Hi, welcome to this blogging for beginners’ guide.
I have many friends who generally ask me about how to start a blog? and what is the step by step guide?
As blogging is a very broad topic hence there are many things to learn. It is important to know everything step by step too in detail.
If you are new to blogging and don’t know how to start a blog then this is the perfect post for getting started.
So, Let’s get started and begin this blogging guide for beginners
Firstly it is important to know which kind of blogger you want to become. Additionally, you have to understand what goal you want to achieve.
Hence knowing about your future plans with blogging is a must.
Context
- Types of blogger
- Things to be done by blogger type 2
- Choosing the platform for blogging
- Web Hosting Guide for bloggers
- Domain name Guide for beginners
- Using free Web Hosting and free domain name
- Connecting domain name and Web Hosting
- What is cPanel in Web Hosting
- All about WordPress, Beginners guide for WordPress
- Security your website using SSL
- Backing up your website
- Concluding part 1
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1) Types of bloggers
There are two types of bloggers. And both of them have the following aim.
Blogger Type 1 – Creating a blog with the motive of sharing ideas and content.
Blogger Type 2 – Creating a blog and earning from it
Why are both different?
First go through the bloggers checklist.
Checklist for blogger type 1
- Creating website, and based on ideas you get, write them in your blog
- Sharing your content to your family, friends
Checklist for blogger type 2
- Doing research on which topic to create blog
- Ranking in google for some queries
- For that, doing keyword research and checking which is a less competitive keyword.
- Creating fast and secure website
- Then creating posts, guides or articles of that keyword
- Sharing your blog
- Search engine optimization (off page)
- Like building backlinks (getting mentions to others website)
- Getting traffic from various methods
- Then doing advertising and placing ads on websites.
- Putting affiliate links using which people will buy something and you will get profit.
- Again updating the content and keeping your content fresh updates and correct.
Saw the difference?
If you want to make money from blogging, there are many steps you have to do.
Although you will learn these things over the course of time. But I want to say that making a normal blog and making a profitable blog are very different things.
2) Things to be done by Blogger Type 2
- In addition to creating a website… first,
- Creating a plan and deciding the topic
- How to do keyword research
- How to optimize the website
- How to write better content
- How to do SEO
- How to build backlinks
- How to make people purchase your products from your website
- How to do affiliate marketing
- How to optimize your website
- How to secure your website.
- and many more
That’s why I said first you have to decide which type of blogger you want to become.
If you want to earn, you have to do hard work. You have put a lot of effort to rank your website.
Else, If you want to share your thoughts and showcase yourself then its a much easier job.
Now based on your choice I will guide you.
Hence, If you are type 1 blogger or want to only set up your website as soon as possible then please continue with your post.
And if you are a Type 2 blogger, and you have decided your topic and are seeking the blog making process, then please continue with this post.
Let’s start the guide: Blogging for beginners.
3) Choosing the platform for blogging
There are many platforms available for bloggers to choose from
Some platform required building website from scratch
Few are very simple to use, just one-click install.
Handful of platforms are very powerful and blogging
Lets see top 5 platform for creating blogs and website
- WordPress – Easiest and most powerful (CMS)
- Blogger – Free and easy, lack few features
- Wix – You have to build your website from scratch, drag and drop
- Weebly – Same as WIX but free.
- Joomla, druptal – Same as wordpress but less popular.
Every second bloggers use WordPress. Just you know computers mean windows. In the same way, listen to me and remember WordPress is for blogging.
4) Web Hosting – Explaining blogging for beginners
1- Where will you keep your website? Choosing Web Hosting.
Your website data will be going to store on an online server. These servers will be accessible from all over the world.
This is paid service, hence you have to pay for Web Hosting.
But if you don’t want to pay for web hosting and still want to do blogging, you can do it.
WordPress is free but required paid Web Hosting (95% users use paid web hosting due to convenience).
If you purchase Web Hosting, you will feel some sort of responsibility. And you won’t take your blog for granted. and you will put in hard work.
Hence paid Web Hosting is required for serious and reliable blogging.
2- Free Web Hosting.
Apart from paid web hosting, you can use free web hosting as well. Although you will face many restrictions. For non serious bloggers free web hosting is fine.
Additionally, your website will also look on average. There will be very few tools to customize your website.
Hence go with paid web hosting.
3- Paid Web Hosting
If you are near to black Friday then make sure to purchase on that week.
You will get a massive discount in web hosting on black friday.
If you want to use the same reliable web hosting that I use, then use the following link to purchase.
Want to know more about Hostgator? then go throughout this review of an awesome webhost
5) Blogging for Beginners- Domain Name Guide
1- Buying domain name
Already bought the domain? Read what to do after buying the domain
This is quite an exciting stage. If you have some idea and you have to give a name to it. Then go for it.
For making any blog, it requires a domain name.
Facebook.com google.com youtube.com these are the domain names.
You can visit here and purchase your domain. I will recommend you to purchase for a minimum 2 years. You won’t even realize and two years will go like sand from your hands.
Don’t want to use a paid domain? Use subdomain.
inORGnet.com is my domain name.
yoursmartidea.inorgnet.com is the subdomain
Subdomains won’t look good but they are free.
2- Relation between Domain name and Web Hosting.
Your webhosting will contain all the data in the server. Your domain name will point to that server.
So when anyone types your domain name in his browser, Your domain name will show files from your server. i.e. your website from server.
Generally domain name and web hosting both belong to different companies. But many domain names companies offer domain name and web hosting together.
Else you have to purchase your domain name and web hosting from two different companies.
Later you have to connect them with each other.
6) Using free hosting and free domain name
If you don’t want to purchase anything and also don’t want to connect anything, then visit blogger.com
You can simply choose your domain name. Blogger will provide your subdomain such as Youridea.Blogger.com. Additionally bloggers will give you webhosting along with it.
Using a few clicks you can start your new blog.
If you want to explore then blogger is good. Else, if you are serious about blogging then first learn a few things for one week.
After studying you can start your blog.
7) Connecting Domain name and Web Hosting
To do this, you have to change nameservers of your domain name.
First go to your web hosting. Note down the nameservers. Then Go to your domain name company. Paste the nameservers.
Wait for at least 24 hrs. Once your domain starts pointing to your web hosting you can install your website.
Things to do in webhosting, Website installation, WordPress installation
Login to your web hosting platform. Depending on your platform or web host either you can directly install a website or you have to go to cPanel.
8) What is cPanel in Web Hosting? Step by step blogging for beginners Guide.
Hostgator Web Hosting cpanel
Consider cPanel as your command center of your web hosting. Anything you want to do with your webhosting you can do it from here.
From here onwards I will talk in terms of wordpress.
Remember there are two things
- Command center of Web Hosting
- Command center of website
Website comes under web hosting. Hence If you want to manage your web hosting related things you have to go to cPanel.
If you want to see behind the scene of your website then goto Command center of the website.
For time being you just remember these things.
hostgator cpanel dashboard
File manager in cPanel
Using file manager you can create or delete files related to your website.
There are two things
- The root folder of file manager
- public_html in root folder
All the installation must be done in the Public_html folder not in the root folder.
Leave the root folder as it is also don’t taught public folder as well(for time being)
9) Internal WordPress Guide for beginners
1- Installing wordpress from cPanel
hostgator wordpress in cPanel
Search WordPress in cPanel, enter all the details and your website will get install.
Note down the link, username and password.
Now go to the file manager. It will redirect you to the root folder. Then go to your public_html.
Over there you will see auto generated files of your website. These are the wordpress files.
How to see your website and enter the command center of the website.
First go to your website. type yourwebsite.com
You will see the default themes and design of your website. Additionally, you will see some posts and demo comments on it.
Now how to change your basic looking website..
From here onwards good things start.
2- WordPress wp-admin, the command center of website #behind the scene.
Go to the browser URL and add wp-admin in front of your website name.
example… inorgnet.com/wp-admin
Webpage will redirect to the login page.
Here you can enter username and password.
Now Welcome to behind the scene of your website.
This is the place where you will be spending a lot of time.
What are the things you can do here?
Almost everything.
- You can add new posts.
- Add new pages to your website/blog
- Change theme and looks of website in one click
- Upload photos and videos easily
- Create delete users
- Add and remove plugins (for added functionality. Must required)
- You can add menu or navigation bar
- Side bars of your website can be created and controlled from here.
- Theme customization logo upload and many more things can be done from here.
From where to start?
3- Creating your first post in WordPress.
Remember this will mark the start of your blogging journey. Make sure to write your heart here. No worries you can edit them later.
Create some more additional posts. Dummy ones for testing themes.
4) Changing the theme.
Go to appearance. and click on theme and click on add theme.
Choose a few themes and install it.. and preview it or activate it..
Go to your website and see how it is looking.
Then if all good go ahead with customizing the theme of installing the new one.
5) Change permalinks structure
Permalink is the address of your posts. For example
- www.inorgnet.com/blogging-guide
- www.inorgnet.com/2020-4-20/blogging/beginners/blogging-guide
- www.inorgnet.com/archives/123
Which one is better? Obviously the one which is short and simple.
You have to make sure that the address of posts and pages of your website is clean.
If you don’t do this setting now, then later you will face issues. And for fixing that issue you have to do additional things. This things are 301 redirection.. Which requires downloading extra plugin. Then you have to paste old poor web addresses and then new web addresses.
This will point old articles to new articles called as redirection which will be permanent.
Hence it is better to set up permalinks at an early stage.
How to make a readable post address in wordpress? Changing permalink setting in wordpress.
Go to Setting, and click on permalinks.
After that Select post name. Now by default it will make your permalink to the name of your post.
While creating the post itself you can edit the permalink.
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6) Download cache plugin
Go to the plugin section and download wp fastest cache plugin.
Activate the plugin.
This will make your website load faster when a user visits for a second time.
7) Adding logo and favicon
Logo and favicon adds the professional look to your website.
If you want to get profession logo mail us at inorgnet@gmail.com
Else, Create your own logo from wix.com
Create your own and best favicon here at favicon.io
How to upload logo and favicon to my wordpress website
Go to preference and click on customize link.
Based on the theme you will see an option to change your logo.
Generally logo and favicon upload happens in the site identity section.
Click on Site Identity, and upload your favicon and website logo here.
Now check whether your website is looking perfectly fine? If all is good then you’re good to go to the next level.
10) Securing your website from SSL.
Google has announced that the secure website will get a rank boost. If your website is secured then you will be awarded by rank position in google search.
Also Secured websites make hackers difficult to enter into websites.
Secure website ensures reliability to the customers.
Ignoring security of your website may put your blog in danger.
There are two methods of securing your website.
- Using paid SSL certificate (Annual or subscription based)
- Using free SSL certificate (repeat steps after each 3 months)
Here is the step by step guide on how to get a free ssl certificate for a website – free HTTS guide.
11) Backing up your website, saving your work. Step by step tutorial to updrafts.
You are only left with only one essential step i.e. setting up and backing up your website.
There is one great plugin for one click backup and restore.
It takes only one click and 5 minutes to back up your blog, and same for restoring your blog.
Here is the complete guide on how to back up your WordPress website(coming sooner) or best free plugin to backup your website.
Now the base of your website is ready.. You can start editing posts.
12) Concluding part 1 of blogging for beginners’ guide.
Now you might have got some idea on how to start a blog.
This post is part 1 of blogging for beginners. Which revolves around deciding which blogger type you are, and then start making your first blog.
So which type of blogger do you want to be?
Blogger 1 – Create basic blog and start writing content on whatever you like
Blogger 2 – Dig deeper into blogging, research about topics, write awesome content, share them, help others and make profit from your blog.
Let me know your choice in the comment below. And also let me know if you liked this Blogging to beginners guide.