Since launching my site I have had several people ask how I started my blog so I thought it would be a fun post to change things up and share a little about my journey thus far. This post will tell you all about how to start a blog in 2020, a beginner guide from a real beginner.
How I started my first professional blog
Technically I started my blog in September 2019 when I bought my domain name but my blog actually started gaining some traction at the very beginning of 2020.
I had been dreaming of starting a professional blog for so long but I just didn’t know where to start. It seemed so overwhelming and daunting that I procrastinated for years.
My 31st birthday was approaching and I was thinking about all the things I have in my life and all the things I still wanted in my life and this thought hit me —
I knew I needed to start NOW. Today. Yesterday.
I have so much passion for the things I share on my blog and I just knew I needed to have this creative outlet in order to feel complete and to stop feeling so wrapped up in the idea of everything needing to happen right now.
Organic growth is the best kind of growth. I quit letting the fear of failure stop me from what I truly wanted to do.
So, tip #1 on how to start a blog in 2020 — JUST DO IT.
Step 1 : buy a domain name
This is the biggest step when starting your blog. It’s what will defin who you are as a blogger.
Choose a name that goes with what you’ll be blogging about. Check to make sure the one you like is available, and also make sure you absolutely it. This is a big step!
WordPress + Bluehost
WordPress is a website builder – Bluehost is a web hosting service & the 2 work beautifully together.
A word of advice, don’t use a free host. Although it’s free, it won’t look professional.
Done and done. Now what?? This is where it got really hard for me and it took months for me to even get my site off the ground because I didn’t have a clue how to work any of it!
Step 2: Youtube
A LOT of YouTube.
I watched what seemed like hundreds of tutorials on how to start a blog using WordPress & Bluehost and I was still overwhelmed. So overwhelmed that I thought I’d never get my website up and running in a way that looked professional.
But I didn’t — I kept going. Kept learning. Kept watching. Kept researching.
Step 3: pick a theme
I researched the best themes for a blog. You want to be sure the theme you choose works for mobile devices as well.
Read the reviews and go with one that has the best. The last thing you want to do is pick a theme, put all the hard work into the small details, just to find out it’s glitchy and people can’t navigate it well.
Step 4: start building your site
Okay, so you have a domain name that hopefully applies to the niche you’re targeting, a web host, and you’ve watched 5 million YouTube tutorials and finally have a functioning website –you can begin to blog.
Congratulations! You have successfully started a blog!
Now the fun really begins because you get to start writing content for your blog, and that’s what blogging is all about!
How to make money writing on your blog
In order to make money, you’ll need affiliate companies to work with.
I wanted to be sure that the companies I worked with were ones I truly believed in or else I wouldn’t feel good about writing about their products.
I told them what my blog was about, the message I was sharing, and how much I loved their products and I kept hearing the word “yes”.
That was so incredibly motivating. I finally felt like I was getting the confirmation I needed that I was doing exactly what I was supposed to be doing.
And then something really cool happened — I had companies reach out to ME.
Then I had one of my favorite brands ask to use one of my blog posts for their blog — and they were going to pay me.
Want to know something even more cool? They asked if I would write another paid post on a certain topic, which I had already written, so I sent it to them.
You can read my blog post about Leaky Gut on Just Thrive Probiotics blog.
All of these things kept happening and it was as if the universe was telling me, “yes, keep going. Stay the course. Don’t give up.”
Be choosey
Here is a really big tip — only work with brands you know and love.
There’s nothing worse than going to a blog only to feel like they’re pushing every product at you because they’re an amazon affiliate.
Being an
Sure, amazon literally sells everything imaginable but I want to know that someone really loves and believes in the product they’re talking about, but most importantly I want to know they are actually using the product themselves.
Don’t expect to get rich quick
You see them all over Pinterest:
“How I Made $40,000 my first year blogging.”
“How I turned my blog into a career in less than 6 months.”
“$3,800/month after 3 months with no experience blogging.”
That’s really amazing if they were able to do that, props to them! Do I wish I could make that kind of money right off the bat? Of course! Do I think it’s realistic for the average person who just wants to START a blog with the hopes of making an income? Not really.
Do it because you love it, not because you want fast money.
My goal for my blog in 2020 was to make money and as I told you above, I did that. I’m super pumped about it, too! It may not be a lot but it’s money I earned.
I put the time, effort, and tears into starting this blog and I got confirmation that what I was doing was reaching people.
It was also really cool to know that I was reaching people I looked up to and respected in the niche I’m targeting as well. To have them see me and like what I have to say really helped me keep pushing forward when I was so unsure of what I was doing.
Learn about SEO
You’ll see this all over when you type “how to start a blog in 2020” into google.
SEO (search engine optimization) is important if you ever want google to pull your website when people type certain words or phrases into the search engine bar.
I use the plugin Yoast SEO on my blog. I don’t pay for the premium version but for now it does what I need it to.
Write to your niche
Your audience needs to know what they’re coming for each time they visit your blog. If you’re constantly changing topics they won’t keep coming back. Be specific or choose just a few different topics to write on.
My topics consist of things like
You see the trend — all things health & wellness in all aspects of life.
If you’re having a hard time trying to figure out what your niche is, ask yourself a few questions:
- What do you spend your time looking at/researching
- What things do you save for?
- What’s important to you?
- What do you enjoy talking about?
If you’re passionate about what you’re writing about you’ll write higher quality posts. Higher quality posts = returning readers
I know it’s intimidating to try and figure out how to start a blog in 2020 because there are already so many great blogs and bloggers out there but remember there is always room for another voice.
Your voice is important & valuable.
Set a schedule
Keep a running list of ideas on your phone or on a notepad.
When an idea hits me I go ahead and start a draft, give it a title, and write the opening paragraph.
Words flow more freely when you’re inspired so get it out there before it’s gone!
In the beginning I tried getting 2 blog posts completed per week. I think that was a bit ambitious for a pregnant mom chasing around a toddler all day long but I do try to get a post up per week so that I stay consistent.
Other bloggers will tell you to pick a day of the week and stick to it 100% no matter what. That’s great if you’re able to do that! If it fits your schedule and life, absolutely commit to uploading a blog every Monday, Wednesday, or whatever day works best for you.
Now that you know how to start a blog in 2020 I want you to get out there and do it. From one beginner to another, it’s possible, I believe in you.
If you ever want to chit-chat about blogging please feel free to comment or email me! I hope this guide helped you understand that just because you see so many professional bloggers on Pinterest, doesn’t mean that you can’t be one of them. It’s never to late to start unless you never start.