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How To Start A Successful Blog

by Yolando B. Adams

The most commonplace query I get asked about blogging would be, “How do you begin a blog?”

For this unique submit, I’m going to expose you to the way to begin a successful web blog on the internet (an expert one) in easy steps.

If you know a way to click on a mouse and use the net, you’ll be able to try this.

Do no longer be afraid if you have by no means done this before or since you are too technologically challenged to do it — due to the fact you may do it. How do I know? I’ve technologically challenged myself — yet I nonetheless did it. But you’ve got the advantage of now not having to make the same errors that I did by way of gaining knowledge of from my errors.

Picking A Topic

Blog

Pick a subject you realize approximately or like a lot. Pick something you are obsessed with. You don’t even want to be an expert on a subject to blog approximately it! You may even blog approximately things you hate as long as you’re obsessed with it.

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Some blogs have “how-to” tutorials; a few have snapshots, animations, cartoons,, and videos as their content material. The maximum popular blogs are the non-fiction and “how-to” blogs.

Blogging about something you realize a lot about or love will inspire everyday posting — consequently, human beings will maximum in all likelihood to return — and decrease your writer’s block.

Doing What You Love, Know, Or Hate Is Great, But Is There A Market For The Topic You Want To Blog About?

Do a Google search or use Google Keyword Tool to find out if human beings are attempting to find your topic and associated terms.

Google Trends helps to find out how popular a search time period or word is. Market Samurai is a extremely good tool that I use to find a special evaluation of the subjects and markets I want to get into.

Forums are also a extraordinary source of records to find out what the market needs. Users, there might inform you what data or product they’re searching out or willing to pay for. Or you may ask on the boards for what human beings are after.

Choosing a Blog

Which is Best: WordPress or Blogger?

Call me biased due to the fact I’m using WordPress, but I’ve used both of them, and WordPress has inspired me the maximum — do not preserve it against me almighty Google. WordPress has higher and extra plugins to make lifestyles easier, and I am desirous about it due to the fact I’m so lazy and technologically challenged.

Now earlier than you rush off to signup for an account with WordPress, if you are making plans on making a living from your weblog or if it is for a commercial enterprise, you will want to look professional.

URLs which include yourwebsite.Wordpress.Com/yourentry would not look professional, and it is difficult to consider. To get a loose weblog with WordPress.Com, you are telling your audience that your weblog is only a hobby.

To get your own URL or area, such as YourWebsite.Com, for example, you want a web hosting provider to host your area. Hosting applications usually cowl the registration of the area. Okay, I’ll admit a little secret: when I started, I didn’t even recognize what a hosting issuer was or what it did. Yes, those phrases technologically challenged comes into mind.

Hosting Providers

Successful

I even have used pretty some web hosting vendors, and there are a few precise ones obtainable. So some distance, those I like have to be Bluehost and Siteground. I use each of them.

Bluehost gives fantastic, 24 hours online support. I’ve had some lame newbie issues within the beyond, and they have constantly been there to assist me in restoration the problems — without making me sense like a noob. Bluehost guide is rapid and reliable. Their expenses are pretty average. Not the most high-priced but now not the most inexpensive both. But you may actually get an excellent guide with them — so for a person who is new to blogs and websites, they’re a Godsend.

Siteground is reasonably priced and cheerful. The expenses are inexpensive than Bluehost, but for an excellent cause: their assist is elusive, to say the least. If you are assured with websites and blogs, then the guide doesn’t genuinely depend. To get keep of a Siteground customer support rep online is like attempting to find a needle in a haystack. And Siteground has barely fewer functions compared to Bluehost. But what they lack in features, they make up for in charge and overall performance. If you are on a shoestring price range and want low-cost web hosting, Siteground is the manner to move.

So which host is higher? It all comes right down to your budget and support preference.

Hosting Your Website

Before you register your domain and get your internet site hosted, have some backup URL or domain names in case the only you want is already taken.
Go Bluehost or Siteground and type inside the URL you want this is available. Sign up, make a fee (credit card or Paypal), and also you need to acquire a welcome email with the login information of your website. It’s well worth paying that little greater than $10 a yr for the WHOIS privacy protection so humans cannot locate your personal info after they examine who owns the internet site. And to prevent them from spamming your electronic mail.
Sign in to your website with the aid of going into your hosting company’s website and login in along with your account info.
Here is in which you’ll find easily installation WordPress with a few clicks:

For Bluehost > Scroll all the way down to Software/Services section and click on Simple Scripts > Under Blogs heading click on WordPress > Click Install > Fill in details > Bookmark your internet site’s WordPress login URL — now you have got a WordPress weblog for your personal area!
For Siteground > Go Account Section > click on CPanel > click Access CPanel Normally > Scroll all the way down to Software/Services section and click on Fantastico De Luxe > Under Blogs click on WordPress > Click on New Installation > Fill in details and click Install WordPress > Bookmark you website’s WordPress login URL — now you’ve got a WordPress blog to your very own domain!
Pick A Template (Design) For Your Blog

Many people get concerned that they need to know how to layout a internet site for you to have one. But there are templates (for WordPress and Blogger) that can be unfastened — with all of the design and paintings finished for you.

To choose a free topic, log into your internet site’s WordPress account (the URL you bookmarked after WordPress turned into installed), which I’ll consult with as the “WordPress backend” from now.

On the left panel, underneath the Appearance tab, click on Themes, click on Install Themes tab across the top, tick the containers you need or put in the name of a design or word, and click Find Themes. Once you’ve got discovered and settled on a subject matter, click Install, and then click Install Now button, then click Activate, and your theme or layout must stay on your internet site now.

Go take a look at it out by typing your internet site URL into a new browser window and have a look. If you do no longer like it, you may search for some other topic and prompt the new one rather. You can even discover the names of the topics you want by using doing a Google search. Type “Free WordPress Themes crimson” or “Paper WordPress Themes,” etc with a short description of the style or coloration you want and you will get lists of topics to pick out from.

To personalize your blog to the colours, you need together with your emblems, and so on, I’ll cover that during part 3 of this put-up collection, “How To Customize Your Blog.”

Adding WordPress Plugins To Make Your Life Easier

What are WordPress plugins?

WordPress blogs on their own are quite okay for running a blog; however your web page might be pretty naked and easy in characteristic. Unless you are a programmer who can code the entirety you want, you’ll need a few plugins. Best of all, those plugins are free.

What are these plugins and what on the earth do they do? The query need to be what do not they do? From assisting your site run quicker, to assisting you upload touch forms, insert advertisements, have slide suggests, help Google find your website, permit you to have customized sidebar or menus, embed films, kill comment spam, make your website online prettier and plenty extra! Many programmers have frolicked to make those handy plugins to make our lives easier so we are able to have extra interesting and better web sites – so a thank you to all you WordPress plugin programmers obtainable.

To add new plugins in your WordPress backend (while not having to install it manually), on the left-hand panel below Plugins tab, click on Add New and sort within the call of the plugin or the feature that you need, and click on Search Plugins. Find plugin you need and choose Install Now, and then click on Activate Plugin to start using it.

These Are My Top thirteen Recommended WordPress Plugins To Add:

Ad Inserter (via Igor Funa) — works in tandem with Advertising Manager beneath. Will make your existence easier whilst you monetize your site with advertisements. The closing thing I want to do is discern out the way to code the advertisements in a way to lead them to repeat or take a seat in a positive area on my website. This plugin makes adding advertisements easy.
Advertising Manager (with the aid of Scott Switzer) — works in tandem with the Ad Inserter above. This beneficial plugin controls what number of commercials to expose so that you don’t get complain slapped via Google Adsense. Google most effective permits three advertisements per web page so this plugin does all the give you the results you want so you do not need to fear about compliance!
Akismet (with the aid of Automattic) — weird name but it’s far on hand to kill off disturbing comments who depart spam for your internet site! This is already pre-set up on all WordPress debts, you simply need to prompt it via signing up for an API key.
All In One search engine optimization Pack (by Michael Torbert) — will help optimize your website for search engines like google and yahoo (which is important but greater on that in some other publish).
Comment Link Manager (by way of Weberz Hosting) — will make your life less difficult by using letting you manage the hyperlinks left my commentators.
Easy Privacy Policy (by using Kevin Sparrow) — a need to for web sites wanting to get on the best side of Google Adsense. This might not assure you’ll get accredited but certain facilitates a little. Plus it is constantly professional to allow your website site visitors recognize how you will shield their non-public data (and I wish you imply it!)
Fast Secure Contact Form (by means of Mike Challis) — enough said! Building internet bureaucracy are a pain inside the butt and this plugin does it for you and nevertheless gives you flexibility to customise it in case you desire. And it is comfy so it makes me sense all fuzzy and heat. Now you’ve got a “contact us” shape, how professional!
Google XML Sitemaps (through Arne Brachhold) — aids search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing to index your website online asap – which is important in case you want to be observed.

Robots Meta (with the aid of Joost de Valk) — Search engines makes use of crawlers or net spiders or internet robots to “crawl” your internet site’s pages. This plugin points the bots to the pages that depend and avoid the ones that are not.
Sexy Bookmarks (by way of Shareaholic) — in case you appearance underneath you will see a social networks panel for humans to share this newsletter with (like Facebook, Twitter, Digg, LinkedIn, MySpace and so forth). This is amazing to inspire people to inform their friends and family about your site or articles.
Subscribe To Comments Reloaded (by Camu) — this sort of small feature yet it can be powerful. It leaves a touch box for commentators to tick in the event that they want to observe comments by using other commentators. What does that imply and the way does it advantage you? By subscribing to comments, it way they want to look what others are pronouncing and go back in your website! Encouraging readers to come back back is a extremely good thing to have!

W3 Total Cache (by Frederick Townes) — Makes your blog load faster! And that during itself is extremely good due to the fact Google takes that under consideration whilst rating one’s website online. So the faster your website loads, the higher it seems in Google’s eyes.
WordPress Databased Backup (by means of Austin Matzko) — This one doesn’t require an explanation. The call tells you simply how crucial it’s miles to backup your website if your computer crashes otherwise you by chance reduce to rubble your internet site.

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