Things to Know Before Starting a Blog
Starting a blog is a big step. There are so many things to know that it can be pretty overwhelming. As there are many things we wish we knew before we launched our blog, we've put together tips and the most important things you should know before starting a blog.
So you've got a wonderful idea to start a blog. You can see that thousands of people do that, you can read only successful stories, and it all seems perfect, like an opportunity you've always been waiting for.
But as with everything else, when something looks too perfect, you can expect that there will be a catch.
If this whole online world is entirely new to you, take a moment, and read our post on things to know before starting a blog.
Same as you, a couple of years ago, we were complete novices who had never heard about terms like SEO, Google Analytics, or Pinterest.
What probably helped us the most was the fact that we usually do not rush into important decisions, and we always think about the possibilities before making the final choice.
Still, there are so many things we wish we knew before starting a blog.
We guess that many bloggers-to-be are from the very beginning so absorbed by the idea and by the wave of creativity, that they just do not know what to expect at all, and that's why so many do not make it far.
They get discouraged by not having immediate success, they are surprised how much effort and time blogging takes, and they cannot deal with the situation when the enthusiasm wears off.
Well, we do not want you to be on this side of the barricade.
There is no need to feel intimidated, and we are also not saying that you should overthink it, but we are convinced that only well-informed persons can make smart decisions.
Blogging is a beautiful journey that teaches you something new every day, and there are so many things to know, as the discipline touches so many other industries.
Even today, after two years of blogging, there are so many things we still do not know. And in retrospect, we also see how many wrong steps and dead ends we took.
It is the part of the experience - every mishap you make will make you stronger. You only have to make sure there are as little mishaps and bad decisions as possible.
In this blog post, we share with you things we think are essential to know before starting a blog.
It does not matter what type of blog you plan on creating; these general tips should help you to set your expectations right, and start your online business realistically, without rose-tinted glasses.
According to the statistics, several blogs are launched every hour, and an insane number of people think of starting a blog right now, so we do not want to hold your dreams off any longer.
Here are the tips on things you should consider before starting a blog.
THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE STARTING A BLOG
It actually does not matter whether you want to start a blog solely for fun, or if you eventually would like to make money out of it one day.
The process is quite the same as most likely you want to build a site you can be proud of.
That's why it is necessary to follow several steps and take into account information you've probably never thought about.
If you are already an established blogger, and there were things you wanted to know before starting a blog that are not on our list, let us know in the comment section.
BLOGGING TAKES A LOT OF TIME AND EFFORT
It is an unpopular statement, but we know it must be said, and it is much better to tell you the truth in the beginning and prepare you for the fact, that after you press the launch button, the hard work is not over, but it is about to start.
Yes, one of the things you should know before you definitely decide that blogging is exactly what you want to do is that it takes a lot of time and effort.
It does not matter if your blog is meant to be only a hobby or if you want to turn it into your full-time job, you will have to work really hard to make everything work.
As it is quite important to be in touch with the blogging community, we are members of a few groups on Facebook.
We can daily read the contributions of people who simply do not know how to handle their everyday life, family, household, and blogging together.
This is something you should consider upfront.
No matter how super-motivated you are, the excitement after some time wears off, and the only thing that will remain is the pressure.
The pressure that you haven't posted a fresh content in a while, the pressure that you do not have time for research, enough time to write the actual post, and there is, of course, the critical marketing part, and the fact that once you hit the publish button, there is still older blog post that needs to be revamped.
Certainly, we do not want to put you off. As hard the blogging is, it is, at the same time, rewarding.
You just cannot expect that everything will go smoothly.
If you plan on having your own blog really only for yourself, for keeping your memories alive, and you will only tell a few people that it exists, then you might be able to work on your site just for fun (that is completely fine).
We believe that many people, ourselves included, want to see that their effort has results, and in that case, you must know that without time for writing, your blog will struggle until it ceases to exist.
NOT EVERYONE WHO BLOGS MAKE MONEY
You can skip this paragraph if you do not have the ambition to make money out of blogging.
If you, like us, do not mind getting paid for your efforts, keep on reading.
It might sound a little bit superficially, but one of the reasons we started working remotely was because we wanted to try to be financially and locally independent.
But you should be aware that definitely not everyone who blogs make money, so it would be a mistake to start a blog only with this idea in mind.
The truth is that starting a blog is not that hard, but only a small percentage of people persist, as it takes a one-year minimum to see the positive results, and even then, you won't be already halfway there.
It is important to realize that even if you are not able to make a living out of your blog, it does not mean it is not successful.
Maybe the timing is not right, perhaps the conditions were not perfect, or maybe it is just not your destiny. It would be a colossal mistake to cling on something and lose interest in what matters the most.
The reason you've started blogging in the first place was having fun, finding a new hobby, and sharing your knowledge with other people. It can be bitter, but you should rather not put your hopes too high.
Not everyone can make a living out of blogging, which is good to know, but on the other hand, when you do your best, it is not unrealistic at all.
YOU MUST DO RESEARCH BEFORE YOU START BLOGGING
Is starting a blog a good idea? Well, even after experiencing many ups and downs, we can only reply positively.
Starting a blog is a good idea, but you must know what you are up to.
This is not possible without doing thorough research.
Days, when you turned on the computer, bought a domain and started publishing content, are long gone.
Fine, it kind of still work this way, but since the competition on the market is nowadays much more significant than it used to be, let's say five or ten years ago, it is much more essential to be well-informed and prepared for what is awaiting you on that journey.
It will save you a lot of time and dreamless nights later.
Research your competition-to-be and find the types of blogs you like, and it also helps to stumble upon blogs you do not fancy, so you know what mistakes, content, or design to avoid.
If you would like to start making money, think of possible ways of monetizing your site, even though it is quite too early for that - it really sucks when you create meaningful content, and there is no way to stuff there affiliate links.
Will you use your photos, or will you be dependant on photo banks?
You may need to read about copyrights and dos and don't when it comes to using photos that do not belong to you.
Do you want to have a sidebar on your page or not?
Draw a sketch of the design of your landing page and the individual posts. Once you get a clear idea, everything will be much easier.
It’s not effective to think of these things when you've already paid for a theme or when you've already started to build a blog only to figure out that the theme you chose does not do what you want.
It might have happened to us (the design of this blog is our third attempt), so believe us, it is much better to get it right straight from the beginning.
SET GOALS
Topics on what to know before starting a blog are bottomless, but most of them focus on the pre-blogging phase, same as this one, that says you should set your goals from the day you decide that your idea is feasible.
Once you set goals, that does not mean you cannot re-evaluate them later.
That is even welcomed.
But the first goals should be realistic, and you should be able to achieve them on time. You must ask yourself a series of questions and answer them genuinely.
How often are you able to write a blog post?
How many posts you want to publish per week (fortnight or month)? Also set a goal to read an expert's advice on a topic you must manage, for example, before you go to bed.
Make a plan when you see yourself in a year, or two, create short-term and long-term goals.
Ask yourself whether you want to monetize your blog - no matter if right from the beginning or later on.
Think of if you are open to accepting guest posts, or on the other hand, if you are willing to write them for other websites.
Generally, imagine how your blogging and overall daily routine could look like.
Setting the right goals ensures that you won't be stalling at one place, that your efforts will always lead somewhere, and that you will have things under control.
SET UP GOOGLE ANALYTICS SOON
It might seem unnecessary, but Google Analytics is a great tool that tells you a lot about your readers, and about your content as well. Do not get obsessed with it, though.
In the beginning, it can be a bit heartbreaking when no one is on your blog when you are checking, but I remember the moment when we caught two people (2!) at one moment, reading our blog - it was an uplifting feeling.
Well, did I say it is quite easy to get obsessed with it? Well, don't.
Google Analytics provides you with your site statistics, so it is a helpful instrument that tells you what type of people reads your blog, so you can then better target your content.
It also tells you what your most successful posts are, but on the other hand, you can see posts that did not get that much attention and try to rewrite them to make them more engaging and improve their SEO.
Simply put, it is never too early to set up Google Analytics, even if you do not plan on digging data.
BLOGGING REQUIRES CONSISTENCY
Not only effort and time but also consistency matters. It actually matters a lot. Google loves fresh content, and if you want to get organic traffic on your site, that means you need to rank high on Google, ideally on the first or the second page.
How many times were you digging for information, and you were not satisfied with the information provided by best-ranked blog posts, so you kept scrolling to let's say seventh or even tenth page?
Well, we don’t do it, as it is time-consuming, and believe most of the readers don’t do it as well.
Sometimes we do not see the quality in the posts that rank well, and it is necessary to say that other factors also play the role (like the site's domain authority).
The fact that you will be posting like crazy twice a day won't win you the spot.
Still, consistency is a significant factor that you should keep in mind from the very beginning.
By writing fresh content and updating your old posts, you basically tell Google that your site is not outdated and provides the audience with relevant information.
We feel that it is a crucial thing to know for every beginner.
Quality content and consistency are the kings here. Why do we think that persistence in posting is so relevant to mention and realize before you start blogging?
As a part of being realistic, you must know that so many bloggers in your niche have a head start.
They have hundreds or thousands of posts already.
If you start writing one post per week, that's 52 posts per year - it does not seem like a significant number, right? Being consistent has two sides.
First, to show that your page is alive, and second, to have at least a slight chance to catch up on them.
You do not have to feel stressed out, that was really not our point.
But if you wish your blog to be successful (whatever that means), make sure that you will have time to write new posts regularly.
As always, use your common sense.
If you are leaving for a two-week vacation, it is not the end of the world, and you do not have to worry about not posting. Although you can schedule your already written posts.
On the other hand, you should just not end up with posting once in six months, that could really negatively affect your efforts.
YOU NEED TO CHOOSE A NICHE
Before you even start thinking about how to build a blog and start looking for information on how to make it happen, you need to choose a niche.
Niche is a specific area you will be covering by your blog posts.
It should be something you are passionate about, a theme you have a lot to say about, something that is your hobby, and that can grow with you in time.
Even if you have a specific topic in mind, make sure that you haven't chosen a too-narrow niche.
First, it could be hard to find an audience, and you might also soon run out of topics.
Niche also should not be too broad as your readers then do not know what to expect from your blog.
We started a blog that was solely focused on travel, but as the time went, we realized that running a blog and dealing with challenges working and living 24/7 as a couple has its specifics.
So we've decided to broaden the niche a bit.
Nowadays, there are many popular topics to blog about such as food, travel, DIY, marketing, online work, etc., and you can find niche in each of these topics.
Even travel industry has many niches, such as sustainable traveling, local traveling, adventure or budget traveling to name a few.
That's why you can lately see here posts on work-life balance, pros and cons of working at home, or topics covering how to start a blog or texts about staying motivated.
These are simply topics we deal with every day, and we wanted to pass on our experience. The niche says who you are, what your profile is. It describes and defines you and your future steps.
Choose it wisely.
It is pretty clear that for example, travel blogs and food bloggers, or people blogging about finances have a much better chance to find the audience (the market is quite saturated though) than let's say blogs that are focusing on tanks that were used during the WWII (no offense).
But if you are into military topics, that does not mean you should abandon your dream. It would be a mistake to start writing a blog in a niche you are not interested in.
No matter how unique (or universal) your niche is, there is always a chance to succeed.
IT IS A NEVER-ENDING STORY
Blogging can be your hobby, part-time or full-time job, but one condition does not change. It is a never-ending carousel of things to do, something to learn, tasks to remember, posts to update, writing of short descriptions for social media, and all over again.
The first thought when we get up belongs to the blog, and it is also the last thought when we go to bed at night.
There is always something you can improve, change, or do differently.
New trends and technologies constantly appear, and you will need to work hard to keep up.
Before you start blogging, you should ask yourself whether you are willing to make blogging an integral part of your life that will influence all your other actions.
YOU NEED TO LEARN HOW THINGS WORK
Blogging is a complex discipline, and if you are about to start a blog from scratch, it will require a lot of time to figure out how things work.
In a short period, you will have to learn how to buy a domain, decide on the right hosting for you, choose a theme, and select the right design, font, and size of photos.
You must also learn technical stuff such as how to make your site compatible, how to increase your site speed, how to optimize your text for search engines, how to apply for affiliate links, or even what types of posts are worth writing.
If you really want to make your blog work, it is good to know that it is a continuous learning process.
What we like about blogging the most is that it never gets boring.
You can never say that you know it all as you must learn so much from different areas.
It is creative, but you also need to understand marketing, you must develop your writing skills, learn at least basics of advanced computer skills, plus you always must search for new experiences and topics you can later write about.
Simply put, blogging is not dull.
We hope many of you will see it as an advantage as, from our point of view, the worst thing that can happen to us is to get stuck in one place.
BLOGGING COSTS MONEY
Unfortunately, starting a blog is not free, and even though the upfront cost is not too high, it is still an investment you should consider.
You can pay the hosting monthly, but we recommend the yearly option as it is often more advantageous.
So what you have to pay for?
The absolutely necessary expense is purchasing the domain and paying for hosting.
The companies that provide hostings - this is the platform on which your blog will run - usually offer the possibility to buy the domain through them, but it does not mean it is cheaper.
We opted for Squarespace, an all-in-one solution as we like it is clean and straightforward.
But the most popular option among bloggers is Bluehost because you can install Wordpress.org on it.
We cannot compare those two systems because we only have a personal experience with Squarespace, but we surely plan on writing posts on how to use Squarespace and why we chose it.
This is the necessary investment you must make, but then there are many more you need to consider.
In the beginning, we were reluctant to pay more for external services, but we later found that some of them are necessary, and some of them will make our work much more comfortable.
We pay for our professional email, for Tailwind that helps us schedule pins for Pinterest and Instagram, Adobe Creative Cloud that is an excellent tool for editing photos in Lightroom and Photoshop.
To improve our writing skills we use Grammarly Premium.
It all costs several hundred dollars per year, but it helps us with our business.
PROMOTE YOUR BLOG
By writing a blog post and publishing it, the job is not over. Now it is time to promote your posts. We knew it before we started the blog, yet we know this is one of the parts where we have a large room for improvement.
Using Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram is just not that natural for us as we do not use social media much in our personal lives, but we had to learn how to use them for our business.
It would not be wise to expect that all your readers will come from organic or referral searches.
That's why before you purchase the domain for your blog, make sure that the name and handle are available for social media as well, as it is much better to keep everything united.
Then, once your post is live, take also time to promote it on your social media channels.
We usually use the three mentioned above, plus Pinterest, which, together with Facebook, works the best for us.
Write a few catching lines that enthuse people to read your post, and add several relevant hashtags so people looking for the topic will be able to discover your blog. Is there anything else you should realize before setting off for this adventure?
Well, you should not be shy, especially when it comes to promoting your posts. Well, you can be but put your dilemmas aside for a while, and let the world know you exist.
Once you create a base of followers, posting on social media will be much easier.
BE PATIENT
No one has ever become successful overnight. One of the best advice we can give you is not to be impatient.
Like any other job, blogging takes time to learn and even longer to establish your newly born business.
Grab a notebook and write down your goals for every day, week, or month.
These goals must be realistic - not too easy as you would become lazy and self-satisfied, but also not too exaggerated as you would get discouraged very soon.
Even though it is human nature to want everything right now, think of blogging as about long-term project. If this is something that should last forever (or at least as long as possible), it naturally takes time.
An excellent blog matures gradually like wine.
The whole process has many stages. Whether it is the technical steps or creating the content, every stage is equally important, and it is not worth it to take shortcuts.
Once you start a blog and you go through all the stages, it simply must click together.
That's why it is really important to be patient and take only the best from every part of the process.
Being patient is probably one of the things we really wish we knew before we started blogging. It seems like such obvious advice, but it should be your mantra to repeat every day before going to bed.
Sometimes things move forward super-slow, sometimes it is a whirlwind of events.
One thing is clear; blogging is not a cakewalk. It’s a hard work and requires a lot of time and effort.
Here we would like to rephrase one line from our favorite TV shows, Friends: "Welcome to the blogging world. It sucks. You're gonna love it."
RESOURCES
So what programs we use to keep Laidbacktrip running?
The absolutely necessary expense is purchasing the domain and paying for hosting.
We opted for Squarespace, an all-in-one solution as we like it is clean and straightforward.
But the most popular option among bloggers is Bluehost because you can install Wordpress.org on it.
In the beginning, we were reluctant to pay more for external services.
But we later found that some of them are necessary, and some of them make our work much more comfortable.
We use a professional email, Tailwind that helps us schedule pins for Pinterest and Instagram.
As we use only our own photos, Adobe Creative Cloud that is an excellent tool for editing photos in Lightroom and Photoshop is a must-have.
To improve our writing skills we use Grammarly Premium.
It all costs several hundred dollars per year, but it helps us with our business.
