THE A-TO-Z OF BLOGS
If you're serious about setting up a blog but
don't know where to start, you've come to the right place. Setting up your own
blog is so simple that you can actually get started with a template and have
your first post out in minutes.
Picking The Right Topic & Name
Think about why you want to blog. Is it because
you have some free time or because you think you'll make some easy money? Then
you should probably stop now because you'll be disappointed very soon! However,
if you want to share knowledge, teach yourself to be a better writer and are
willing to put in the work to maintain a new project, those are some of the
right reasons. Obviously, the first goal of any blog is to attract readers and
the first step to doing that is writing about something that you know about.
The name of your blog should ideally be memorable and something related to what
you're writing about avoid making it too long, a combination of words or
something that will have to be spelled out for others. The bottom line is: blog
about something that you're passionate about and that's more than half the job
done. Blogging From Mobile Devices An idea for a blog post can strike anywhere
-but your laptop may not always be around. However, your smartphone or tablet
usually is and with the right app, you can use it to blog. For maintaining your
blog, we recommend that you use the default apps of the blogging platform you
use (Wordpress, Blogger, Tumblr and so on). They are feature-rich and simple to
use. However, you may require some other apps to file a proper blog post. For
writing a long bit of text, get the free Kingsoft or WPS office app both have
a powerful writer. You will also require a powerful image editor if you want to
post images from your phone on the blog Pixlr and Snapseed are recommended
for basic editing and effects. The free Dictionary app can come in handy when
you're lost for words. Other apps that can help include Dropbox or Google Drive
(cloud storage), Evernote (saving and syncing notes on the move) and HootSuite
(managing social media accounts).
Your Own Domain Vs Free Blogs
If you're not sure about blogging or just want
to try it out without spending anything, a free blog is the way to go. It's
quick, simple and you'll be started in minutes. There are several options available:
Wordpress.com, Blogger.com, Blog.com and Tumblr.com apart from others. Just
head to the site and sign up for free. We recommend Wordpress it is the
largest by far and provides the most options, themes, the largest community and
the most flexibility if you choose to migrate from a free blog to one using
your own domain and hosting. There's one important point when you pay for
your own domain name and hosting, you own your blog along with all the content
on it. With one of the free blogs, functionalitycontrol is limited, you can't
make any money from it and you probably don't own the content (which also means
that it can be deleted at any time for breach of their terms).
Keep Your Audience Engaged
For a new blog, numbers will always be small.
Even if you get 5 readers a week, it's a big deal. Promote your blog any way
you can and the best way to ensure repeat visitors is to set up a mailing list.
A mailing list asks visitors to your blog to enter their email address so that
you can notify them of any updates and new blog posts. This is important
because the internet is vast, confusing and something that you see online can
be quickly forgotten. This means you can't rely on Google search alone to get your
repeat visitors. Provide an incentive for someone to sign up, like a free gift.
It could be something that costs you nothing but still provides value to your
reader (for instance, a set of free e-books related to your subject or a
collection of updated coupons for popular websites).
Try MailChimp (http:www.mailchimp.com) when you
want to send out emails to all your subscribers (its free if you have less than
2,000 subscribers). Make sure that you respond to every comment and encourage
your readers to share your posts on their networks. Empower Your Blog with
Plugins This section assumes that you have gone ahead with Wordpress for your
blog. Plugins are an easy way to ex pand functionality and you can browse
through them on https:wordpress.orgplugins. Some of the most popular ones which
you should install immediately are Wordpress SEO, Google Analytics, Wordfence
(security), Akismet (spam checker) and NextGen Gallery (image gallery tools).
Browse through the directory to find more from categories that you need: social
networking tools, widgets, admin assistants, comment moderation, capcha codes
and contact forms.
The Power of Analytics
To make sure that your blog stays on a roll, you
need to track visitors & the topics that interest them. You can get a basic
idea of what post is working for you with comments, but you get a lot more
detail with an analytics tool. Google Analytics helps you understand your
visitors and we recommend it if you're new to blogging. Setting it up requires
you to add a tracking code to your blog -once you sign up for the service,
Google provides simple instructions on how to do that. If you want to get
analytics on everything you do: blog posts, newsletters, mailing lists and
social media, try Cyfe (http:www.cyfe.com) or SumAll (http:sumall.com).Both
have a free plan that you can use if you have a limited number of visitors
(which is great for new blogs).
Hosting, Design and Maintenance
To get started with your own blog and your own
hosted space, head to Bluehost (http:in.bluehost.com) you can buy a new
domain name and hosting from them and pay online. At the time of writing,
Bluehost was providing a domain name and US hosting for 3 years (including
unlimited space, unlimited transfer & unlimited email accounts) for `9,100
or roughly `250 a month. If you already own your own domain name, Bluehost will
provide instructions on how to use it. The price also includes 24x7 support, a
domain manager and automated backups -so it's a pretty good deal. It will guide
you to install Wordpress on your blog and you can start by choosing from
hundreds of free themes.
How To Attract Readers
Attracting readers is the hard part know that
it will take time for visitors to become regulars on your blog. To attract
visitors you will need to post regularly and on relevant topics. Read about
search engine optimisation (SEO): by adding relevant keywords, tags and links
in your text, you can increase the chances of readers finding your blog from
search engines. Long posts (with lots of text) also help with your blog getting
found. Social media plays a big role too. Post your blog links with a short
summary on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn -leverage everything you have. This
can generate interest and help spread the word around.
Earn Money From Your Blog
Earning money from a blog is not easy. Even with
a sustained effort and daily blog posts, it will probably take a few months
before you can start generating any income. The simplest way to earn is to
incorporate Google AdSense -head to http:www.google.comadsense, sign-in to your
Google account and they'll provide step-by-step instructions. When a blog
visitor clicks an ad, you earn money and Google pays out on a monthly basis
(when your balance crosses a certain amount). Again, don't expect to start
earning hundred of dollars immediately. If your blog has enough regular,
informed and interested visitors, brands may approach you to place their own
ads on your blog. You can charge them on a per day or per week basis. Make sure
you dont go overboard with banner or pop-up ads -visitors often leave
immediately if they see too many ads on a webpage.
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