It’s no secret that blogs in various industries help share critical information on their websites. For many businesses, blogs are what help promote specific products and services. There are 409 million users who see almost 20 billion pages in the General Blogging Stats alone. With this considered, results have shown that companies who use blog posts as part of their strategy get 97% more links to their website. For sure, blogging is one of the best conversion rates strategies that e-commerce sellers could implement.
Hence, the saliency of blog posts is highly-evident. In this article, you will learn how to create a WordPress blog in 10 easy steps. Keep reading!
What is blogging?
In essence, blogging refers to the self-publication of writing, photography, and other online material. A brief history of blogging starts with it being a tool for individuals to post journal-style entries to become a strategy for promoting businesses’ websites. By 2022, WordPress users will have produced 70 million blog entries each month. Today, blogging stands out because of frequent updates, informal language, and opportunities for readers to engage in conversation.
10 easy steps to create a WordPress blog
Now that you’re aware of the essence of blogging, it’s your turn to create one on WordPress! Follow along with these simple instructions for building a WordPress blog.
Step 1: WordPress as your hosting plan
The first step is to ensure that you have your hosting plan set up. For the most part, web hosting services function by using a dependable and stable secure storage space — this is a critical component of their service. What’s important to know is that the data is stored on hardware known as web servers by hosts that allow easy access and maintenance by users. WordPress, as a hosting plan, is one of the most popular and widely used Content Management Systems (CMSs) nowadays. In addition, WordPress powers more than one-third of the internet.
You have two web hosting choices for WordPress: (1) WordPress.com and (2) WordPress.org. For a quick comparison, WordPress.com, on the one hand, is limited in terms of customization options and control over your site and domain and, lastly, less flexible. On the other hand, WordPress.org, as a hosting provider, WordPress.org offers a plethora of additional customization choices, including plugins.
Step 2: Enlist your domain name
Pick your WordPress hosting plan and register your blog’s domain name. Your domain name is your website address, so by selecting a strategic and recognizable domain name, you’re boosting your website’s SEO and protecting your brand’s foundation. Keep the domain name as straightforward as possible as you brainstorm different options. It should ideally be both expressive and descriptive of your brand. For instance, consider using your name as the domain to build a personal blog website. Alternatively, you might consider choosing a name representing the blog’s purpose.
Step 3: Install WordPress for free
After you have set up your web hosting account and registered your business domain, install WordPress next. Installing WordPress is free, and the most convenient approach to install WordPress is through your web server.
The first step to installing WordPress is to complete the sign-up process. Upon registration, you will have access to a page that indicates a “My Sites” section. Click this section to access the “Create Site” button. At this point, you should be able to enter all the necessary information for your site’s name and credentials to administer your WordPress blog. Once you’re in, you’ll be able to navigate through your dashboard and set up the customizations of your new WordPress blog!
Step 4: Pick a blog title
Now that you’ve completed the foundation and structure of your WordPress blog, it’s time to choose a title for your website. Your blog’s title is essential as it is displayed at the top of the page. Consider something brief, memorable, and related to your site’s domain name.
Step 5: WordPress theme
Visuals are crucial for keeping visitors on your site or building an online community Therefore, one essential factor to consider while creating your blog is your blog theme. A theme is a visual feature that is applied to your WordPress website. It greatly influences how your blog looks, feels, and functions. Considering navigation and page layouts are a huge part of building sites.
At this point, your website will be dressed in a simple default theme and can appear very plain. Fortunately, various website themes are available to select from to improve the aesthetics of your blog and align it with your brand and target audience.
Step 6: Blog’s header and cover image
Just like a Twitter bio and banner can influence its image from a viewer’s perspective, your blog’s header and cover image can significantly impact how your readers feel about your blog. A blog’s header and cover image are one of the most visual aspects in customizing your WordPress blog and elevating your design. In WordPress, you can add your header by navigating “Appearance” and click “Header.” From there, you can upload the image of your choosing.
Writers and bloggers should consider the required dimensions before uploading images for your website. It’s essential to select a high-quality image that will scale appropriately across all screen sizes, accommodating various devices. The device icons are found at the bottom of the Background Image tab. You can change them to see how your image will appear on different devices. This is crucial because, most of the time, your image might look better on a desktop than on a phone. When finished, click the Save & Publish button in the top right corner. In this section, you’ll also have the option to view other customization options for your website.
Step 7: Customize your blog using plugins
Plugins are additional features that can be installed on your WordPress site that can elevate the level of customization of your website. For example, web plugins can assist a blogger or content marketer in tracking the performance of their website, creating email campaigns, gathering visitor data, and providing useful visual and functional elements to visitors. What’s good about having WordPress as a blog hosting platform is its abundant plug-ins at your fingertips. WordPress plugins can improve your blog’s appearance and functionality. Similar to themes, these are add-ons that you install on your website, but instead of changing the appearance or structure of your site, their primary purpose is to provide new functions. For instance, you can create interesting and funny quizzes with a WordPress plugin for quiz and engage your users.
Even without writing any HTML or CSS, you can customize your WordPress blog’s plugins. To do this, follow these steps:
- Navigate to Plugins
- Activate the Custom Login Page Customizer Plugin
- Press on Appearance
- Proceed to the Login Customization section
- Do the Customization
- Save and Publish
Step 8: Google Analytics for your WordPress.
Like social media campaigns, some blog posts will be more popular than others. The key is knowing which blog posts receive the most traffic and which topics interest your audience the most. This can be tracked on Google Analytics, which allows you to identify high-traffic pages. The good news? Google Analytics is free! All you have to do is install it for thorough insights into your website traffic behavior. With Google Analytics, you can better understand how your audience interacts with the content by examining data patterns and modifying your strategies as necessary.
Step 9: Write your first blog post.
Now that your WordPress blog is set up and customized to your liking, you can get to the fun part: using WordPress for blogging! It’s time to get writing, and here, you can get a significant advantage by using your knowledge, style, and personality on the topic you wish to write about.
Say, for example, you’re writing about Amazon FBA selling. To create your first blog post, go to your WordPress dashboard’s left-hand menu and select Posts, then Add New. When writing, WordPress allows you to explore several features! For example, you may include multiple blocks for various sections and provide a blog post title. Additionally, you can carefully structure your blog using separate content blocks for text, graphics, headers, lists, and the like. You are now prepared to begin writing and posting on your new WordPress blog.
Step 10: Boost and assess your posts
A big part of creating a successful blog is having the right marketing strategy to boost your posts. Once implemented, you can more easily assess which posts are doing well and which are not. Here are a few tips you can use for a successful blogging journey:
- Ensure that your blog is searchable.
- Create visuals that complement your blog posts.
- Write quality blog content and repurpose well-performing ones.
- Institute links to your sites.
- Boost your blogs on social media.
- Write guest posts on popular blogs.
- Use SEO tools and regularly check your website performance.
Summing up
With all the benefits that blogging offers — traffic, authority, content, and networking, it’s evident that it is fundamental to various business websites. Blogging is vital for businesses to grow their brand, attract more customers, and enhance website traffic. As we all know, marketing is dynamic, and one method for companies of all sizes and types to reach their present or future clients is by including blogs in their strategies.
When starting, it is critical to remember that blogging success does not happen overnight. Use the initial phase of this project to build a solid foundation and ensure your blog’s long-term success. Without a solid promotion strategy, even the best blog content cannot engage readers and convert customers. Use these blog promotion strategies to increase your readership and convert more customers. It takes time, but the results are worth it!
