Hey, so you want to start a blog in 2018?
Great, you’ve come to the right place.
Did you say that you are clueless about how to move forward with it?
Guess what, there are tons of people who started a very successful blog but did not know anything about blogging at first.
To put it simply, there isn’t a perfect blog. The key is to get started and stick to it, regardless of the odds. Check some of the best blogging platforms and choose the one that appeals to you the most. Be that a custom WordPress installation or a website builder like Wix or Weebly, make your choice and dedicate yourself to the success of your blog.
With perseverance and passion, any blog can become a great online place. In 1994, when Justin Hall published possibly the first blog in the world, the freelance journalist had no clue it was a blog. The word ‘blog’ was in fact coined in the year 1999 by Peter Merholz.
Here we share the simple and effective steps to get started on this little idea that is swirling in your head and help you realize it.
Cherry Pick Your Calling
There are like a million things on which you can possibly write, but in reality you can write about a few – or even a single – topics.
What would it be?
The most simple and definitive approach would be to understand your interest today and is it likely to keep you interested 10 years down the line. Is there anything you are passionate about? Are you offering something of interest to the potential reader or solving one of their issues or problems? Do you have expertise or above average knowledge in the area you wish to write on?
If your answer is ‘Yes’ to all of them, go right ahead, my friend.
Decide on the Blog Platform and Hosting
With the innumerable blogging platforms available, choosing the right one can be a bit confusing at first. It becomes much easier if you stick to the three step process – interface functionality, cost per year and customer support.
If you have already decided or are debating between any two options, applying the above three step process will make it easy to take that final decision. Once decided, get started immediately.
Domain name is something you also have to consider carefully as this is something unique to your blog. You can coin a name which is combination of words and doesn’t have any misspellings in it. Ideally, the domain name should also be related to your blog topic.
Designing Your Blog
This is probably the funnest step. You get to design your blog the way you want.
If you have an idea floating in your head, great, apply that. If not, choose from one of the thousands of free themes available at WordPress and SaaS website builders or pick something awesome from the paid premium options. Color schemes, templates, pretty much everything is customizable to match with your ideas, personality, or anything else for that matter.
In the process of creatively designing your blog and its entire look, make sure that the theme is in agreement with the blog topic or the basic idea which the blog is based on.
Let’s say you decide to blog about parenting in particular, the theme and color scheme should match that. In this case, having a space theme would look pretty unnatural and out of place.
Be Passionate
Wait, is this really a step in the process of starting a blog? Oh my, yes, it is. In fact this would be the most important step which propelled you to start the blog and is likely to keep you at it for years to come.
In one word, passion.
Desire.
Enthusiasm to keep going months after you have started and all you get is maybe 2 comments in 60 days. Passion will give you the vigor and stamina to keep going irrespective of what your friends or the world think.
Embrace Originality
Let’s see some actionable strategies to getting the passion to reflect in your work. Research your idea before you actually start writing. This would basically mean researching on blog topic related facts and not on other people’s opinions on it. Keeping your ideas, fact based with a generous dollop of your own unique opinion thrown in would make the content original, fresh and establish you as an authority on the subject. Steer clear of any copying of idea or content from anywhere. You wouldn’t want any copyright issues when you are putting so much of effort into your labor of love right?
Have Fun
Eminent personalities like Warren Buffet, Bill Gates and Richard Branson had a basic idea and patiently persevered, kept working on it for decades without focusing on the ultimate reward or money. They just pursued their passion, long after the shutterbugs and journalists had gone home. They were simply having fun at what they were doing and kept doing it.
Blogging should spark that vitality in you and having fun should be main objective. Rewards and money follow in due course.
Once you get started on the blog, reach out and connect with other bloggers on social media. Having someone to share ideas or brainstorm with will deepen your understanding of the chosen topic and also increase your motivation.
Share your blog posts once you have written them on all the social networks like Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram or anywhere else you prefer.
Use pictures to capture the attention of readers. Recent research shows that the blog gets 94% more views if it contains pictures which makes it more visually appealing.
With awesome and original content, your blog posts will start generating shares organically. Just follow your passion and you will most certainly be great with what you do on your blog.
Below: The State of Blogging Industry 2018 Infographic, from Website Builder. Read the post for more great information on getting your blog up and running quickly.
Click the infographic for a larger version.
Author Bio
Karthik Reddy, Community Manager at https://websitebuilder.org, is the author of India’s Number 1 travel blog. Boasting an MBA in computer science, he once decided to get away from the office desk life and take a breathtaking journey around the world. He is eager to use the power of the global network to inspire others. A passionate traveler and photography enthusiast, he aspires to share his experiences and help people see the world through his lens.