Before starting a blog, you must answer these 5 questions!
First and foremost, what do you want to write about?
I highly recommend picking a topic that you are passionate about and I mean really, really, really passionate about. Something that you can lose hours spending time on and never get bored or feel like it’s a chore. The last thing you want to do is build blog page and find that you can’t stand writing about it anymore.
As an example, my mom started a blog years ago about being heart healthy. Now, you’d think that perhaps she’s actually had heart problems and is writing from experience. But no, her heart is perfectly fine. However, she enjoys really enjoys wine so her liver would have been a much better organ to write about!
Anyway, after a while it became a chore for her to work on something that really didn’t interest her. So, before starting a blog, make sure you pick a topic that you can get lost writing about.
To niche or not to niche?
There are 2 schools of thought when it comes to starting a blog. Some say you need to niche, others say don’t worry about it. By being as specific as possible, it will help to drive the right people to read your content. While keeping it more broad will allow you to test what topics are bringing the most readers. Then, overtime can narrow down to a specific niche if you choose.
For me, I wanted to be able to talk about my life experiences. I have a number of ideas to test and see what topics brought the most readers to my site. But, in all honesty, the more you can narrow down your topic the easier it is to create your blog name (called a domain).
2 – What do I name my blog?
Now that you know what you want write about, the next step is to create a unique blog name. This will become your WWW address called a domain name.
There are a bunch of domain name generators online you can use to help you come up with ideas. You simply put in some key words and voila it lists a number of options you can choose from. That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s available but it does give you a bunch of ideas.
For more a step-by-step process check out my post:
A Guaranteed Way To A Unique & Winning Blog Name .
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On a side note: do not purchase your domain name through these links. You can get your domain free for 1 year from Bluehost which also includes your hosting (see below).
Once you have come up with a domain name, you will want to Google that name to check to make sure it’s available on social media platforms including Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, etc.
3 – What is hosting & who should I use?
To help you understand why you need a hosting site, think of your WWW domain name as your address and hosting is the land that you will build your house (WordPress site) on. It’s basically the server where the data that’s associated with your website is saved.
I personally recommend Bluehost because they have a history of consistency and reliability, great customer support, 24/7 live chat, good security options, low introductory rates, ease of use, money back guarantee and are recommended by WordPress. As a newbie starting a blog, have easy access to support is huge!
Bluehost’s basic package offers:
- FREE domain name for 1 year
- FREE SSL certificate (security for your site)
- 1 click WordPress install (makes life so much easier)
- 24/7 support
- Less than $5 a month package
Use this search tool to get started now!
For step-by-step instructions on how to sign up for hosting, go to my post:
How to get a profitable blog for less than $5 a month
4 – How do you want your blog to look?
One of the biggest factor in how well your blog does is based on how attractive it looks to your viewers. Some ways to figure out the look is to think about how you want your viewer to feel. A simple strategy is to write down a bunch of keywords to describe the look and feel that you want.
Some examples include: sporty, french, fun, soft, retro, love, fancy, rich, vibrant, earthy, natural, secure, peaceful, youthful, wise, etc.
Now, whittle it down to just 3 key words. Using these keywords you can search each one on Google and Pinterest to find colors that evoke the feeling and look you want. This is what I found for a sporty colour palette.
5 – What template should I use?
There are a number of sites that offer free templates such as wix, squarespace, wordpress, etc. I highly recommend purchasing a WordPress theme. The security, support, control, updates, tutorials, SEO and more unique make this one time costs worth the investment.
I purchased my WordPress theme from Bluchic so I can personally attest to the quality of their work as well as the support. They specialize in feminine wordpress themes and are perfect for beginners that don’t know how to build a website because they have step by step videos showing you exactly how to do it!
Now that you’ve gone through all 5 must ask questions, you’re READY to get hosting set up with Bluehost.
