How to Start a Blog | A Beginners Guide 2021

Updated 07/30/2021

So Let me guess, you are asking yourself, How Do I start a Blog in 2021?

So much information can be found online, so many people are telling you about this topic.

Where does a person start?
Who should be listened to?
I know it might be confusing but I used to be a Newbie too.

This isn’t my first blog.

I actually started one way back in high school with an account on Xanga, OK, now I feel old. This, unfortunately, got hacked, so I was pretty much forced to delete it.

I even had a blog for when I was doing a semester abroad in Italy. As well as a few more along the way.

Now, I know a thing or two about blogging and I would say, I am doing pretty well for myself.

I will say, please do not think that travel is the only thing that a person can blog about. I mean this blog has posts about making money online, teaching abroad, blogging, food, and just about whatever else I feel like writing about. People blog about all kinds of things, like, sports, being a mom, fitness, money, school etc… Literally, any topic you can think of someone is probably blogging about it, so why can’t you?

With just a little bit of effort, blogging can be simple and fun! Many people have even turned blogging into their career and make a rather good income.

Table Of Contents
– Why Start A Blog
– FAQ: How much does a blog cost?
– FAQ: Can I start a blog for free?
– Step 1: Pick a Domain Name & A Host
– Choosing A Domain Name
– Choosing A Host
– Step 2: Install and Setup WordPress
– Step 3: Design Your Blog
– Step 4: Get Some Content Going

First, Why Start a Blog?

What is the point in having a blog, why even start one? Well, people start blogs for all kinds of reasons. Here are some of the top reasons why people choose to start a blog.

You just want to write. Lots of people just want to write about their experiences and share their stories. A blog is a terrific way to do that and to build a community around what you are doing.

Exposure for a business or organization. Reaching a bigger audience is something that every business or organization wants. A blog is a great way to do just that and one that is very cost and time-efficient. It also gives your customers a reason to keep returning to your site besides just checking business hours.

You want to help others. Perhaps you are in a unique or not so unique situation and other people would benefit from your knowledge. For example, I have a few city guides on this blog and I have information that would be helpful for people who are wanting to visit those places. Or perhaps you want to share a parenting technique you learned about and thought it would help others.

Make Money Online. Making money online while working from home in your pajamas is something a lot of people want. A blog is something that you can make a little extra money from or even make a full-time income and then some, it will all depends on how much effort you put into it. While it can be hard work, it is low risk and low cost.

These are obviously just a few examples, people start blogs for all kinds of reasons, many more than are listed here.

Steps to Starting a WordPress Blog in 2021

These are my 4 basic steps to starting a WordPress blog. 4 Steps aren’t too bad, right?

Pick a Domain Name & Host
Install & Setup WordPress
Design Your Blog
Get Some Content Going

FAQ: How much does a blog cost?

So the type of blog that I am going to show you does have a few relatively small upfront costs. However, once you get started you can continue and maintain your blog for around $5-$15 per month. As your blog grows and starts to make you money, so can your budget for a nicer and better blog with more bells and whistles.

FAQ: Can I start a blog for free?

Yes, there are a few free blogging platforms. However just like everything else that is typically free in life the options and ways to do things are limited, and not exactly the best.

The design and how to make everything look is limited, how to make money is limited, and if you decide you want to move to something else it can be very hard to change to a different platform without spending a lot of money, or nearly impossible.

Step 1: Pick a Domain Name & A Host

Choosing A Domain Name

First, let me explain to you what a domain name is. A domain name is simply the address for your website. For Example, the domain of this site is travelbybroom.com.

If you do not already have a domain name or an idea of what you want, you can always just use your own name or think of something catchy and shareable. I even own the domain spencerbroom.com I use to have a blog on it as well but now it just redirects back to here. If you don’t have something in mind I would recommend using your own name because it also allows you to write about whatever you want and allows you to establish yourself as a brand and become an authority in your topic of choice.

One great way to think of a good domain name is by going to Shopify and using their Business Name Generator.

I purchase all of my domain names from NameCheap.com

NameCheap Home Page How To Start A Blog
Here is a video of me going through the domain name purchasing process.

Choosing A Host

I know what you are thinking, what is a host? Well, to put it simply a host is a place that contains your website so that people from all around the world can view and access your work.

For your blog to be “online” and accessible, you need server space, the data still has to be physically located somewhere. You get this server space from a hosting company aka… A “host”

I have a feeling many of you might be asking now…

What Host Should I Use?

Honestly, if you are just starting out, just go with Namecheap again for hosting. While it is a good idea to keep where you have your domain name and host separate, I also think it’s best to keep things as simple as possible when first starting out.

Check out this video on how to get that all setup.

Step 2: Install and Setup WordPress

This process is not all that difficult but I find it would be much better for you to watch the video above.

Step 3: Design Your Blog

The basic design and layout of your blog is determined by the “theme” that you choose. A WordPress theme is a pre-defined template that you can customize. There are literally thousands of themes to choose from. Many of those themes are free and many are paid for. The site that you are currently on is made using a theme called Impreza. This theme is not free but it only had a one-time cost and comes with free lifetime updates.

I got Impreza over on Theme Forest if you want to check out all the different themes they have.

Honestly, you are perfectly fine using a free theme if you are just starting out. When you are choosing your theme you want to make sure it fits with your goals. For example, if you are writing a professional blog, you will want a formal clean design whereas for a music blog you will have more license to show off your creativity.

These days you should be using a responsive design. This means that the layout of your blog will adapt to different mobile and tablet screen sizes – which is highly important for usability now that a lot of people are using mobile phones to browse the web.

Personally, I would suggest using a very basic free theme starting out just to get used to using WordPress, and get into the habit of writing and working on your blog. Then after a few posts graduate into a more premium theme.

Check out these videos on how to install a theme and a plugin.

Step 4: Get Some Content Going

Try not to worry too much about things just get started.

There’s truly no point in starting a website if you’re not going to create content your readers and search engines will love.

You need to pay attention to content length, search engine optimization, and more. But, don’t worry too much about that just yet.

A lot of people will recommend you follow specific strategies when starting your first blog. However, I’ve found that experience is the the absolute best teacher.

You need to throw a few things against the wall before you find what sticks!

Try out different types of blogging content.

From stories to tutorials, you want to find out what your readers prefer and what kind of writing you’re naturally good at.

A basic roadmap to get you started is below.

Write your About Page.
Write your First Post.
Write another post.
Repeat, Repeat Repeat.

That’s it really it, consistency is key when it comes to having a successful blog. Once you have a few posts going you need to remember to start marketing them. Social media is my go-to. Share on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, anywhere with an audience really.

Congratulations your blog/website should be started.
Put your new website in the comments below so myself and others can take a look.
What else do you want to know about starting a website/blog?