How to Start a Blog in 2020?
Hey girl! If you’re reading this then I am assuming you’re interested in starting your own blog? High-five to you! Or should I say… Air-five to keep it social distance-y.
It can feel daunting to start your own blog or website. I’ve been there. Hosting? Domains? Monthly fees? What should my theme be? What is my brand? How do I get people to read it? … this can all seem overwhelming but with a little knowledge and some courage, you’ll do just fine!
First things first …
Choose your blog platform
Nowadays there are many to choose from and all are great for different reasons! Sometimes it comes down to how much money you’d like to spend to have your platform or simply it comes down to user experience and what is more comfortable to use.
Personally, I use Wix and love it. It’s very easy to navigate, update, and blog on. I’m very big on aesthetics so I wanted a website that gave me a lot of customizable options. My husband is the owner of the Wix Website Builder company, Let’s Design Your Site and ya girl is one of the designers so if you’re looking to be in the Wix space… look no further.
Another great platform that is VERY popular is WordPress. I’ve heard amazing things about this platform - however, personally I feel that it’s not as customizable and user friendly.
SquareSpace has also received some praise and I would consider it to be another version of Wix.
A little about pricing...
Ranges from $10 to $20 a month depending on what type of plan you choose! I suggest a premium plan so you don’t get stuck with Wix ads all over your beautiful new site.
Ranges from $4 to $25 a month again, depending on if you’d like to remove WordPress banners and ads (which I HIGHLY recommend you do!!)
Ranges from $16 to $40 depending on the above!
Next, decide on your domain
If you’re a professional blogger or want to come off that way… (raise your hand! You totally should!) then you’re going to want a domain. A domain is your website/blog URL. So for instance, Instagram.com is Instagram’s domain. Facebook.com is Instagram’s domain - cool? COOL!
Don’t let these platform sites fool you with their “free URLS” aka yourblogname.wordpress.com … no just no! Domains are relatively inexpensive so you can purchase one from Godaddy.com for honestly $3 sometimes. It will renew so make sure you take a look at those costs.
So you got your hosting platform, your domain and now it’s time to design!
This part is my favorite! But for others, it can be another hurdle to jump over. Hiring a designer can cost you $100s if not $1,000 of dollars and ya girl isn’t trying to break the bank over here.
I recommend grabbing a template where you can customize Wix, Squarespace and WordPress all have templates. If you’re on Wix and don’t even wanna bother doing it yourself you can higher LetsDesignYourSite and we will work within your budget.
Below are some free themes & templates:
Some things to think about when designing your blog:
Your blog name! Remember your blog can quickly turn into a business so it’s important to love your name and keep it professional.
Figure out what pages you want on your website/blog? About, Contact, Services, Shop...etc are all things to take note of.
SEO!! I have a recent blog post on this topic that you can read here
I hope these tips above help you create the best blog ever!!! And remember to have fun!!
Always,
Jessy