What to Blog About
So much advice out there tells you to “just be yourself” when starting a blog and you’ll be able to make it blogging online.
And while that’s not bad advice per se, it can be misleading when you’re just starting out.
I see so many moms start a blog and just start writing about whatever strikes their fancy.
They write about what they wear, like, hate, do, cook, and believe, rather than taking the time to organize their ideas and consider what their readersmight actually want to hear about.
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Don’t get me wrong here; it’s your blog and should absolutely reflect your interests, personality, and perspective. In fact, it’s this uniqueness that will eventually attract your ideal readers to your blog.
But if you dive in without organizing your thoughts and framing them in a way that helps your readers, not only will you be doing your readers a disservice, but you’ll be making it a lot harder on yourself to actually make money down the line.
In fact, one of the most valuable nuggets of advice I learned from Elite Blog Academy is that your blog is not about YOU.
Your readers will be much more engaged (and inspired to act & buy) if you’re sharing your goodness in an organized way that helps them solve a problem or reach a goal.
Take the time now to choose a blog topic that you’re interested in and that has the potential to attract readers and make money.
Here’s how to do it in just 2 steps:
Step #1: Make 3 Lists
Create three lists and write down 1) Your Skills, 2) Your Knowledge/experience, 3) Interests and Curiosities (things you’re interested in learning about/mastering).
Set a timer for 20 minutes, and just start filling in the table with anything and everything that comes to your mind.
Some columns will naturally fill up more easily for you, and that’s okay. Don’t edit yourself at this point – nothing is too crazy. Just let your mind wander and write every little thing that you can think of. Duplicates, silly things, things you think are too hard or crazy… everything.
Next, choose just three from the list that excite you the most and move on to the next step.
Step #2: Validate Your Idea in 3 minutes
When I first started blogging, I racked my brain and Googled fordays to try and come up with ideas that no one else was writing about. Little did I know that I was shooting myself in the foot.
The real truth is this: if there are several other big and successful blogs about your topic, you’re on the right track. In fact, this is actually a quick and easy shortcut to validating your blog idea for potentialprofitability (aka. to see if it can actually make money)!
Once you have your top 3 topics (from Step #1 above), do a separate Google search for each with the words “your topic + blog” (and similar phrases) to see what comes up. If there are several established blogs about your topic, you’ve got a winner 🙂
If not, try one of your other top 3. If more than 1 of your top 3 ideas are good, then go with the one that excites you the most.
Now that you have your blog topic down, you’re ready to move on to the next step: setting up your blog.
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Since you’ve taken the time to thoughtfully come up with a blog topic that’s both interesting to you AND has profit potential, you’re ready to take the plunge and set up your own blog!
And even though this is the most intimidating part for a lot of people, it’s actually the easiest thing you’ll do on your blogging journey. Just follow the steps below and you’ll have your new blog set up in less than 20 minutes.
Step #1:Chooseyour blog name
Your blog name will be your domain name (like www.myblogname.com).
Choosing a blog name often trips up new bloggers, but it doesn’t have to be complicated! Here are a few dos & don’tsfor choosing a blog name:
- DO: Use a name that describes your blog topic or audience.This helps make it crystal clear what your blog is all about. Here are a few blogs that use this method:LivingWellSpendingLess.com, KidsActivitiesBlog.com, andSmartMomBlogger.com (<– that’s me!).
- DO: Use your own name.This is a great choice if you want to establish a personal voice and brand for your blog. Here are a few blogs that use this method: RebekahRadice.com, MarieForleo.com, and MelyssaGriffin.com
- DON’T: Use numbers, dashes, or alternate spellings in your blog domain name. This makes it hard for people to remember or type your domain name (or even get it right in the first place).
- DON’T: Be too clever or cutesy.Even though you may “get it”, someone else might not. It’s too confusing and can make people feel like they’re not “part of the club”.
Step #2: Set up a self-hosted blog
Alright – here we go! In this step, we’ll be setting up a self-hosted WordPress blog. If you’re not tech-savvy, don’t let that last sentence scare you away! It’s a lot easier than it sounds & I’ll walk you through it all, step-by-step.
Every blog or website requires hosting in order to be “live” on the internet. Don’t worry too much about the technical details – just follow along with the screenshots and instructions below and you’ll be on your way!
Quick side note: There are “free” blogging platforms available, like Blogger, Tumblr and WordPress.com, but these are primarily for blogging for fun/hobby. If you’re serious about making money with your blog, then you’ll need to get your own hosting. There are no profit limitations or restrictions like the free blogging platforms have, and you’ll have complete control over the growth and profit of your blog.
Set up blog hosting
Click here to get set up blog hosting from Siteground. While you can use whichever hosting provider you choose (there are hundreds available), I use and recommend Siteground because they’re super affordable, reliable, and have excellent customer service. You can get start your own blog for just $3.95 per month.
Select the StartUp plan
It’s the cheapest and will work great for a new blog. You can upgrade later if needed as your blog grows and you start making money, but for now, the StartUp plan is perfect.
Choose or transfer blog domain name
Enter your blog name (from Step #1) right here! If you already have a domain name that you purchased somewhere else already (like GoDaddy), just click the “I already have a Domain” option and SiteGround will transfer it to your account for free (another reason why I love them!).
Enter account info and payment details
Next, you’ll need to enter your account details and credit card information. Be sure to pay attention to the options at the bottom and check/uncheck the upgrades as desired.
Unlike many other hosting providers, SiteGround discounts apply to any of the initial periods chosen during the sign-up process, which is a great bonus (most other hosting providers only apply the discounts to the longest sign-up periods, costing you unnecessary extra upfront expenses).
Step #3: Install WordPress on your blog
Once you’ve created your hosting account, it’s time to actually install your blog. In this step, you’ll install WordPress on your new hosting account. The really cool part about this is that SiteGround does it for you for free!It’s yet another reason I use and recommend them.
Just contact SiteGround via chat after you set up your hosting account and let them know you’d like their free WordPress blog installation service on your new hosting account. They’ll be happy to do it for you and you can save yourself the time.
If you want to do it yourself instead, you can just select the “WordPress” option from your cPanel once you log in to your new account (will look like the screenshot below), and follow the on-screen prompts.
Once you get word from SiteGround that your site has been installed, that means your new blog is LIVE mama!
11 Common Blog-Killing Mistakes New Bloggers Make
Beforeyou jump into this whole blogging thing, I want to make you aware of 11 common mistakes new bloggers make that keep them from ever being successful. Take a quick note of the list below, then hop over to the full post where I outline them all in detail (and share how to avoid them)
1. YOU WASTE TIME ON THINGS THAT DON’T MATTER
2. YOU DON’T HAVE A REAL WORK SCHEDULE
3. YOU DON’T HAVE A BLOG GROWTH AND PROFIT PLAN
4. ADS ARE YOUR ONLY MONETIZATION STRATEGY
5. YOU DON’T KNOW WHO YOU WANT TO SERVE
6. YOU DON’T KNOW HOW TO CREATE POWERFUL, SHAREABLE CONTENT
7. YOU’RE TRYING TO DO IT ALL (AT ONCE)
8. YOU HAVEN’T SET SPECIFIC GOALS
9. YOU HAVEN’T DEFINED YOUR DEEP “WHY”
10. YOU REFUSE TO INVEST IN YOURSELF AND YOUR BUSINESS
11. YOU TAKE IN TOO MUCH RANDOM ADVICE (AND DON’T TAKESTRATEGICACTION)
Read the full article and how to avoid these newbie mistakes right here >>>
The NEXT Step
You’ve just started your blog! Can I just pause for a second to say something? I’m seriously so proud of you. Most people won’t do what you’ve just done. They’ll think about it, then decide it’s too much work or that they can’t possibly do it. But you know better. You’ve taken the most important first step, and you’re now ready to make an impact!
There’s much still to learn, but you’re in the right place 🙂 Feel free to reach out with questions anytime, and be sure to grab your Affiliate Marketing Cheat Sheet below so you can start earning with your blog right away!
