Today's post is one that is long overdue. I've been asked on a few occasions how to start a blog and I figured it would be beneficial to many if I just shared a post about it. Summer's here and what better time than now to start your very own blog.
First, let me tell you a little bit about what a blog is.
A blog is basically a platform where you share your opinions, experiences, craft or hobbies with other people. It can be professional or personal and once you start, you can decide whether you want to make money from blogging. EuniqueBlogs is a personal blog- meaning it was created for me personally and not for a company- and for now it's not really a source of income for me. Although you never know what the future might bring.
A blog can be about anything of your choice- sports, fashion, lifestyle, health and wellbeing, books. The list is endless. As long as it's a topic you love and you think others can benefit from and enjoy too, you have the freedom to blog about whatever you want.
Now that we have that out of the way. I'll tell you how to start a blog and a few things you should keep in mind. Note that everything I'm sharing will be based on my own experience and from research that I did to help me start my blog.
1. Figure out your Blog Niche
The first thing you should do is find out what kind of blog you want to have. What are you passionate about and will it be something you can keep to?
I think it's good to pick one niche when you begin and maybe branch out- if you want- as you progress. For example, if you wanted to talk about travelling and share about sites you've been to, you could start with that. As time goes by, you can gradually broaden your niche and add topics such as food or health and fitness.
2. Determine your Target Audience
What kind of people are you trying to attract with your blog? Teenagers with a love for cooking? Mothers in need of parenting advice? Sports fanatics?
It's necessary to define the type of audience you want to attract through your posts so you can set the right conversational tone and know what kind of content you can share . Try to know your audience and put yourself in their shoes. If you were them what would you want to read about?
3. Write Your Content
This would probably be one of the most important stages. What's a blog without content? A blank page, that's what.
For content writing, I suggest first having a few posts ready before officially starting the blog. It doesn't have to be a lot, maybe about two or three. Once you start blogging, I suggest you have something prepared at least three days prior to your posting days. This saves you from having to rush to make content the night before. Trust me, I've been there far too many times.
4. Set a blogging and posting time
Define the times you'll be posting content. A big tip when you're starting out: don't post every day. I made that mistake when I first began my blog and I soon ran out of content, especially as I became so busy around that time and couldn't write posts as frequently.
Try starting out with posting once a week or once every two weeks. As you progress, you can increase the posts you release in a week if you want. Choose a posting time that works for you and that you can actually stick by.
For blogging, try to have a day in the week where you write enough content to be able to post. As I said before, this saves you from scrambling for ideas the night before your posting day. During the week, if you have any blogging ideas, jot them down so that you can build upon them and make them ready in time for posting.
5. Create your website
There are many websites you can use to create your blog. Personally, I used Wix to create mine. It's free but if you want to upgrade to another one of their plans, you'll have to pay for them. With the other plans though, there are multiple advantages, including creating your own domain (i.e. instead of euniqueblogs.wixsite.com, you could have it as euniqueblogs.com). They do occasionally have discounts on their plans though.
Other good websites I've heard about are WordPress and SquareSpace. You can google 'The Best Website builders' to find other platforms to create your blog.
A few tips:
Don't spend so much time creating your website that it delays your blog launch.
Create a website that will attract your audience while serving its purpose.
6. Launch that Blog!
Once you have everything set, start sharing your blog! Don't be discouraged if you don't get the numbers you're expecting when you first start out. If you're consistent and willing to learn and improve yourself, you'll get a bigger audience in no time.
Never stop learning about how to better your blog or your writing. There are many YouTube videos and other blogs that can help you with that. Also make sure to engage with your audience. Answer their questions, send them emails (though don't bombard them or they'll get annoyed), anything you can do to make sure they're getting the best out of you and your blog. Also listen to any suggestions and constructive criticism they may have. Figure out the kind of content they'd like to read as well.
Don't get lazy. Make sure to stick to your blogging and posting times as much as you can. Even if there are days that you can't post, let your audience know. It reminds them that you're thinking of them and want to engage with them as much as possible.
And finally, don't give up. You've got this.
Hope you enjoyed this post. Do you have any other questions about starting a blog? I'd be happy to answer them. Just post a little something in the comments below or you can email/message me on social media (socials down below). Take care everyone and have an amazing weekend!
Stay blessed and stay a blessing.
Thank you