging needs,we need to always remember that word press is no more than a simple structured software.
In order for your blog to be online, and accessible to anyone, you need server space. You get server space from a hosting company or “host.”
Now what host should you use?
I would recommend you the one i have used for many many years my self and have observed many online entrepreneurs enjoying services of for over a decade.
Click here to –> go to Bluehost <– and start your own blog. (The link will open in a new window so you can reference these instructions as you work.) Click the green “Get Started Now” button like so:
Don’t worry if the images you see here vary slightly from the ones you see on your screen. The process is the same. Bluehost is always tweaking and making site improvements. You might even catch them in a sale!
Select your plan
Choose the plan you’d like to start with by clicking one of the green “select” buttons. I typically go with Plus or Prime because you get more unlimited features.
Domain privacy, which I highly recommend, comes included with Prime. If you choose Plus, you’ll have the option to add it later for about $1 a month.
Step 4: Pick a domain name
A domain is a web address. For example, nobelthoughts.com is my domain name
If you don’t already have ideas, use your name, or think of something short, catchy and shareable.
If you have previously registered a domain and want to use it for this new site, enter it on the right. (Don’t worry, it won’t mess things up to enter it here. It only identifies your Bluehost account for now.) If you don’t already have one, enter your desired domain on the left.
FAQ: What if the domain name I want isn’t available?
No worries! Take advantage of Bluehost’s option to choose a different one later. Simply click the “Choose Free Domain Later” button in the popup that appears and looks like this:
If you get stumped when choosing a domain later, read tips here.
Enter your account info
On the next page, enter your account info. Make sure you use a working email address because this is where your login information will be sent. (Save these emails!)
Choose an account plan based on how far in advance you want to pay. Bluehost bills 1, 2, 3 or 5 years upfront. They do not offer a monthly payment option (hosts that do often charge double or triple). As you can see, it works out to be a very reasonable monthly amount. Not bad for your own blog or website, right? It’s a great deal
I skip the add-ons except Domain Privacy Protection. The others can easily be added later if needed. (Domain privacy is only available for new domains. If you selected the Prime package, it’s free.) This protection keeps your personal information private. The only time I would skip domain privacy is if you are using a business address and don’t mind if it’s visible to anyone who looks up your domain.
The total is the amount you’ll pay today. You won’t have to pay again for 12, 24, 36 or 60 months, depending on the account plan you chose. Set it and forget it!
Enter your billing info
Next, fill in your billing information, confirm that you’ve read the fine print and then click Submit.
Skip the upgrades & special offers
Once you hit submit, you’ll be asked if you want to add any upgrades or special offers. I skip them by clicking the “no thanks” link.
After your purchase is complete, you’ll be asked to choose a password. Just click the “Create your password” button to choose a secure password.
This password will allow you to login and get started
Step 5: Get started with WordPress
You can start working on your WordPress site right away. Click the blue login button in the “Congratulations!” window to get started with WordPress.
Skip the free themes
Bluehost gives you the option to pick a free theme immediately. Unless you are familiar with one listed, I recommend you skip it by clicking “Skip this step” at the bottom of the screen. Why? Because many free themes are not kept updated. Outdated themes leave holes hackers can exploit and are not worth the risk.
The theme that comes pre-installed will suffice for now. You can switch to a different theme once you’re set up and more familiar with WordPress.
Start building your site
Your site will be on a temporary domain at first. Don’t be alarmed.
For new domains, this is because it takes 2-24 hours for your chosen domain to become fully registered. Go ahead and start working on your site. When the real domain is ready, Bluehost will switch it for you automatically.
If you used an existing domain in Step 4, you can contact Bluehost support (New Hosting Customers) or look in the help section when you are ready to connect your existing domain to this new site.
You have two options on this screen, the blue “Start Building” button and the link underneath to go to your Bluehost account:
It’s unlikely you’ll need to access your Bluehost account at this point so clicking the “Start Building” button will take you to your new WordPress site like so:
The black column on the left indicates your WordPress dashboard, a place with which you will become very familiar.
I recommend skipping the blue buttons in the middle of the screen (Business & Personal) and choosing “I don’t need help” instead. Why? I prefer to start with a clean slate.
Step 6: Design & use your blog!
Congratulations! You’re the proud owner of a self-hosted WordPress site. Before diving in, I recommend making these tweaks to your settings:
- Change your permalinks.
- Change your username from “Admin” to something more secure.
- Activate your domain. If you chose a new domain in Step 4, find the appropriate welcome email and click the button inside to complete the activation process.
With the above settings adjusted, your blog is ready to go!
There are many directions you can go at this point, but know this: you will feel overwhelmed, especially at the beginning. This is normal. When it comes to starting a blog, there is a steep learning curve, but don’t give up! Push through! Most of us have been in that very spot too.
To conclude here i would want to share with a typical successful blogs with millions of following and income:
Darpan Sachdeva is the CEO and Founder of Nobel thoughts.com. With a long time passion for Entrepreneurship, Self development & Success, Darpan started his website with the intention of educating and inspiring like-minded people all over the world to always strive for success no matter what their circumstances.To keep going and never get disheartened and learn from every adversity.
