When I first started a blog, I had soooo many blogging questions. How do I start a blog? How do I get blogging traffic? How do I make a lot of money blogging? What the heck do I say to my email list? And so much more.
Having a lot of questions as a blogger can make you want to pull your hair out. It’s no lie that there is SO many things that come with blogging that you have to learn.
I wish I had someone back then to answer all of my biggest blogging questions. I probably would have been more successful quicker if I had a blog post where all of my questions were answered.
Which is why in this blog post, I’m going to be answering all of the questions about blogging that you may have.
Let’s jump in!
How to Start a Blog?
When I first started blogging back in 2017, I had no idea what I was doing. I started out by following a blog post on Pinterest- kind of like this one. The blog post taught me how to self host with Siteground and set up a WordPress.org blog.
I tried my very best to build a nice looking blog with one of the free templates on WordPress but it ended up looking really ugly. I hated the blog design. I wanted a pretty blog but I didn’t have any design knowledge what so ever.
I eventually found a WordPress theme that looked beautiful. I purchased it and guess what? After installing and looking at the theme…it wasn’t any different then the first one I had. I wasted my money. After that I purchased and tried several different WordPress themes each one STILL looked ugly.
Quickly, I learned that a lack of design knowledge was holding me back and I went on to switch my blog over to Showit.
Building a blog on Showit was a lot easier but I still had no knowledge of how to become a successful blogger. I blogged for 2 years and I had barely any income to show for it. I eventually quit.
You see…starting a blog for me was not easy. If only I had someone who could teach me how to start a blog without holding any important information back…then I probably would have had a successful blog a lot faster.
With all of that being said, I want to take you through a step by step guide that will show you EXACTLY how to build a blog strategically and with intention-the right way.
The goal here is to give you the guide that I wish I had when starting a blog and to show you how I create successful, money making blogs for my clients. SO let’s get started.
Finish reading this blog post right here!
Should I start a blog on WordPress?
As I scroll through Pinterest and read all of the “How to Start a Blog” posts, I see how many bloggers are saying that you should blog with WordPress.
I’m here to tell you why these bloggers are leading you in the wrong direction and which direction I think you should actually go in. (WordPress is a great platform but it is difficult for new bloggers who have no design or tech knowledge.)
WordPress is undeniably a very popular platform and soooo many bloggers are still using it today, but many have decided to leave it to build their website on a more user-friendly, easy to design, platforms that give you drag and drop options.
Before I tell you which platform I think you should start your blog on, I want to go ahead and tell you all of the reasons why I think you shouldn’t blog on WordPress.
1. Designing Your Website Will Be Extremely Difficult
I’m sorry to say this, but no one else is and I believe it needs to be heard.
Most bloggers that write a “How to Start a Blog” post, say to use WordPress because they will get an affiliate from one of the popular hosting companies like Bluehost and Siteground. Which is fine- I have no problem with bloggers writing posts to make affiliate sales, but they aren’t exactly giving you the full information.
Starting your blog on WordPress is actually extremely difficult because it’s almost impossible to design your own website on it. You would need to hire a designer to make your website look good.
There are a lot of bloggers who are trying to do and write about the same things you are and in order to stand out, you need to have a better website and more detailed and thorough blog posts than your competition.
Designing your own website on WordPress with no website design or CSS knowledge is nearly impossible.
I see sooo many new bloggers struggling with this. They listen to a blogger, they get a WordPress site, and then they spend hours upon hours trying to build a website to just be “good enough.”
And I’m sorry, boss lady, that you’ve been lead in the wrong direction. Your website design really does matter for your blogs success because you need to look professional from the start.
If you’ve been struggling to build your own website, especially on WordPress, then read till the end of this post because I have something that will help you overcome this.
What is the best blogging platform?
Showit is the new, best thing and I highly recommend you picking Showit over WordPress to build your blog website on.
I also recommend that you join my membership for bloggers….The Blogging Ladies Mastermind since it includes an EXTRA course, Stupid Easy Blog Design AND The Blog Accelerator Program Course. This will really help you design the blog of your dreams and get it off the ground in just a FEW days.
What is Showit?
Showit is the most innovative platform for drag & drop website building without code. Throw everything you know about templates and drag & drop, this is truly unique. Showit offers the possibility to customize templates 100% so you can easily create a unique website without a single line of code. The platform has been specially developed for creative entrepreneurs.
Showit will allow you to design a stunning website on Showit but you will write all of your blog posts with WordPress. It’s absolutely amazing.
Why Showit?
Showit is not only very user-friendly and wonderful to work with. But Showit offers so much more: custom mobile design, responsive on all screens, simple SEO optimization, innovative drag & drop builder, fast chat support, lots of clear tutorials.
Technically Showit runs on the best and fastest servers and you do not have to worry about ant technical hassle and updates. So you are in control and are backed up with a ton of support in all kinds of ways.
Read the end of THIS blog post to learn more about Showit.
How do I pick a blog name? How do I choose a domain name?
Choosing the name and domain for your blog/business is one of the most important first steps to prioritize after finding your niche. You need to spend time to think about the name you want your brand to showcase for a long time and spend some time to get this right.
The name you choose should show your vision and values, describe what the business is about and it should be entirely unique to you.
I have seen a lot of bloggers and business owners go back to using their own name for their brand.
The name you choose is ultimately up to you as long as it follows the rules I stated above and it should also be available to register as a business name, be available on Instagram and across all other channels, and it should be available when you search on Google.
Really do your research when it comes to deciding on a name because you wouldn’t want to use a name that a brand has already claimed.
You also want to consider using keywords in your name. Keywords will help you rank on Google and this is extremely good for blog traffic which is the ultimate goal.
Have more blogging questions about branding? Click here to read all about branding your blog.
Do I need to pick a blogging niche? How do I find it?
Defining your blogging niche is extremely important to find. Before you even build your website you should already have identified and honed in on one blogging niche. Here is why…
It lowers the competition.
Finding your blogging niche will allow you to stand out in a sea of other bloggers writing about the same thing as you.
To be successful in blogging, you want to be as unique as possible in all aspects of your blog especially in your blog content and honing on one specific, detailed niche can help you do that.
For an example: A lot of bloggers are writing about Traveling these days. But if you get more specific and instead just write about traveling, you can write about what it’s like to travel with a loved one, a friend, or by yourself. You would stand out a lot more than if you were to blog only about traveling like everyone else is.
Your blogging niche is also a way to speak to one person, one customer, one ideal client and this is very important to know who that person you will talk to will be before you start writing content.
So ask yourself these important blogging questions…
-Who do I want to read my blog?
-Who will my valuable blog content serve?
-Who do I want to buy my products?
-Who do I want as a client?
Defining your blogging niche will also help you rank higher in search engines and it will also help you write about content you think your ideal reader is searching for which is key to ranking higher in Google. Google loves niched blogs.
Think of it like this-it is also better to have 100 people who love your blog, love you, and love the content you are writing than 5,000 people who don’t.
It doesn’t matter if you have tons of people coming to your blog or not, if the right people are not reading your content because it’s all over the place with so many different blogging niches than you will never build the engaged, passionate community you need for a successful blog.
Read more about how to find a blogging niche and why you need to.
How do I brand my blog?
First of all, let’s chat about what the heck branding is: Branding is basically the feeling and vibe your blog/business gives off.
There are a ton of key elements that go into branding such as your name, slogan, logo, colors, and more. But there is also a different side to branding that conveys who you are, your voice, vision and values.
Branding is all about how you make your website visitors feel.
In this blog post we are going to talk about all of the key elements more in depth, why it is important for your blog and business, and how we can implement this on our blog and social media channels.
TRADITIONAL BRANDING
Traditional branding are things your visitor can visually see like:
-Your name
-Slogan
-Logo
-Design/Colors
-Your product
Lets look at each of these more in depth.
More questions about branding your blog? Read more here.
How to design my blog?
You should ask your self these important blogging questions first…. Do you want to drown in the crowd of bloggers? OR do you want to stand out from the crowd?
Let me guess…
You’ve read so many blog posts that told you to start a blog on WordPress…but then found that it was nearly impossible and it made you want to pull out your hair.
Then you became discouraged…
- You are tired of having an embarrassing or off-brand website that doesn’t feel like you and is a challenge to update or customize in any way… You are so over it!
- You maybe even settled for a platform that is less professional- like WIX. (a.k.a- not good for bloggers).
- Your blog website isn’t converting any readers into email subscribers and your bounce rate is too high.
- You find it hard to monetize and you feel that it’s nearly impossible to convert readers into customers.
- You want to have the blog design of your dreams…but you have no idea how without spending a ton of money you DON’T have hiring a designer.
Imagine if….
- You could finally build the blog design of your dreams.
- You could get your site up in running in just a few days.
- You had a website that could easily convert readers into email subscribers and customers.
- You could learn how to design a website all by yourself…without having to spend thousands hiring a website designer.
- You were soooo confident that your blog would 100% become successful.
Well let me introduce you to my blogging course that is inside the Blogging Ladies Mastermind…The Blog Accelerator Program.
The Blog Accelerator Program is a roadmap for blogging success.
AND it includes an entire EXTRA course with 39+ lessons, website design templates, and more that show you EXACTLY how to design your website.
How to Write a Blog Post?
Writing a blog post as a beginner can be a little intimidating which is why I’m going to tell you how to write a blog post.
New blogger’s always have the expectation that they need to be a professional writer to be a successful blogger. While you do need some basic knowledge of writing-you do not need to be an amazing content writer who makes no mistakes. There are ways to work around this and tools you can use.
If writing isn’t your strong point, don’t be discouraged.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not trying to make blogging sound easy. There is a lot that goes into writing a perfect blog post but it’s not rocket science.
In this blog post we will discuss the key components below to
writing a perfect blog post:
- Good Content
- SEO
- Photography
- Social Share Icons
- Sign Up Form/Opt in Freebie
- Closing Section
- And more!
Now let’s look at each of these in deep detail:
The Blogging Questions: What is SEO?
Search engine optimization, or SEO, is extremely important for bloggers. When you implement SEO on a blog post, you are making your website more visible to your ideal blog readers, gaining more and more blog traffic over time.
It’s no secret that Google’s algorthims updates can make optimizing your blog posts quite tricky, especially in 2021. It’s becoming increasingly difficult to rank a blog post but definitely not impossible.
Using the steps that I will share with you today, you should easily be able to implement SEO on all of your blog posts so you can start ranking in Google search engines and bring in the blog traffic that you need to make money.
Let’s get started!
STANDARD BLOG POST SEO GUIDELINES
First of all, I want to cover some standard guidelines when it comes to implementing SEO on your blog posts.
-You want to have at least 1000+ words of HELPFUL content.
The reason why I say HELPFUL content is because Google’s new algorithm is really looking for content that educates your ideal blog readers. They want your ideal blog readers to come to your website and leave with a really good understanding and knowledge on the topic that they came to your website for.
-3 + Images with ALT Text
You want to have as many images as you can because the more you have, the longer a user is going to stay on your website and consume your blog content.
97% of people will bounce off of your website if there are no images that help them to understand the blog post, inspire them, etc.
-Inbound and Outbound Links
You want to be inserting these 2 different types of links. Inbound links are links that go to different pages or blog posts on your own website and outbound links are links that lead to pages or posts on different websites.
-Keywords in your Blog Post Title, Introduction paragraph, and a Good Density Throughout the Post
Keywords are the “search terms” that your ideal readers are using when they look up something in search engines. You want to find the keywords that your ideal reader is using to look up things and insert them throughout your entire blog post.
-Use Yoast SEO Throughout the Blog Post
A lot of new bloggers have this misconception that Yoast SEO will magically help them rank their blog post. While this may help guide them to implement SEO on a blog post, it will not rank your blog post if you don’t correctly pick good keywords and use the strategies that I will show you today. Yes, even if your Yoast SEO light is Green.
-Target ONE keyword.
When you do your keyword research (I’ll show you how in a minute) you want to target ONE keyword/keyphrase.
ONE keyword also means different synonyms of the keyword.
To read more about SEO click here!
Why is an Email list important?
The main reasons why growing an email list is so crucially important is because its YOURS. You own it and you don’t have any competition trying to tear you down like beating algorithms.
An email list will also have a WAY higher engagement rate than social media will. More people will open your emails and click on your links than they would if you were to post something on Instagram.
Pssstt, Instagram doesn’t even show your posts to half your readers.
You also need to think about your email list like this- Your email list is FULL of people who raised their hand and chose to receive emails from you. They are interested in you and your content.
How to Start an Email List and Choose an Email List Platform?
So how do you start an email list so you can grow this wonderful community of readers I’m talking about?
The first thing you need to do is decide on an email management platform.
There are free ones out there like Mailchimp but girl let me tell you…Mailchimp sucks. It’s extremely hard to understand and get the hang of for a beginner blogger. But if you honestly don’t have the budget for a paid one then stick with Mailchimp for now.
My absolute favorite email management platform to grow my own personal email list is Flodesk. Flodesk is absolutely amazing because it has the most beautifully created email templates already done for you, stunning colors, and it’s extremely easy for a beginner to understand.
The regular price for Flodesk is $38/month I believe but if you use my link you can get it for just $19/month! What a steal, right? Get it for $19/month here.
To read more about how to start an email list and how to grow it, click here.
What is a Welcome Sequence and Why Do I Need One?
In a world of fancy algorithms and ever-evolving social media platforms, email marketing is truly the best way to reach your ideal audience. In fact, email marketing is a place where your subscriber will see more of your emails than social media posts. They raised their hand and are interested in seeing YOUR content. Pretty powerful stuff, huh?
And the most effective way to harness the power of email marketing is to use a welcome email sequence. It is the most important email sequence that you can have as a blogger or business owner.
Now, if you had a million gazillion questions pop into your head when you see the words “Welcome email sequence” then let me explain what this is and why it is the most important for you to implement.
WHAT IS A WELCOME SEQUENCE?
A welcome email sequence is an important set of automated emails that are sent to new email subscribers. Your welcome email sequence comes after a new subscriber hands over their precious email address in exchange for your freebie, and then becomes a loyal reader of your weekly emails (and buyers of your products and services, woohoo!).
Think of it like this. You meet a new person at a workout class, and you think to yourself “I think we would be great friends.” But to become friends with that person, you first need to introduce yourself.
Then you’ll probably share meaningful stories, bond over common interests, tell them about your favorite things, and ask them about theirs in return.
Essentially, your welcome sequence does the same kind of thing. In your emails, you introduce yourself to your stranger subscriber, share a few stories, point to your favorite resources and tips, and invite them to share about themselves by including engaging questions.
WHY DO YOU NEED ONE?
But why should you go to the time and effort of creating a welcome email sequence? Take a look at these stats…
- Welcome emails generate 320% more revenue than regular emails/newsletters
- Over 74% of people expect a welcome email immediately after joining your email list
- A study done by Experian indicated welcome emails produce 4X the open rates than bulk emails
- Your email subscribers are a list of people who are interested in the content that YOU have to offer
- Your open rate will be WAY higher than social media.
And, it will enable you to…
- Introduce yourself and your brand
- Building trust with your subscribers
- Beginning connections that’ll help your blog and business in the long-term
- Give them a reason to stay an engaged member of your email list
- Get more results and earn more money
- Bring people back to your blog
Execute it well, and you’ll have people opening your emails SO fast and they’ll remain: engaged and active.
Because a welcome email sequence builds trust, and helps your new subscriber know and like you. Without these three things, you’re not going to be able to sell the services, courses and products that you’ve worked so hard to create.
Just like no-one wants to buy from a random cold-calling salesperson, no one wants to buy from a random business owner who’s popping into their inbox screaming “buy my stuff” without, at the least, a proper introduction…
Now, there’s nothing wrong with selling in email. But the truth, to sell successfully, you need to do it the right way. And that way is to build a relationship with your readers before you try to shove your product/service/course down their throat, ya hear me?
Read more to answer the blogging questions: How to Write a Welcome Sequence? (I share emails that will help!)
Why is Pinterest NOT Working for Me?
Is your head spinning from hearing everyone talk about how they get loads of blog traffic from Pinterest?
If you answered yes to this question, then you, boss lady, are in luck! I am going to be telling you my biggest secrets on why Pinterest might not be working for you and what the heck you can do about it.
Before I tell you about the Pinterest secrets and mistakes that you might be making, I want to first invite you to sign up to the all new freebie I just created for you.
You can sign up to the How to Make Money Blogging eBook right here!
Now, are you ready to find out why Pinterest isn’t working for you?
Then let’s jump in!
To read this post on Why Pinterest isn’t working for you, click here!
The Biggest blogging questions: How to make money blogging? Can I even make money blogging?
Thousands, upon thousands of articles are written every year about how to make money blogging, but this blog post is going to be way different and here’s why:
I’ve taken several ladies from making $0, hustling their *SS off, trying to make money blogging….
to them building a legit, sustainable business that makes them a high income.
I’ve also made a lot of money in my own blogging business and in this post, I’m going to tell you exactly how I do it.
I promise, starting a blog that makes a lot of money is definitely not what you think.
In fact, you’re lied to by most bloggers who write articles about “how to make money with blogging.” It’s sad, but its the truth.
Later in this post, I’ll show you all the ways you can make money blogging and the right actions steps you need to take, but first, you need to learn some important, valuable information.
To read this post on how to make money blogging, CLICK HERE!
Have I answered all of your burning blogging questions?
If I left any questions about blogging unanswered then make sure you comment below to ask!
SIGN UP TO THE FREE-MAKE MONEY BLOGGING MASTERCLASS:
WHAT TO READ NEXT:
- The #1 Reason Why Your Blog Isn’t Making Money (And How to Fix It)
- Finding Your Blog Niche: Captivate Your Ideal Reader (Because Honey, It’s All About Them)
- What is Branding and Why Does My Blog Need It?
- PODCAST VIDEO: The Crucial Mindset You Need for a Successful Blogging Business
- PODCAST: Why Most Bloggers Struggle to Monetize Their Blogs
