This article is made for beginners to learn how to create a successful blogging website within minutes and guess what? You don't need any coding knowledge whatsoever.
Without further adieu, let's dive in.
What is Blogging? Explained
What is a blog? A blog, in the simplest of definitions, is a website that provides emphasis on written content. Now, that doesn't mean you should stick to written content only.
These days, blogs do include visual elements through images, infographics and video content. The idea is to make it as simple for viewers to gain access to the information you're providing.
Blogging allows you to share with the world the things that you're passionate about. Bloggers normally write about personal experiences or views, which helps them connect with users.
See, it's about building a community of readers. A strong and loyal readership will make your blog trustworthy, which in turn will help you make money blogging.
When it comes to blog content, you can write about anything, but it is better to stick to a blog niche. You can write about photography or be a travel blogger, the possibilities are endless.
You can set up a blog as a stand-alone website or as part of a webpage for your already existing website.
Before heading into the guide, let's look at some of the reasons why an individual would want to create a blogging website:
- To start making money online.
- To start building a personal brand.
- A medium to share passion and opinions.
- To educate others and become an expert in a specific niche.
How to Create a Blogging Website Online
Here are 10 steps on how to create a blog and write your first blog post:
- Find the right blog niche
- Choose Pixpa as your blogging platform
- Choose a blog name and domain
- Determine your tone of voice
- Begin designing your blog
- Include categories and pages
- Brainstorm blog topics and content strategy
- Start writing and publish your first blog
- Promote your blog
- Make money from your blog
1. Find the right blog niche
Choosing a blog niche is one of the most important steps you need to consider before you start a blog page.
So, what is a blog niche? It is basically the main subject that surrounds the content of your blog. In simple terms, it is the topic your blog will be focusing on.
For instance, photography, food, fashion, and gaming are blog niches. Yes, they can be general topics, but there are opportunities to delve deeper into specific areas.
If we talk about photography, you can write about food photography or provide tips on how to become a photographer and so on.
Think of it as a filter providing vital insights that will help you in creating an effective blogging strategy. Here are a few things blog niche can assist you with:
- Identify your target audience
- Narrow down content that is specific to the industry and topic you're focusing on.
Always remember to stick to a niche, as it is the only way to develop a loyal community or following. This is necessary if you want to maintain steady website traffic and attract readership.
Here are a few tips to help you get started with finding the right niche:
Choose a niche that is of interest to you
The idea here is not to push yourself to write blog posts. Making money is one thing, but most importantly, when writing blog content, you should enjoy yourself first and not get bored. Look into what interests you or your hobbies, and list them down.
Ask yourself these questions: What are the things that I love to talk about? What topics do I tend to learn more about? By doing this, you should be able to get a few ideas.
For instance, let's take the same niches: photography, food, fashion, and gaming. Now, lets move more into specific niches under these topics.
I'm going to choose food as an example to explain further. For food blogs, you can target niches such as:
Cuisine - Indian, Italian, Spanish
Diet - Gluten-free, Keto, Pescatarian
Gym or activity - Weight lifting, yoga
Through this, you not only get ideas to create articles but also help to narrow down your target audience.
Never select a topic merely based on popularity. In the long term, it can really hamper your motivation to get your blog up and running.
Determine if there is an audience for the niche you choose
To maintain a loyal readership, you need to have an audience. You can earn money only by ensuring constant traffic to your blog. This is only possible if you have a target audience.
How do you find out the demand? A great way to start off is to look at Google Trends. It gives you an idea of the number of searches for that particular niche.
For example, 'Vegan food' and 'Keto food' are selected as the two search terms. From the image you can clearly spot that there is a steady search volume for Vegan food, making it a good option for a blog niche.
Keto food has a lower search volume, meaning there isn't much interest in that topic. Now, that doesn't mean you should stay clear of that niche. It gives you an overall picture of the popularity of that particular topic.
Another great way will be to check out social media groups and forums such as Reddit or Quora to know what people are talking about your niche.
You don't have to be an expert in the subject matter to create a blog
Being an expert in the topic you want to start, blogging is a great plus point, but it's not a requirement. Determination to research and learn more will eventually lead you to flourish as an expert.
For instance, you might not be a food critic, but that does not stop you from starting a food blog where you provide your opinion on dishes, restaurants, and more.
2. Choose Pixpa as your blogging platform
Now that you've decided on the niche you want to write about, it's time to choose a blogging platform to set up your blog.
Just like any other type of website, to build a blog, you need a platform, and that's where website builders come into play.
Website builders are a perfect solution if you're someone who is looking to create profitable blog posts without the hassle of learning how to code.
Pixpa is a great option for bloggers to build stunning blogging websites. It has all the tools you need to get your blog online within minutes.
Choose from a library of 150+ customizable templates and use the drag and drop editor for customizable blog layouts, fine-tune the visual elements of your blog, and much more.
Why should you create a blogging website with Pixpa? Check out some of our top features:
Stunning and customizable templates: With over 150+ customizable templates dedicated to creatives such as bloggers, Pixpa is the perfect option. Most importantly, Pixpa enables you to change templates even after your site is live. A unique feature that other website builders don't provide.
Blogging features: Pixa has all the high-level features required for you to create a successful blogging website. Features include adding multiple blogs, scheduling blog posts, moderating comments, built-in RSS feed, and adding customizable sidebars.
Excellent customer support: Pixpa’s customer support is available 24/7 via email or live chat to help build your blog. The team will help you every step of the way to ensure that all your queries are covered.
Explore Pixpa to create a blog today.
3. Choose a blog name and domain
The next and most crucial step in your journey to create a blogging website is to create a unique blog name. When it comes to choosing a name, always ensure it is relevant to your brand and industry.
Here are a few ways to keep in mind when considering a blog name:
- Bloggers' first and last names.
- Utilize relevant keywords that are part of the niche.
- Keep your blog name short and avoid including any numbers or special characters.
If you're brainstorming ideas for your blog, blog name generators can be a great solution. Additionally, ChatGPT can also be a great avenue for you to generate relevant blog names. Please note that these two strategies will provide you with a great starting point, but don't choose them as your final solution.
Here's an example of ChatGPT, listing out suggestions for vegan food blog names.
Once you have finalized the blog name, it's time to choose the domain name for your blog. A domain is basically the site's URL or address (www.pixpa.com). Generally, your domain name should resemble the blog name.
Using your name as a domain is common when creating an online portfolio or a resume website. But when it comes to a blog, it is better to include a domain similar to your blog's name.
You can connect your custom domain with your Pixpa website. You also get free 1 year domain registration with annual and bi-annual subscription plans (except Basic plan). Moreover, your Pixpa website will be hosted on Pixpa's fully managed cloud hosting. So you don't have to purchase a web hosting service separately.
4. Determine your tone of voice
No matter the type of niche you wish to write about, you need to make sure you maintain a tone of voice.
Tone of voice is the way an individual speaks to someone. In blog posts, tone of voice is the style and language you use to express your opinions and convey your message.
Your tone can be friendly, professional, serious, or funny. Style can include the way you structure your blogs. For example, do you detail information in a simple, concise format or include data to explain concepts further?
Finally, language is all about the words you use. This depends on the audience and the content you write about. If your blog is about tech reviews, then you're more likely to use technical words to explain your point.
Your tone of voice should always remain consistent, only then will you be able to strike a connection with your readers and be seen as a valuable source of information for your niche.
5. Begin designing your blog
Now that you've gained an understanding of the type of blog articles you want to write, the blog title, tone of voice, and domain name, you can finally begin designing your blog.
Choosing a blog theme or template is the first step in the blog designing process. Website builders such as Pixpa provide beautiful and functional pre-designed blog templates that you can select and customize according to your liking.
In this step, you really need to define the look and mood your website should showcase. Are you looking for a minimalistic design or something that is complex with a ton of visual elements?
Color also plays a pivotal role in driving audience reactions and impressions. When you choose a color, always ensure that it correctly represents the emotion you want to convey. Different colors invoke various emotions and understanding that will help your blog receive the necessary traction.
Here are some blog templates available on Pixpa for you to try out.
6. Include categories and pages
When you include content on your website, make sure to add the following pages before you go live:
Homepage: This is the first page a visitor will come across once they enter your domain name. In this section, make sure you add a short introductory statement about yourself, links to specific blog posts, and social media handles. Make sure to provide a clear structure for users to locate other pages.
About Us page: This section allows visitors to learn more about you and your reason for starting a blog. You can also include a photo to help connect with your target audience on a personal level.
Check out our blog to learn how to create the perfect About Us page.
Contact Page: This page is all about providing an avenue for your audience to reach you. Under this section, you can include your phone number and email address. You also have the option to add a contact form if you don't want to disclose personal information.
Once your site is live, it's time to include a Blog Page. This is where you store every blog post you write and add new posts. Through this page, you impart knowledge, tips, facts, and opinions about your niche to your audience.
Categorizing posts is also very important because it helps greatly with user experience and structure. Organizing blog posts via clusters makes it easy for your audiences to locate the right articles.
7. Brainstorm blog topics and content strategy
Congratulations on creating your website! The technical aspect of starting a blog is done. This step is about brainstorming blog post ideas and creating a solid content strategy.
There are many ways to round up good ideas, one method is to really delve deep by putting yourself in the shoes of the target audience.
Note down the type of subjects your target audiences are interested in most. Understand the challenges they face in your niche. Use social media groups and other forums to see what your audiences are asking about. Through this method, you'll be able to generate good ideas.
Another strategy is the topic cluster model. It is normally considered an SEO strategy, but it can greatly benefit your blog by clearly structuring your posts and aiding in generating new ideas.
Under a topic cluster model, there will be a pillar page that provides a broad summary of the topic. Now, you can add multiple cluster pages, which can act as several sub-topics relating to pillar page topics.
For example, let's say the pillar topic is vegan food. Now, you can divide it into subtopics such as Vegan cooking tips and recipes, which can then again be subdivided into Vegan breakfast ideas, Vegan lunch ideas, and Vegan dinner recipes.
8. Start writing and publish your first blog
Ready to create your blog? Follow these valuable tips when you write a new blog post:
- Follow a structured formatting: Make complete use of the heading, sub-heading, and lists while you write your blog post. The benefit is two fold as it helps make your content easily readable to your audience and serves as a great SEO practice.
- Keep the content simple and clear: Use language that is easy to understand, and try to avoid paragraphs with more than three sentences.
- Always carry out a plagiarism check: No matter if it's your first blog or your 50th, make sure you run your content onto a plagiarism checker and see if there are any similarities to other content written in your niche.
- Add visual elements: Bloggers make sure to include images, infographics, and videos, if possible, in your blog posts. Infographics and charts allow you to share vital numbers and break down content for those audiences to skim.
- Carry out good SEO practices: To improve your search engine visibility, you need to ensure you're targeting the right keywords, including CTA's (call-to-action), writing image alt for visual elements, adding relevant internal and external links, and keyword optimizing the meta title and meta description.
After you've completed your writing, now the next step involves publishing the blog. Here are some best practices to follow:
- Go through the content and carry out the final grammar checks.
- See if the links included are functioning and if all the visual elements are included.
- Ensure the anchor text effectively describes the blog post title.
Once the checklist is completed, you can publish your first blog.
9. Promote your blog
In this stage, your aim is to promote the blog. Sure, your blog may have great content, but if you don't promote it, then you can't expect website visits and, in turn, make money as a blogger. You need to formulate a marketing strategy to help bring traffic to your blog.
Optimize your blog with SEO
If you're looking to start bringing in website traffic through organic means, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the best option. Effective SEO leads to blogs ranking high on the Search Engine Results Page (SERP).
Here are a few tips to help scale your efforts in SEO:
- Carry out keyword research: Try to target long-tail keywords. They are phrases that are made from 3-5 words. For example, "start a blogging website" is a long-tail keyword. Use keyword research tools such as Google Trends, Ahrefs, and Semrush to find keywords with low competition.
- Website performance checks: Always ensure your page loading speed is up to the mark. A good page speed score will positively affect your SEO performance. Use PageSpeed Insights to analyze and make necessary changes to your page speed.
- On-page SEO: Make sure you're applying some of these on-page SEO practices, such as including keywords in the titles, using heading tags, adding a meta title and meta description, and incorporating alt text for your images.
- Connect the website to Google Search Console: This tool allows you to analyze and track the number of impressions, clicks, and average rankings of your website for different queries.
- URL: Each webpage on your website has a unique URL. Having a strong URL that includes your target keyword is important for climbing higher in the search rankings.
Communicate with your target audience
If you come across comments on your blog posts, reply to them. Engagement is key if you want to build a community and a loyal readership. Comment on your readers' questions, solve their queries, and thank them for the positive feedback.
Create an editorial calendar and post regularly
If you want your blog to be successful, maintaining an editorial calendar is a must. An editorial calendar allows you to publish blog posts regularly and helps you stick to your blog goals.
If you do not post regularly or follow your editorial calendar, your readership will likely dip. This can, therefore, really impact traffic and search rankings.
Pro Tip: To start off with, try posting at least once a week so your readers are aware of your blog post schedule. Once you get comfortable with publishing, you can increase your efforts.
Utilize social media
Social media is a great avenue to promote your blog. As mentioned above, include links to your social accounts to your blog so that your readers can follow you and stay updated. Make sure you have accounts created on Facebook, X, Instagram, and YouTube.
Now, don't just include links to social media accounts for the sake of it. Add refreshing content by way of sharing news or interesting articles that are part of your niche, provide short-form content of your blog to entice readers to read more, and engage with your followers.
Guest Blogs
Guest blogs are a part of collaborating with other bloggers who are in your niche. It involves creating content for other websites.
Through guest blogs, you can achieve good exposure by way of backlinks, which can greatly improve your SEO efforts.
Now, when approaching to write a guest post, always make sure the chosen website is part of your niche and is aligned with the content you write.
10. Make money from your blog
You've done your promotion work and have achieved a large and loyal audience. This step is about finding ways to make money through your blog.
So, how do you monetize your blog? Here are a few methods:
Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing is a business model wherein people join up with the brand and promote its product or services in return for a commission. Basically, if your target audience purchases a product or service through the link you've provided, you receive a commission.
Commission can vary between brands and the type of product or service they offer. It can range from 10% to 30%.
Sponsored post
Another way through which you can monetize a blog is via sponsored posts. In this method, you're basically writing about the products or services offered by a company. To be eligible for a sponsored post, your blog must attract a good deal of traffic and readership in the niche that the brand represents.
Subscriptions
Create valuable content that can be unlocked by your audience through paid subscriptions. The content that you include must be premium and, most importantly, should not diminish the content you're providing for free.
Subscriptions are not just restricted to content, you can also provide consultations or access to a private forum for readers.
Digital downloads
Digital downloads such as e-books, courses, video tutorials, and podcasts are some of the common ways bloggers earn money through their blogs.
As these are all digital mediums, there are no overheads such as shipping costs you need to think about, and hence, you can either offer good discounts or charge less for the digital downloads. Explore Pixpa's integrated e-commerce capabilities.
Blog Website Examples Built Using Pixpa’s Blogging Platform
1. Michael Cordey
Micheal Cordey's stunning photography blog is a sight for sore eyes. The homepage begins with a slideshow showcasing his vibrant photography. A brilliant use of Pixpa's scale template.
As you scroll down, you are treated to different categorizations designed in a grid format. You can view the entire album by interacting with the images. Michael has also linked his Instagram account at the bottom for audiences to learn more about him and his work.
2. Guinnah
Guinnah is a personal blog that uses Pixpa's stunning Redwood template. The design used for the travel blog is minimalistic and simple.
The preview for the blogs can be seen on the home page, along with the title and date in a grid format. Including comment sections is a good touch for interacting with audiences. The structure is simple, allowing users to easily navigate to the 'Blog' and 'About' pages.
3. Atul Pratap Chauhan
Atul Pratap Chauhans travel blog features top hotels and destinations he has covered. With the help of Pixpa's Glow template, he's been able to portray the preview to his blogs in a grid format.
Every preview is a clickable link that takes a user to its dedicated page, where you get to see visual storytelling at its finest through beautiful imagery.
Check out more blog examples created on Pixpa here.
4. Unco
Unco is a writer, musician, and artist based in Scotland. The blog was created using Pixpa's eye-catching Compose template.
A user who visits the home page is introduced to a preview of blogs in a grid format which is accompanied by an image and a description enticing viewers to read more. The site follows a minimalistic trend and is structured perfectly, allowing a seamless experience for users.
5. 2KOOL SOUNDS
2KOOL SOUNDS is a music blog that uses the Thames template to highlight show reviews of various music artists. The black theme allows for visual and written elements to pop out, ensuring the audience's attention to the blog.
Each blog post provides a detailed review, along with high-quality images and a comment section for audiences to interact with the writer.
Tips and Best Practices for Your First Blog Website
Refresh and repurpose your content
Information is everchanging. For example, a blog on the 'Best phone in 2020' won't be applicable to readers in 2024. Every blogger needs to keep an eye out for this.
Refreshing outdated content is not just beneficial from the reader's point of view but also helps improve your search engine rankings. Google prioritizes content that is recent, helpful, and high-quality.
Audit your content to determine which blogs need to be refreshed, analyze current trends, and repurpose content accordingly.
Maintain a structured blog format
Every blogger must consider the structure of their blog before publishing it. Nowadays, content is read on multiple devices, and it's important to cater to all.
Bloggers need to make sure that the readability of their blogs is good. How to improve readability? Here are a few tips:
- Structure headings.
- Make use of bulleted points to break your copy into skimmable sections.
- Utilize short and easy words.
- Try to shorten your paragraphs into sentences.
Utilize proofreading tools
Try to make use of proofreading tools or plugins whilst you write content. The tools allow you to easily catch grammatical mistakes or spelling errors on the go.
Proofreading tools such as Grammarly and QuillBot provide great suggestions that allow you to convey your points more clearly and concisely.
If you frequently repeat words, a thesaurus tool is a great solution for finding accurate synonyms to replace them and enhance your content.
Always remember that an article that is free from errors can help increase your credibility as a writer and an expert in the eyes of readers.
Setup an email marketing strategy
Why opt for e-mail marketing? E-mail marketing is an effective method for cost and management. Additionally, it boasts a high return on investment compared to other marketing channels.
One way through which you can kick-start your e-mail marketing strategy is via e-mail lists. E-mail lists allow you to:
- Establish a direct and personal connection with your audience.
- Allows you to send valuable content about your blog.
- Help build trust and credibility by offering a direct line of communication.
How can you build an e-mail list?
- Provide incentives in the form of e-books, courses, or templates.
- Use pop-ups to drive sign-ups.
- Giveaways are also an effective strategy to grow email subscribers.
- Craft creative CTA's that provide value to entice users to sign up.
Generate additional content from your blog
We all know that to make a blog, it does take time to carry out ample research. With that in mind, as a blogger, you need to find creative ways to convert blogs into short content.
Imagine you're writing an article on the '10 best vegan recipes'. You can create an infographic showing the instructions to make each vegan meal and publish it on your social media handles. With this strategy, you can link your article, allowing interested audiences to visit your article for in-depth information.
Another method can be to place a hook. Which means to include a short snippet of information or a quote to entice the audience to read more.
Don't just stick to one way to monetize a blog
In the long run, one of the main reasons to start a blogging website is to make money from it. We have previously discussed a few strategies you can employ to generate income from your blog.
We advise you to test out different blog monetization techniques and see how your audiences react to them. Certain audiences might feel banner ads are spam, which can cause a high bounce rate.
As a blogger, you need to strike a fine balance between finding the right monetization technique for your blog in a way that does not affect your reader's experience.
Ready to Start a Blogging website and Write Your First Blog Post?
I hope this guide has been useful in helping you answer the question of how to start a blog. The boom in technology, especially the emergence of website builders has really helped nurture new bloggers to write high-quality content.
Finally, when you are thinking about starting a blog, always ensure that you have an interest in the subject area. If not, it will become really difficult for you to publish content and make money from it.
FAQs
How to Start a Blogging website
Do bloggers make money blogging?
Yes, as a blogger, you can earn a full-time income through blogging alone. However, just like any other business, hard work, time, and dedication are pillars of a successful blog.
The idea is to stick to your content plan. Generate high-quality content panned toward your target persona, promote your content, and remain patient. Above all, don't be discouraged if you don't see results straight away.
Bloggers can make money through affiliate marketing, sponsored posts, banner ads, and subscriptions.
Can I start a blogging website for free?
Yes, there are various platforms that'll allow you to start a blogging website for free. However, there are various drawbacks to using free platforms that can hinder your progress.
Limited customization options, storage space, and lack of security are some of the common issues with free platforms.
Another option is to opt for website builders such as Pixpa, which offers high-level features, customization options, stunning pre-made templates, and the ability to monetize your blog, all at affordable rates.
Is blogging worth it in 2024?
Yes, blogs are still seen as valuable sources of information by individuals and businesses. No one is going to say no to free information. All you have to do is write relevant and up-to-date articles that are part of your niche and panned toward your specific target audience.
Is blogging a good option as a side hustle?
Yes, blogging is a good side hustle, especially if you're looking for a low-cost way to earn extra money. However, you still need to be committed to the cause by sticking to your editorial calendar and not deterring from your blogging goals.