Things to Know Before You Start a Blog

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13-09-2020
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Things to Know Before You Start a Blog

Having a blog is a great idea, because you can share anything you like, and if you are wise you can also earn a decent revenue from your blog. This article provides a general awareness of creating your own blog especially for a beginner so as to begin the blogging process.

Defining a Blog

Blogs are like journals or like a website that an individual posts about what he/she loves or does and want people to know about. Bloggers use them to express their creativity, their knowledge, or their opinion. It also helps in interacting with readers and provides feedback to the author through the help of comments.

If you are thinking about starting a blog, let’s go over a few things first.

Blog about What?

There are a lot of blogs in the internet world. People blog about everything and anything. So, if you have no idea what to blog about, think about what you like to do and like. It could be something you’re good at, something you know about, something you’ve done, or are interested in, basically ANYTHING.

If you like traveling, food, reading books, reviewing items, comedy, latest news and updates, mobiles, cars, gaming, advice and thoughts, poetry, do it, make a blog! The internet has something for everyone to do. And you can actually do that by yourself.

Naming your Blog

What sets your blog apart is obviously is what you call yours. And since the internet doesn’t allow more than one blog/website to be the same name or else you would not want to face legal rights issues, you’d know what is available. By this time, you’ll know what your blog will consist of, so, finding a unique, catchy name that is memorable is key. A name that describes you best and also sets you apart from the rest. Always remember, this name does not need to necessarily be trendy because trends will one day fade out, find something that best describes you and you wouldn’t mind using for a few years’.

How to Choose a Blogging Platform

A Blog host or a platform means, they let you make your blog on their website. Free or paid. The difference between the two is, firstly, when you make a free blog, your domain name appears like yourblogname.wordpress.com or yourblogname.blogspot.com. If it a paid domain, it looks more like, yourblogname.com. Secondly, free domains have limited options when it comes to customising your blog or features, paid domains have a lot of options to choose from, they give you proper control over your blog. Thirdly, if a host site crashes or shuts down, your free blog also goes down with it; on the other hand, if you pay for your domain, your ownership can help with saving your data. Fourthly, paid blogs look professional, they are great for serious bloggers, businesses; whereas, free blogs are great for beginners and for people who want to blog as a hobby. And honestly, paid domains don’t really cost THAT much. Looking at different options and features, they are probably value for your money.

Needless to say, known webhosts always have technicians and assistants who will help you if you seem lost and don’t know whar to do, plus, with the power of Google, there’s a solution to every situation.

The below chart provides the statistical scores of leading blogsites – based on popularity.

Let’s look at few websites that helps you create your blogs:

WordPress.com

Stores your content for free, which means there is access to a limited version of the WordPress software
No set-up costs
Easy to use
Basic and Simple
A collection of themes to choose from
Limited choice unless payment is made for more features
Slightly less professional in appearance as to professional websites
If the website, at any point shuts down, your work goes down too
Great for beginners

WordPress.org

Relatively easy setup
$3 per month costs for hosting
Free software
Will require some technical knowledge but assistance can always be available via Bluehost or iPage
User friendly and full customization of blog is possible
Vulnerable to security threats
Numerous Plugins available
Makes your blog look more professional
Can be time consuming and confusing with all the changes and options
Great for artists, professionals, business owners

Blogger

Free
Owned by Google, access to Adsense, Analytics
Extremely easy setup
Lesser themes than WordPress.org
Access to HTML code, hence more customization options
Blog name appears as blogger

Tumblr

Combination of social media website and a blog host
Reblogging or reposting is an easy option
Microblogging community is huge on this site
Unlimited storage
HTML and CSS access for customization
Difficult to monetize
Limited plugin options

Typepad

Paid at $8.95/month and above
They host their servers but you own your blog
Easy to use
Higher price than WordPress
Unlimited storage space

WIX

Unlimited bandwidth
Ad integration
Costlier than a WordPress site
Limited customization options
Up to 2GB storage
Domain registration options

So now if you decide, if you want to go down the free road or the self-hosting sites. So now, fill in all the necessary information and complete the checkout process. Install all the plug-ins and create that blog that shows your best profile.

Tips and Tricks

Fill out the necessary forms and read all the matter required before set up. You are your own website designer and you need to know who your audience are.
Design your blog as relevant to the topic that you will post about. If you are making a travel blog, you can’t really design it as cooking blog right? Stay true to yourself and design what looks appealing and clear to the reader
Use clean language and enhance your writing skills by reading up and getting inspired from other blogs and bloggers.
Keep your posts short and interesting, people usually wouldn’t want to keep reading on and on. Keep it short and simple.
Post regularly. What keeps the attention of the reader is when you post regular updates and information rather than a dead blog with 1 or 2 posts in months.
Collect information relevant to your blog. When you need to post about a particular topic, do your research. Misinformed knowledge is as baseless as no knowledge.
Give credit to sources where you get pictures or information from. Although best way is to do your own creative work but if you can’t then mention names and give credit when you use someone’s work. Plagiarism is a big NO-NO!
Although there are millions of blogs in the creative world, you can always make you blog stand out by being regular and being original.
Look for ways you can enhance your own skills for your blog, if it requires you to take your own pictures, take good pictures, and invest in a good camera. Learn editing techniques and how to place them.
Connect your blog with your Facebook account, your Google+ account and your email, Twitter, Instagram etc. post on all of these simultaneously building a bigger follower base.
Interact with your readers and fellow Bloggers. This always helps. Get feedback from them, reply to comments, ask questions, entertain and respect everyone’s opinion. Support each other. Supporting other bloggers will let them support you back. It is a community that you are a part of and play a responsible role.
Post responsibly. You have the right to speech and right to information but do no misuse it to spread rumors and speak ill about anybody. Shortcut is never the path to success.
Do not take criticism to your heart and never take trolls too seriously. There is a lot of good in the world but there is also some bad ones that you can learn from and grow a thick skin to be able to deal with them honestly. Ignore them if you have to. Block them if you want to. They are all doing it for some reason or no reason at all. Stick to your purpose.
Have fun along the way. Get creative. The internet lets you be your own boss so enjoy it. Make smart decisions.

This may sound a little bit idealistic, but when I go to my blog, my Facebook page, my Twitter account, I talk to different people from all over the world, and you see how it’s easy to establish a dialogue ~Paulo Coelho

Sharon Christine

Published on 13-Jan-2020 15:42:16

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