The Comprehensive Guide to Starting a Blog

If you have been thinking about starting a blog for yourself, then you’ve come to the right place.

With my tutorial, you’ll be on your way to starting a new blog and publishing posts in no time!

You can start a blog on Bluehost by clicking here, and then follow the steps below to set up your new blog.

There are so many pros of starting a blog, whether you want to do it as a hobby, as a money-making side hustle or potentially turn it into your full-time job.

Some of the best things about starting a blog are:

• You can unleash your creativity through writing
• You have a chance to influence or help others
• You can improve your writing skills
• You can learn so much about the online world, especially in today’s digital era
• You have complete control over a website that YOU own, and you’re not just a profile on a social media platform
• You can potentially make an income from it

Ready to start the process? Click here.

Choosing a Hosting Provider

If you’re intent on your blog being purely a hobby, then there are many free options out there for you. However, the downside to choosing a free hosting provider is that there is very limited support should something go wrong.

Being self-hosted is the recommended way to go if you want to monetize your blog and potentially earn money from it.

That’s not saying that you can’t find success with other providers, but if you want complete control over your website as well as a good support team, bring self-hosted is the best option.

Once you make the choice for your blog to be self-hosted, I recommend that you go with Bluehost. Here are some of the reasons why I chose Bluehost as my hosting provider and why I recommend it to you:

• They have a great and dedicated support team
• It’s extremely easy to use and understand, especially if you follow my tutorial down below
• Your blog domain is FREE if you purchase 12 months or more!
• Your domain will look much more professional than if you choose to go with a free hosting service
• They are integrated with WordPress, which is very easy to use and a great platform for managing your blog
• And best of all, they are very affordable, coming at a low price of only $3.95 a month using my link!

Choosing your Niche

I recommend choosing your niche prior to picking a domain name so that you can fit your domain name around the topics that you will be discussing in your blog.

This allows readers to at-a-glance know what your blog will be about and increase their chances of clicking through if they’re looking for information within that niche.

The niche you ultimately choose will determine your target audience, so keep it narrow enough that you are able to retain the attention of your readers; but wide enough that you cover enough sub-topics within that niche.

For example, choose an overarching topic such as finance, lifestyle, fashion, etc. as a general niche. Within that, you can have sub-topics such as personal finance, DIY, luxury fashion, etc. but it can be very hard to blog exclusively around these sub-topics.

Choosing a Domain

Choosing a domain is not something that should be taken lightly because it reflects the content of your blog.

Your domain is essentially the first impression a reader gets of your blog on the internet, and you want to make sure that you make a good first impression so that they keep coming back and become a loyal follower.

Bluehost is great because you can sign up, create your account and then come back to decide on your domain name when you’re ready.

I recommend thinking this through thoroughly because while changing your domain name after registering isn’t extremely difficult, it can be a hassle to complete. I wasn’t happy with the first domain that I chose, so I changed it a few months in and Bluehost was extremely helpful in assisting me with the change. 

You can check here to see if a domain name is available.

How to Start a Blog on Bluehost

Step 1: Register through Bluehost

Once you decide to start a blog, click here to purchase hosting and a domain name.

If you purchase 12 months or more of web hosting through Bluehost, you get a free domain for the first year and it comes out to only $3.95 per month!

Step 2: Choose your Plan and Buy Hosting

As a new blogger, the basic plan is enough to get started with, and you can always upgrade your plan should you feel like the basic plan is not enough for your needs.

I definitely recommend that you keep Domain Privacy Protection checked so that your personal details remain private and confidential.

Once you’ve confirmed your plan and extras, you can move onto the next page, fill out your personal details as well as payment information, and you’re good to go.

Step 3: Set Up Your Blog

Bluehost now comes with one-click integration with WordPress so you don’t have to install it separately. This makes it much more convenient to set up your new blog. All you have to do now is pick a theme and start customising.

You can choose to start with a free theme or pay for a premium one. If you’re just starting out, it may be ideal to play around with a free theme first, get a feel for it and then purchase a premium theme.

You can find free themes in the WordPress dashboard. Just click ‘Appearance’ and go to ‘Themes’.

Free themes are also available to download from other sites but remember to proceed with caution as you don’t know how trustworthy they are.

The themes available with WordPress have been through a thorough vetting process and are generally a safer option to choose.

Once you’re more comfortable with customising your blog, you may want to upgrade to a premium theme.

I recommend the Genesis Framework by StudioPress. It’s a design that many bloggers use, including me, and it is very simple to install and setup.

It is a parent theme, however, so you do need a child theme to work with. I use the Simply Pro Theme and StudioPress has many other package options to choose from. 

Now all you have to do is start writing and you’ll be publishing blog posts in no time.

Your blog is now set up and ready to start attracting readers! Have fun and happy blogging!