Learn how to start a blog in under an hour. Become a blogger today by following the steps we followed when we launched our blog, which has now reached over 20 million people and has been featured in The New York Times, TIME Magazine and The TODAY Show.
Reading: How to create a blog on your site
How to become a blogger in 5 easy steps
- Choose your blog name and get your blog hosting.
- Start your blog by adding WordPress.
- Choose a simple theme to make your blog your own.
- Include two important blogging Add plugins to find your readers and track stats.
- Write compelling content to create a blog your readers will love.
How we started this blog
Would you like to create something meaningful? Why not start a blog? Why not become a blogger? Creating this blog is one of the best decisions Ryan and I have ever made. After all, we make a living from our blog. More importantly, how we add value to other people’s lives.
So you’re thinking about starting a blog but have no idea where to start, right? Guess what – neither do we! Before we became The Minimalists we wanted to start a blog to communicate our thoughts and express our feelings but we were overwhelmed with options.
Dunno, confused and confused with choices we had no idea how to start a blog or how to become a blogger. When should we start? How do we register a domain name? What is hosting? Which blogging platform should we use? How do we choose a blog topic? What is a plugin? What should we write about? Hell, we could barely spell HTML, let alone create a blog!
But good news: it turns out that starting a blog is a lot easier than you think. We’ve learned a lot of lessons during our rise to millions of readers, and now you can learn from our pain and suffering to avoid much of the tedium that comes with starting a blog.
How How to Be a Blogger: Video Tutorial
If you’d rather watch our process on how to set up a blog, we’ve created a step-by-step instructional video entitled How to Become a Successful Blogger Today , which shows the entire beginning -a-blog business. Otherwise read on.
How to start a successful blog in 5 steps
- Choose your blog name and get your blog hosting.
- Start your blog by adding WordPress.
- Choose a simple theme to make your blog your own.
- Add two essential blogging plugins to make your Find readers and track stats.
- Write compelling content to create a blog your readers will love.
While other blogging platforms like Blogger .com and Tumblr.com, almost every serious blogger uses a self-hosted WordPress site because of their creative freedom and flexibility.
The Minimalists uses WordPress because it gives us more control over the look and feel of our blog – more creative control than any other platform. Oh, and WordPress itself is free!
These are the exact steps we took when creating this website. By following these five steps, you’ll learn how to set up a blog in under an hour.
Step 1 Choose your blog name and get your blog hosting
First things first When we started our blog we went to Bluehost and registered our domain which is free with hosting. We’ll explain hosting in a moment, but first let’s talk about your domain name.
Choose your domain name
Your domain name is an important part of your blog because it creates a first impression – it is the name of your blog. Also known as your URL, your domain is also your address on the web. For example, our domain name is www.theminimalists.com.
So what would you like to name your blog? Maybe it’s YourName.com. Maybe it’s yourcompanyname.com. Or maybe it’s a creative brand name you came up with. If you’re having a hard time thinking of a good domain name, try Wordoid, a wonderful naming tool that gives you lots of great options. Just make sure you don’t buy the domain from them because Bluehost provides you with a free domain. (If you’ve already purchased a domain elsewhere, that’s okay too, as Bluehost makes it easy to transfer your existing domain during the setup process.)
Set Up Blog Hosting
Once you’ve decided on a domain name, you need to set up hosting for your blog. Although WordPress itself is free (see step 2 below), you need a reliable place to host your WordPress blog (your blog must be on a server somewhere on the internet).
For hosting, we recommend Bluehost for several reasons:
- We use Bluehost. We personally use Bluehost to host The Minimalists. If you recommend a company, you should be willing to use their product yourself. We also use them to host several of our other websites.
- Great prices. TheMinimalists.com is a Bluehost affiliate, which means we don’t just host theirs use the service, but you also receive a commission for referring new customers. To be fair, we would use Bluehost even if we weren’t an affiliate – we’ve been using them for a long time. Ergo, we don’t recommend Bluehost just because we’re an affiliate (every hosting company offers a similar affiliate program); We recommend Bluehost because they are the best and most reliable option. Because we’re partners, Bluehost also offers a 50+% discount for The Minimalists readers: only $2.95 per month for the first year.
- Free domain. If You sign up for hosting, Bluehost gives you a free domain name that allows you to avoid the upfront and recurring fees that come with buying a domain. If you’ve already bought your own domain name, don’t worry; You can continue using your domain with Bluehost (it’s just an extra step).
- Money-Back Guarantee. Bluehost offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so there is no risk if you change your mind.
- Reliability. Bluehost’s facilities are world-class. They have their own 20,000 square foot purpose built data center with enough backup generators to power a city.
- Friends and Family. Many of our friends and family also use Bluehost to do this host their blogs.
Now that you’re ready to get started, go to Bluehost and click the Start Now button.
Next, select your hosting plan.
You will see that the prices range from $3 to $6 per month, depending on whether you have a basic, single-blog hosting plan, or a more robust plan that allows you to host multiple B logs.
Once you’ve selected your plan, select or enter your domain name.
If you don’t own a domain name, just enter Enter the blog name you want in the New Domain field.
If you already have a domain name, simply enter it in the I have a domain name field a.
Click Next.
Finally, create your blogging account.
And click Click Create your password to finish setting up your blog hosting.
You almost became a blogger!
Step 2 Start your blog by adding WordPress
Next, install WordPress, which is free. However, don’t let the word “install” intimidate you. It’s a lot easier than it sounds, and Bluehost does all the work for you.
To get started, just click Sign Up.
Bluehost offers multiple blog theme options, but just scroll down and click Skip this step (you’ll see why in a moment).
WordPress is now installed. Just click Start Building to go to your new blogging dashboard and continue to step 3.
Step 3 Select Choose a simple theme to make your blog your own
A theme allows you to choose a theme for your blog, no coding or design skills required. In other words, a good theme will help you make your blog look exactly how you want it. If you’re not a programmer (I’m certainly not a programmer), then a theme makes design work a million times easier.
Our blog design comes from BYLT, a platform created by our good friends at SPYR. You have several beautiful, simple WordPress themes to choose from, and in fact you can buy the same theme we use if you want.
Just go to BYLT and find the minimalist WordPress theme that best suits you desired aesthetics.Their themes are feature rich; Also, once you’ve purchased your design, you have the same team supporting your work that we trust to support ours.
Once you’ve purchased your theme, you can use your WordPress -Download theme (a .zip file) from your BYLT dashboard. Save this file to your desktop as you will need to upload it to WordPress in a moment.
Remember how easy it was to install WordPress? Well, installing your blog theme is just as easy.
First, return to your WordPress dashboard.
You should already be logged in, but if you’re logged out, leave to my.bluehost. com, enter your new domain name (or username) and password and click Submit.
See also: How to create a Responsive Website
From here go to My Sites and click Log in to WordPress.
Next, in your WordPress dashboard, go to Appearance > Themes .
Themes” />
Next, click the Upload button.
Then click the Upload Design button and then click the Choose File button.
Locate the ZIP file you downloaded from your BYLT -Dashboard (this is your theme file) and click Install Now to install your new simple blog theme.
Finally click Click Activate and your blog theme will be installed.
Step 4 Add two essential blogging plugins to find your readers and stats track
Plugins are third-party attachments that add additional functionality to your blog.
It’s best to keep your blog plugins to a minimum and only install the best ones, because using too many plugins — and unreliable plugins — can slow down your site. We use very few plugins at The Minimalists.
In this section, install and activate the following free plugins:
- Yoast SEO is the de facto -Default SEO plugin for WordPress. For details and everything you ever wanted to know about WordPress SEO, check out Yoast’s Definitive SEO Guide.
- Google Analytics for WordPress by MonsterInsights allows you to track your blog’s traffic easy to track and lots of interesting data: total traffic, traffic sources, views per author and category, automatic outbound click and pageview tracking.
In your WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins> New add.
Search for Yoast SEO.
Then click Install Now followed by Enable and your blog will instantly have improved SEO.
Next, search for MonsterInsights.
Then click Install Now and then click Activate.
Next, click Start the wizard! and follow the steps to Complete the setup MonsterInsights.
Last but not least, we created a free Feedburner account so people can receive our blog posts via email. For a more feature-rich email subscription service, we recommend ConvertKit (affiliate link). (By the way, if you haven’t already, subscribe to The Minimalists’ blog via email.)
Step 5 Write compelling content to create a blog your readers will love
Congratulations! You’ve started a blog, and now it’s time to start blogging. This is where the fun begins.
Now that you have your own blog, you can make it your own; You can turn your vision into reality.
- Content. Start writing and publishing content for your base pages: create an about page, contact page, home page, and any other page you want in the header of your new blog.
- Photo
- Logo. Create a simple logo using a program like InDesign, Photoshop or a text editor (Note: although we have no design skills, we were able to use Apple’s Pages application to create our simple logo after downloading some free vector graphics and choosing the font which best suited our aesthetic). Or hire someone like 99designs or SPYR to design a professional logo.
- Images. Spice up your blog posts with high-quality stock photos and images: Paul Jarvis (free), Unsplash (free), Library of Congress (free), iStock (paid), Shutterstock (paid).
- Comments. Determine whether or not you want comments on your blog; They’re often a useful way to get feedback and connect directly with your readers.
- Social Networks. Establish a social media presence on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram (or all three).
- Publish. Start writing new blog posts. Post at least once a week, especially if you are new to blogging, so you can build an audience. Also below are 20 blogging tips to improve your writing in the How to blog section, as well as 15 reasons why you should blog and 3 reasons not to blog.
li>strong>. Add a photo of yourself (pro tip: you can start with a well-lit selfie, but if you have the opportunity, get some professional photos taken; they’re well worth the cost because people connect more with other people identify as with them logos).
We hope you enjoy expressing yourself on your new blog. We are sure it will be a great growth experience for you in the coming months. You are now officially a blogger. Wherever you go, make sure you enjoy the journey ahead.
How to Blog: 20 Blogging Tips to Improve Your Writing
We get a lot of emails, in who are asked how to blog, about blog topics and about creating meaningful content. Most of this essay has explained how to start a blog, but that’s only the first step. Now it’s time to start writing and publishing your content.
Here are 20 blogging tips for beginners to solve the frequently asked question “How can a beginner start blogging?” to answer.
- Find your niche. You don’t have to be niche, but it helps. When learning how to become a blogger, it’s important to ask yourself what you’re passionate about. Operation? Cook? be parents? Have you found your passion? If so, whatever it is, write about it. If not, then you must first find your passion. Note: We generally recommend that people don’t start a blog about minimalism or keto or other highly saturated topics. But what we really mean when we say this is don’t blog about something unless you have a unique perspective. If you’ve embraced the simple life and have a unique perspective, then by all means do it.
- Define your ideal readers. Once you’ve found your niche, you need to know who will be reading your blog. For example, we blog about a meaningful life with less. Therefore, our ideal readers are people interested in exploring minimalism so they can pave the way to a more meaningful life. If you want to write about your newborn baby’s growing up, that’s wonderful: your ideal readers are probably your friends and family. If you want to write about classic car restoration, that’s cool too. Tailor your writing to your readers (whether it’s your family, local community, or who else is reading your blog).
- Add value. Your blog must add value to the lives of its readers. They want to help people solve problems. This is the only way you will attract high-quality readers to your site (and keep them coming back). Adding value is the only way to be won over by someone over the long term. We both learned this after a decade of leading and guiding people in the corporate world. With everything you write, it’s worth asking: is it adding value?
- Be original. Yes, there are other blogs about the same topic you want to write about. Question: Why is your blog different? Answer: Because of you. You are what makes your blog different. It’s about your perspective, your creativity, the value you add.
- Be interesting. Write interesting blog posts. Especially if you want people to share it with others.
- Be yourself. Part of being interesting is telling your story.Everyone is unique and your story matters. However, the important part of storytelling is removing the superfluous details that make the story uninteresting. A great storyteller strips away 99% of what’s really happening – the intriguing details – and leaves the interesting 1% to the reader.
- Be honest. Your blog has to be authentic – it has to feel real – if you want people to read it. They can be your blog or your blog can be you. That is, do you really embody the things you write about? If not, people will see through it. “Be the change you want to see in the world” is the famous Gandhi quote. Maybe bloggers should create the blog they want to write for the world.
- Transparency. Transparency is different from being honest. You don’t have to reveal every detail about your life just to be honest. Always be honest and transparent about adding value to what you write. (Since everything we write must be for the greater good, you will never see pictures of us on the toilet – it just doesn’t matter.)
- Time. Once you learn how to start a blog, you’ll find that blogging takes a lot of your time, especially if you’re neurotic like us. That said, once you’ve got your theme set up, don’t tweak it too much. Instead, spend the time writing.
- Vision. The reason our website design looks good is because we have a great host, we have a great theme and most importantly we had a vision of what our blog should look like. Once we had the vision, we worked hard to make that vision a reality. (Note: none of us had any design experience before starting a blog.) It’s hard to create a beautiful blog if you don’t know what you want it to look like.
- Find yours voice . Over time, good writers discover their voice and their writing develops a flow that resonates with their readers. Finding your voice makes your writing feel more alive, real, and urgent. For more information, see our blog post about Finding Your Voice.
- We, not you. Use the first person plural whenever possible. Statements of “we” and “our” are stronger than “you” and “your,” especially when it comes to negative behaviors or tendencies. The first person comes across as far less accusatory. Think of it this way: We write peer-to-peer – we are not gods.
- When to post?. Question: When is the best day and time to publish a blog post? Answer: It doesn’t matter. We don’t stick to a specific time of day, but we do post at least once a week because consistency is important. But you don’t have to get bogged down in details.
- Social Media. Yes, we recommend using Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to connect with your audience and other bloggers, but don’t get too caught up. Focus on writing first, then social media.
- Ignore negative criticism and stupidity. Sure, we get a lot of negative comments and silly questions from ignorant people who aren’t really our readers (“You’re not real minimalists!”). We call these people seagulls: they fly in, shit on your side, and fly away. But we don’t pay any attention to them because we didn’t start our blog for them. Delete her comment and continue.
- Research. Spend time researching what you are writing about. The reason we’re able to include so many helpful, relevant links in our essays is because we invest time researching our topics.
- Keep It Simple. This is where minimalism can be applied to launch any blog, regardless of its genre. No need to place superfluous ads or widgets all over your site. Stick to the basics and remove anything you don’t need – remove anything that doesn’t add value.
- Image. Post a picture of yourself on your blog. People like to see the face of the person writing the blog. If two goofy guys from Dayton, Ohio aren’t afraid to post their pictures on their website, then don’t worry.
- Comments. If you want comments on your site, read “The Five Words That Will Kill Your Blog” by Scott Stratten.
- Live your life. You’re starting a blog about your life (or at least about certain aspects of your life), so you still have to live your life. There are things we always put before blogging: exercise, health, relationships, experiences, personal growth, posts. Simply put, live a life worth writing about.
15 reasons why you should start a blog
We were inspired to research this blog post and to write after reading Joshua Becker’s 15 Reasons I Think You Should blog, in which he discusses 15 good reasons why you should start a blog.
Why is the keyword here. Crucially, Becker writes about the purpose of blogging, not just how to start a blog.That’s what a lot of those other “blogs about blogging” seem to be missing: They are missing the point – the why behind starting a blog.
Here’s a recap of our top three reasons from Becker’s list:
- You will become a better writer. “Writing is essentially communication. It’s about putting thoughts on paper and getting others to agree with them,” Becker writes. “To that end, writing (like every other form of communication that has ever existed) improves with practice. Blogging doesn’t force you to become a better writer, it just happens as you do. And becoming a better writer has important benefits for the rest of your life—whether you’re creating a book, a presentation, a resume, or an anniversary card for your spouse.” Exactly right! Writing blog posts is not only a great way to improve your blog writing, it’s a wonderful opportunity to improve everything you write – from business emails and text messages to the novel of which you always dreamed of writing it.
- You will meet new people. “Whether through comments, emails or social media, you may be surprised at how quickly you meet people online,” Becker writes. That’s right! The Minimalists blog is responsible for many of the most important relationships I’ve built over the past decade – long-term business and personal relationships that have grown out of this very blog
- You’ll become more confident
strong>. “Blogging will help you find more confidence in your life,” writes Becker. “You will quickly realize that you are living an important life with a unique prospect and something to offer others.” So true! Writing helps us better understand our lives and the consequences of our actions.
3 reasons why you shouldn’t start a blog
So now you have 15 reasons why why you should start a blog and we have shown you step by step how to start a blog based on our personal experience.
But after following these detailed instructions that will give you hundreds of costs could save hours of wasted time, we also want to give you some good reasons why you should not start a blog. (Remember that these reasons are our opinions only and we do not purport to offer them as a collection of empirical blogging maxims.)
- Money. You shouldn’t start a blog to make money. We have to get that out of the way first. If your main goal is to replace your full-time income with blogging, forget it. That will not do. Do you think Jimi Hendrix picked up his first guitar to “supplement his income”? No he did `nt. Rather, he did it for love, for the joy and fulfillment he received, and the income came after – actually much later.
- Celebrity. Don’t plan on becoming “internet famous” right away. Not every website grows as fast as ours, but that’s okay. The truth is that we kind of got lucky. We found a great domain name, we cobbled together a logo and page design that people liked, we write pretty well, and our content is uniquely connected to people. However, we didn’t start this site to be “famous”. That would be ridiculous. We started this page to blog and share a message. Our popularity came as a surprise to us and was the result of a bit of luck and a lot of hard, passionate work.
- Traffic. Not all traffic is good traffic, so don’t worry about getting thousands of readers right away. Spend your time producing meaningful creations, and eventually audiences will emerge as you help people solve problems. In other words, focus on adding value, not driving traffic.
The funny thing is that all of these things can happen. You could make a full-time income from building a blog. We do it, Corbett Barr does it and so do many others. And you could become a famous internet blogger like Leo Babauta or Chris Brogan.
But if you start blogging just for these reasons, you will be unhappy because it will seem like a job to you. And if it feels like a job, you’re not going to be passionate about it, so you’ll either hate it or fall flat on your face (or both).
Instead, become a blogger and write because you’re passionate about it …
4 Blogging Resources
If you want to learn more about blogging, publishing, writing, and SEO, check out these additional resources:
- What kind of media counts? (Seth Godin)
- How to Publish an Indie Book (Asymmetric Press)
- How to Write Better: Online Course (Joshua Fields Millburn)
- Some funny thoughts about SEO (Exile Lifestyle)
How to create a blog infographic
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FAQs for starting a blog
- How do bloggers get paid? Do bloggers make a lot? Money? Reward will blogs survive in 2023?
- How many hours do bloggers work?
- Is blogging difficult? What do bloggers actually do?
- What does blog mean?What means blog?
- Squarespace vs. WordPress: Why should I use WordPress instead of Squarespace?
- How do I become a blogger?
- What is the difference between a blog and a website?
- Are blogs dead?
- Does anyone still read blogs? Is blogging a waste of time?
- Are blogs still relevant in 2023? Is it worth it? to start a blog in 2023? Is it too late to start blogging?
- Should I start a blog or a podcast?
- Do it I need a business to to start a blog?
- Is blogging a realistic career?Careers in blogging have a a future? Is blogging a good career?
- What has replaced blogging?
- What has replaced blogging?
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- What blog content is the best ? What should I blog about?
- What does a good blog look like? What is a blog used for? What makes a good blog?
- What makes a blog successful?
- What type of blog is the most popular? What type of blogs are most searched for? What are popular blogging topics?
- How to start a blog with no money? How to start a blog for free?
- How often should I blog?
- What should my first blog post be about?
- How do you introduce yourself ? on a blog?
- Why do blogs fail?
- Does Bluehost charge monthly or all at once?
- Have a question we haven’t answered? ?
How do bloggers get paid? Do bloggers make a lot of money? Will blogs still be profitable in 2023?
How to make money blogging is the topic that usually interests beginner bloggers the most. At The Minimalists we make money in several ways:
- Creations. By building an audience that values our message, we have been able to offer our three books and our documentary Minimalism to an audience willing to support our creative work. Consequently, all three books were bestsellers and are now being translated into more than a dozen languages; and thanks to Netflix, our documentary is available in 190 countries. (For more information on our book publishing process, see this blog post series: How to Publish an Indie Book.)
- Audience Submissions. Because we refuse to overload our blog or popular podcast with advertising, we rely on audience support to fund the production of our podcast. With more than 5,000 supporters on Patreon and many others via PayPal, The Minimalists Podcast is funded entirely by audience support, which means we can pay for our podcast producer, filmmaker, and studio space without advertising on our platforms.
- Speak. As we built our audience, many organizations, universities and conferences began contacting us to speak at their events. First we start talking for free just to make a name for ourselves. Then we started charging a few hundred dollars per event. Now we can charge significantly more money because the demand for our lectures is high. To date, The Minimalists have spoken at Harvard, Apple, Google, Allstate, SAP, SXSW, TEDx and many other organizations. We talk about a wide range of topics from simple living and “simple work” to health, relationships, writing, publishing, social media, personal growth and posting – and it all started when we started this blog. (Anyone interested in hiring us as a speaker can visit our speaking page for more details.)
- Tours. In the past eight years, The Minimalists have undertaken eight speaking tours, including the 50-city Less Is Now theater tour in 2017, which drew an average of more than 1,000 people per night, with significantly larger audiences in larger cities. Our 2014 Everything That Remains Bookstore Tour visited 119 cities in eight countries and attracted 75,000 visitors.
- Writing Classes. I get countless questions about writing, so I’ve been able to transfer these skills to help hundreds of students improve their writing over the years. I teach a four-week online writing course aimed at improving the writing of people of all skill levels – beginner, intermediate, or pro.
- Amazon Links. When The Minimalists recommend a product like this photo scanner and a reader then purchases that product, we receive a small commission on that sale at no additional cost to our audience. However, we are careful with our recommendations because as minimalists we want you to consume less and consciously.
- Affiliate Sales. When we recommend services like Bluehost and ConvertKit, we receive a referral fee. But again, of course, that’s not why we recommend these services.Virtually every hosting company has an affiliate program, so we feel it’s best to recommend the companies we trust.
Through these various means, Ryan and I are able to earn a full-time income to blog. But it’s worth noting that making money from your blog isn’t the best place to start.
While there’s nothing wrong with making money — which you do through affiliate links, ads, and your own products and services can – The best reason to start blogging is because you have something to express.
If you make money on the side, that’s great. In fact, if you help people solve their problems, you’re guaranteed to make money from your blog — eventually. Let’s remember that there are at least four resources that are more important than money: skills, time, energy and attention.
Nevertheless, let’s not fool ourselves by pretending it’s irrelevant , to make money – that’s not it . Making money from our blog just isn’t the primary driver of our creativity or why we became bloggers. Although people often think of money as the ultimate resource, it’s the least important of the five above.
Money won’t necessarily make your life better, but it will reinforce the behavior you already have. If you have bad habits, more money will make your life significantly worse. And if you’re already a generous person, then more money can help you be more loving, caring, and considerate.
How many hours do bloggers work?
See also: How To Create Log File In Linux Script?
Personally, I write one or two Blog posts per week, mostly in the evenings or weekends so that my other activities don’t get in the way. That’s the beauty of blogging: you can write whenever you want – no one tells you what to do, when to do it, or how much to do. Within five months of learning to blog, you’ll find a rhythm that works for you.
Is blogging hard? What do bloggers actually do?
Starting a blog is fun and easy. With the instructions in this post, you can set up a blog today and start blogging by tonight.
It may sound simple, but bloggers write blog posts. Of course, that’s not all we do. Most bloggers I know are passionate about a certain topic – interior design, rock climbing, music reviews – and they use their blog to express their thoughts and opinions on that topic.
Writing a blog requires no degree or special training. All you need is the desire to communicate with an audience. If you have that, then starting a blog is ideal for you.
What does a blog stand for? What does blog mean?
According to Wikipedia, a blog is a discussion or information website published on the World Wide Web consisting of “discreet, often informal, diary-style text entries (posts)”. The term “weblog” was coined on December 17, 1997 by Jorn Barger. The short form “blog” was coined by Peter Merholz, who jokingly changed the word “weblog” to “we blog” in the sidebar of his blog in 1999.
Today, blogs come in many shapes and sizes. Many are public journals that people use to express their feelings. Others, like this blog, are designed to help people think critically and solve problems.
There are blogs that cover almost every topic, ideology, and interest – from sports and politics to religion and travel and everything in between. Even the biggest news organizations in the world – ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, CNN and MSNBC – all have their own blogs.
Squarespace vs. WordPress: Why should I use WordPress instead of Squarespace?
It feels like we hear about Squarespace on every podcast. But when you compare Squarespace to WordPress, you quickly realize that WordPress is superior in several ways.
While Squarespace isn’t a bad option, it lacks the personal control available with WordPress. That’s why every reputable blogger I know uses a WordPress blog.
Here are five reasons WordPress is better than Squarespace:
- Design (topics). Squarespace offers some beautiful templates, but they’re limited by the number of designs available. Because WordPress is a free, open-source blogging platform, there’s an ecosystem of tens of thousands of themes ready to choose from, ready to meet any want and need. That’s why we recommend starting with the premium themes, designed and powered by our friends over at SPYR. We have worked with SPYR since the early days of The Minimalists and continue to recommend their products and services. (This is not an affiliate link – SPYR just does a great job.)
- Features (Plugins). While Squarespace has a rich feature set, no blogging platform can match the immense range of features that WordPress offers. WordPress has a library of over 54,000 free plugins that can handle any task.While we recommend keeping the number of plugins on your blog to a minimum, the level of customization that WordPress offers is unmatched. Plugins aside, version control is a key feature built into WordPress but not Squarespace. Version control keeps track of your changes and allows you to compare revisions and revert to a version of your page or post at any time.
I use this feature all the time because I know I can quickly revert to the previous version if I’m not happy with anything I’ve changed. This feature provides a resiliency that allows bloggers to self-compose, draft, edit, and publish their posts in WordPress, making it a complete blogging solution.
- Your content is yours
- SEO. Both WordPress and Squarespace are search engine friendly by default. But with a single plugin, WordPress improves your SEO (search engine optimization). One plugin that we recommend to every blogger is Yoast SEO. This free WordPress plugin allows for extensive customization of your on-page SEO, but more impressively, it offers automated content analysis. This helps you improve and optimize your content for better readability and improved search engine reach. While SEO isn’t everything, we all start our blogs hoping people will read what we’ve written. Following proper SEO practices can be a differentiating factor in reaching new people.
- Growth. WordPress is extremely robust and customizable. It allows you to create a blog exactly how you want it. But what happens when your new blog grows? If you’re growing beyond the default option, maybe it’s time to work with a designer to create a fully custom website tailored to your brand and image. Since WordPress gives you complete ownership of the platform, it also gives a designer the freedom to create and create your blog design without any restrictions. Nothing is taboo.
strong>. Owning your content means you have full control over what you express on your blog – and full access to take that content with you and use it anywhere you want. To enable the latter, WordPress provides tools to export your data for use on whatever hosting provider you choose to use. With Squarespace, you can never really download a complete copy of your server files or database, but with WordPress, you can make an exact copy of your blog, anytime. This is most valuable for managing backups or in case you want to restart a blog with a new hosting company. With WordPress, you own 100% of your content, files, data and designs – and everything can be backed up.
How do I become a blogger?
The answer lies in the question: the only way to become a blogger is to start a blog. This may sound too simple, but that’s because it’s not that complicated. By following these steps, you will become a blogger and start blogging today.
- Choose your blog name and get your blog hosting.
- Start your Blog by adding WordPress.
- Choose a simple theme to make your blog your own.
- Add two essential blogging plugins to find your readers and track stats.
- Write compelling content you can create a blog your readers will love.
There’s an old truism: “Authors don’t like to write; they like having written.” I think the opposite is true for bloggers: due to the instant gratification of the WordPress publish button, I find bloggers love to write because they are constantly sharing that writing with the world.
The barrier to entry is gone, so start blogging if you want to become a blogger. It really is that simple.
What is the difference between a blog and a website?
While the lines have blurred over the years, the simplest way to put it is, a blog is a type of website that catalogs a person or organization’s personal or professional thoughts and beliefs over time.
As your thoughts, beliefs, and ideas change, so does your blog. It’s nice to have a time capsule of our thoughts as they have evolved over the last decade.
Are blogs dead?
No, blogs are not “dead”. In fact, blogs are more alive than ever!
In fact, our blog has grown every year since 2010 and now boasts over 3.78 million readers and an email list that keeps growing every month.
Anyone read blogs anymore? Is blogging a waste of time?
Millions of people read our blog every year – and our audience continues to grow because new people find our jobs every day thanks to our blog. But not only The Minimalists are successful. Blogs are popular around the world and are the easiest way to publish content without intermediaries or gatekeepers.
Blogging is the opposite of wasting time. If you have a genuine desire to share your creativity with the world, then this is one of the best “time investments” you can make.Our blog doubles as our practice space—where we share new ideas and writings with the world—as well as a bulletin board that keeps our audience up-to-date with all new developments in the world of minimalism.
Blogs will always exist still relevant in 2023? Is it worth starting a blog in 2023? Is it too late to start blogging?
Starting a blog is arguably more important than ever. Whether you want to publish your writing, build an audience, start a business, or start a podcast, your blog is the home of your creative projects.
Once you start a blog, you’re not dependent on the platforms of others. There’s nothing “wrong” with having an Instagram or TikTok account, but these platforms are short-lived. If they lose importance, then so do you (think MySpace). However, this is not the case with a blog. Because you own your blog, it stays with you no matter where the culture sways.
The best time to start a blog was a decade ago. The second best time is now. If you have an idea you want to share, go ahead!
Should I start a blog or a podcast?
You don’t have to choose one. You can start a blog and start a podcast. We did. After launching our popular blog, which is now read by millions of people, we started a similar podcast which has over 100 million downloads as of the writing of this article. To be honest, our podcast wouldn’t have been as successful if we didn’t also have a blog. So if we had to choose one, we would start a blog. But luckily, if you’re confident in both creative options, you can choose either.
Do I need a company to start a blog?
No, you don’t need a company license to start a blog. Even if you start making money from your blog, you can claim that income against your personal taxes under your name and social security number. It was several years before Ryan and I turned The Minimalists into a limited liability company (LLC).
Is blogging a realistic career? Do blogging careers have a future? Is blogging a good career?
Blogging is still a career for many people, a great way to generate extra income for even more people. But Ryan and I don’t see blogging as a career. Rather, it is an opportunity for us to add value to people’s lives. Of course, if you add enough value, income tends to follow. Blogging has also allowed us to showcase our books, podcasts, films, social media, and other projects that add value to our audience.
What has blogging replaced?
As new forms of media continue to make inroads into the imagery — podcasts, newsletters, social media — nothing replaces a home for your creative work. The Minimalists have a podcast, an email newsletter, and multiple social media accounts, but none of them could ever replace our blog. Instead, we use our blog to point out these additional resources.
What blog content is best? What should I blog about?
We often hear people say that you should blog about what you are passionate about. That’s good advice if you know what that passion is. Maybe it’s technology, finance, baking, music or rock climbing. If so, write about it!
However, if you don’t know what you’re passionate about, don’t worry. You don’t just trip over passion; it is cultivated.
Here are six questions to ask yourself to determine what to blog about:
- What are your values? What you write about, you want it to align with your values.
- What excites you? There will always be drudgery, but when you find something that excites you, you will be able to push yourself through the drudgery.
- What makes you angry? When something doesn’t excite you, anger is often a great motivator. If there’s something in the world you want to change, write about it. It will help inform and reinforce your values.
- How can you solve problems? You will feel fulfilled when you can offer solutions to people’s problems. Coincidentally, writing about solving your own problems also helps other people solve the same problems.
- What if money didn’t matter? If money didn’t matter one factor, what would you do with your life? Yes, you need to make money, but just as important, you want to do something worthwhile. Write about it.
- Who is the person you want to be? Your writing should help you become the person you want to be. Write like you’re writing to make yourself proud in the future.
What does a good blog look like? What is a blog used for? What makes a good blog?
A blog is used for two things: to express something and to communicate. A good blog is able to combine communicative writing and expressive writing to create blog posts that are informative and entertaining.
As you consider how to use your blog to communicate and express yourself, ask yourself these questions:
- What message am I trying to convey?
- Does the text express the emotions you want the reader to feel? What are these emotions?
- How can I make the narrative more urgent?
- Does this sentence serve a purpose?
- Can I shorten this line and still keep my message?
- How can I make this more concise?
- Do I need all those modifiers and qualifiers? (Hint: no!)
- If I eliminated the first two paragraphs, would this piece be better?
- How could I restructure this sentence/paragraph to make it more culminative?
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What makes a blog successful?
You determine what success looks like for your blog. Maybe your goal is to reach a thousand true fans, publish a blog post every day, or build a large audience so you can land a book publishing deal with a major publisher. It’s possible to accomplish any of these feats with your blog (I’ve done all three). Blogging has brought me more success than I ever expected: New York Times bestsellers, millions of readers, international book tours, an Emmy-nominated Netflix film, speeches at Harvard, and more. None of these achievements fit my original idea of success, but as I added value to an audience, I discovered what was possible.
What type of blog is most popular? What type of blogs are most searched for? What are popular blogging topics?
While it’s best to blog about topics that interest you, some of the most searched blog topics are:
- Relationships
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- career guidance
- literature
- movies
- music
- travel
- politics
- Art
- Knitting
- Sports
- Games
- Pets
- Science
- Design
- Local interests
- Food and drink
In short, what convinces you? blog about it! Your blog is more likely to become popular if you are passionate about the topic.
How do you start a blog with no money? How to start a blog for free?
The good news is that starting a blog with WordPress is free. All you have to pay for is hosting as described in the step-by-step guide above.
There are other “free” amateur services like Tumblr or Blogger that you can use to blog on these can start platforms of the company. Just be careful as you may not own your content if you post it on someone else’s site. It’s one of the many reasons we use WordPress.
How often should I blog?
Talking to my writing students, I recommend writing every day and publishing at least one blog post weekly. In this blog we usually publish two blog posts per week. Seth Godin blogs every day.
Whatever you decide, we encourage you to be consistent. Setting a weekly schedule will help you create accountability partners (your readership) so that you feel compelled to write even when you don’t want to write.
What should my first blog post be about?
Avoid grandiosity. Avoid clearing your throat. Your first blog post doesn’t have to be a grandiose mission statement. And your first blog post doesn’t have to be a boring, self-centered introduction to your blog.
Instead, find something that interests you today and write about it. Use the prompts in the “What should I blog about?” section above.
For reference, you can read the first blog post on this blog, circa 2010: Be on the Mountain.
How introduce yourself in a blog?
Don’t worry about introducing yourself in every blog post. Instead, create an “About” page that new readers can refer to if they want to learn more about you, your life, and the projects you work on. Check out The Minimalists’ About page for an example. Our friend Derek Sivers also has a wonderful Now page that might work for you.
Why do blogs fail?
There are at least three reasons why blogs fail:
- Some bloggers have bad expectations. If you start a blog today and expect a million readers overnight, prepare for failure. But if your motivation is genuine – if you want to add value to the world – then you will find that your expectations change.
- Some bloggers don’t add value. Instead of metrics like subscribers or followers, The Minimalists focus on providing value to our audience. If you help people solve problems, success will come from it – not the other way around.
- Some bloggers put money first. There’s nothing wrong with blogging for a living (we do), but it doesn’t have to be the primary goal. Good blogs make money; great blogs make a difference. In other words, we leave money in the car, but it’s never the driver.
Does Bluehost charge monthly or all at once?
Bluehost bills annually, so if you use our link, you get the discounted price of $2.95 per month You will be billed for the entire first year.
That means if for any reason you decide it’s not right for you, Bluehost offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. Guarantee.
Other Blogging Questions
Have a question about becoming a blogger that isn’t answered above? Tweet @theminimalists with your question and a link to this essay.
Ask your question
See also: How Much Does an App Development Cost in India? A 2023 Detailed Guide
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