So, you want to know how to start a blog, huh?
Why wouldn’t you?
Starting a blog is a great way for you to show your expertise and promote your product or service. It’s also a great way to earn some extra funds.
But, wait. Where do you begin?
How do you do it?
What if you’re not well-versed in IT at all?
Well, if you’re really set on starting your own blog, you’ve come to the right place!
I have laid it all out for you–the simplest steps, the best practices, and some awesome resources. Within a short amount of time, you’ll have your own blog up and running. I tried to keep it simple and easy to follow.
So let’s get started!
How to Start a Blog in 7 Simple Steps!
Open a new tab in your browser and follow along step-by-step as I show you how to start a WordPress blog on SiteGround:
Step 1: Choose a hosting provider
The first thing you need to do is to get your blog online — that’s what a web hosting company will do for you.
There are several web hosting providers you can use to host your blog. Each of them has its own packages, plans, and add-ons. Look for a web hosting company that prioritizes speed, security, and support.
I personally use Siteground and have been using it for the past years. I can personally attest that their service is top-notch! Here are some of the other reasons why I trust Siteground:
- It’s easy to use! If you’re not a techie, you won’t need to worry.
- They have a 30-day money guarantee.
- Their customer service is amazing!
—> Click here to head over to SiteGround and hit the green “Get Started” button
Step 2: Choose a Hosting Plan
But if you are planning to make more blogs or sites, go with the GrowBig plan. With GrowBig plan, you can host UNLIMITED blogs. You can upgrade your plan later as you grow your blog.
Step 3: Choose your domain name.
The next step is to choose a domain name for your website.
What’s a domain?
It’s basically your blog’s URL, and what netizens will type in the address bar to access your blog.
This sounds like a fun thing to do, but thinking of a domain name is where most bloggers usually take a really, really long time!
After all, it’s like your own brand name and you will be known by it. Here are some things to consider when choosing your domain name:
- How long your blog name is – While there is no set rule on how long your blog name can be, it is a general rule of thumb that shorter is better than longer. Make it easy to remember so people won’t have a hard time when they type it into the browser.
- How your blog name is spelled – Before you finally decide on a blog name make sure you consider spelling and pronunciation. Check out the most often misspelled words. If your blog’s name contains a word that is frequently misspelled, you might want to reconsider.
- Is the domain name available? Once you have a list of blog names, you need to check if the domain name is still available. Check if your preferred domain name is unique and available on major social media platforms. In branding, consistency must prevail!
Read more: Blog Name Ideas – How To Choose a Good Blog Name?
How do you get a domain name?
You can get one right inside SiteGround for only $15.95/year! It’s part of their installation process.
Or, you can buy a domain name somewhere else, and then park it inside Siteground.
That’s what I did. I bought my domains through Godaddy and then park my blogs on Siteground. It’s a bit technical. If I had to do it all over again, I’d save myself the headache and do it all on SiteGround.
If you already have a domain name, then you can click ‘I already have a domain’ and add your domain to proceed.
Step 4: Review and complete the payment process
In this step, you’ll create an account, enter your contact and payment info to complete the process. For hosting, you can start out with 12-24 months.
In the “Extra Services” section, I recommend getting Domain Privacy. Without it, anyone can find your personal information just by searching your domain!
Step 5. Install WordPress
Now that you have a Siteground account, here are simple few steps to starting a WordPress blog:
When you log in for the first time, you will see this Set-Up Site button.
Select WordPress and set up your login details. And, then hit continue.
After this, you may get an option to choose additional services. Again, I recommend getting Domain Privacy. Without it, anyone can find your personal information just by searching your domain!
That’s it! Now, you can log in to your WordPress dashboard by using login details.
If you don’t want to go through this step, just open a support ticket and ask SiteGround to install WordPress for you for FREE! They will do it all for you. Awesome right? 🙂
Step 6: Pick a WordPress theme.
Now it’s time to start designing your site. After installing WordPress, the next step is to choose a responsive theme for your blog.
There are tons of free themes available online. I recommend Hello Theme, GeneratePress or Astra. These themes are 100% free and have the ability to upgrade more later.
Step 7: Start sharing content!
From here, let’s focus on consistently publishing new posts. Do some research and write a blog post that solves someone’s problem.
If you are having trouble coming up with blog post ideas, here are some tips to get you started:
- Competitor Research – Your competitor’s blog can be a great source of inspiration. Take a look at their most successful posts to see what readers like most.
- Quora – Quora is a great place to know what your audience is searching for. There are thousands of interesting questions that you can use for your next blog post.
- Answer The Public – It’s a free visual keyword research tool that generates a list of questions related to your topic. These questions could be something that your readers are searching for.
Need some more content inspiration? Here are 19+ creative blog post ideas.
You now have a blog—Woohoo!
Give yourself a pat on the back because you have just built your own blog! I hope you found my guide on how to start a blog in siteground helpful. Comment below with any questions!
Hi Valeria, nice guide! Very clear but with enough details to not get a beginner lost along the way. When i set up my very first blog i did it exactly like this, with the exception of using hostgator instead of siteground. i also registered my domain name with them the moment i purchased my hosting plan and as you have mentioned, I really suggest any beginner to do this.
One thing I’d like to add is that in addition to using domain privacy, every blog should also install the SSL certificate. Maybe they do this automatically on Siteground but it’s important to re-direct the blog to the https:// url. It helps with SEO and the overall security of course.
Also great list of free themes for a beginner blogger. BEsides finding the right domain name, I think finding the first theme is the second step where most beginners waste a tremendous amount of time. There’s no need to stress yourself but still, new bloggers should get through those steps quickly and start writing content as soon as they can!
Cheers,
James
I also recommend using siteground hosting, I am their customer for the last 3 years without any issue and amazing quick support.