How to Start a Blog: The Beginner's Guide for 2024

If you privation to cognize however to commencement a blog for idiosyncratic oregon concern purposes, you’ve travel to the close place. 

This station contains everything you request to cognize to motorboat a abstraction for articles and commencement attracting readers. 

But earlier going implicit however to make a blog, let’s commencement with immoderate foundational knowledge. 

What Is a Blog?

A blog is simply a website oregon portion of a website wherever you people written articles (blog posts) aimed astatine a peculiar audience.

And determination are 2 main types of blogs.

Personal blogs are tally by individuals who stock their thoughts, experiences, expertise, oregon hobbies (sometimes a combination). These blogs tin beryllium monetized done advertising, sponsorships, etc.

Alex successful Wanderland is an illustration of a idiosyncratic question blog:

Business blogs are usually portion of a company’s website. They’re typically utilized arsenic a selling instrumentality to pull and prosecute imaginable customers.

For example, here’s a snapshot from the Starbucks blog:

Should You Start a Blog?

You should see starting a blog if you person knowledge, experiences, and/or ideas to share. And are consenting and capable to constitute connected a regular basis.

As a idiosyncratic blogger, you tin usage your blog arsenic a originative outlet. And a mode to link with like-minded radical successful your community.

Plus, it’s imaginable to monetize your blog done advertising, including affiliate links, publishing sponsored posts, oregon different means.

Here’s an illustration of however a blog tin tally ads:

Some radical dainty their blog arsenic a broadside hustle. But others marque a full-time income from blogging.

As a concern blogger, you tin usage your blog to make leads and sales.

That’s due to the fact that blog posts tin assistance you pull website traffic, summation marque authority, and foster relationships with your audience. Which yet translates to concern goals. 

How to Start a Blog successful 10 Steps

Starting a blog successful 2024 is much straightforward than it mightiness seem. 

Here’s a 10-step process to assistance you make a palmy blog from scratch.

1. Choose a Niche for Your Blog

Your blog niche is the taxable your blog focuses on—e.g., idiosyncratic finance, health, oregon technology.

As a idiosyncratic blogger, see these factors erstwhile choosing a niche:

• Personal involvement and expertise: Choose a taxable you’re passionate and knowledgeable about. This volition assistance you enactment motivated and nutrient prime content.
• Demand: The level of appetite for contented successful this niche. It depends connected the popularity of the taxable and the magnitude of contention from different bloggers. Specialist topics (e.g., people euphony successful the U.K.) thin to person smaller audiences but pull little contention than wide topics (e.g., popular music).
• Profitability: If you’re looking to monetize your blog, see the nett potential. Some niches are easier to monetize due to the fact that they person much commercialized appeal, for example.

As a concern blogger, absorption connected topics related to your business. It’s the lone mode to pull the close kinds of readers and physique manufacture authority.

2. Select a Blogging Platform

A blogging level is simply a instrumentality that lets you make and negociate your blog.

There are galore factors to consider, including:

• Cost: Consider however overmuch your desired program costs and origin successful immoderate hosting fees
• Customization: Look for plan flexibility and the quality to adhd functionality done plugins oregon extensions
• Ease of use: Consider however speedy and casual it’ll beryllium to acceptable up and negociate your blog
• Integration with different tools: Look for casual integration with societal media, email marketing, and different tools if necessary
• Monetization: Verify that there’s enactment for your chosen monetization enactment (ads, ecommerce, etc.)
• Ownership and control: Ensure you person afloat ownership of your contented and power implicit your site
• Scalability: Choose a level that tin turn with your blog and grip a postulation increase
• Security: Ensure the level offers beardown information extortion and regularly releases information updates
• SEO capabilities: Check for built-in search motor optimization (SEO) tools to assistance you optimize your content
• Support and community: Consider the availability of lawsuit enactment and assemblage resources if you request help

WordPress is 1 of the astir fashionable blogging platforms. Because it does good regarding galore of the factors listed above. 

But you bash request immoderate method cognition to get going. And marque the astir of the platform.

Here’s a speedy usher to immoderate alternate blogging platforms:

• Wix: Best for beginners who privation a simple, intuitive level with decent customization—without coding
• Squarespace: Best for nonrecreational plan and integrated ecommerce. It’s besides bully for bloggers who privation a visually appealing tract with easy-to-use tools and store functionality.
• Ghost: Best for publishing-focused websites and rank sites (like those focused connected acquisition oregon coaching). And fantabulous for those seeking a clean, accelerated level with beardown SEO and rank capabilities.
• Blogger: Best for simplicity and escaped blogging. Also perfect for beginners oregon hobbyists who privation a no-cost, easy-to-use level with basal features.
• Substack: Best for newsletters and monetization done subscriptions. And large for writers who privation to physique a nonstop narration with their readers via email.
• Medium: Best for easiness of usage and reaching a built-in audience. Also suitable for idiosyncratic bloggers focused connected contented instauration who don’t privation to interest astir plan oregon method aspects.

3. Register Your Domain Name

Your domain sanction is the main web code wherever visitors find your blog. And it’s champion to person it bespeak your blog’s sanction (e.g., Alex successful Wanderland’s domain sanction is “alexinwanderland.com”).

Some blogging platforms fto you big your blog connected their domain. Which means you extremity up with a URL similar “example.wordpress.com” oregon “example.blogger.com.”

But we urge that you wage for a customized domain name. Because it’s amended for branding and SEO purposes. And it gives you much power implicit your website.

Here are immoderate champion practices for naming your blog: 

• Aim for a short, elemental sanction that reflects your blog’s topic 
• Don’t usage numbers oregon peculiar characters
• Choose thing that’s casual to spell and work aloud
• Avoid names that are excessively akin to different marque names

Once you’ve shortlisted immoderate names, usage a domain registrar similar GoDaddy to spot which ones are available.

Next, usage Namecheckr to spot whether your blog sanction is disposable to usage arsenic a grip connected societal media platforms.

This is important for maintaining accordant branding crossed the web. And it makes it easier for radical to find you.

If you’re blessed with what you observe during research, acquisition and registry your chosen domain. (You tin bash this utilizing GoDaddy oregon a akin service.) And reserve the usernames connected immoderate societal media platforms you mightiness use.

4. Select a Hosting Provider

A hosting supplier stores your blog’s files and makes them accessible online. And the supplier you spell with tin person implications for your blog.

Some blogging platforms connection escaped hosting oregon integrated hosting services. Otherwise, you’ll request to signifier your ain hosting.

The main types to take from are:

• Shared hosting: This benignant involves sharing server resources with different sites and is usually the astir affordable. It’s typically champion for tiny blogs that person comparatively debased postulation volumes.
• Virtual backstage server (VPS): This benignant of hosting involves sharing a carnal server but getting a dedicated virtual abstraction for your blog. It offers somewhat much power and works amended for increasing businesses.
• Dedicated hosting: This enactment gives you a dedicated server and offers precocious performance. It’s amended for larger, higher-traffic websites.
• Cloud hosting: This benignant uses a virtual server web to big aggregate websites. It’s champion for those who request flexibility and scalability.

When deciding connected a hosting plan, see factors like:

• Server speed: This affects however rapidly your tract loads for visitors
• Uptime guarantees: These guarantee that your blog remains accessible to readers without predominant interruptions
• Customer support: Good enactment helps you resoluteness issues swiftly and keeps your blog moving smoothly

When you’re conscionable starting a blog, it’s omniscient to prime a basal hosting plan. And 1 that offers the flexibility to upgrade arsenic your assemblage grows.

5. Create Reader Personas

Reader personas are quality profiles that correspond the kinds of radical you privation to work your blog.

They assistance you recognize and visualize your people audiences. So you tin prosecute them much effectively.

For example, a yoga blog mightiness make a scholar persona similar this:

You tin make personas similar the 1 supra with the Semrush Persona tool.

But you’ll request to behaviour audience research first.

The quickest mode to bash that is to usage the One2Target instrumentality to survey your competitors’ audiences. And uncover demographic, socioeconomic, and behaviour data.

6. Set Up Your Blog

Setting up your blog correctly ensures it gets disconnected to the champion imaginable start. And reduces the hazard of issues successful the future.

Here’s however to bash it:

Design Your Blog


A well-designed blog enhances the idiosyncratic experience, making it much apt that readers volition enactment and research your content. 

We urge that you browse different blogs successful your niche. To spot what kinds of designs are apt to enactment good and conscionable your audience’s expectations. 

For example, wellness blogs thin to person minimalist designs successful calming colors. Like the Lindywell blog:

And question blogs thin to beryllium bold and vibrant, to convey a consciousness of adventure. Like Wandering Earl:

Here are the main elements to see erstwhile designing your blog:

• Logo: Create oregon committee a strong, memorable logo to correspond your blog. This volition assistance you fortify your branding crossed the web.
• Typography: For a accordant look, restrict your blog to 2 oregon 3 complementary fonts. Make definite they’re each readable and reflective of your wide aesthetic.
• Layout and navigation: Ensure your blog has a clear, intuitive structure. Add easy-to-navigate menus and organized contented sections.
• Color scheme: Stick to a palette of 3 to 5 colors. To support a cohesive and visually appealing look.

Most blogging platforms connection customizable templates oregon themes that marque it casual to re-style your blog.

For example, here’s a peek astatine the WordPress taxable library:

Just guarantee the taxable supports the functionalities you need. Like societal media integration and responsive plan (which is champion for ensuring it’s casual to sojourn your tract connected immoderate device).

Add Static Pages


In summation to publishing blog posts, you request to make static pages that supply captious accusation to your readers. So they don’t person to excavation for answers.

Here are immoderate of the pages you mightiness privation to create:

• Homepage: Serves arsenic the archetypal impression, showcasing your blog’s absorption and inviting visitors to research further. It’s a bully thought to automatically showcase your latest posts here.
• About page: Offers penetration into who you are and what your blog is about. To assistance you physique a transportation with your readers.
• Contact page: Contains interaction accusation and/or a interaction form. This allows visitors (or imaginable sponsors) to get successful interaction with you directly.
• Privacy policy/terms of service: These pages outline your blog’s privateness practices, presumption of use, and ineligible disclaimers. They’re often required if you cod idiosyncratic information oregon tally ads.

You should nexus to the astir important pages from your main navigation. Like this:

Link to little important pages from the footer. Like this:

Make Sure Search Engines Can Index Your Blog

When your blog is indexable, hunt engines tin database your pages successful hunt results. Meaning readers are much apt to observe your content.

Here are 3 main elements you request to check:

1. XML sitemap: This website record should database each the pages you privation to amusement successful hunt results. Some blogging platforms make it for you automatically. And it’s a bully thought to taxable your sitemap to Google done Google Search Console.
2. Robots.txt: This website record tells hunt engines which pages should and shouldn’t beryllium crawled. It’s apt that the blogging level volition make this automatically. But you mightiness privation to cheque for yourself.
3. Meta robots tags: Tags that archer hunt motor bots however to crawl, index, and show a page. You tin typically power these done a plugin similar Yoast SEO.

We urge that you scan your blog with Semrush’s Site Audit tool.

It checks for crawling and indexing issues (and tons of different SEO problems) connected your site. And provides proposal connected wherefore and however to hole them.

7. Plan Your Blog Content


At this stage, program the types of contented you’ll make and determine however often you’ll publish. 

This volition assistance guarantee that your contented aligns with your audience’s interests. And that you’re capable to support a accordant posting schedule.

Here’s however to marque a blog plan:

Find Target Keywords

Keywords are words oregon phrases that users participate into hunt engines to observe content. 

Finding and analyzing keywords allows you to place fashionable topics successful your niche. And make blog posts that get much postulation from hunt engines.

To start, brainstorm halfway ideas related to your blog’s niche. Think astir the main subjects your assemblage mightiness beryllium funny in.

For example:

• Healthy recipes
• Meal planning
• Nutrition tips

Then, hunt 1 of your halfway presumption successful Semrush’s Keyword Magic Tool. And beryllium definite to prime your people country.

The instrumentality volition amusement “Broad Match” keywords that see your starting word oregon a adjacent variation.

And you’ll spot these utile metrics:

• Intent: The benignant of search intent, which indicates what the idiosyncratic wants to achieve. Blog posts typically execute champion erstwhile focused connected informational keywords, but they tin fertile for different types.
• Volume: The keyword’s search volume, which refers to the mean fig of monthly Google searches. The higher the volume, the higher your content’s imaginable reach.
• Trend: How hunt volumes person fluctuated implicit the past 12 months. You mightiness privation to debar keywords that are declining successful involvement oregon are retired of season.
• KD %: The keyword trouble score, which indicates however hard it’ll beryllium to gain a precocious integrated ranking. As a caller blogger, it’s a bully thought to people keywords with a people from 0% to 29%.
• SF: The fig of SERP features (non-standard results) that look successful Google’s results. You tin click the icon to presumption the results leafage for yourself.

Consider each these metrics arsenic you location successful connected presumption that are astir applicable to your blog. And usage them to pass your decisions.

Also participate your halfway taxable into Semrush’s Topic Research tool. To observe fashionable and trending subtopics.

Map Topic Clusters

Topic clusters are groups of pages that enactment unneurotic to comprehensively screen a subject. Which tin boost scholar engagement and physique topical authority that yet leads to much postulation from hunt engines.

There’s a cardinal pillar page that provides an overview of the halfway topic. And clump pages that screen associated subtopics. 

These pages are linked unneurotic similar this:

Use your database of keywords and topics to program taxable clusters similar the 1 above. (Keep successful caput that aggregate keywords tin subordinate to 1 taxable and beryllium targeted unneurotic connected 1 page.)

Determine Your Posting Schedule

As a regularisation of thumb, it’s bully to people astatine slightest 1 blog station per week. To support your assemblage supplied with a dependable watercourse of contented and promote them to physique a speechmaking habit.

To plan your perfect posting schedule, see your:

• Niche and scholar personas: For example, if you’re penning news-related articles, it mightiness beryllium important to people astatine slightest erstwhile per day
• Available resources: Evaluate however overmuch clip you person to make prime content. And retrieve that prime beats quantity.
• Goals: If you’re blogging arsenic a hobby, the posting frequence doesn’t substance excessively much. But if you’re keen to physique your readership and revenue, you’ll request to dainty your docket much seriously.

If you’re unsure of the due cadence, commencement blogging dilatory and physique your mode up. You don’t privation to overwhelm yourself oregon committedness your readers thing you can’t deliver.

Create a Blog Calendar

A blog calendar outlines what posts to make and erstwhile to people them. It tin besides assistance you way the presumption of your posts and different utile accusation astir them.

Like this: 

Use a content calendar template to make your blog calendar. And commencement filling it out.

We urge readying posts astatine slightest 1 period successful advance. That should springiness you capable clip to hole your content. And assistance you support a regular posting schedule.

Don’t hide to see immoderate seasonal trends oregon upcoming events.

8. Write & Optimize Your First Blog Post

You’ll privation to motorboat your blog with astatine slightest 1 post. So, let’s spell implicit how to constitute a blog post. And optimize it for users and hunt engines.

Draft an Effective Title Tag and Meta Description


A page’s title tag and meta description tin look successful hunt results, similar this:

So, they tin person a important interaction connected your click-through rates.

While you mightiness privation to cleanable them later, it’s adjuvant to draught a rubric and statement now. To assistance you absorption your plans for the post.

Here are immoderate tips for penning a bully rubric tag:

• Make definite it matches oregon intimately matches the heading you’ll usage for your station (which should beryllium descriptive and engaging)
• Keep it to nary much than 60 characters (to trim the hazard that it gets chopped disconnected successful hunt results)
• Place the astir important keyword(s) adjacent the beginning, if earthy (this is bully for blog SEO)
• Avoid keyword stuffing (forcing keywords successful unnaturally)
• Try to marque it basal retired from competitors’ titles 
• Differentiate it from different titles connected your site
• Tailor it for your scholar personas

And present are immoderate tips for penning a bully meta description:

• Summarize what your station has to connection to people readers
• Keep it astir 105 characters (to trim the hazard that it gets chopped off)
• Include applicable keywords wherever natural
• Consider including a call to action similar “read now”
• Avoid duplicate meta descriptions crossed antithetic pages
• Reflect your wide blog’s code and style
• Use progressive connection to prosecute readers

Create a Content Outline

A content outline details the operation you’ll usage successful your blog post. And summarizes the main things you privation to see oregon achieve.

It helps you program your contented efficaciously and streamline the penning process.

First, program a logical heading structure.

A well-structured heading layout improves the idiosyncratic acquisition by making contented much accessible and digestible. And besides helps hunt engines scale your pages accurately—to heighten your SEO efforts. 

To trade an effectual heading structure, commencement with a azygous H1 for your main rubric and usage H2s for large sections. You tin past nest H3s nether H2s, H4s nether H3s, etc., arsenic needed. 

Like this:

Keep headings concise yet descriptive to convey what each conception is about.

Then, usage slug points to enactment what you’ll see where.

Write Your First Draft

You’re present acceptable to constitute the archetypal draught of your blog post.

To guarantee it performs good with users and hunt engines, travel these champion practices:

• Focus connected satisfying hunt intent—i.e., giving the people scholar what they want
• Tailor your tone of voice to suit your scholar persona(s)
• Apply the bottommost enactment up beforehand (BLUF) principle—i.e., successful each section, supply the astir important accusation archetypal and spell into much item later
• Incorporate your people keywords into the content, wherever natural
• Add internal links to different pages connected your blog, wherever relevant
• Add external links to your sources oregon utile resources, wherever relevant
• Format your blog post truthful it’s casual to work and scan
• Ensure each your contented is close and original

Semrush’s Content Marketing Platform helps you streamline the blog penning process.

The SEO Content Template instrumentality generates recommendations based connected champion practices and the top-ranking results for your people keywords.

Then, you tin import your recommendations to the SEO Writing Assistant.

This instrumentality scores your contented based connected SEO, code of voice, readability, and originality. And provides recommendations for improvement.

Plus, the Smart Writer features allows you to make oregon amended contented utilizing AI.

Add Compelling Images


Images play a important relation successful making your blog posts engaging and visually appealing. Because they assistance seizure readers’ attraction and whitethorn heighten your blog’s visibility successful hunt results.

Here are immoderate champion practices for utilizing images successful your blog posts:

• Optimize record sizes. Ensure images are compressed to trim load clip without compromising quality.
• Choose the close format. Use JPEG for photographs and PNGs with transparent backgrounds for graphics (to guarantee they show properly).
• Include descriptive alt text. Alt substance helps hunt engines recognize representation contented and improves accessibility.
• Use applicable record names. Name files with keywords related to the content, which immunodeficiency successful hunt motor indexing.
• Ensure responsive design. Images should set decently connected antithetic devices for a seamless idiosyncratic experience.
• Maintain accordant style. Use a accordant ocular benignant that aligns with your marque to make a cohesive look.

By pursuing these practices, you heighten your blog’s idiosyncratic acquisition and SEO. 

9. Launch & Promote Your Blog

Launching your blog is apt arsenic elemental arsenic clicking a button. But it depends connected the level you’ve used.

Promoting it means engaging successful activities that summation its visibility and pull readers.

Here are immoderate effectual ways to beforehand your blog:

Social media marketing is simply a large mode to beforehand your blog. Because it offers immense imaginable for scope and engagement.

It allows you to straight link with your audience, thrust postulation to your blog, and physique a assemblage astir your brand. 

To beforehand your blog effectively:

• Share links to your posts and different types of content
• Engage with followers by replying to comments
• Use eye-catching visuals
• Use hashtags to grow your reach
• Collaborate with chap bloggers to pat into each other’s audiences

Create a Newsletter


A newsletter is an email you nonstop to subscribers with blog updates and different info. Which helps you support readers informed, thrust postulation to your blog, and physique a loyal audience.

And astir email selling solutions connection elaborate analytics. So you tin spot however galore radical opened your newsletter, however galore clicks it got, etc.

To make a newsletter:

1. Choose an email selling level oregon plugin
2. Design a template that complements your blog
3. Add a sign-up signifier connected your blog
4. Send regular updates (and exclusive content, if possible) to your subscribers
5. Use analytics to improve 

Collaborate with Other Bloggers

Collaborating with different bloggers successful your niche (or related niches) tin beryllium an effectual mode to scope caller audiences.

For example, Nomadic Matt gave an interrogation to That Anxious Traveller:

You could besides effort penning a guest post for different blog.

Reach retired to your favourite bloggers with your ideas. And spot what they person to say.

While your blog is inactive successful its infancy, you whitethorn person to bash a small much persuading. So, effort attaching different samples of your penning oregon providing in-depth proposals for them to consider.

10. Monitor Your Blog’s Performance

Monitoring your blog’s show helps you spot what’s moving and what isn’t. So you tin amended implicit time. 

It besides allows you to stitchery information (e.g., astir scholar numbers) that could assistance you monetize your blog successful the future. Or beryllium its worth to stakeholders.

To spot however your blog is performing successful Google Search, usage Semrush’s Position Tracking tool.

It shows wherever your blog appears successful hunt results (i.e., wherever it “ranks”) for people keywords. And makes it casual to show your visibility implicit time.

Also acceptable up your blog connected Google Analytics 4 (or an alternative web analytics platform).

That way, you tin way metrics like:

• Traffic: The fig of visits to your blog
• Visitors: The fig of unsocial users who travel to your blog
• Average clip connected page: How agelong the mean idiosyncratic remains connected a fixed page
• Conversions: How galore readers instrumentality a desired enactment (e.g., motion up for your newsletter)

You tin besides spot if you’re attracting the close kinds of demographics, observe which promotional efforts thrust the astir traffic, and overmuch more.

11. Monetize Your Blog (Optional)

If you’re looking to monetize your blog, present are immoderate options to consider:

• Affiliate marketing: Promote products oregon services connected your blog and gain a committee for each merchantability made done your referral links. This works good if you tin align affiliate products with your blog’s contented and assemblage interests.
• Display ads: Sign up for advertisement networks similar Google AdSense to show ads connected your blog. You gain gross based connected clicks oregon impressions. This is simply a straightforward mode to make passive income, particularly with precocious traffic.
• Digital products: Create and merchantability integer products specified arsenic ebooks, online courses, oregon printable assets. This method allows you to leverage your expertise and connection invaluable resources straight to your audience.
• Sponsored content: Collaborate with brands to make contented that promotes their products oregon services. Sponsored posts tin beryllium lucrative and supply further worth to your readers erstwhile done authentically.
• Paid memberships: Offer exclusive content, forums, oregon different perks done a subscription model. This attack builds a assemblage of loyal readers who financially enactment your work.

Choose methods that align with your readers’ interests portion maintaining your content’s authenticity and integrity.

Also carnivore successful caput that it whitethorn beryllium hard to monetize your contented successful the aboriginal stages. But it volition apt go easier arsenic your blog grows and attracts much readers.

Start Growing Your Blog Today

Now that you cognize however to commencement blogging, you tin absorption connected growing.

And you tin bash that much efficaciously if you found editorial guidelines, program your contented successful advance, constitute aggregate posts astatine a time, and instrumentality breaks erstwhile needed to guarantee your creativity doesn’t tally dry. 

Last but not least, usage Semrush tools to streamline and amended your blogging.

They tin assistance you travel up with blog ideas, constitute optimized posts, way results, and overmuch more.