5 Practical ideas to guide you to successfully starting a blog in 2023
Your big question is -‘How to successfully start a blog in 2023’?
You’ve got a great idea and want to share it with the world. You have a real skill and want to tell others.
I hope I can give you essential and practical ideas to help get you in a place to successfully create a fulfilling blog.
1. Decide your blog focus and stick to it
You may have a wealth of experience about a large number of things and 2023 is the year you want to share them.
Before you create your blog, decide exactly what it’s FOCUS is going to be. Let me give you an example: plants.
- Plants
- garden, medicinal, tropical, mechanical (lorrys etc)?
- Native, tropical, illegal?
- Flowering, alpine, cacti?
- Annual, perennial, biennial?
Now, that doesn’t mean you can’t expand your horizons later, but, practically speaking, you have a lot of work ahead of you.
If you get a bright idea but its not really what you are into at the moment – add it to a notebook or on your phone.
Before long you will have a good list which may be the start of a whole new area to develop and you already have your highlights!
Focus on your audience
Part of that focus is WHO you are writing your blog to? People the same age as you? To encourage anyone to get out and explore their local area? How to create great online videos? Video blogs on wildlife?
This will all have an impact on the direction and success of your writing but will make it a lot easier for you to get ideas down because you know where you are heading with your articles and who you are speaking to.
2. Be practical -choose the title of your blog with care
You may think this is a ‘gimme’. But, believe me, this is another place to be practical. You will have to type out the name of your blog (your domain name) hundreds, if not thousands of times. Choose a TITLE / domain name as short but as clear as you can.
Have a search on the internet for other blogs and see the good and the bad of domain names.
All search engines say that it is ‘content, content, content’ when it comes to creating a good website and success starts with your website name and focus.
3. Research Content
You may want to showcase certain products you’ve used, say with craft or skin care or photography, and want to review and recommend them. You think they are brilliant products / places / crafts etc but what do others say?
If everyone else disagrees with your focus idea you may have a hard sell but, then again, you will be offering a fresh approach and that will lead to a successful launch of your blog.
Don’t be put off if you have a real passion for something…
Research
Your RESEARCH will tell you if there are already thousands of bloggers writing about your chosen topic. Don’t be put off if you have a real passion for something but make sure you have enough to write about.
Good content comes with that passion and that often makes your blog stand out from the crowd.
4. Be prepared to learn a ‘little tech’
Again, just a little hurdle not a brick wall. These days, there are many good websites with step by step details of how to successfully start a blog. For example: WPBeginner is great for depth and to help you LEARN and get closer to your blog in 2023.
You can get affordable help creating the website for your blog eg me, Small Wonders Websites, for instance, :-).Me or they could create your blog for you then teach yourself or get taught how to add your posts and pictures. This may be more practical for you. There are video upon video and notes everywhere for you to LEARN from. But you can also opt to do not just do a job, but do a good job of it.
You can do this!
There will be a learning curve, certainly, maybe a steep one, but think about the goal of why you started in the first place. Believe me, before long you will not only be successfully starting your blog but also very likely thinking about what your next blog/website could be!
5. Go shopping!
You can write and successfully publish blogs & basic websites for free. They will be limited and may have unwanted adverts threaded through them but, if money is an issue, it can be done. Your research (No 3) will help with this so SHOP AROUND. These are the items to go shopping for:
A blog/website name for the internet called a ‘domain name’.
This is often something you can get for little or no money at the start of your blog writing journey. Many hosting companies offer ‘free’ domain names to entice you in to their hosting package. Another affordable way to buy your blog/domain name is to buy it for a 3,5 or 10 year period. You are going to keep your website name for a long time so get a better price and peace of mind for paying for it for a few years upfront.
A hosting package. You have your domain name and now you need the connections to the internet – the hosting package. As well as asking for a longer deal with your domain name, the right hosting company may have a few blog-writing apps pre-loaded on their site, for example, WordPress, so you can get started right away. Add this to your list of questions to ask your potential hosting company. For your great blog you can start small with the practical ideas here as they will be happy to upgrade you at any time. Ask for a discount!
Now you need software to build your blog
A software package on which to write your blog/website. ‘WordPress’ is a very popular blog/website creation tool and has a huge amount of (nearly always free) support. There are others to look at and some companies offer combined packages that include domain, software and hosting for a fair price like Ionos or Wix, for example, with support (don’t forget to read the fine print!).
Going Forward
Armed with these practical ideas, you will be well on your way to a successful start of your blog in 2023 and beyond. Remember what I said:
“Don’t be put off if you have a real passion for something…”
To summarise these 5 ideas:
- Choose the FOCUS of your blog;
- Choose the right TITLE/ domain name;
- RESEARCH your chosen focus and audience;
- Be prepared to LEARN from others;
- SHOP AROUND for affordable options with buying domain names and hosting packages.
If all else fails, please contact me.
Further Help
Have a look at another guide I’ve put together – 5 things you didn’t know you needed to create an affordable website. This will further help you with creating a your first website or blog.
I try to break ideas down into small tips so they act as starting points from which to hang and remember your learning key points.
I hope you feel better prepared to go and enjoy this new experience and share your passion with others. If you need help, please contact me either through the WhatsApp logo below or book a free half hour appointment with me whilst you are still online.
You might like to download my FREE Preparation Guide to help with your thinking process.