Right here on Collegelearners, you are privy to a litany of relevant information on ___how to become blogger on instagram___, _____how to create a blog for free and make money___, ___
how to create a blog for free on google and earn money
free blog sites
____, and so much more. Take out time to visit our catalog for more information on similar topics.
Step 1
Is becoming a blogger right for me?
The first step to choosing a career is to make sure you are actually willing to commit to pursuing the career. You don’t want to waste your time doing something you don’t want to do. If you’re new here, you should read about:
OVERVIEW
What do bloggers do?
CAREER SATISFACTION
Are bloggers happy with their careers?
PERSONALITY
What are bloggers like?
Still unsure if becoming a blogger is the right career path? Take the free CareerExplorer career test to find out if this career is in your top matches. Perhaps you are well-suited to become a blogger or another similar career!
Described by our users as being “shockingly accurate”, you might discover careers you haven’t thought of before.
Step 2
Get a domain name and blog host
Domain
The domain is the URL of your website. For example, Google’s domain name is Google.com; Facebook’s is Facebook.com.
Host
Your blog host is the company that puts your website up on the internet so that everyone else can see it. Think of it as a computer hard-drive on the internet where your blog will be saved. Most hosting companies have a ‘one-click’ WordPress install solution on their admin panel.
Step 3
Install WordPress as your free and powerful blogging platform
Choosing where you want to build your blog is, of course, essential. WordPress is one of the biggest blogging platforms in the world, with countless plugins and add-ons and endless ways to design your blog. There are 82 million active users of WordPress.
Step 4
Design your WordPress blog
Your blog can look exactly how you want it to. It should reflect you, your personality, and what the blog is about. It also needs to be easy to navigate if you want to cultivate a loyal audience. If it is cumbersome and difficult to move around, people won’t stay. Make it easy for them.
To choose a theme, head to the WordPress Theme Directory. Choose a theme that looks professional and is easy to customize. If you get tired of your blog template, WordPress allows you to change themes with just a few clicks and without losing any content or images.
Step 5
Add an opt-in form to start collecting e-mail subscribers
As a blogger, it is vital to develop and grow your e-mail list. It will help you get visitors to your blog and turn them into regular members of your audience. It will help you connect with your audience, create a consistent flow of traffic, and generate buzz when you are ready to launch a product related to your blog.
Step 6
Find your niche and define your audience
Learning to become a blogger means asking yourself what you are passionate about. The key is not to create a blog about something unless you have a unique perspective on it.
Once you have identified your passion and know your niche, you need to know who makes up your audience, so that you can create content that interests, helps, and impacts them. Use your e-mail list to ask your subscribers what they would like to see on your blog. Or post a link to a survey on your site.
Step 7
Produce strategic and compelling content
Now, the real work begins: creating content that is relevant and that catches people’s attention.
Here are some pointers to get you started:
Make the daily news your friend
What is in the headlines? What is on the minds of people? Tap into trends of the moment. Hang out at the proverbial water cooler, where your audience is. Be relevant. Find new ways to connect with your topic.
Turn content creation into a habit
Know when you are the most creative and most motivated. If that’s at 10:00 every night, then make that your blogging time.
’Done’ is better than ‘Perfect’
Bloggers can fall into the trap of constant revising, refining, and refurbishing. Sometimes, it’s just time to release the content and publish.
Repurpose your content
If you can repurpose your content and put it on content hubs (sites that collect specific kinds of content), you will start to bring in readers from different sources. For example, SlideShare hosts professional content in the form of presentations, infographics, documents, and videos. Youtube is a well-known video-sharing website. Podcasting is another great way of repurposing blog content for iTunes listeners.
Make yourself accountable to your audience
If you tell your audience that you will be increasing the size or frequency of content, for example, you will be more likely to stick with it.
Remember that blogging is not just text
Blogging is the platform. It does not have to be written. Consider making video and audio blogs.
Step 8
Promote your blog
Start promoting your blog once you have a minimum of 15 posts. If you promote it earlier, people may view it as lacking content.
To promote your blog:
• Use different social media platforms
• Add tags to your post, to ensure that they appear in search engines like Google
• Add a link to your site on a forum signature
• Exchange links with other sites; make a blogroll
Blogs are a great way to make money online — so much so that today many successful bloggers make a full-time income from their blogs.
Read on for a step-by-step guide on how to make money blogging.
Table of Contents
How to start a blog
How to make money blogging
How to start a blog and make money FAQ
Summary of How to start a blog and make money
Ad
Ads by Money disclaimer
Thinking about starting a blog? Then building a great website is a MUST.
With a web hosting service you can get everything you need for your blog, from your own domain to state-of-the-art website building tools and 24/7 customer support. Click your state to get started!
Hawaii
Alaska
Florida
South Carolina
Georgia
Alabama
North Carolina
Tennessee
RI
Rhode Island
CT
Connecticut
MA
Massachusetts
Maine
NH
New Hampshire
VT
Vermont
New York
NJ
New Jersey
DE
Delaware
MD
Maryland
West Virginia
Ohio
Michigan
Arizona
Nevada
Utah
Colorado
New Mexico
South Dakota
Iowa
Indiana
Illinois
Minnesota
Wisconsin
Missouri
Louisiana
Virginia
DC
Washington DC
Idaho
California
North Dakota
Washington
Oregon
Montana
Wyoming
Nebraska
Kansas
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
Kentucky
Mississippi
Arkansas
Texas
BUILD MY SITE
How to start a blog
Starting your own blog takes creativity, some technical know-how, and quite a bit of strategic thinking.
Here are five steps to take to help your website succeed:
- Pick the right topic
It could be the most frequently cited piece of writing advice: write what you know. This is especially true when it comes to your own blog.
When you’re starting your own site, it’s important to center it around issues that you’re both passionate and knowledgeable about.
This will help you stay motivated to create new content frequently, which will be essential to your blog’s popularity. You’ll also be more likely to create engaging, truly helpful content that readers are likely to share in social media.
Additionally, writing about topics you have established expertise on increases your credibility and authority — which can help you both grow an audience and improve your ranking in search engine results.
- Buy a domain name
Put simply, a domain name is the name of your website, or what comes after the “www” in a web address.
To purchase a domain name, look for a domain registrar — a company that sells and registers website domains — that’s accredited by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). ICANN is a nonprofit organization that coordinates IP addresses and namespaces on the internet. You can also do it directly with a web hosting company, many of which typically offer a free domain name for a year with a hosting plan subscription.
You can choose your new domain name before building your website or later on, if you decide to start with a free blog domain. However, it’s a good idea to buy it as soon as you have an official brand or blog name.
You’ll also have to decide on a domain extension or a top-level domain (TLD). Even though there are hundreds of domain extension options, .com and .net are the most popular and are usually given preference by search engines like Google.
Choosing one of these two could, in the long run, help your blog rank higher in the results page than if you choose less common extensions like .blog or .club, for instance.
- Select a hosting service
To get your blog online, you’ll need a web hosting service.
A web host is a company that can store, maintain and manage access and traffic to your website. A web hosting service is necessary — it gives your website a home, and without it you wouldn’t be able to publish your site on the internet.
Most web hosting providers, including popular options such as Bluehost, Dreamhost, SiteGround and GoDaddy, offer three types of hosting services.
Shared hosting: Refers to a service where a single web server hosts many websites. It’s one of the most popular types of web hosting, and affordable since the server is shared with multiple users.
Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting: A service where multiple websites are hosted on the same server, but each user gets dedicated resources. VPS hosting is more expensive than shared hosting and may require some technical knowledge to configure.
Dedicated hosting: Provides a dedicated server for your website. It’s ideal for websites with heavy traffic that can benefit from more responsiveness and the flexibility to upgrade and control performance. It’s expensive, though, with monthly plans ranging from $100 to over $200.
When choosing a web hosting provider, check whether it offers the type of service you need at a price you’re able to afford for at least a couple of years. In addition, consider factors such as the server’s uptime, response time, scalability, ease of use and customer support.
Reports like the Signal’s WordPress Hosting Performance Benchmarks and HRANK’s Web Hosting Companies Rating provide reliable data on web hosting companies’ uptime metrics and may give you an overall idea of its performance.
Make sure to check out our guide to the best web hosting companies for some great choices.
Ad
Ads by Money disclaimer
Building a great website doesn’t have to be expensive or complicated.
Web Hosting Services, like Bluehost, make building your own website a breeze, with great tools and around-the-clock expert advice, you’ll site will be running in no time!
BUILD MY SITE
- Choose a blogging platform
A blogging platform is a web-based service that allows users to create, manage and publish blog posts. Most blogging platforms also include tools for optimizing your website with metadata, title descriptions and keywords that make it easy for search engines to identify what the page is about.
Many popular blogging platforms offer both free and paid options, including some of the most widely used sites like WordPress, Medium, Weebly and Blogger. There are also website builders like Wix and Squarespace, which require less tech-savviness.
Many blogging platforms already come with pre-made themes that you can customize. A theme typically includes templates, layouts, colors, images and other features you need to format the website and its content.
But your theme affects much more than your page’s looks — your blog’s theme can also impact your ranking in search engine results. When choosing a template, do some research first and make sure it’s responsive, loads quickly, is mobile-friendly and works with plugins.
- Publish your first blog post
Once you’ve picked a web hosting service, a blogging platform and a theme for your website, you’re ready to start your blogging journey.
The key to generating page traffic is to create original, high-quality content and publish new blog posts on a regular basis.
Keep in mind what potential readers are looking for and why (otherwise known as the user search intent), your blog’s central theme, and what others have already published on the topic. This way you can identify what needs to be written or how to present the information in an original and creative way.
Keyword research through Google Analytics (or even just Google Search) is key to finding relevant content ideas. Learning proper search engine optimization (SEO) techniques is also essential if you want to increase traffic to your site and rank higher in the results page.
Lastly, it’s important to stay authentic to your voice and be mindful of your grammar. Mistakes and typos can be off-putting to many readers and take a toll on your site’s credibility. If grammar isn’t your strong suit, it’s a good idea to invest in one of the many writing-assistance apps on the market now, which are designed to catch and correct spelling and grammar mistakes.
How to make money blogging
Revenue largely depends on generating traffic to your website. Gaining and growing an audience may take a lot of time and effort, but with the right strategy you might see results sooner rather than later.
It’s important to create content consistently and establish a social media presence — once you do so, there are quite a few ways to start making money from your blog.
- Display ads
A simple way to start earning some revenue is to sell ad space.
Letting brands advertise on your page has many advantages, especially since it doesn’t require a big time investment from you.
There are two ways to generate income selling ad real estate:
Cost per click (CPC): Also known as pay per click (PPC), this means you get paid each time users click on an ad shown on your website.
Cost per thousands (CPM): Also known as cost per mile, this lets you negotiate a set price for every 1,000 impressions (or views) the ad gets.
To get started, you’ll need to create an account with an advertising network, such as Google AdSense, Mediavine, BuySellAds, PropellerAds or other similar platforms.
Tip: Use ads judiciously. Filling up your site with tons of ads can affect its ranking, credibility, load time and, ultimately, the user’s experience.
- Join affiliate programs
Many bloggers sample products or services and review them on their site using affiliate links (or tracking links) that redirect readers to the sellers’ website.
This process is known as affiliate marketing and it lets you earn a commission for every sale, click, lead or transaction your content generates to a seller or company.
There are several affiliate programs and networks you can join, including some from popular stores and e-commerce sites. These include:
Amazon Associates
Apple
WalMart
Commision Junction
ShareASale
eBay Partner Network
Joining an affiliate program will let you find a list of products to review and tools that let you keep track of links’ performance and increase conversion rate — that is, the number of users that complete a desired action or transaction in your site.
Tip: Set up news alerts to find hot new products your readers might be interested in.
Ad
Ads by Money disclaimer
Chase Business Checking Accounts puts you in control of your business.
Chase offers small business owners and freelancers simple, fast, and intuitive banking services without monthly service fees. Click below to open an account today
OPEN AN ACCOUNT TODAY
- Sell products
Selling your own products or services is another good monetization method for a blog.
Make time to create products that add value to your readers and visitors, preferably things that tie in with your blog. While these can be physical products — for example, books or photographic prints — they can also be digital products like PDFs or audio files that your readers can download.
Most web hosting providers and blogging platforms have widgets and other features that you can add to create an online store. These are typically known as plugins, which are a bit of code that give your website added functionality. Plugins give you the ability to add secure contact forms, optimize your images or create online stores.
There are also many popular WordPress plugins and eCommerce platforms like WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Ecwid and Shopify you can use to get started.
Tip: Don’t have your blog revolve around your products even if you add an online store. Instead, keep creating the high-quality content that attracted readers in the first place.
- Post sponsored content
Many popular bloggers seek out sponsorships, that is, they get a company to pay them to write sponsored posts that promote or talk about its products.
Let’s say you occasionally upload tutorial videos to your photography blog showing how you edit photos in a particular app or software. You could then approach the app manufacturer and ask whether they’d be interested in sponsoring that particular post.
Typically, to get a sponsorship you have to reach out to a brand and make a pitch. Your pitch should include a brief explanation of who you are and what you do, along with details on your blog’s performance, such as audience demographics and traffic statistics.
Alternatively, you can try writing paid reviews. This option is like a sponsorship with one main difference: you’re sent a product for free or given early access to an app or software, so that you can test it and write a review about it.
Tip: Think of your readers when you seek out sponsorships. Make sure to review products or partner with companies that are relevant to your blog’s content and that your audience will find helpful.
- Create a membership
Some readers may be willing to pay for a membership plan to get access to exclusive content, such as downloadable PDFs, in-depth articles, forums, podcasts, online courses or subscription boxes.
Subscriptions can be set up using membership-builder plugins. There are many popular options you can install easily, such as:
WooCommerce Memberships
LearnDash
MemberPress
Restrict Content Pro
Most membership plugins offer guides and tools to regulate content access, create membership levels and integrate payment options.
Tip: Look for a membership plugin that can handle a growing audience, and that offers flexible membership options and pricing.
- Create a newsletter
With the right email marketing strategy and a large enough email list, you could also create a profitable newsletter.
Creating a profitable newsletter involves some of the same strategies that monetizing your blog entails. For example, you could reach out to a brand your readers would be interested in and offer advertising space in your newsletter.
You could also do affiliate marketing: mention or recommend a particular product within the newsletter and add its tracking — or affiliate — links. This way you can receive a commission for every transaction your subscribers complete.
Tip: Add a newsletter signup to your blog to get readers’ email and consider using email marketing software, such as Constant Contact and Mailchimp, to manage and automate your newsletter.
How to start a blog and make money FAQ
How to make a living blogging
Today there are many ways to earn a passive income blogging. You can earn commissions by displaying ads and partnering with brands to do affiliate marketing or write sponsored content. You can also sell products or create paid membership plans. The key is to build a strong social media presence and create high-quality content that users find relevant and helpful.
How to start a successful blog
How much can you make blogging?
Summary of How to start a blog and make money
You can make a full-time income from a successful blog, provided you have the right tools and strategies.
Pick a topic that you’re both passionate and knowledgeable about. This will enhance credibility with audiences and positively impact your search engine ranking.
Buy a domain name. Look for an ICANN-accredited domain registrar.
Choose a web hosting provider. Consider the server’s uptime stats, response time, ease of use and customer support availability.
Pick a blogging platform. The most popular services provide both free and paid options.
Publish your blog. Keep in mind what potential readers are looking for and why, your blog’s purpose, and what competitor sites have already written about.
Some popular methods to make money from a site include displaying ads, joining affiliate programs, creating newsletters and membership plans, creating and selling your own products and seeking out content sponsorships.
