How to start blogging?
A basic guide that will help you kick start your blog project.
There are many guides on the web that talks about the steps on starting your blog. But honestly, none of these are perfectly tailored for a Filipino aspiring blogger.
On this blog post, I’ll be sharing the basic steps on how to start your blog and eventually monetize them (which I will discuss in my “ADVANCE BLOG TUTORIAL”).
A little information about me…
Hello! I’m Frecelynne but you can call me Abby. My college degree is a Bachelor of Journalism. Right after graduation, I started to work as a writer for a local motorcycle magazine. I had challenges creating catchy content because the motorcycle is too masculine for me. My rebellious decision had led my path to non-writing jobs.
However, I’m very passionate about writing that’s why in 2013, I started the www.helloimfrecelynne.wordpress.com blog. Back then, I had no idea what I am doing. Everything is all over the place. I have no goal. I just write as I please and anything under the sun.
When Dee and I got married in 2015, we started our travel blog as a couple of www.wecangetaway.net. It’s a shared responsibility (but don’t tell him that I’ll say – it’s mostly me! HAHAHAHA Kidding!). He wanted to jump right in and purchase our domain.
Since we already paid for the domain, I wanted to ensure that we make the most out of it. I started to create timelines, to push ourselves to beat our deadlines and to plan our contents. It was challenging to maintain a travel blog, to travel during the weekend and to have an office job on weekdays. It’s when I understood why others do this for a living.
This year, I finally purchased my own domain www.helloimfrecelynne.com and focused my blog on mommy related contents.
TBH – Blogging is not a walk in the park. It requires a lot of dedication, attention, and talent. You need to be a better blogger every day. You have to continuously create good contents. You have to improve your sentence construction and thought train every time you blog.
And I wanted to emphasize that ANYONE can start a blog and but maintaining it is a different story.
On this blog post, I’ll be sharing the most basic step that will help you kick start your blog project. Honestly, there is much technical stuff that comes along with blogging like SEO, Ranking, Adsense, Pay per Click, SSL, Backup, etc. And I will tell you more about them on my “ADVANCE BLOG TUTORIAL” soon.
1. Define first why do you want to blog.
Whenever people express their intent to start their blog, the first question that I always ask them is– “Why do you want to blog”. This is a very important question that you should answer before anything else.
Why?
Because this will be your core value. This will be your guide. It’s best (and will always be the best) to start with good intentions. Frankly, some people point blank told me that they want to blog because they want to get free products. My heart broke when I read their response. Being a blogger is more than that.
I also meet some people, who felt disappointed when brands don’t recognize them and they are not receiving PR kits. They wanted to stop blogging right then and there.
That’s why it’s very important to start with the BEST intentions. So whenever you feel demotivated, you can always go back to the reason why do you want to blog.
2. Define your niche
What is a Niche? Niche blog involves creating a blog to cater to a particular niche market. Niche blogs or niche websites as they are sometimes called, cater to a specific area. The genre covered can be a particular geographical area, a particular ethnicity, or a particular industry. Source
Sure, “Motherhood” is a great niche. But to attract your target audience, you need to be an expert on more targeted topics. Motherhood has many subtopics and if you write anything under the sun, you might eventually lose your credibility.
For example, let’s say you are a BLW (Baby Led Weaning) advocate. Over time, you have attracted some readers. Then you decided to do a product review on a store-bought pureed baby food. Your readers may question your credibility.
Here are a few examples of local Niche Blogger:
TIPID MOMMY – Blog that inspires women (wives and moms) to live a joyful life within the budget
MAMA THE EXPLORER – Highlights Montessori for toddlers
MOMMY PRACTICALITY – A blog that informs, inspires and influences women and moms to choose practical living
MOMMY PEHPOT – Mom with a big family shares her parenting, kids, home and living stories.
3. Find your platform
What is a blogging platform? This is the “online house” of your blogs.
To start, there are many blogging platforms out there – free and paid.
Most of the guides on the web will tell you to go for the paid option: Self-host + purchase your domain. This will roughly cost you Php 1,800 hosting fee + Php 800 domain registration fee. Total of Php 2,600 yearly (Cheapest but not exactly the best option). And you also need to consider the additional costs which they will not tell you upfront like SSL, back up and so much more.
Just like me, I know some of you don’t want to dive right in… even if we can afford it. We can always follow the same route of the most established Filipino bloggers, who started with a free platform.
Why do I recommend to start with a free platform?
- This will allow you to experience how to be a blogger/how to start a blog at no cost.
- You can start building your page, and eventually develop your trademark.
- You can already create contents that will help improve your writing skills
Please also take note of these disadvantages:
1. Free platforms tend to have a bad search engine ranking.
What is the search engine ranking? Search engine ranking is the position at which a particular site appears in the results of a search engine query (Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc) Source
2. You cannot sell ads but they can put ads on your blog.
3. Limited plugins and themes.
4. Your free domain is longer. Ex. www.Frecelynne.com vs. www.Frecelynne.home.blog
If don’t mind these disadvantages, I’ve narrowed down three sites where you can put up your blog:
1. Wordpress
Where to sign up: https://wordpress.com/create-blog/
Free Domain: www.Frecelynne.home.blog
2. Blogger
Where to sign up: https://www.blogger.com/about/?r=1-null_user
Free Domain: www.Frecelynne.blogspot.com
Review: https://hosting.review/hosting-provider/blogger-review/
3. Wix
Where to sign up: https://www.wix.com/
Free Domain: www.abby.wixsite.com/Frecelynne
Review: https://www.websitebuilderexpert.com/website-builders/wix/wix-review/
Other Reviews: Blogger vs. WordPress https://www.isitwp.com/blogger-vs-wordpress-which-is-the-best-choice-expert-review/
4. Choose your domain
What is Domain? Domain is your address on the internet world.
My domain: www.helloimfrecelynne.com will be forever mine for as long as I pay for my yearly registration fee. You need to carefully choose your domain because this will be your identity. You will use this when you introduce yourself to your co-bloggers, PRs, brands and many more.
Few reminders for you
- Don’t use hyphens or numbers because this is confusing to type.
- Don’t use words that are prone to be misspelled ex. Committed, Tyranny
- Check if it’s good together. Ex. Teachers Talking will look like www.TeacherStalking.org
5. Create your main contents
Start writing your initial contents like who you are, what you do and how they can reach you. You can also start sharing your journey as a mom, your birth story, etc.
Few reminders for you
1. Post regularly. Post a blog at least once a week because this will signal Google rankings that your blog is active.
2. Create a schedule and try your best to stick with it. Some commit to post their new content every Monday. This gives the reader something to look forward.
3. Create great contents. Always remember quality over quantity.
How to be a PRO in writing?
Writing is a complex thing and not everyone is blessed to have that skill. But like any other skill, you can also be a good writer by practicing.
JUST KEEP ON WRITING.
1. Ask for opinions. Let your grammar nazi friends read your work and ask if they can provide feedback so you would know where to improve.
2. Read books and other blogs. Reading allows you to mimic the train thoughts of the writer.
3. One of the tips that I got from my previous magazine editor. Read your blog out loud. If it doesn’t sound good to you, maybe it is.
4. Whenever you’re unsure of your sentence construction, Use Grammarly. They’ll help you with proofreading. They will highlight your grammar mistakes like spelling, subject-verb agreement, etc.
5. Last but not least, write in your most comfortable language. Sure, English content can reach bigger audience while Tagalog/Taglish contents can only reach people, who understand our dialect. Always remember that with any decision you make on your blog, you should consider your intention why do you want to blog. If your blog aims to help Filipina moms, then writing in Tagalog/Taglish is fine. At the end of the day, your blog should represent who you are, regardless of the language you used.
I think this guide is already enough for you to kick start your blog project.
If you think this is helpful, would you consider sharing this to others who may appreciate them too?
If you have additional questions, please leave a comment down below and I would gladly answer them for you!
Stay Tuned! On my “ADVANCE BLOG TUTORIAL”, I will discuss…
1. Self-host + purchase your domain
2. SSL
3. SEO
4. Photos to use on your blog
5. How to monetize your blog
Did you like this blog?
Follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Tiktok, and be updated on my latest posts.
Work with me?
I love collaborations and I enjoy working with various brands. See my portfolio here.
Thank you abby, napakagenerous mo talaga and aabangan ko ang advance tutorial na yan. Love you and proud ako sayo. Keep it up! Godbless you more
Welcome Sab! I’m happy that I can help people to start their own blog. Kahit hindi mommies. 🙂 Love you too! 😀
Wow, this is so informative for aspiring blogger like me. It answers most of my question in mind. Hahaha Thank you momsh Abby! Keep writing to inspire other people! 😍
Thanks Dette! I hope to read your blog soon 🙂
This is very helpful especially to aspiring bloggers. I remember with my own blog, I started in 2014 with Anything under the sun as my tag line too haha. I have to hide, make most of my old blog post private as they are off topic talaga. These are great tips for starters. Thanks for sharing!
APIR momsh! Uso ata yun nung kapanahunan natin. HEHE “Anything under the sun”. Tas lahat talaga kakapain mo, walang mga guide kasi parepareho kayong nagsstart pa lang 🙂
Wow! 2014 is a LONG time to sustain a blog. Congrats on a very extensive post.
I am sure people who want to start blogging will find this post super complete and useful. Thanks for providing newbies a good guideline on their blogging journey. More power!
Yes. During that time, we don’t have guides like this. You really have to self-learn. That’s why I’m happy to help them through this blog. 🙂
You are amazing Abby! Cant wait for your advance tutorial blog and out one on one as i transition to my own domain pak!!hahahaha!
Thank you for your kind words Margaux! 🙂 True, I’m excited for your level blogging journey 🙂
Love this! Being a blogger is more than just receiving PR kits. We have to state the fact in every products we receive. And magsular kung san ka mas comfortable isulat ang mga bagay bagay. Kasi mas mamahalin ka ng viewers pag totoo ka ♥️
I’m delighted to hear that you love my blog. 🙂 Thanks Mommy Janelle. Love you
This is really helpful Abby! I have yet to learn in improving my site and soon will get a domain. 💙
Thanks Gail! 🙂 You can tune in on my future post because I’ll further discuss how to customize a blog and enumerate the hosts for self-hosting.:)
Out of all the beginner blogging tutorials that I’ve read, ito yung pinaka-helpful and informative. I have been writing for a long time pero those are for my eyes only.hehe Recently, I decided to start a blog na but I’m still struggling. I will be waiting for your Advanced Blog Tutorial. 🙂 Bookmarked your blog as well. Thank you so much! 🙂
Thank you for your kind words Khryz. 🙂 I hope that my future posts can help you with your blogging journey.