How to Start a Blog and Make Money | Complete Start Guide for brands

Why should you start a blog?

There are so many positive reasons to start a blog. I started blogging to really centralize ideas and content. Help me reach out to like-minded peoples. But most importantly to record and document what I am learning that can be useful to others which I can also refer back to when I forget.

But a Blog can be so much more than simply writing down ideas. Creating a blog, generating ideas and writing blog posts can actually be the foundation of starting a successful online business.

The fact is businesses that use “Content marketing, rakes in conversion rates 6 times higher than other methods” including Blogs and social media. Compared to those that don’t.

JULIA MCCOY – Content Marketing Institute

Not having a blog, businesses can struggle to grow their audience and followers, take longer to establish as a credible brand or seen as leaders in their field. Simply due to no central place to send customers, and worse of all no organic website traffic.
To overcome these Bloggers and businesses who wish to make money usually have to pay to allot on paid advertisements and sponsorships, just to drive traffic to their website and products.
If you have deep pockets then maybe you want to pay for traffic, but for most taking time to add value to their audience is a far more cost-effective and frankly rewarding way of generating traffic.

“If you also love writing, networking, creating content that you like sharing, then you are already in an advantageous position. You can leverage your passion and skills and combine them to run a successful blog, as so many have already, Grow a large enough audience to make money online and carry on serving the very audience you build.”

Afzol Ali

Your blog can allow you to:

• Network with people and companies all over the world
• Help you grow your email list and audience.
• Be a reference for you
• Be found organically by search engines like Google.com and grow traffic
• Be the starting point and landing page for sales of your products or service.
• Helps you refine your skills and knowledge and build authority and credibility
• Have fun as its an enjoyable thing to do

While starting a blog has been an amazing experience for me, here are four popular reasons other people start blogs.

• You can make money while working from anywhere. One of the best things about blogging is that you can make money from anywhere, at any time. As a college student, it is extremely hard to find a job because you are constantly leaving for breaks. A blog allows you to make money wherever you are and even earns you money while you aren’t working on it.
• It is great for your resume.  Having a strong resume out of college is essential to securing a great job. To show a company that you were able to start a business (yes, your blog IS your business!) at such a young age shows future employers what you are capable of accomplishing and your drive for success.
• It’s fun! You get to write about things you love and get paid for it. It really doesn’t get much better ;).
• You can make money around the schedule you want. Every single semester, your schedule changes. It is SO hard to find a job that is adaptable to your changing demands. A blog allows you to make money around times you are available.

As you can see, the reasons to start a blog are endless. Starting blog and content creation are one of the best things I learned. It has helped me to focus, and generate ideas and build an online presence for my brands and my personal site.

Blog can help you record your memories for the “future you” to reminisce. Network with others who share your ideas and ambitions. It will allow you to think, express and practice your creativity.

Best of all you can help others while doing all of this. Doesn’t that sound amazing?

Even though Blogging and content creation is fun, no doubt. It can also help you make a serious amount of money and grow a brand.

Today we are going to learn exactly how to start a blog and make money so that you can live one helluva crazy life.

When choosing what platform to blog on. You have 2 options:

1. Free Platform
2. Self Hosted – Paid platforms

Free platforms are like Blogspot and Medium. Though they have their Pro’s they have a lot of Con’s if you are serious about your business and content.

All the best bloggers and content focused brands use Self-Hosted WordPress. There simply is no better content management system (CMS) than WordPress…hands down.

Do not worry, Self-hosting a blog is actually simple and cheap to get started. It can be as cheap as $3.95 a month. That’s the price of a Starbucks cappuccino! ☕

I hope you now are clear and want to get started. ASAP.

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Steps on How To Set Up Your Blog:

In this guide, you will learn how to make a blog and start making money in 17 steps

1. Picking the blog topic / Niche or purpose
2. Select the blogging platform
3. Pick a blog/domain name
4. Pick a host and to their website
5. Sign-up and choose your plan
6. Install WordPress on the blog (Tutorial is given below)
7. Write your first blog post
8. Install essential Security WordPress plugins (do not worry, plugins are like Apps on your phone)
9. Select theme and Setup the design of the blog
10. Design your website
11. Building Your 1000 True Fans
12. Monetize your blog
13. Create content that solves problems or helps
14. Build up your email list
15. Sell products and services
16. Share your writeup with the world
17. Drive traffic and gain more exposure

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Create Your Blog

1. Pick a Blog Topic or Niche

Blogs can be Topic/Niche-specific or General.

Example of a niche blog is a blog which focuses only on Baking Cakes, Motorcycle Blog, Fashion Blog, Gaming Blog

Example of a general blog is a Lifestyle Blog, Travel Blog or a Personal Blog

The main thing to focus on is if you’re passionate about the topic, or have a lot of knowledge on the topic. I am pretty sure you already know what you want to make content about. Just write down the few things that really interest you. Do not overthink, pick one and begin.

See my RELATED BLOG POST: What to write about for your blog

2. Select a Blogging Platform

As mentioned earlier. WordPress is hands down the best blogging platform for those who are serious. WordPress comes in 2 forms:

1. Self Hosted WordPress, from WordPress.org
2. WordPress.com

Self Hosted WordPress

Self-hosted WordPress is what we recommend here at Risingway. It has some significant benefits over a hosted blog on WordPress.com.

Self-Hosted WordPress (which this guide is about) allows you to:

1. Own your own content
2. Highly customise the look and feel of your site
3. Install premium 3rd Party Plugins to increase the functionality of your site
4. Install many free plugins
5. Make money through ads and affiliate partnerships
6. Grow as a brand

Hosted Blog on WordPress.com

WordPress.com allows you to sign-up and blog on their platform. It’s mainly designed for individual people who simply want to write journal blogs and share them. It is not designed for you to make money from it, or grow as a brand.

Limitation of this service is:

1. You cannot install any 3rd Party Premium apps except the ones listed and recommended by the platform
2. You do not have control over the content, as at any time they can de-activate your blog and account for breaching terms
3. You won’t easily be able to make money from it through affiliates or ads
4. You have limited theme choices

Follow this guide, and go for the self-hosting blogging option and start your blogging, content creation and build a brand the write way.

Risingway is here to help you along your journey

3. Pick a blog/domain name

Choose a domain name, which in most cases is also your blog’s name.

The name should be related to the niche or topic you have decided previously as discussed above.

Try to keep the name short, under 3 syllables, and memorable. You can make it fun, catchy and quirky. But keep it relevant.

It can be as simple as yourname.com if you making a personal blogsite. Some of the biggest sites are personal websites of people sharing their passions and skills.

Note down a few name ideas, which we will later when selecting your domain from the Blog Host like Bluehost.com

Check out our Brand Naming Brainstorming blog post

4. Pick a Host [Bluehost recommended]

First things first my friends. We need to host your website. Hosting can get really complicated when explaining it, but it’s basically like you’re renting out a piece of the internet for your blog to call home.

It’s actually super cheap to get started and only costs around $3.95 to $5.95 per month to set up. Simply click on the image below, to sign-up to Bluehost

There are many Hosting providers, some are cheap (be careful, cheap is not always the best).

Bluehost is the web hosting that we use for risingway.com and other brands, they are an excellent host.

Even their $5.95 starter package includes so many features including:

• Unlimited bandwidth traffic,
• Unlimited websites,
• Unlimited domains
• Unlimited emails,
• Unlimited SSD storage
• Free SSL certificate

They also have a 30-day money-back guarantee. Plus amazing fast customer service support if you need it.

An amazing customer support service is so important to a blog host. Many times we have some dumb simple technical issues. The customer service agents were quick, very patient and always solved our problems.

You can check our Resources Rage for other Web Hosting providers we recommend. But for starting bloggers and brands I 100% recommend Bluehost, you won’t be disappointed.

After you click on the image above or visit Bluehost’s website here follow the instructions below:

5. Sign up and Choose your plan

For this example, I am going to guide you through Bluehost signup and setup. The steps are almost the same for most hosting companies such as Inmotionhosting, Siteground, WPEngine etc.

First: Go to Bluehost.com and CLICK on the big GREEN button that says ” Get Started ” now

Pick Your Monthly Plan

Don’t worry the cheapest option is fine to start. You can always upgrade if you need to later easily.

Choose Your Free Domain Name

As mentioned, pick an easy to remember domain name. Also I suggest you choose a .com domain as it is the most known domain type on the internet. You can also choose other popular extensions such as .co.uk | .net | .org | .me.

An example is risingway.com

For $3.95 only Bluehost gives you a Free Domain !!! Normally a domain on its own cost more that $10 a month 😱 !!

If the domain name you want is not available, keep brainstorming names and check again until one is available for you.

Fill In Your Personal Details

Fill in your details to use on your hosting. If you are already a registered business you can use your business information here instead of personal.

Ensure you choose the correct plan

If it’s your simply a first time blogging than the 1 year option is good. If you’re going to take your blogging and branding seriously, select 24 months to save the headache of renewing each year and to lock in the discounted starting price.

And the extra add-on’s they have you can just simply uncheck them and remove it. You don’t need them when starting off.

On the same page, Complete the Payment by putting in your card details.

Well done.🙃 Now you have joined Bluehost. The home of your website.

Now create a secure password for your hosting account

Its What you will use to login to your hosting if you need to adjust any settings.

Set a secure password. I suggest you click the “Suggested Password” which will generate a strong password for you. Just note it down. You can also use a password manager like LastPass which manages all your passwords.

Login to Bluehost After You are Done Creating Your Password

First You want to login to your bluehost account.

Look for the “Install WordPress” Icon then press start on the next page.

6. Install WordPress

Create a Name for your website and a Site Tagline. You can change this later.

Select your domain from the Drop-down menu. It may already be selected for you. Then press Next ▶

Click Next and wait. WordPress will install without you doing anything. It can take up 5-10 minutes, but usually done much faster

The next page will then confirm that the Installation has completed.

Click View Credentials. Copy/write down these details as you will need it later. And each time you want to login to your website

7. Write your first blog post

You’re Ready to make an impact on the world now friends!

Log into your blog in the URL that was shown before. Or go to “yourdomain.com/wp-admin/” [Replace “yourdomain” with the domain name you chose]

You will see your WordPress Dashboard for the first time…Is it not Exciting? You have a Blog site.

Create your first Blog easily.

• Then go over to the posts tab on the left-hand side on the dashboard
• Select Add post
• Write some content, thoughts or ideas, and Create your first ever blog post!
• Click Publish

Amazing! You have done it. You have posted your first blog post into the “interwebs” forever.

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Click Publish when you have completed your blog post

8. Install Essential Security Plugins

You should install some key essential plugins for security straightaway. At present, the website is insecure and vulnerable to hackers.

Plugins I recommend to install straight away is Wordfence Security.

On the Left-hand side, Hover over Plugins > Then Click Add New like the image below.

On the next page type in Wordfence in the Search Box > Click Install

When installed Click activate

Fill in your email to get security notifications about your website

Setup security settings.

Wordfence as standard already sets all the important settings. You can also adjust any settings you wish but at the beginning, you do not need to.

First, when Wordfence is installed, go and click “Firewall”

On that page Simply Click the big button that says “Optimize The Wordfence Firewall”. This will automatically set all the options to recommended levels by Wordfence.

Your WordPress is secure now using advanced security software. When you become more experienced you can customize the settings to suit your preferences and needs. For now, just start blogging.

9. Select theme and Setup the design of the blog (Intermediate)

You will want to customise the look and feel of your blog.

To do this you need to select a Theme to customize for your blog. Unless you are happy with the default theme, which most are not. Themes give the look and feel of the website to the audience, and can also make your marketing efforts easier.

There are many free themes. But everyone who is serious about their blog and brand goes for premium Themes. Premium themes allow you much more in-depth customization, have marketing optimizations and have professional technical support if you need help.

The best theme I recommend is DIVI. A fully functional and highly customizable theme with excellent support.

• Go over to the Appearance tab on the left
• Pick a theme for your website (don’t worry we can customize it later)
• After you chose a theme you can activate it

10. Design your website

Check out my detailed guide Why should install DIVI and how to download and customizing DIVI WordPress theme, for your blog.

11. Now Build Your 1000 True Fans

Now that you have a blog and a presence on the internet, and can reach people. Your next focus is to find, help and build your 1000 true fans.

This simple yet extremely powerful concept is based on Kevin Kelly’s 1000 true fan theory. He states all you need is 1000 true fans and you never have to work again.!

It’s an extremely rewarding and fulfilling thing to be able to impact 1000 people. 1000 People is all you really need to be able to keep doing what you love, grow your brand, share your passion.

Afzol Ali

We sometimes lose focus and are not realistic. We look at what others are doing, those who are ahead of us, and get overwhelmed and try to do too much too quickly and burn out, worse fail.

But pause and think. in the world of over 7 billion people, are there not 1000 people who you:

Let’s do the maths as numbers do not lie to make it more real to you.

• If 1000 people love what you do, but only a single product from you a year which you made just to serve them at £100
• That will create £100,000 GBP per year-! ( $122,700 USD)

Do you think you will be happy with that?

As a startup, I think that’s more than enough for you to focus on serving your customers and followers, grow your brand and business and not need to work for someone else ever.

All it takes is:

• Find and reach out to people who love you and love what you are doing.
• Truly care for them, serve them, entertain them. And you will enjoy yourself and money will come when these very people love you and trust you. Just give massive value.
• You do not need millions, remember you just need 1000. Do not look at others, stop feeling overwhelmed by those Instagram accounts with 2m+ followers. They worked hard to get there, and they all started somewhere. You do not need millions of people to live the life you want. Just 1000 true fans and friends.

You may be thinking “But I do not know enough” or “who will listen to me?”. JUST STOP thinking like this.

All you need to know is a little more than another person to be able to help them. It’s like being in school. You do not need to be the teacher. You can be a student just like your friends. But you understood something better or revised something the night before to be able to help your friends. These 1000 people are your friends!

Always keep this in mind when your building content and stay motivated.

RELATED POST: 1000 Fans is all you need to become successful

12. How To Make Money From Your Blog

Now, this is a very broad question. And the full answer is not simple. The whole Risingway.com website is about growing a brand, content marketing, and product development! Something we are really passionate about.

There are simply so many ways to make money from content and blogging.

It really depends on what is your goal:

1. Are you are growing a brand, selling services or products? Your main goal may not be making money directly from the blog. The Blog may be the platform you use to build your followers, to update your audience and give value. Your money generation maybe to sell actual products “actively”. So you know as a Physical product’s brand who has a blog.
2. Alternatively, Are you a content creator or business who happens to have a blog that sells helpful products and services?
   • Such as Risingway where we try to help brands and entrepreneurs by giving valuable and helpful content that we did not have when we started our businesses. At the same time, we offer direct paid support and services, products and mentoring as an added value to those who need support and more serious to get started fast.

Both ways of making money are very similar. Both sell something. But:

• One type is geared towards sales and increasing customers who love their products and want to be part of the brand’s journey.
• The other is all about increasing an audience and followers, add value to them, help them and build a community.

Below I will discuss the common way you can take your passion which you love, and simple flow on how you can monetize it so you can keep doing what you love:

• Create Content That Solves Problems
• Attract People to Opt-in to Your Email List
• Offer a Product to Solve The Problem

13. Create Content That Solves a Problem

Initially, simply focus what you are passionate about or know about in depth and write about it, on your blog, create shareable content such as graphics and videos to share on social media.

Have fun.

You will soon see people interested in what you are sharing and follow you and come to your website where they can find even more of what they like.

Read my blog RELATED POST: What To Blog About ?

It may initially feel like no one is finding you or reading what you share. But it usually takes 6 months for search engines to recommend you to others organically. Even social media channels may not display your content as there is too little as you just starting. Content creation and marketing is not a quick thing. It’s a marathon, and requires a little time and patience. But do not quite.

Most people quite far too early, and sadly they quite just before they were about to grow. Learn and implament the strategies we teach, engage with people on the internet, at times do paid ads to drive traffic and do this at least for 1 year, before deciding what to do.

Remember:

Many successful brands and bloggers have been making content for years, with steady growth. Eventually, they see a sharp increase and rapid growth (the hockey stick affect). Now they make $1000s/daily. You just need 1000 true fans to help you.

Just answer this; is working hard for 1 year with no results worth a lifetime of freedom?

I Would think, YES.

14. Get People to Opt-in to Your Email List

Building an Email list is an extremely important activity to do from day 1.

Its another win-win situation where your audience cares enough about you, products, content that they are happy to share their email. So that they can be updated on anything that is new and receives exclusivity or early access. You in return get a growing list of people who are interested in your products and blogs.

These audiences and fans want directly to communicate with you. One of the best ways is through emails.

Social Media is a good way to do direct communication, but it has its limitations and usually gets lost in all the noise out there.

An email list is a key component for bloggers and brands who wish to make money.

Here are a simple step how to get and serve an email audience:

1. Identify what people want and are searching for – the problem.
2. Create digestible and easy to consume informative content. – Lead Magnet
3. I offer these valuable, well thought out helpful content free or for a fee.
4. I only request the person’s email address, so we can send it to them and also keep them updated on things they like – Opt-in
5. Send to the subscriber’s value-packed at times entertaining and humorous content. Even review products and inform them to save them time – Newsletter send automation
6. Every now and then offer them unique products that can help them – Exclusive Offers
7. Many will buy, others will at least visit back and see what’s new.

Doing this regularly is actually not hard. You carry on focusing on making great content. But you use automation tools to manage mass emails.

The software we use in our business is Get Response. The price is cheap and value for money compared to other competitors who over less for more. You can give it a try it out for free here.

15. Offer a Product to Solve The Problem

Stay focused on the audience. They are important and repay the care they show you. As mentioned before your primary goal is to attract, engage and grow your initial 1000 true fans.

Building a lasting brand is a marathon not a sprint. Meaning, steady and focused, get things right. Not rush and mess up and create disappointment. This does not mean be afraid to fail. Failure is a teacher, you will fail now and then. But learn from it and be sincere when you do.

Affiliate Income

So initially if you cannot make money from the smaller audience you have, or you do not have your own products, services to sell. You can still make money by helping them.

You can help them save time, by reviewing, researching and teaching them about products or services that they may benefit from. Time is money at the end of the day, and if you can save time for the audience, why not get paid for it.

The best way to get money in the early days is via affiliate marketing. This is where you help your audience and if they take your recommendations and buy, the other company will give you some money for that referral. Your audience does not lose anything. And some may even give you a discount to share with your audience….That’s a lot of value to them.

There are many affiliates’ products and databases. Too many to get into here. But I will share a detailed list on another post. DM me if you want a few to get started.

Your Own Products

When you have enough email subscribers, or followers. Use the automated email marketing software like Get Response to reach out to your audience. And ask what content they may like, or what problems they may be having that you can help.

• Ask if you were to make a product like a book, course or physical item would they buy it? You will now know exactly what they want, and they would buy it.
• Prioritize your time so you can create that product.
• Email out again letting them know you are doing this and when it will be ready
• Launch the product with an exclusive offer for early bird customers, as they deserve it!
• After you have a good amount of emails, send out an email newsletter in your Get Response account and ask what is your audiences biggest pain point and that if you would create a product that would solve this would they buy it?

Conclusion

This Guide took a lot of time, I really hope this complete Guide “How To Start A Blog For Your Brand and Make Money” was helpful.

Deciding to start a Blog as the central headquarters for all your content marketing is the first step and a smart one. The journey on building a lasting brand and voice is fun and exciting.

Now that you have:

• Signed up to a blog host like Bluehost,
• installed WordPress
• Wrote your first few Blog Posts and shared it to the world,
• Learned to customize the site with themes,
• Understand the importance of the first 1000 fans and building an email list.

You are well on your way to becoming blogging and marketing Ninja. Exciting times to come friends.

Remember:

Never stop learning. Focus on the journey not the destination. Always give value and be honest. Serve. Money will come.

Afzol Ali

Question: What are you most passionate about that you would love to share with the world? Leave a comment below

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