Steps to start a Blog and maintain a Blog

This post is related to bloggers, and specifically the starters (first timers). I will give a step by step guide for new bloggers that will get them started with the blogs and help them maintain it. In this post, i will be discussing the process of setting up, running the blog, promoting the blog in a very detailed version. I will also post it in my youtube channel, so for those who want to listen to me talking, feel free to subscribe to my youtube channel.

All right first timers hold tight !

Pick a Niche
Often times people want to start a blog just to make money, but how exactly are you going to run that blog? What niche would it be? Who would be your audience? What are you going to write about? (I hope you know you would have to write something that interest your audience) for example If you have a insurance blog, then you would have to write reviews of insurance companies, recent updates in the insurance companies and such. Be Prepared to write (Money should not be one of your factor at all at this point, it should be what you think you can do and love doing it.)

Pick a Platform
Now it is time for you to pick a platform. Now i am assuming if you are thinking of starting a quality blog, you are getting a top level domain (tld). There are many blog platforms you can use. When i say platform, i mean softwares because it is almost impossible to run a blog with plain html. Now out of all that are listed there, if you have been reading this blog you should already know which one i am going to recommend, but if you still don’t know which one, then now you will. I will recommend each and everyone to use WordPress
for their blogs. Why? Because i am a wordpress user. I love using it, and i think it is one of the best softwares due to the easy user-interface, easy-admin interface, and unlimited possibilities. There are tons of wordpress plugins and addons that are available. Also there are many free templates that are available also. Check out Balkhis WP Themes

Find a Webhost

Setting up a website
Setting up a website is a very important task because you need to pay attention to which type of templates you are going to be using, and such. Now I will start with saying, First install wordpress. If you use Uzzz Productions, or any other service that offers Cpanel / Fantastico there is a one click install for wordpress, otherwise you have to manually upload the files. Now come back to the design. Design of your blog must be user-friendly and needs to be natural. A quality site always look unique. Having that said, i dont think i need to encourage anymore about getting a custom design. Free designs are ok as well for a start, but if you have a budget in the beginning, might as well get a Custom Design. Recommend Uzzz Productions.

Add Content

Promote your Website
You need to promote your website. How the heck are you going to do this? Advertise. Now i have already written two posts in the past that shows the two very common ways of advertising. Do you need money for Advertising?, and whether paid advertising is the best?. Read these to learn some of the promoting methods.

Staying updated
Now my fellows, once you have this website, you are considered a webmaster. There many ups and downs in the webmaster world, so stay on top of things. Join Webmaster Communities and stay updated on recent events. I will give you a short list of ones that i like:

Digitalpoint
Sitepoint Forum
Namepros
v7n Forum
IGuides Forums
Bloggeries Forum

My user is smub on all except for bloggeries where i am mbalkhi, so feel free to pm me in any of the above forums. Also if you care to put my name as referral go ahead and do so. It won’t get me any benefits other than showing others the number of referrals that have joined through me

This is just a short list, and there are tons and tons of other webmaster forums.

Important To Dos for Blog

Track your subscribers and readers – Sign up with Feedburner
Submit your blog in technorati (This will get your blog ranked among the other blogs and help others find your blog)
Submit your sites to Blog Directories – My Favorite (Blog Flux) These doesn’t have to paid. Blog flux offers free promotion as long as your blog is a quality blog.

Now you are in the game, but is it finished. No silly, all what you have done above is just the pre-qualify round. Now you are in the qualifying round. Now you have to prove yourself to your audience. Keep writing and updating. I would say write atleast one new topic each day if not more. It will keep your subscribers, otherwise you will see a trend of loosing subscribers.

Once you are getting good traffic and you are getting more and more users, you can see that you are moving forward and now you are in the game with your competitors. (This can take time, so be patience) as patience is the key to your success. Don’t expect results fast. Read my post about the reasons of online business failure, you don’t want to be one of those people.

Now this race is to fast as you have entered the game, and you don’t want to be taken out. This reminds of the Link Park Song:

Forfeit the game before somebody else
Takes you out of the frame and puts your name to shame
Cover up your face you can’t run the race
The pace is too fast you just won’t last

Ok back to the point. Now you have to check your competitors site on normal basis and try to stay ahead of them. Think of unique ideas as you don’t want to copy your competitors because that way you will never pass them.

Once you have done all this, now you are ready to even think that you can make money with your website, but to learn that, you have to wait for my next post in which i will discuss ways of making money with blogs.

I am going to post this as a video as well just so my youtube audience is happy as well:)

Watch the video:

If you like the videos you may also subscribe to my Youtube video section.