Are you starting your first blog? Looking for some tips and advice for new bloggers?
I just received a tweet from @MillerMosaicLLC asking for some links to posts about starting a blog so I thought instead of just replying to her I’d compile the list here as a post for new bloggers. There are literally thousands of posts in the ProBlogger archives for bloggers starting out – but these would be a good place to start.
Update: Check out our brand new tutorial – How to Start a Blog in which I outline 5 simple steps to getting your blog up and running.
Posts on Starting a Blog
There is a lot to think about before and during the process of starting your first blog. These tips and tutorials attempt to give you some questions to think about and some advice on how to practically move forward:
- 3 Factors to Consider Before Starting a Blog – Maintaining Blogging Momentum
- 9 Tips to Start Blogging Successfully
- Starting a New Blog? Start With a Mind Map (will help in choosing topics and categories for your blog)
- Crawl before you walk: 6 Step-by-step Instructions for Starting your First Blog
- 23 Questions for Prospective Bloggers – Is a Blog Right for You?
- How to Choose a Niche Topic for Your Blog
- Choosing a Blog Platform
- Choosing a Domain Name for your Blog
Writing Blog Content
At the core of every successful blog is great content – without it starting a new blog is almost pointless. How you define ‘great’ content will vary from person to person but I generally put it down to content that is unique and useful. Here are a few other tutorials and tips on creating this type of content on your first blog.
- Discover Hundreds of Post Ideas for Your Blog with Mind Mapping
- 21 Ways to Write Posts that Are Guaranteed to Grow Your Blog
- How to Launch a Blog and Have Fresh Content for Weeks
- How to Craft a Blog Post
Blog Promotion/Finding Readers
When starting a your first blog one of the most challenging things is that it is hard to find readers. We all want to be read – here are a few tips on how to make this happen and then how to keep those new readers:
- 13 Ways to Promote Your Next Blog Post
- How I’d Promote My Blog if I Were Starting Out Again
- How to Market Your Blog in 2007 (still very relevant)
- 19 Strategies for Finding Readers for your Blog
- 11 Ways to Find New RSS Subscribers for Your Blog
- A Secret to Finding New Subscribers for Your Blog
- 21 Ways to Make Your Blog Sticky
Making Money from Blogs
Not all bloggers choose to try to make money from their blogs (I think this is a good thing). But if you’re one that does want to make money from your new blog then here are a few tips and articles for you to start with:
- How I Make Money Blogging
- How Bloggers Make Money
- Make Money Online Blogs – Should You Start One and How to Choose a Profitable Topic
- How quickly after starting a blog should I put ads on it?
- How Much Should I Charge for my Advertising Space?
- A Reality Check about Blogging for Money
Further Reading and Resources on Starting a New Blog
If what I’ve listed above isn’t enough – here are a few other resources for those wanting to invest into starting out with a blog.
- ProBlogger the Book – This book (in which I am a co-author) was written for the beginner blogger. It contains up to date and logically ordered advice on starting new and profitable blogs.
- Training Programs – Two great courses/coaching programs for new bloggers are Blog Mastermind and Become a Blogger. Blog Mastermind is a paid coaching program that is one of the more comprehensive training resources going around. Become a Blogger is series of free videos and a great free report/roadmap. It also has a paid program which is ideal for those just starting out. Both of these courses are by Yaro Starak – a great blogger.
- Archives – there are a lot more posts that are relevant for bloggers starting their first blogs in the archives of ProBlogger. Another good place to find some of them is my Blogging for Beginners Series helpful. I’ve mentioned some of the posts in this series above but there are a lot more ‘beginner’ type tips and articles listed in it.
- Recommended Blogging Resources – lastly I’ve put together a page of tools and resources for bloggers. It covers blogging platforms, designs/templates, tools, training and monetization. I hope you find them useful.
I hope you find these articles and resources helpful!
These are amazing! I appreciate your tips.
Thanks for this, I have been slowly reading through all your posts. This list is very very handy. Thanks
Thanks for the post. Your post will really help new blogger who is having a difficult time on how to start blogging, Hope to see more tips from you Darren.
Problogger is where I first heard a bout FreeMind – the amazing, free mind mapping tool. It will help you come up with new post ideas even when you *think* you’re stuck.
For me, I had to erase the idea that I’d make any money from my blog. Thinking about money changed my approach completely. The blog became work and I asked myself how I’d make money from this – rather than ask “how can I create something that people will love and look forward to?”
Focus on creating excellent content first, then… when you’ve got hundreds of loyal readers, begin to monitize.
Excellent article, I bookmarked this page already.
Wow! Another mouth-watering pile of blogging awesomeness! Thanks, Darren. I’ll be sharing this with readers on my blog. Keep up the great work!
Thanks for your great post following you on twitter now or at least I think its you. That’s me busy for the whole day now.
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