How To Start A Blog That Will Earn You Thousands Of Dollars A Month.

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Have you ever wondered how a great number of individuals all over the world create businesses online? Averagely, some blogs are visited by about more than two million people and manage to generate over a million dollars annually in revenue. It is quite possible to generate $30,000 or even more in a month from a simple blog provided you follow the right guidelines. Ensure you pay close attention to all the steps; blog creation, watch it grow, and learn how to monetize in less than an hour.

First step. Reveal your ideas

To start a blog, aim at some specific content and not just any revolutionary idea. Always remember that even if your idea does not sound good enough, it is one of a kind. However, if you have a unique voice to everything, then perhaps your vibrant personality will attract your friends and those around you. Before deciding on the niche of the blog, ask yourself these vital questions.

1.    Do I enjoy this topic?

Bloggers who do not enjoy writing about a certain topic will be evident in what they write. You are advised not to blog if you are not enthusiastic about that subject. The topics you single out should connect well with your interests in them otherwise you will end up writing less. Take note that you will have problems to create content consistently that would have increased your audience. However, if you are still stuck in coming up with your ideas, then, reflect on the advice people seek from you often. Whether it’s healthy living, staying productive at home, or even how to effectively connect with family during COVID 19 crisis. Such ideas should be a stepping stone in developing more content.

2.     Am I the only one interested in a particular thing?

A 20-year-old may feel odd since he is obsessed with fashion and wants to know about knitting caps or shorts for sale. Do not worry as you are not alone. Have a quick browsing and you will notice the number of people looking for the same information. For example, if you wish to start a fashion blog then try narrowing down to a specific topic like women's wear. Women have their taste in fashion and am sure whatever you choose to write on they will want to know more i.e. Shoe types for different occasions.

 

Take note of the 3,000,000 plus results. This means that other people are researching the same.

Second step. Get a web host and name your blog.

A very enticing but critical step since the blog name represents your brand. It’s like your legacy and you might want to gain momentum. When you are a newbie at blogs then you need to consider two things.

1.     The domain name. Also called the name of the blog. Good domain names should roughly run you $10 annually. If you have not found the right blog name, then do not stress. You can change it later with time. You can think and come up with names just like we did-Surveg stands for service for all ages. (Serve all ages-Surveg).

2.     Web hosting. Hosting a web simply allows your domain to be easily obtained on the web.  Otherwise browsers will not be able to identify the blog online. Both the blog address and domain name influence each other. One cannot work without the other.

Various companies offer web hosting companies and the prices vary from $4 to 1000$ monthly. Some of these companies are generous enough to offer affordable fees and a free domain. To be realistic, you need something simple at the beginning before upgrading it in the future. That is once you hit a target of 25000 new visitors per month. Here are some of the tips to consider when naming a blog.

Settle for .com over the rest. They are easy to navigate and remember. Try as much as possible to avoid numbers and hyphens as they are hard to remember.

Choose utmost three words since most of the single worded domains are already taken. Use a word that is more appealing and memorable.

Look for a keyword that represents your blog idea. This will efficiently help people identify your blog’s niche easily.

If you are dealing with a personal brand, use a variation of your name or that of your company. However much effort you take to come up with a suitable domain name is worth it.

Third step. Install your blogging software.

It is impossible to start blogging without a relevant software such as WordPress. Most bloggers like it because of its user-friendliness, powerful, and free plugin services. Word press also allows you to make changes to your blog anytime and any form you please. It will take less than 7 clicks to install word press. Here are 5 clicks that will land you this blogging software.

 After achieving your domain and hosting account log in first click on “install word press “.

Click on the “do it yourself” and click the “install “option.

Third, click on the “check domain “

Lastly, finalize by acknowledging their terms of service installing the software. Within no time you have yourself a running word press blog that functions just right.

Fourth step. Use a word press theme to design your blog.

After a complete installation, click on the “activate button and you are good to go. If you are not capable of finding a theme of your liking, then there are premium themes you can buy from sites like thrive themes or theme forest.

Fifth step. Customize your word press blog.

There are a lot of customizations that can be made on word press but we will only deal with the vital ones. The plugins in word press are used to add sliders or forums which extend the functionality of the blog. They may look like basic features but are unavailable by default.

1.     Click the “customize” button under your active theme.

2.   

     Based on the theme you chose, menu options tend to vary in the sidebar. "Site identity" is the main category that needs editing.

3.  Lastly, you can add a tagline or blog name then click the “save and publish option”

Optimize traffic in your search engine.

Search engine optimization (SEO), a well-known multibillion-dollar industry is the process of optimizing your blog to be accessed through search engines using particular keywords. Once you discover relevant and easily discoverable search items then you are a step ahead in building networks and net worth fast. SEO newbies may find this a bit daunting but word press makes it easier to navigate and optimize the most technical things in the blog. All is required of you is creating captivating content for people either through video, texts, or images. It is the responsibility of the blogger to build a rapport with their readers i.e. through informative and relatable discussions with them. For starters, download a plugin known as "Yoast SEO".

Click “add new” In the plugins menu, look for Yoast SEO in the search section. Notice it is the first word that appears. Click on “install now” then “activate “button after the whole installation process has been completed.

The settings of the plugins are at the sidebar of the new SEO.

Hover over “your info” at the dashboard and set foundations for your blog.

After verifying that the name of your website and tagline are in line then go ahead and ID yourself either as a person or company.

Click “save changes”

The next step is clicking on "webmaster tools". Hit the "Google Search Console” button. This is a webmaster service that accepts your blog in their search index and optimizes its ability to be visible.

Log into your Google account, either through drive or Gmail.

Click the “alternate methods” after signing into your Google account then click on “HTML tag”.

Your search console Meta code will appear on the new drop-down menu. Simply lift the alphanumeric string as it is excluding the quotation marks.

Paste the above Meta code in the Google search console textbox and press on “save changes”

Last step, is the "verify" option. Click on it.

The webmaster central will help you gain rich data-driven insight such as errors in your log, key phrases you rank for, and the ability to alert Google whenever you publish new content. Under the “general tab” click on start installation wizard

Yoast will familiarize you with 10 quick steps to optimize your word press. The first step is the welcome screen which you can skip.

The second step involves selecting the environment that suits your website. You will choose the production environment which is a real site that you have interest in driving traffic to.

The third step is the type of website. Choose blog then next.

Step 4 is setting yourself as a person or company which we already did before, so we will just skip.

Step 5, add any social profiles linked to your blog. When complete, click “next”.

Step 6 involves posting visibility. Set “pages” and “posts” to visible and “media “to hidden.

You will have to decide on the number of authors for the blog. If you would like to add an author in the future this can be edited in settings.

Also, if you wish to have Yoast plugin pull in data from Google's search console then click on the "Get Google Authorization Code" button.

Click on the "allow" button to confirm access.

In step 9, you can choose a title separator and verify the name of your website. A title separator is a symbol used to separate the title of your blog post as well as the name of the website in the Meta title information. The Google searchers expect to see it when looking for your blog through the search query.

The last step is a congratulatory message confirming your success in optimizing your SEO settings for the budding word press.

XML Sitemaps

This is the last Yoast SEO setting that is worth configuring. An XML sitemap is a file that outlines the URLs for your website. It chips in to help Google and other search engines to crawl for new pages and posts on the site. In the "features tab", set the "advanced settings' pages to "enabled" then click on save changes.

You can endlessly lay around with these settings but every other thing we’ve set up there will put you on the right track. 

Set up permalinks

Permalinks are static hyperlinks that directly lead you to a particular blog page. I.e. Word press sets your permalinks to your post ID/ domain name.com

Move your cursor over settings and choose “permalinks”

From the given options you can choose the “post name” that uses keywords from your title to create a new and unique permalink. Save the settings.

At this juncture, if you followed all the guidelines above you now have your web hosting and domain purchased, installed a theme, and customized your website so that it can be crawled ad found by search engines. We now have the core technicalities in place and already functioning, next question is; do you know what you want to write about?

Sixth step. Brainstorm on several blog topics.

Most of your content will emerge from your experiences, success, shortcomings, adventures you adventured, and most importantly is your enthusiasm for various things in life. Start by asking yourself some queries. What can I blog about? Questioning yourself often will help you come up with brilliant blog ideas. The following questions will help you come up with over 30 working ideas within an hour.

1.     What intrigues passion in my readers?

Many readers have their liking of the content they want to read about. For example,

As a yoga instructor, I am fascinated by mental health and staying healthy and living a stress-free life. I wish I found more information on the same.

A new working from home mom would be interested in how to stay productive while at home, learn how to work with budget-friendly ideas in the household, how to prepare delicious meals for her family, how to maintain effective communication with her family and also ensure that her children home school as instructed among others.

2.     What are some of the common challenges my readers encounter?

Readers may have shortcomings they come across in life and they need some help dealing with them. If they come across some material online concerning the same they would stop and read. For example,

Newbie golfers may find it hard slicing the ball at first.

People who have added excess fat may find it overwhelming at first to start living healthily and staying fit.

Some people are forced to work from home based on the current COVID 19 crisis and are surely struggling to cope with their new lifestyle. They are worried and stressed because of the pandemic and want everything to go back to how they were.

The boredom especially after schools close has intensified. Families do not know what to do with their free time. They can use some help with a list of activities they can engage in and enjoy their stay at home.

3.     What are the character traits of my readers?

Readers have their diverse traits that need content that best fits their personalities. For example,

Intelligent students are confident individuals who are curious to know everything.

Mothers are patient with some sense of humor

Scientists are adventurous and very resourceful.

4.     Why do your readers find your niche interesting and easy to understand?

What is it that they love? Does your content satisfy their wants? If the answer is positive, then be sure you are doing a great job. For example,

Those who like to go hiking, traveling, and camping love being away from the city for a while. It relaxes them.

Moms love being involved in their children’s lives. That is why they want to connect with them emotionally, and physically.

5.     What does your audience dislike in your niche?

Your audience cannot always be intrigued. They have their fears too. For example.

Workmates hate people who are difficult to be around. It may be because they are ever complaining about something or lashing out colleagues.

Campers are afraid of wild animals.

Stay at home moms or dad do not appreciate being despised every time they are in public.

That being said, coming up with blog post ideas won't be a problem. Try formulating some catchy titles that will attract your readers then develop punch lines in the remaining content so that you do not lose them along the way.

Seventh step. Write your first article.

Just like word processing tools. Word press has an intuitive editing feature. You can easily make new entries directly from your word press admin.

On the left sidebar, click on "posts"

A list will drop down, but you will not see anything as we as still working on a new install. To get a new entry, click on "add new" at the sidebar.

You will be directed to the editor where you can start blogging.

Use the toolbar toggle button to access more editing options to spice up your posts. These tools will come in handy when working on the subheadings in your articles.

For starters, choose one of the titles you brainstormed earlier and add it in the text box. Word press will quickly build a permalink depending on the key phrase used in the heading.

Afterward, type the body in the huge space provided. Make sure you are enjoying the subject topic.

Visual assets help in engaging your readers. They tend to illustrate aspects much better than just plain words. Ensure you add them so that they may want to read your content to the end.

If you want to add these visuals, place the cursor where you want the picture and then click on “add media”

Next, drag and drop the image in the media box.

As soon as the image has been uploaded, highlight the image then click on "Insert into post". From there you can now format the size and add hyperlinks if you please.

The image will automatically be inserted into your post.

Upon completing your article, you must make last-minute optimizations with the help of the Yoast SEO plugin discussed above. Yoast happens to have precise settings under the main text area. The 4 main settings comprise "meta description" "focus keyword", SEO title" and "slug".

After the settings are done, you will preview how the post will appear in Google search engine results.

The SEO headings should be created in such a way that they are appealing to click and Meta descriptions that talk more about your post.

As you commence to optimize your description and heading, the Yoast SEO plugin will provide a real-time response.

Your goal is to achieve at least 80% of the green lights

Before hitting the publish button, preview it once more ensure that;

1)     There is a natural flow of content

2)     Easy to read

3)     Some headings separate the huge chunks of information.

4)     There are lists and bullet points.

5)     Thoroughly check for grammatical errors and typos and eliminate them.

6)     The tone of your content is conversational.

If you are content with your work, go ahead and scroll to the top page and click the publish option to post it.

Bravo. You have successfully managed to set up a blog that looks amazing and well optimized for search engine traffic.

Eighth step. Schedule your writing routine.

Building an editorial calendar will help you keep on track. Many bloggers tend to relax at some point hence disappointing the new fans who are looking forward to new content. Bloggers need to prioritize consistency especially when it comes to creating content. If you decide to post 500 articles in a month for example it should because you are following that editorial calendar.

If you schedule 20 articles to have been completed in a week then make sure you honor them. Only then will you say you are productive in your work. The more you keep track of the dates the higher the chances of growing your readers. Ask yourself some questions. How often can you post the articles? Monthly?

We now know how vital a calendar is. However, over the Google calendar and open a new calendar. Click on “my calendar”.

Click on “create new calendar” and add a description. Time zone and name. If you have that close friend, spouse, or team then share with them so that they can keep making you accountable to your goals. Your calendar should be selected in the left sidebar and schedule it to weekly.

Google calendars will keep you motivated and always remind you of what drove to start a blog in the first place.

Ninth step. Monetizing your blog

The final step is to monetize your blog.  A lot of people may not be in a rush to monetize their blogs, which is a good thing. This step is the last in the list because I would not want to imagine that money is the driving force in your early efforts. Based on the conventional ways of making sales, the steps include.

·        Identifying an idea

·        Building the product, you want to sell.

·        Advertise the product so that you can find the market soon.

The above strategy has not been able to push through for so many businesses simply because they did not secure an audience/market before creating it. The main advantage of blogging is that it is the best channel for monetization as long as you build enough audience through comments in the blog, social media platforms the newsletters in your email.

Engage with your audience actively

Through blogging, you allow people in. ask questions in your blog so that the audience can reply and tell you what they want. On second thoughts, use the Google forms to gather relevant information from the readers. Openly sharing opinions with your audience moves you further into gaining more potential clients.

Earn more through advertisements.

Just like other authors, try adding an ad on your blog using Google AdSense. This way you can sell your services easier and faster. However, if you want to make real money then focus on d placements and private sales.

Remember, the higher the traffic blog, the higher the chances of making a fulltime income selling ad space to huge corporations.

Market physical products through your blog

You can explore all the options in your niche and decide on the ones you want to market. Imagine this scenario. Your blog receives a $ 10,000/ month and therefore you decide to sell a private label fashion clothesline for a certain celebrity. Your successes will attract big companies who would want you to help them sell their products and get paid for it.  That is a Win for both of you. As you create meaningful networks with the society, the audience drives you in the right direction by sharing their wants. For you to start monetizing then you better fulfill their needs.

Conclusion

Everyone can start a blog, but creating the one that succeeds and makes money requires a lot of effort and time invested. Nothing comes easy. However, the fruits far outweigh the risks and shortcomings. Nowadays, blogs are easily accessible and more affordable compared to how they were in the past. The obstacles are always there to push you further to achieve that goal but I urge you not to give up. Keep in mind that even as you start this journey, humans are the ones who will read your material. So be adventurous, truthful, transparent, and above all e natural. Creating fantastic content consistently will make your audience flock towards you and comment.