10 Tips for Starting Your Own Blog

Creating your own blog can be daunting. It's not easy to decide what to write about, because you don't know what people are looking for or how many other blogs out there do the same thing exactly.

You're left with a feeling of uncertainty, uncertainty that can lead to procrastination and self doubt.

This article will give you some tips on how to start your own blog and make it as successful as possible.

1) Pick your niche

This is important. If you want to write about the fun things you do in your life on the weekend, that's great.

But then how are you going to attract a following? Are there enough people out there with an interest in what you're doing on your weekends? Think about it.

You might think I'm being harsh, but stick with me for a second. You're looking for success in blogging and putting yourself out there, this has to be done carefully or else you'll simply waste a lot of time and effort attempting something that just won't work.

You have to pick a niche that you think is truly interesting, and something that will likely bring in a lot of interest from readers.

2) Decide on your style

This is an important one, especially if you're brand new and not sure what type of tone you want to write in.

There are many different ways of writing different things, but the most important thing to remember here is that because your blog is about YOU and what you like, the style shouldn't be too "out there" or too serious or serious. It should be fun, yet informative.

3) Set yourself goals

Once you know what you want to write about, and have a niche picked out that's realistic, now it's time to set your own goals for the blog. It helps to set some "benchmarks" for yourself so that you actually make progress every day.

For example: I've made my blog about educational resources for students studying abroad in London, but I don't actually know how many readers I'll be reaching with my posts.

However, I do know that writing about topics like this is important because of how many people we've already contacted and how successful our marketing has been so far.

I've also decided that I want to have a post on my blog every day, which is reasonable because it's been a week and there are two more weeks left in the semester.

I think this is a reasonable goal, so I'll try to keep this in mind as I write.

4) Pick your media platforms for sharing content

Now that you're going to be creating original content for your blog, you might think that it would be best to announce that through your social media accounts and other outlets where you can promote your blog with links or paid advertisements.

This is not a necessary step, but it can help get you some initial traffic.

When I started a blog about study abroad, I decided to create a Facebook page for my blog and share articles with it every day so that my followers would know where I was coming from.

5) Create an original content schedule

I'll admit that creating an original content schedule is pretty fun. At the end of your week, you'll have something to show for yourself, and can look back at what you've done and say "wow, I'm really doing this".

It's really motivating because you start thinking of what you want to write about for the next week, and can feel the excitement in your heart grow.

That said, it's best to start blogging at least one month or two before your end date (your blog has to be pretty successful before you graduate) so that you have time to create content that is related to what the reader wants but also will relate to your interests.

6) Write an email sign-up form

A common tip is to create an email sign-up form on your blog so that you can build your email list.

This is something I've been meaning to add to my blog, but it wasn't until halfway through the semester that I actually thought of creating an email sign-up form.

An email sign-up form on your blog is great because it gives people a chance to subscribe and receive updates just by contacting you.

It also gives you an easy way of contacting people as well as a way of letting them know you're still open for business, which could be useful for when they have more questions or are thinking about signing up.

7) Decide how you want your blog to look like based on the tone you're going for

If you know what type of tone you want your blog to be in, it'll be easier to decide what your blog will look like.

For example, if you're going to be writing informational articles, then a more professional, high-quality site is a good idea because it will attract readers who are looking for similar topics.

However, if your blog is going to be more general or fun and informative, then a simple WordPress theme with some customizable features can help keep visitors coming back because it's easy to navigate and fun for the reader.

This can make an impact on your blog, because when visitors see how easy it is to view your content, they'll be more likely to stick around.

This also encourages people to share your content with others and comment on it.

8) Think about advertising options

Once you have a decent amount of readers coming to your blog, you might want to think about advertising options.

If you started a business that dealt in education materials, then you could create a Google Adsense account or other paid advertising options that would help support yourself while you write.

Some people also choose to sell their original photos or articles on sites like Etsy and eBay, which allows them to earn money off something they have created and are passionate about.

9) At least once a week, share your content

When you're creating original content for your blog, it's important to share it.

This will help build your followers and show them that the website is still active, so that when they look for other blogs on the same topic they'll see yours.

Once your blog starts getting a lot of hits, it'll also allow you to track how successful your marketing was and how many people actually left comments and shared the article.

If you're sharing too little content every week, then readers might be disappointed because they'll think that the blog is dead.

However, if you share too much content then it may overwhelm your readers or drive them away because they won't have enough time to read it all.

It's also a good idea to share your posts on your social media accounts as well, since that way you're reaching an even bigger audience.

10) Stay consistent.

Once you're finished creating all of your content, sharing it and tracking how successful you are on the internet, make sure that you keep at it.

One of the biggest mistakes someone can make is starting a blog and then just stopping after they've gotten tired and forgotten about what they were doing.

If your blog is a hobby that you enjoy doing, then keeping up with it will be easy.

However, if you started a blog to make money and are running into problems, then it might be best to just let it go.

In the long run, having a blog that people can rely on for information and entertainment is way more useful than trying to make a quick profit for yourself.

Finally

I hope this blog has helped you learn more about starting a blog, and that you've been inspired to start your own.

If you want to know more specific ways to create your blog, then I encourage you to do some research on how this can be done.

There are plenty of free websites and forums out there that provide tutorials and templates for building a simple blog.

However, if you're looking for something more specific, then there are also paid options out there like Blogger (which is what I use) for anyone who doesn't have the computer skills to build a website from scratch or even software like Microsoft Office's free page layout program 'Publisher'. Good luck.