Shelter in place and working from home has given us more time than usual, and if you’ve been thinking of creating a blog, now’s the time to start! The new year is also around the corner, so why not start a new beginning 🙂
Seriously. I mean it. The more you wait, the longer it will take for your dreams to come true- whether it be full-time blogging or sharing your passions online, all I’m saying is to start now.
As someone who has been blogging on and off for a few years, I’ve learned quite a bit of crucial things- especially if you want to monetize your blog in the future.
By the end of this post, you’ll gain all of the knowledge and tools on how to start a blog.
Table of contents
Why You Should Create a Self-Hosted WordPress Blog
Make sure you are creating a self-hosted blog, WordPress.org (NOT WordPress.com – they are two DIFFERENT types of blogs).
I’m using a self-hosted WordPress.org blog. It has tremendously changed my blogging game for the better. The flexibility, plug-ins, and functionality of WordPress.org is amazing.
Basically, you will need to create a WordPress.org blog through self-hosting. The self-hosting server I use is Bluehost. WordPress is the platform to create your blog and hosting puts your blog online.
There are many reasons why you want to create a self-hosted WordPress.org:
- You own the domain, which means you own your website, and have full control on what you want to do with it. (Your blog ends in .com and not .blogsite.com)
- Plug-ins offer many functionalities for your site, which will make your life a lot easier. For instance, you can download SEO plug-ins to help you optimize your blog post. You can install email opt-in plug-ins to gain more subscribers. The list goes on. When I was hosting through other blogging sites other than WordPress.org, I was missing out on these amazing plug-ins.
- You can install Google Adsense, Google Analytics, and Google Search Console, and have it all hubbed on your WordPress dashboard. This is great for strategy reasons.
I was so intimidated by creating a self-hosted WordPress blog at first because it seemed so confusing. I also had 800+ views per month on my old Squarespace hosting site, but that dramatically changed when I migrated to WordPress.
It’s like starting all over again, but no worries because I have way more functionalities through WordPress. I’m seeing my traffic rise way faster than when I began with Squarespace. This is definitely because of the SEO plug-in I downloaded on WordPress.
I definitely wish I had a self-hosted site from the beginning, but it’s ok. You live and you learn. That’s why I’m here to give you a step by step guide on how to create your own blog.
How to Start a Blog on Bluehost
When you first start a blog, you most likely don’t want to invest too much money before knowing how committed you are.
This is why I suggest using Bluehost when first starting out. It’s a good hosting server for beginners and you get self-hosting + WordPress at once. Their customer service is also amazing. Every time I have questions, they are always quick to help at all hours.
Through Bluehost, you can start your blog for $3.95 a month.
1. Go to the Bluehost website.
Click on the “Get Started” button.
2. Choose a plan.
There are different plans you can choose from. If you’re first starting out, you can choose the Basic plan. I chose the Choice Plus plan because it wasn’t that much more expensive.
The bigger your audience grows, you want to keep your plans in mind. The Choice Plus plan makes your website faster. Both Basic and Choice Plus plans work good.
You can also choose an account plan based on a 12 months, 24 months, or 36 months term. The screenshot shows the 36 months term, which offers the best pricing.
3. Set up your domain.
Getting a free domain (for 1 year) is another advantage of creating a self-hosted blog through Bluehost.
If you have a domain name already, you can enter your existing domain name. You can skip this step if you want to create your domain name later.
4. Enter your account information, package information, and package extras.
Fill in the fields for your account information. The package information should be auto-selected with what you plan you chose in the beginning.
If you want to add package extras, you can do so here. I didn’t add any extras.
Lastly, you add your payment information and click submit. Then you will be prompted to create a password.
You’ll want to keep an eye out for an email from Bluehost to confirm your account setup.
5. Choose a theme.
WordPress offers free themes, but I personally don’t like any of them, so I bought a theme from Pipdig, which looks so much nicer than the free themes. Pipdig also provides free theme installation.
Another good website for themes is 17th Avenue Designs, but you have to pay for the theme installation. If you don’t want to pay the extra fee to get the theme installed, youcan install it yourself with the guide they provide.
You will now be able to access your WordPress dashboard from your Bluehost dashboard, by clicking the WordPress button on the top right.
6. Monetize your blog with Google Adsense (Optional)
If you want to monetize your blog with ads, you can connect it to Google Adsense. Here is a guide from Google.
Now you have your own blog!
There’s so much potential with having your own self-hosted blog, and now your journey begins. There are so many resources on the internet if you ever have any questions, which is why I love the blogging community.
Let me know what you will be blogging about in the comments below!
