It seems that everywhere you turn nowadays, someone is talking about blogging. If you do not have a blog, you may be wondering what the fuss is about. You may start to feel like you are missing out on something. Don't feel left out anymore. You can start a blog very easily and catch on quickly to the blogging concept.
One of the great things about blogging is that it is not expensive. You can get started without spending anything other than a few dollars for hosting and a domain name. Anything you spend in addition to that is optional.
You can find fully functional free blogging templates all over the internet. If you are seeking something a bit more specialized, there are templates available for sale in a wide variety of price ranges.
The blogging platform I prefer is WordPress, and it is absolute free. You need to understand there are two types of WordPress blogs. One type of blog they offer is hosted on their server, not your own. The WordPress hosted blog is limited; it is not the option I recommend. For example, you cannot place Google Ad Sense ads on a WordPress hosted blog.
For a few dollars a month, you can get a basic hosting account for hosting your own WordPress blog. You do not need to spend more than $5-$7 a month for hosting. Compare hosting plans to be sure you are getting the most disk space and bandwidth for your buck.
Next, you'll need a domain name. Choose a reliable domain name provider such as Godaddy or NameCheap. A domain name is very inexpensive, costing only around $10 per year. Once you obtain your domain name, you need to point the 'nameservers' to your hosting space. Your hosting provider will supply these server names to you, and you reset these in your domain name administrative panel.
When you purchase your hosting, make sure your provider is giving you cpanel access with Fantastico. This will make WordPress set up a breeze. You simply log into your hosting space, click on the smiling Fantastico icon, find the WordPress installation icon, and follow the on screen instructions.
If you plan to have a monetized blog site for Google ad sense ads, you might want to search around for ad sense optimized blog templates. Many are rated by the success rate of the ad layout.
If you go with a free template, you can still easily monetize the site for ads using widgets. However, you might find starting out that a template optimized for ad sense ads makes your job a lot easier.
Next, you simply upload your template if you do not plan to use one of the WordPress default templates, then activate it. A few other settings need tweaking to get started, but they are very simple and will be covered in a separate article.
For starters, you need to:
* Get a domain name
* Purchase hosting with cpanel and Fantastico
* Repoint the nameservers
* Get a Google Ad Sense Account
* Decide on a WordPress Template and upload it
* Install WordPress through Fantastico
* Active your template
Those are the basics. You can have a blog up and running very quickly. After you have the initial set up completed, you are ready to move on to the fun part: blogging! Have fun!
Stuart Jenkins offers more free information about blogging on his website,
http://www.blogfrogcafe.com
Be sure to visit his website for blogging tips, instructions, and assistance.
