Category Digital Marketing

Step-By-Step Guide to Starting Your Own Blog

You sure must be tempted when you see those posts on social media about people blogging and making money. It’s not so difficult to start a blog. And, all the more in 2021, it has become easier than ever to start your own Blog.

Using the instructions in this guide, you can have your own Blog up and running within an hour. That too, a professional looking Blog with all the essential features that a Blog needs.

With a knowledge about the right set of tools to use, you can avoid mistakes that new bloggers usually make. This way you will save time in setting up the blog, which can be better utilized in creating content for your Blog.

1. Choose a topic for your Blog
2. Choose the right platform for Blogging
3. Set up your Blog on your website
4. Make basic changes to your WordPress installation (Configure)
5. Select the right theme for your Blog
6. Design your logo and change the colors of your Blog theme
7. Write content for your Blog.

Choose a topic for your Blog

What do you want to write about in your Blog? Do you want to establish a community? What do you want to be noticed for? What are you passionate about?

Do some introspection and choose a topic that you can write about. Or, if you are learning something new, you can choose to share your wisdom  about it; so that other people learning the same trait could take some tips from you.

We suggest that you select a topic that you are passionate about. Something that you are very much interested in. Though most successful blogs are about one topic, be it food, or travel or SEO, or designing, or carpentry, or politics. But there are equally successful blogs that focus on more than one topic.

Don’t worry about how many people will be interested in your Blog. The world is huge, and there are all sorts of people, all with varied tastes and interests. You cannot have everybody liking your blog. And not everyone will dislike your Blog posts either. You will build an audience on the go.

So, start blogging. Every Blog post you write will teach you something, if you are willing to learn. As a result, each of your new Blog posts will be better than the previous ones.

Even if you feel you chose a wrong topic. You can start off with a new one. No one will stop you from changing your Blog topic. The Internet is a free world.

Choose the right platform for Blogging

The main decision in choosing the platform for your Blog is to go for a Self Hosted Blog or a Free Blog.

Each one has its own benefits.

Free Blogging Platforms

The free Blog platforms include Blogger.com, Tumblr.com, Ghost.org and WordPress.com. Yes, WordPress.com is offered by the same company that offers the WordPress platform for building independent websites. 

With most free blog platforms, you will have limited options in terms of storage, design and functionality.You also have to provision for ads being thrown in by the free blog provider. And these ads definitely are annoying sometimes, especially to your readers.

In addition, you will use their domain name, Something like xxxx.blogpost.com or. If you want to use your own domain name, you have to pay for the domain name. But if your motive simply is to share your written thoughts with the world, you can get along with any of these free platforms.

To start your blog on Blogger.com, you need a Google account. And if you have one, use it to login into Blogger.com and get going.

Self Hosted Blogging Platforms

Self hosted Blogs require a very nominal investment. You pay for your domain name and you need  hosting web space (more on this follows). That is it. WordPress  is free to download and use. Here are a few more benefits of using WordPress that you should consider:

• WordPress is Open Source. This means that it is not owned by a single person. Thousands of Developers contribute in making it and developing it on a regular basis.
• In terms of design, you have plenty of free templates to choose from.
• In addition, there are plenty of free WordPress plugins too, which you might need to enhance the functionality of your website.
• You have complete control over your Blog.

You should know that WordPress is not the only Blogging platform. There are plenty of others.

Image Source: https://trends.builtwith.com/cms/blog/traffic/Entire-Internet

Every time  I look at this data, the market share of WordPress has increased by a substantial number. It stands at a whopping 97.07% today. What more proof do you need?

Unless you have something else in mind, WordPress is the platform / technology to build your Blog.

So, how much do you need to pay for your self hosted Blog?

Not much. You can get your own .com Domain name for as low as US$12.95. Some domain extensions are cheaper still, but the default domain names end with .com. You can also get it for free when you buy web hosting space.  Choose your domain names here.

Web Hosting Space starts at US$2.75 per month which gives you more features than you will need. Hostgator is a very reliable Web Host, and I strongly recommend buying the web hosting space for your Blog from this company. They offer one click WordPress installs, unmetered Web Space, unmetered Bandwidth and free domain name registration.

All this amounts to about US$33 per annum.

 

Set up your Blog on your web space

So, how much do you need to pay for your self hosted Blog?

Not much. You can get your own .com Domain name for as low as US$12.95. Some domain extensions are cheaper still, but the default domain names end with .com. You can also get it for free when you buy web hosting space.  Choose your domain names here.

Web Hosting Space starts at US$2.75 per month which gives you more features than you will need. Hostgator is a very reliable Web Host, and I strongly recommend buying the web hosting space for your Blog from this company. They offer one click WordPress installs, unmetered Web Space, unmetered Bandwidth and free domain name registration.

All this amounts to about US$33 per annum.

As you know that Hostgator offers a One Click WordPress install, you can set up WordPress on your web space the very moment your account is active.

Click on WordPress and follow the on screen instructions to install. Set your backend administrative panel username and password and note it down for safe keeping.

 

Make basic changes to your WordPress installation

Once you have installed WordPress, it’s time to configure it to suit your Blog.

Go to the backend administrative panel of your newly installed Blog. It is at your-domain-name /wp-admin by default. Login using the username and password you setup and stored.

Once you are logged in, you will see this:

General Settings 

In the left sidebar menu, look for “Settings”; then go to “General”

There are two main settings you need to check, one is the Site Title and the other one is Tagline.

Site Title is the name of your site. Search engines use the title  to determine your website rankings. And it is the first thing that a visitor sees in search results.

Tagline is one short sentence to describe what your Blog is about. It summarizes the gist of your Blog.

Allow Google to index your Blog

People at large can reach your Blog only through Search Engines like Google. To enable that, go to Settings → Reading from the left sidebar menu.

Scroll down to find “Search engine visibility” and Uncheck the parameter “Discourage search engines from indexing this site”. There should not be a tick in this box. I wonder who in the world would keep this box checked.

Creating a structure for the URLs of your Blog

Let’s say you visit a website and come across an interesting page which tells you the difference between a pie and a cake. You want to save / bookmark the page address for reference sometime later on, and you notice that the URL is https://raunharman.net/?p=123

If the page address had been https://raunharman.net/difference-between-pie-and-cake, you would identify the content of the web page from the URL itself. That is the power of custom URLs. These URLs are user friendly, as well as Search Engine friendly. These are called SEO URLs.

The best part is that you too can create custom URLs for all the posts, pages and archives in your Blog! This will improve the usability of your pages and make them look relevant. Just define the structure, and WordPress will create such fascinating URLs for all your Blog posts.

Go to Settings → Permalinks. Select the option which says Post name.

Select the right theme for your Blog

You may not be very good at graphic design or you might not know anything about HTML or coding. But you will be happy to know that you can have a brilliantly designed Blog using “themes”. Themes take care of the design aspects of your Blog.

You have access to thousands of designs (themes) to choose a design for your Blog. And most of them are FREE.

Look for the Appearance menu in the left sidebar, and go to Themes. Appearance –>Themes.

Clicking on “Add New” will take you to the WordPress website where you will be shown themes listed under different Tabs: Featured, Popular, Latest, Favorites, Catch Themes. Click on Popular, and browse through the themes available. Keep your blog topic in mind and choose one. When you bring the mouse / cursor over the theme thumbnail, you will be shown options to Install or Preview them.

Do not install unnecessary themes in your blog installation. Though only one theme will be active at any given time. Having unused themes will slow down your website, which you cannot afford to do.

Once you have installed your favorite theme, click on “Activate”, and when you browse to the frontend of your blog, the looks have changed. The best part here is that the content (articles) on your blog will not change. You can keep changing the theme as frequently as you want without losing content.

Design your logo and change the colors of your Blog theme

You will be surprised to know that you can also change the color scheme, of your theme, to your liking. In addition, you can and you should add a logo to your blog.

To begin, go to Appearance→ Customize.

The menu options to customize vary from theme to theme. However, all themes do provide you with these choices:

Global: You can choose the fonts, font colors, font sizes, header fonts, button colors etc.

Header: This option lets you choose the logo, site icon (usually called favicon), header size and its placement, menu position etc.

Footer: Here you can decide which widgets to place in the footer of your blog, items on the footer menu and the copyright text.

Additional CSS: CSS stands for cascading style sheets and is used for designing various elements of your blog. This is meant for expert users. At this moment, you should know that you have this option available.

I will leave it for you to explore. If you need any help during the set-up process, get in touch with me here and I’ll help as best I can and answer any questions you might have.

Write content for your Blog

Now, we come to the most essential part of your blog. A blog is insignificant without content. The content you create for your blog will be used to sell a product, or a service, or send your message out.

You will learn how to add a “post” to your blog, and also how to write content which is “engaging”. When you write engaging content, you keep your readers, or your viewers engaged. They want to read more of what you have written. I am sure, that is what you want.

To add a “Post”, select Posts from the left sidebar menu, and then “Add new”. Once you are here, give your post a “title”, and then add a “Block”. The simplest way to create a good post is to add a block of “Heading” , followed by a block of  “Classic Paragraph”. Repeat this technique throughout your post. The content in a Classic Paragraph can be, and must be, further split into small paragraphs, which makes reading easier. Use headings (h1, h2, h3, h4) as much as possible in a structured way.

The best way to start your blog post is with a killer headline. The headline determines if the reader wants to continue reading, or bounce off the page. Research has proved that headlines that feature how,  why, you, because, free and new help drive more conversions.

The next important thing is the sub heading or introduction. You should try to match the text here with the intention of users. This is called user intent, and it is the purpose why the reader is interested in reading your blog post.

Further, adding images, pictures or visuals helps to improve performance of your blog post. But be careful about using copyrighted images. Try to use original images.

That is it for now. Let me know in the comments below, if I have missed out on something, and has worked well for you.

 

 

 

Businesses today, need to do generate more from their resources. As a business, you need to connect with your prospects in a personalized way while spending less. And businesses that are successful in connecting with their target audience in a personalized way will be successful in generating more revenue and more return their investment.
Is there a better way to connect with your customers other than email marketing. No. And how do you keep your email subscribers growing? With a newsletter subscription form on your website. In this article, we will learn

What is a newsletter subscription form
Why is newsletter subscription required
Main components of an effective newsletter subscription
How to make a newsletter subscription box
Where to place the newsletter subscription box

What is a newsletter subscription form?

You have landed upon a website, and while you are perusing its content, a box suddenly pops up from some where. The box has an alluring offer that you find hard to give up.

To claim the offer,  you need to give your name and email address.
For once, you think of letting it go. I don’t need more emails in my Inbox.
The next second, you are filling up the form. “The offer sounds tempting. I can always unsubscribe if I don’t like it”.
You have just opted in to a “newsletter subscription form”.
If you have entered the correct (no spelling mistakes) email address in the newsletter subscription box, and the email address is legitimately yours, you’ll receive a mail (from the same website), asking you to click on a link. This is called double opt in. And when you click on the link, your email address is verified and your subscription to the website’s newsletter is added to the list of other email recipients like you.

Why is newsletter subscription required?

As a business, you need more clients. The more clients you have, the more business you can expect. But then you may ask who reads email today . Everybody uses social media. Isn’t advertising on social media more productive than email marketing? Well here are the facts.

Email vs Other Online Marketing Techniques

One research reports that there are 43 different ways you can do online marketing. Search Engine Optimization, Podcasts, Social Media Marketing, Video Marketing, and the list goes on.

Many new marketing technologies have sprung up in the last few years; and many have disappeared from the scene.

But only one category has consistently performed well, year after year, and that is email marketing. Email generates the highest ROI. According to one study: for every dollar spent on Email marketing, it  generates $44 in return.

Email has a much larger reach.

While Facebook boasts of having over 1 billion active users, and Twitter having 255 million, one is compelled to conclude that social media is a better option to reach the online community.

But isn’t it surprising that when you sign up for a Facebook or Twitter account you need an email address.

And how do Facebook and Twitter notify users of activity in their account? They do it through email. There are are three times more email accounts then there are are Facebook and Twitter accounts combined.

Email delivers your message

If you post a passage on Facebook how many of your contacts will have a chance of seeing it?

An official study proclaims this to be about 2%. So if you have 1,000 friends on Facebook just about 20 will see your message. Whereas if you send an email to 1,000 contact at least 950 will receive it in their inbox.

The difference is a staggering 45 times. 20 on Facebook and 950 on email.

Your email subscribers have given you their consent to receive your messages. But that is not the case for social media. Everyone just keeps posting, and a few will get to read your post.

Email gives you a higher conversion

The ultimate goal for every business is to convert its potential customers into paying customers.  Social media is more of a personal form of communication; people use it to communicate with family members and friends. 

But when people expect to receive information about new products and services, they want it through email. Email is an open platform. Email isn’t owned or controlled by buy one particular business house. The owners of Social Media brands device new algorithms to increase their own revenue while giving less importance to free posts.

Your subscribers are going to be your asset over a long period of time. Unlike social media following, building your your email list is a a stable long term investment that will pay off in the the years to come.

Main components of an effective newsletter subscription form

1. An enchanting headline: Your headline should clearly describe the benefit to the visitor. It should be noticeable and  succinct.
2. A brief description: Is your description helpful, clear and to the point? Use bullet marks so that the visitor gets the message in a glance.
3. Enticing visuals: Add an image of the incentive you are promising.  Images of smiling human beings are a great way to entice visitors. Do not make it too loud, as it usually distracts visitors.
4. 2 line form: Don’t ask for more than a first name (or name) and email address. Asking for too much information, too soon, will kill your conversions.
5. A Call-to-Action subscribe button: Don’t simply write “Subscribe now”. Use text that compels the visitor to take action  – Click immediately / Subscribe! (that’s why it’s called a call to action button). Use a contrasting color for this button, so that it gets noticed.

How to make a newsletter subscription box.

I will take the example of making a subscription form on ConvertKit. This is the easiest amongst all. You can do it yourself without hiring a developer.

Register on ConvertKit

Go to “Landing Pages & Forms”

Select Form

You will be asked to choose the type of subscription form. The images are self-explanatory.

Modal is a pop-up form which covers the whole screen. The modal disables the main window, while keeping it visible. I have chosen to go ahead with Modal.

The next screen asks you to choose a design/ template/ theme for your newsletter subscription form. You can choose any template that suits your product type. Then you can change the picture, or modify the background colour, or change the text, the font, font size. 

Once you have finalized the design, you need to add this form on your website. Click the “Embed” button.

You will be shown various options to choose from Javascript, HTML, Share, WordPress or Unbounce (a landing page builder platform). If you have chosen WordPress, it will ask you to install the ConvertKit WordPress plugin on your WordPress website and then  embed the form using the shortcode displayed.

You can download the plugin to your computer, and then install it on your WordPress website.

However, prior to that, check out the “SETTINGS” for your newsletter subscription form. You can access the settings in the same row as the “EMBED” button.

There are some very interesting settings which make your form very engaging. I used to be wonder struck  when I saw such forms performing on other websites. But never knew about these tools that make these a child’s play.

You can set up this form to pop-up (trigger) when a visitor tries to leave the page (exit-intent) or when he has spent 5 seconds on your website (you can alter this timing to your needs).

Give it a try. I am sure you too will be wonder-struck.

Where to place the newsletter subscription form

A lot of research has been done by experts in the field of online marketing, and they have identified hot spots where the visitors pay more attention and you are likely to get a higher conversion for your newsletter subscription form. These are

1. Your website’s header
2. Scattered on your Blog Posts
3. In a modal page (we examined this in the beginning of the previous section)
4. Your website’s footer
5. Your “About Us” page
6. In the side-bar

You can experiment for yourself and place the form at various places on your website. Do not limit yourself to just one place. You can have multiple forms (of different types – modal, splash, slide-in, sticky header) and place them at all the above places on your website.