Let’s be honest, there are A LOT of things to learn when you are starting a blog/website. It’s impossible to learn then all before hand and learning some stuff along the way if all part of the fun! If it was soo easy to know everything about starting a blog and making money online, everyone would be doing it. It takes patience, knowledge and a whole lot of determination!
Lucky for you there are a lot of bloggers out there that are happy to share their experiences and hopefully help you along the way!
There are a MANY things I was oblivious about when I started my Blogging and Virtual Assistant Journey but for now I want to cover the 3 most important things to know before your start a blog. I want you to think about these things before you go any further so there aren’t any surprises once you start your blogging journey!
Surprises are nice on birthdays but not when it comes to impacting the rest of your life.
What does starting a blog actually cost?
I haven’t seen many bloggers really talk about this one. I’ve read a lot about “oh it doesn’t cost much” but what’s not much?
$50, $100, $500?
I think this is important because someone starting their blog while working full-time might find $500 to be not a big deal but a stay at home mom desperately needing extra income would likely have a heart attack at $500!
The good news is, as far as I’m concerned, there are only two non-negotiable expenses when starting your very first WordPress Blog.
These are your Web Hosting and your WordPress Theme.
Your Web Hosting will cost your $3.95/month plus tax and your WordPress Theme will be a one time fee of about $80. That’s really not soo bad and likely manageable for most people!
You can use free platforms for the rest and do a lot of research yourself to avoid paying for additional courses. Don’t get me wrong, if you have the disposable income, by all means, make your life easier and spend on certain things but you don’t HAVE to!
I really wanted to make this clear for anyone who is worried about starting this and finding out later that they still need to spend wayyyyy more money!
What do you want your Brand and Blog to look like?
This is a biggy… but.. take a moment and breathe because this ISN’T set in stone!
I just finished my 2nd re-brand with a whole new site and I don’t feel bad about it. It takes time to really hone down what you like, what your audience relates to and how you want things to look.
The most important part – and the part you probably shouldn’t change later on – is your Blog name and URL. This is the most important one.
Hopefully, you can pick one that you can stick with long term. I switched mine over to a new name as I more specifically targeted my audience but it can take time to figure it out and everything evolves eventually.
The good thing is, that you can try and plan this in advance and take some time to see which website names are available. I don’t want you to fall in love with a name only to find out the web address is taken!
Go to Siteground Web Hosting (this is who I wholeheartedly recommend and who I use), select “Get Started” and then select the “Basic Plan” just to get to the screen where you can look for Domain names. This will give you a head start for tomorrow!
I also recommend keeping this as simple as possible and have your URL be 2-3 words max. The more words you include, the harder it is for readers to remember and the more complicated is it to read when all of the words are back to back!
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How much time can you actually devote to blogging?
It’s all fine and dandy that you want to start a blog and I’m DEFINITELY in your corner but I also want to make sure you are realistic about it.
When will you carve out time to write blog posts?
When will you carve out time to work on your site?
Work on promoting your blog?
Doing additional research?
I’m not trying to overwhelm you, the point is for you to take this at your own pace, just make sure you have the time to carve. If you only want to spend a couple hours a week working on things that’s no problem, as long as your expectations follow suit.
If you are looking to explode your blog traffic and your income on supercharge, make sure you have realistic expectations of the time commitment it will take!
I want you to succeed!
The average blog post takes me about an hour if not more when you take into consideration, research, writing, creating graphics and then marketing on Social Media!
I also currently spend a couple of hours a week working on improving my actual site. This was considerably more at the beginning when I was getting everything all set up. This doesn’t include the additional time I spend on creating eProducts such as my templates or doing actual Client Branding or Web Design work. Please also keep in mind though, that I do this full-time so I choose to spend this amount of time to get the most out of it!
Please don’t take this a deterrent, I just want to be as transparent as possible and anyone that promises that you will make tons of money overnight by starting a blog is lying to you! It takes time and the more you put in, the more you will get out!
Good luck with starting your blog!
Well, this covers the three most important things I want you to think about before starting your blog. Trust me there is a lot more to cover but these will lay a strong foundation for you!
All the best!
