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Tips to help you get on your way to blogging!

1. Think about and register your domain name.

You will need to think about what your domain name will be, a domain name is what people search on the internet, for example, mine is “suitcasesandserenity.com” this can be a hard choice as you might have many ideas.

Keep in mind when picking a domain name not to choose something that might be hard for people to spell otherwise you will be forever trying to explain the correct way your domain name is. 

Have a few different options in mind, because the one you choose may be taken already, so, don’t get discouraged, have some backup ideas.

2. Select the provider for web hosting and your domain

As mentioned, I recommend Bluehost for many reasons, below are just a few.

Easy to use – Bluehost is user-friendly and the interface has been designed to make it simple for newcomers, installing WordPress, and so many other plugins make designing your website a breeze and not to mention making it look professional.

Using Bluehost you can get your domain and web hosting together, which saves a lot of confusion.

Amazing support – I have needed help with my website on a few occasions, and have been happy with their support team every single time, I jump on their chat and they walk me through it, if I cant fix it, they do it for me. The process is so easy and such peace of mind.

Great rates – Bluehost has amazing rates on offer and different plans to suit each budget and does not have much downtime or glitches like some of the other web hosting options. 

If you choose to buy the 12 months or 36-month plan you will get a much lower price for the longer you buy, I bought it straight away with a 36-month plan saving me money on my website in the long run and not having to worry about renewing it.

A step-by-step guide to getting you started with Bluehost.

You will arrive on the home page of Bluehost, start your journey by clicking on the get started now button

Select the package

Select a package that best suits your needs, as they all have different options depending on what you require for your website, I use the basic package and that suits the needs for my website, as mentioned earlier, I recommend buying in with the 36-month plan, as it saves you money in the long run and avoids the hassle of having to renew every year.

Remember when I said to start thinking about a domain name to call your website, you have now arrived at the place you get to select your “new domain name” type in your ideal domain name or use a domain name you may already have. 

**Don’t be disappointed if that ideal domain name is taken, tweak it or have another up your sleeve to use.

Fill in your personal information

Fill in your personal information and make sure your correct package is selected, I recommend having the domain privacy protection selected, for minimal cost, it is worth it to keep your personal details hidden.

You can untick any others, but have a read and choose what options you like, if you have any questions, reach out to the Bluehost team they have a great support team.

Getting WordPress installed. 

Bluehost makes it extremely easy to install WordPress and easy to create your web design. 

Bluehost will have you select a Theme, pick the theme you like best, but don’t worry too much as you can change this at any time by loading another theme, there are many free themes or paid theme options. 

I have a paid Elegant theme (Divi) on my website but don’t worry you can just use a free one if you choose. 

Click “start building” and when prompted you can select either “personal or business”  and you are on your way!

CELEBRATION TIME!!  You did it! WOOHOO…

On the left-hand side in Bluehost is the dashboard menu, familiarise yourself with this menu, it will be your next best friend. 

Below I will share with you some basic steps that will help you get started in creating your wonderland! 

If you need any help, reach out to Bluehost, and they will walk you through anything you need or simply be able to do it for you! 

Happy Creating! 

Here are a few tips to help you navigate using the Bluehost dashboard. 

• Posts are where you will write your content, your blog posts, all you need to do is click “Add new” and start creating. Under “posts” you can create “categories” & “tags” that can help organize your posts. Categories could be anything you decide, for example, you could have “travel tips” “blogging” “recipes”, etc.
•  Media is where you will upload and find your pictures, videos, and PDFs.
• Pages are more of a static page where not much changes, it is like a landing page for your posts to go on, or pages “your About” page and your “contact” page
• Appearance is where you will find the “Themes” and where you can create your website’s brand, like the color scheme, fonts, headers, footers, you can also create your menus and sub-menus & widgets.
• Plugins are where you can put add-ons to help your website function more effectively and allows creativity, there are so many different plugins available, depending on what your niche is, will determine what plugins you require. For example, for recipes I use “WP recipe maker”, there are endless choices available for you!
• Settings are where you can change your login details, you can also select how many posts to show on your home page, etc, have a look through all the options in your dashboard and get familiar to help you with your needs.

Making Money with your blog

 If you are feeling inspired and ready to get started with blogging, there are many different ways you can monetize your blog and earn a passive income from it. You can see my post about 4 ways to make money with your blog.