Do you want to know how to start a successful blog? Want to make money from your website? Read on for a beginner’s guide of the basics you should know!
I am so happy that I started a blog – this website. I love writing articles which inspire people to live their happiest life – and connecting with an awesome community of people – who I truly love. If you’re looking into how to start a blog and make a business from your blogging passion…read on!
Personally, I started to blog because I love writing and design.
My goal was to offer inspiring stories and research-based tools to help people to live a life they love. I was driven by passion – not money.
I recommend that if you want to maintain a blog, that you make sure you do it first and foremost as a labor of love – and not just for the money it brings in. It’s a lot of work to keep a blog going. It will take a while for you to build your presence. Overnight successes are rare. However, if you are strategic about building a positive and informative presence online, you can become a highly successful blogger over time.
Brainstorm up a strong domain name for your blog – one which is simple and memorable – and easy to spell.
I explain how I came up with the name for my blog – over here on my site.
I recommend Bluehost as a good place to purchase your domain. They offer a combination of domain name purchasing at good rates – plus reliable WordPress hosting.
Basically, after you purchase your blog name, you can trust Bluehost to help you get your blog up and live and ready to be read in no time!
(Full disclosure: I love Bluehost so much, that I became a proud affiliate ambassador for them!)
2. Understand the tricks to boost presenceThe digital world is a complex network of online material. You can’t just throw a website together on a self-hosting platform – then sit back and hope for the best.
You need to strategically focus your efforts on various ways to reach out to your audience.
Many readers find out about new sites via their social media platforms: Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter.
It’s important you remain active in those arenas. When you share your blog in social media, make sure you use relevant hashtags – your posts can be found by people interested in those hashtag categories! You can also use various software services to schedule your social media posts like Buffer and Tailwind.
If you’re new to online marketing, it’s best to work closely with a team of professionals from a digital marketing agency.
A general rule of thumb: Delegate out the things which aren’t your signature strengths. For example, you might need to hire people to help you (1) build up your SEO, (2) create a strong newsletter, (3) set up affiliate marketing (where you make money from selling other people’s products).
(I offer affiliate marketing for my video courses! Contact me to learn more!)
3. Make the most of your networkThe blogging community is vast and feeds on partnerships and positive relationships. As a blogger, you need to get out there and interact with other bloggers who inspire you and who you admire.
Not only will they inspire you to want to improve, but you can also get to build new opportunities together.
Choosing a partner blogger is very similar choosing a romantic partner. Just like with a spouse, you want someone (1) who is reliable (2) who shares your values and (3) who pushes you forward.
The right partner bloggers enable you to reach out to new audiences via their websites. Plus you can get some great new material from these bloggers to share with your existing readers.
4. Share your authentic voiceBlogging is a little like exposing a piece of soul. You need to share openly and authentically with others. More importantly, you need to be comfortable with your life, your choices, and your sense of self, if you want your readers to engage with you.
There’s no denying it: It can feel scary to share yourself openly. And it can be challenging to dig deep and get the best golden nuggets of insights to share.
If you need help finding and sharing your authentic voice, try meditation. When you meditate you gain clarity into your emotions and thoughts. Plus meditation helps you to feel more calm and confident too. I always write better after I spend time meditating.
(If you want help learning to meditate, I offer a range of simple 2 minute sensory meditations here.)
Know this now: Starting a blog is a rewarding journey, whether your blog generates an income or not.
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