How to Start Your Own Blog

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Chances are, if you’ve stumbled upon this page, that means you’re thinking about making a change for your own personal growth by starting your own blog. That’s exciting!!

Whatever your motivation is for considering starting your own blog, I’m glad, because it can provide an incredibly powerful change for good in your life- financial and otherwise. It certainly has for me!

And whether you want your blog to be about Lifestyle, Food, Fashion, Makeup, DIY, Health, Parenting, Art, Entertainment or any other kind of niche or topic, you can get started pretty quickly, with just a few simple steps.

The are 3 main steps to get started, which are, 1st- set up your blog, 2nd- create your content, and 3rd is to monetize!

Where do you want your life to be in a year from now? How about in 5 years from now? Are you ready to start making a difference for yourself to get to those goals?

Because you get can started today! Learn the easy, step-by-step process to get your own blog started in as little as the next 20 minutes!

And, just to calm any fears you might have. If you have any trouble going through these steps, I’m only an email or a comment away from helping you for free! Absolutely reach out to me if needed.

Understanding Hosting vs. Platform

One of my first questions was, what is the difference between hosting and a platform?

You can research for days on end about how to or where to start your blog. (And research is always a good thing to do!) But ultimately, the first thing you’ll have to decide is who or where you will choose to host your blog, and what platform you’ll create it on.

If you have done any research you’ll likely have read everywhere that most successful bloggers recommend WordPress.org as your content management system. Which is what I highly recommend for several reasons which I’ll explain further down.

But you’ll also need a host for your site too! These are two different things, but they come together easily if you choose the right host.

To help you understand, the “host” is the company that provides the space on it’s servers and the equipment that stores your blog online for you. They will keep all your files, code, text, images, etc. online for you. That’s how people will be able to access your blog from anywhere on the internet.

The content management system or the “platform” is the software program that you’ll actually use to develop, create, design and post your content on. For example, WordPress is a platform.

My top recommendation is Bluehost for the best blog hosting. It’s a really innovative tool that will help guide step-by-step from the very start.

They also have 24/7 customer service too (anyone ever need a help desk??). And they have more functionality than any other platform that I’ve personally come across so far.

Also, your purchase comes with a 30-day money back guarantee too. So if you try it out for a few weeks and decide it’s just not for you, you get your money back, so nothing to lose by trying! Total win, win!

Of course you could opt to start a free blog through services like Blogger, SimpleSite, WordPress.com and more. Those sites can work great for you- depending on what your goals are. (i.e. not making money) And that’s totally fine if that’s the way you want to start!

But sooner or later, if you want to own your own content, and you want to earn an income from all your hard work (who wouldn’t?), then you are going to want your own your content through using a paid hosting service. And here’s why-

Click HERE to get a great deal when you sign-up to create your blog with Bluehost today!

Benefits of Self-Hosting

When you’re not the complete owner of your content (meaning you’re using a free service), your website could be shutdown at any time by that company. When you’re not the “owner”, the platform always has the right to “close your shop” or take down your page for almost any reason. Not cool right?

Not that I’ve heard that that happens very often, but I know that it has happened. So it’s definitely something to be aware of, right from the beginning.

On the other hand, when you own your blog or site, it will require a small initial investment, but you’ll have full creative and functional control over it too. You’ll have the flexibility of having total control and independence over your blog.

And when you choose Bluehost you’ll be able to get the WordPress.org content manager included. They seamlessly integrate and work together. Also with a paid site, you’ll be able to use all kinds of “plugins” to make your site more powerful and/or unique. There are currently over 30,000 free plugins through WordPress.org alone!

Plugins allow you to customize your site even more by creating an eCommerce store, improving speed, adding widgets and popups and so many options.

I have personally found that by making the investment into my blog with a little cold, hard cash, has motivated me far more than if I’d signed up for a free option. Cause if I’m gonna spend money, I want to get something out of it right? It signals a commitment to yourself!

WordPress.com or .org?

WordPress.com is a free source for blogging, but you won’t be able to host any advertisements or use it for hardly any other ways to make money. You can’t use plugins and it’s very limiting compared to the .org version.

However, when you signup with Bluehost, you’ll be automatically setting up your blog through WordPress.org too. And in doing it that way, you will be able to host your own blog and have the option to earn money through it, right from the start.

Also, free hosting usually means you don’t get your own domain (website address), you’ll have to have a sub-domain. So instead of your blog url being myawesomeblog.com it would be something like myawesomeblog.bloghost.com.

And having your own personal URL adds an instant hit of credibility to your site! Additionally, you won’t have as many features available to you to personalize your branding, display and other aesthetics like you would if you go with a paid host like Bluehost.

Free hosting also limits your reach to others. Issac Atia of Hongkiat says that using a free blog host hurts your SEO. So, again, a paid blog host will increase the likelihood that your blog will be found online.

So to sum all that up– if you want to make money with your blog, you will need to get a paid hosting plan. It’s that plain and simple!

Site Specific Email Address

With Bluehost you’ll also have the ability to create your own site specific email address as well, which lends even more to your credibility. That way you’ll be able to grow your own email list of subscribers if you choose to. (Which I also highly recommend doing and can tell you more about too if you ask!)

Many bloggers will say your email list is your lifeblood to getting and keeping a thriving blog going, and in making continual sales. This will be so helpful as you develop your own marketing and monetization plan!

Think about it, do you check other blogs or websites just for fun every day? Most will say no– but if you get an email from a blog or business, you’re much more likely to visit their website right?

It’s true, email is even 40 times more effective at acquiring new customers than Facebook or Twitter, according to this McKinsey report! But, we can talk more about email lists later– you’re here to start a blog right?

Get Started

Phew! I know that was a lot of information to take in!

But if you are ready to take the plunge today, you can get a great rate from Bluehost for only a few dollars per month (depending on your term length)!

They run specials all the time, so click any of the links on this page to see what deals they’re offering my readers today! Usually you’ll get a better rate by clicking through from an affiliate (which I am), than just going to their website directly.

Please do note, (I like to be transparent with you!) that you will have to pay for at least a year upfront—but if you’re willing to go all-in now and make the commitment to start a blog—paying for a full year just makes sense! And again, there is a 30-day money back guarantee.

And I mentioned above, I have found that paying up front gave me ways more motivation and determination to keep going with it, to work hard on it, and to make the spend worth it to build toward success every day.

Related Reading: 5 No-Brainer Reasons You Should Start a Blog

My challenge to you is to just try it out! Or research it out a bit more if you’d like, and even check out all the competitors out there. I did it myself, trust me! But in the end, I came back and chose Bluehost— because I wanted nothing but the best.

When you sign up with Bluehost, you also get a free domain name for a year ($12.99 value). I recommend using Google Domains to work on finding the URL that you want, and so that you know it’s available, then go back to Bluehost and continue the signup process.

It will want you to enter in the domain that you’d like during the signup process, so better to have picked it out already. If you want help with that before you dive in here, read this article first to help you choose a domain name.

Also, Bluehost also gives you a free SSL certificate, which shows the search engines and your readers that your site is secure and their information is protected!

Here’s How to Sign-Up:

Step #1

Get to Bluehost through my link, and click the Green Button in the center page that says- “Get Started”.

Step #2

Next, you will choose your plan. I recommend if you’re a newbie to just select the Basic Plan. You really don’t need all of those other features yet. Maybe in the future, but not right now.

Step #3

Once you choose your plan, you’ll be taken to the page where you enter in the domain name that you want. (The one that you’ve already found is available because you already researched it as described above or here!)

Step #4

Next you will enter in your Personal Account Information, as shown below:

Continue scrolling down on this same page and then select the “term” of the package you want (12 months, 24 months, 36 months, etc.)

You will see that you get the lowest price when you select 36 months, but it’s completely up to you!

This is also where you will choose any “extras” that you might want to add on. Personally, I recommend you choose at least the SiteLock Security-Find. That will help protect your site from malware, spam, and other critical aspects that need security.

You can click the “More information” link below each item, to learn more about what each of these extra options offers you.

Next, after you’ve selected your Package Plan and any extras, keep scrolling down on that page and you’ll come to the payment information section. Just enter that in and go to the next step.

Step #5

Now you will create your new Bluehost login information, and choose a password for your account.

Once you complete that you’ll come to the final screen that will show you that you’ve completed all the steps!

Step #6

Next, you’ll get to choose your WordPress theme and install it! You’ll have the option to select from a variety of free themes right there. (Or you can purchase one online from other companies). Again, since you’re just beginning, I highly recommend that you just stick with a free one right now. You can definitely upgrade anytime!

Once you select the theme you want to start with, you’ll be directed to get WordPress installed/launched.

You will be guided through the next steps on this screen, in how you want to set up your profile. You can also select “I don’t need help” and try to get going on your own if you’re brave!

Step #7

Now you’ll be taken to your Bluehost C-Panel as it’s called (Control Panel) as you are the Admin. It will look like this… And you get here by clicking that top icon on the left side toolbar, the 9 dot square- their logo.

Note at the top of this page (see above) it says “Launch Your Site”. Keep in mind that until you click that, your web page won’t be Live.

If you were to type in your domain name into a google search, you would come to the page (below) and it would just say “Coming Soon!”

If you are ready to do this now…go for it! You can follow the onscreen steps, and you’ve successfully launched your own website! You’re off to the races! Woo hooooo!

Step #8

Now you just need to get some content on there!

Don’t be scared– WordPress is a software tool that may seem a little confusing at first. But, don’t worry, after you play around with it for a few days, you’ll figure it out pretty quickly. (Again, if I can figure it out, seriously anyone can, I’m a tech dummy!)

And if you start feeling overwhelmed or can’t figure something out, I HIGHLY suggest just doing a Google search. If there’s something you want to do on WordPress, it’s extremely likely that someone has done either an in-depth video or a tutorial. Just like this one! You’re sure to find help to use almost every tool or capability imaginable.

Just to get you started today, you will want to take a look at the tool bar on the left side of your screen next. This is your Dashboard, your “home page” if you will, to work on your blog.

Trust me when I say you will want to click on every link and explore what is available. Then honestly- just start playing around with it!

Depending on the theme you pick, there’s probably a walk through on how to use it or set it up. You would go to your dashboard, click on the little paint brush, or the “Appearance” tool, then navigate to Themes. You’ll see in this image below there is a blue button for the theme I’ve selected that says “Customize.”

You can change your theme anytime, just go back to this page and select a new one. You’ll just click on them and there will be an “Install” button.

Keep in mind once you start adding content on your page, that changing the Theme may change how things look. (You may have to edit some of your design once it’s changed.)

Note that you also have a Bluehost Account now too. You can login there anytime to set up your hosted email, and a variety of other options. So be sure to check that out as well and see what helps it has to offer you. Here’s an example of what that will look like below.

The red text will have your name and website info there. You can also get to your blog dashboard easily by clicking that blue box in the middle!

Funny story, I don’t know why, but when I set my site up, I stepped away, came back, and couldn’t figure out how to get back to the dashboard for like 30 minutes. (Um…yeah, see, I’m super smart, lol)

So, take note of that now– just login to Bluehost and click that button and you’ll get right to it. You can also get to your WordPress Dashboard by typing in your domain and then /wp-admin. Like awesomeblog.com/wp-admin.

You Did It!

That’s it! You’ve got yourself a website! Now it’s on you to let the creative juices flow! You can get to designing, creating content, posting, selling, or doing whatever your little heart desires to make it fabulous!

My suggestion is to set up some main pages first, then start writing your first blog posts. It helped me to map out what pages I wanted to have, and then create a calendar of what I wanted to post next and when.

And if you sign up to my email list, you can get 150 Free Headline & Topic Ideas, to help you get started building your new content!

And again, leave a comment or Contact Me if you need any help or get stuck in this process. Good luck!

P.S. If you’d be interested in a tutorial on how to start monetizing your blog right away with AdSense, let me know in the comments below!

P.P.S. Heck, leave me a comment about anything! I’d love to see your new blog once you get it up and running! And I’d be happy to provide you any advice or feedback! Drop me a link to your site…