How to Start A Blog (Step by Step!)

If you’re here because you want to know how to start a blog, you’re in the right place! Maybe you want to be a mom blogger so you can make new friends, express your creativity, or make extra money from home!

Whatever your goal is, it’s totally possible with a blog!

Because I truly believe that blogging is one of the BEST hobbies for moms. You’re able to:

• write while your children are sleeping
• travel whenever you want
• create a flexible schedule to do more of the things you love
• and make an income without ever leaving the house!

Plus, you DON’T even need to be great with computers.

And because I’m often asked by SO MANY women that aren’t tech-savvy how to start a mom blog successfully (and for cheap!), I decided to create this step-by-step tutorial that shows you how to set up your own WordPress blog the easiest way I know how.

I’m going to walk you through each step so you can have your blog up and running in just 10 minutes – without learning a single line of code!

Step 1: Choose Your Topic.

Knowing what topic you’re going to write about is so important. It’s the thing that can totally make or break your blog. So if you don’t like to write, then blogging may not be for you.

But, if you do enjoy writing you should write about what you know! Here are some possible blog topic ideas you can write about:

• Home
• Family/Life
• Parenting
• Food
• Finance
• Crafts
• DIY
• Small business
• The outdoors
• Fitness and health
• Inspiration and advice
• Animals
• Travel
• Games
• Relationships
• School
• Photography
• Electronics, and more!

If you noticed, some of the ideas above are bolded. That’s because these are the most popular blog topics on the internet. That means there are millions of people searching for answers and advice in these areas!

So if you have something to give, go for it!

But it’s totally normal if this takes a little longer for you to figure out. (It took me a year and a half, but I wouldn’t advise spending longer than two weeks on this.)

Like many moms, I had a lot of interests. The best advice I can give you is to choose one main topic or audience so you can write content that solves their problems, then you can have multiple subtopics as long as it relates to your blog’s main topic/audience.

Step 2: Pick a domain name.

If you thought that choosing a blog topic was overwhelming, choosing the right name for your blog name is going to feel like a pain in the you-know-what!

Because over the past 5 years, I’ve spent hundreds on domain names I never even used. So if you get stuck at this step, I totally get it.

The good news is, when you sign up for a self-hosting account through Bluehost, you get your domain name for FREE! (a $15 value). Here are a few tips to help you choose the perfect domain name for your blog:

• Always go with a .COM extension. It’s much more professional-looking than a .me, .about, or whatever else out there you find. If your www.YOURBLOG.com domain is not available then you can go with a www.YOURBLOG.org or www.YOURBLOG.net extension.
• Choose a name that represents your brand. It should describe your content or blog topic in a nutshell so your readers know exactly what to expect from you! Some real-life examples of brilliant blog names you might know and love include: Making Cents of Cents, Money Saving Mom, Krazy Coupon Lady, Living Well Spending Less, and Happy Wives Club.
• Don’t spend too much time thinking up the perfect name. If all else fails, you can always just brand yourself! This will work great if you want to start a lifestyle blog or become a subject-matter expert in your niche. Some big names that do this well include MelyssaGriffin.com and NomadicMatt.com (a travel blogger). So by branding yourself, people remember who YOU are and what you represent!

Step 3: Choose Your Hosting.

If you want to make money from your blog one day (of course, you do!), then you NEED to invest in self-hosting. I simply cannot stress this enough.

Sure, you could blog on a free platform like WordPress.com, but you’ll only run the risk of having your website and all of its content completely shut down.

Free platforms like this don’t like bloggers making money. So having a self-hosted website means you own your little home on the internet and you won’t have to worry about getting kicked out!

But how much is this going to cost me?

When I was starting this blog I was on a tight, and I mean TIGHT, budget. That’s why I recommend choosing Bluehost for your hosting needs right now.

Then, as your traffic grows, you can upgrade to a better hosting plan later!

I also love that Bluehost is extremely affordable. You can start a blog for as low as $3.95 a month – which is cheaper than ordering coffee every day!

Here are more reasons I recommend Bluehost for beginners:

• It’s super simple to use. Yes, ANY mom can create a WordPress blog easily with my tutorial below. Bluehost makes it so easy to install WordPress in 1-click!
• Did I mention Bluehost has 24/7 technical support? So if you happen to break the internet, there’s always somebody standing by to help you fix your website 24/7!
• Bluehost is EXTREMELY affordable. They have a hosting plan for every budget, so you can literally start your own blog for about $0.13 a day! Plus, your domain name is FREE when you sign up for Bluehost here! (a $15 value)
• WordPress through Bluehost is 100% FREE. No hidden fees or extra costs.
• Free Website Security. Every website hosted at Bluehost is given a free SSL certificate that lets your readers know your website is secure.
• Peace of mind. Bluehost has a 30-day hosting money-back guarantee if you’re not happy with your account, you can cancel for a refund!

So, now that I’ve convinced you to set up your blog on WordPress using Bluehost, the next thing you need to do is head over to Bluehost right now to continue following along.

>>>Click here to get started<<<

Step 4: Set Up Your Blog On Bluehost.

1. Choose Your Hosting Plan. The “Basic” package is a good place to start for new blogs, and as your blog grows you can always switch to a different plan.

2. Register Your FREE Domain Name! Here is where you can enter the domain name you chose for your blog in Step #2. If you already own a domain name that is registered elsewhere, you can still use it with your Bluehost account! You’ll just need to change your domain’s settings to point to Bluehost.

If you’re still stuck on what to name your blog, just register your own name for now. But whatever you decide, remember to keep it simple, short, memorable, and congruent with your blog topic.

3. Buy Hosting For Your Blog. Starting a WordPress blog on Bluehost is super easy. But let’s cover the costs of blogging:

• It’s only $3.95 to get started (due upfront for the first 36 months). The regular price is $7.99 per month. It’s currently on sale and I don’t know how much longer these prices will last so take advantage of it now!
• I suggest you sign up for the 36-month plan to get the cheapest pricing. Plus, you won’t have to worry about your website expiring or losing out on traffic and money because you forget to renew your hosting plan. Bluehost also has 12 and 24-month hosting plans available if that better fits your budget.
• The other item you’ll want to pay for is Domain Privacy Protection, which is only $0.99 per month. This keeps your contact information safe from the public domain directory.

That’s it! You won’t need to buy anything extra for your blog at this time.

So here’s a quick recap of what we’ve done so far:

1. Go to Bluehost and click the “Get Started Now” button.
2. Click on the Basic hosting plan.
3. Enter your FREE domain name.
4. Enter your personal and payment information.
5. Choose your hosting term (12, 24, or 36 months)
6. Complete your order!

Step 5: Install WordPress.

This is where things get fun! Bluehost makes it very easy to create a WordPress blog automatically and it is FREE! Seriously, with just 1-click you’ll have your very own WordPress blog!

1. When you first log into your account you’ll be redirected to the My Account Home Page. Scroll to the “Website” section and click the “Install WordPress” button.
   

   

2. On the next page, you’re going to choose the Domain Name you’d like to install WordPress on. Leave the directory area blank for now and click “Next.”
3. This final step is super important. You will need to enter your blog’s name, contact email address, and create an admin username with a strong password. Your admin username/password combination is what you’ll use to log into your Dashboard!
   

   

4. Log into your WordPress Admin Dashboard using the credentials you entered in the previous step.
   

   

Woo-hoo!! You’ve just learned how to start a blog successfully without breaking the internet. Now it’s time to design your site and start creating content! 🙂