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Before I explain how to start a blog, I want to define what a blog is. A blog is a type of website. It consists of posts or entries, with the most recent posts displayed at the top. More details, here.
1. Decide what to blog about.
2. Select a blogging platform.
3. Choose a name for your blog.
4. Design your blog.
5. Start blogging.
Step 1: Decide what to blog about
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Step 2: Select a Blogging platform (Host)
There are many platforms you can choose from to start a blog. To simplify this post, I am going to suggest two free options.
Option 1: Blogger. Why? Because Blogger is free and plays a huge role in Search Engine Optimization (SEO) because it is owned by
Google. SEO makes it easier for your content to show up in search results, so people can find your blog faster. To get started with blogger, here is a complete blogger getting started guide. Also, a lot of successful blogs that I follow are hosted by blogger.
Option 2: Tumblr. Why? It’s a mico-blogging platform, but also a social media site. It has millions of active users, which means when you create a post it has the potential to reach a huge audience. Keep in mind the majority of Tumblr users fall under the category of 18-34 years in age. To set up an account, click here and follow the steps.
Which one should you choose?
It depends on what your blog is about and your target audience. Either one will host your content for free.
Step 3: Choose a name for your blog
Make sure to keep the name short, relevant to your business, easy to spell, and catchy. You want people to easily remember and identify what your blog is about by the name.
Since you will be starting a blog with blogger or tumblr, your blog name will be hosted as a subdomain. If you want a custom domain name instead, both platforms allow you to do that, and will still host your blog for free.
Your blog URL will go from yourblogname.blogspot.com to yourblogname.com. This will give your blog a more professional looking
URL. You can purchase a domain name from a registrar, like
GoDaddy for about $15 (use these coupon codes to purchase a custom domain
for as little as $0.99 cents). If you decide to go with a custom domain name option for your blog, here are easy instructions to set up your domain with blogger. Click here for instructions on how to set up a custom domain with Tumblr.
Step 4: Design your blog
Keep the design of your blog clean and simple. You want your content to be the primary focus. I would suggest keeping the background white or light gray. Here is a complete guide to Blogger Template Designer.
If you decided to go with Tumblr, here are some free theme options you can select from. To install just click the install button above the theme you like (note: a theme is the appearance of your blog).
Step 5: Start Blogging
Remember the key to successful content marketing is valuable content. Learn how to create valuable blog post content, here.