If you are reading this article you most probably already know the importance of blogs and looking for a way to get started. Most of us are not necessarily tech gurus and starting our own blog doesn’t need to be outsourced to a developer.
In this guide I will show you the steps to get your blog up and running in less than 30 minutes using Bluehost, one of the leading web hosting services.
Domain Name? Hosting?
First we will get a bit technical. To run any blog you will need a domain name and a web hosting service. People will use your domain name to reach your blog. The domain name will point to a server: a machine that will host your blog and its content. This server is named a web host.
How To Get Started
In the past 15 years I used many hosting providers and Bluehost remains the easiest to get started without the need for much technical knowledge.
1- Get Started
Visit Bluehost go to WordPress, WordPress Hosting in the main menu and click on the “Start My Website” button or click on the below image for quicker access.
2- Choose The Right Package
Next step is to chose your own package. All wordpress packages come with 1 free domain name and a Free SSL certificate.
If you are getting started with an amateur blog then you can go with the Basic package as it offers a decent hosting offering with enough storage and performance. If you are serious about your blog and you are looking to make profit from it then I would recommend the Pro package as it offers higher performance than the others, daily and weekly backups of your blog and a dedicated IP which is one of the Search Engine Optimization (SEO) ranking factors to be taken into consideration.
3- Setup your Domain
If you don’t have a domain name you can book it directly from Bluehost in the next step. The domain name will be offered for free.
If you have a domain already you can type it on the right.
4- Fill Your Information to Create Your Account
5- Fill Your Payment Details
6- Choose Your Package Information
There are useful extras that you can add to your hosting package. Those are optional but definitely useful to protect your blog.
7- Create Your Account Password
A strong password is always recommended to keep your account from being stolen.
8- Login with your created username and password
9- Setting up The Blog
When you login for the first time you will get a wizard that will help you setup your blog.
Fill the name of your Blog and enter your tagline.
Enable the option “Do you want a blog?”.
Skip the option “Do you want an online store?” for now to keep the setup easier.
10- Fill your online goals
This will help Bluehost optimize your site for search engines.
11 – Select Your Theme
Select one of the proposed themes. This is how your blog will look like.
Once you finish setting up your blog you will be able to customize the selected theme or even choose another theme from the WordPress themes directory.
12- Configure Your Blog
Bluehost offers you a checklist to continue setting up your blog and writing your first blog post. Follow the check list below.
You can click anytime on “View My Site” to see how your blog is starting to look.
You can click on “WordPress” to visit the WordPress backend.
13- WordPress Backend
Now that you have a blog full setup you can start creating blog posts and pages from the WordPress backend interface.
Once your blog is ready, click on the “Launch your site” to make your blog public.
Wrapping Up
With just a dozen of simple steps you can start your own blog in no time.
If you feel you are ready to get started start by search for your domain name below:
Heads up: I use affiliate links throughout this article. This means that I may receive a commission if you end up buying something from Bluehost. If you do buy a Bluehost subscription through my link — thanks so much! You’re helping me to keep this site running 🙂
