How to Start a Blog Using WordPress

---

Jan 12, 2023 · 6 min read

Starting a blog may be daunting at first, but I assure you it’s not so bad once you start. This tutorial is the start of a two post project on how to make a blog and the benefit of having one. This week I’ll focus on how to build a blog using the WordPress content management system.

Step #1 – Brainstorm

The first step to setting up your blog is brainstorming. Ask yourself, how do I want to use my blog, what content do I want to post, who is my intended audience, why should people visit my site, how will I advertise, am I doing this for fun or to make money? It’s also really important to think about how much time you want to devote to writing/maintenance.

Step #2 – CMS vs. Website Builders

Now that you have a game plan, it’s time to execute it. There are a few different routes you can take when setting up your blog, but the two main ways are using a website builder or using a content management system (CMS).

A website builder is a service that hosts the site themselves, maintains your site for you, and makes it incredibly easy to get a fully professional site up and running fast with no prior coding experience. The drawback though is that they offer limited customization, often restrict what content from your site you’re allowed to export to another host, and can cost between $15-$25 per month for a basic package. This is a good, straightforward option for someone looking to get a website up fast with no coding required.

Examples include: WordPress.com, Wix, and SquareSpace

The second option is to use a content management system (CMS). This is usually free software that helps users create and manage a website. Without a CMS you would need to write your website in raw HTML code. A CMS allows you to visually build a website (like using a block editor), similar to a website builder, but you are also free to add custom code that modifies pages to fit your needs. With a CMS you can also install plugins that expand the functionality of your website. These can include features like managing newsletters, generating ad revenue, offering search engine optimization, Google Site Analytics, and so much more.

Examples include: WordPress.org and Joomla

The rest of this tutorial will focus on building a blog using a CMS.

Step #3 – Domain Names and Hosting

Since content management systems don’t usually provide their own domain name and web hosting, that job is left to us. Before we jump into how to do that, let’s take a look at what happens when we access the internet.

When you view a web page on the internet, your web browser connects to a web server that hosts all of that website’s information and then sends that web page back to you to view on your screen (all in a matter of seconds). We search for web pages by typing a domain name into our browser’s search function.

😐You ⇒ 💻Computer ⇒ Web Browser ⇒ Web Server ⇒ Web Page ⇒ 💻Computer ⇒ 😁You

Okay, now we’re ready to find a domain name and hosting service to host your site. A lot of domain sellers also provide hosting your site with them, however, I don’t recommend this because if something were to happen to your account – say it gets hacked – you could lose everything. It also makes it easier to change hosts in the future, if you ever want to. A better idea is to use two separate services, one to buy a domain and one to host. Often times this route is just as affordable, if not cheaper, than getting both services from the same provider (it costs me ~$75 per year to keep my domain name and host).

• For purchasing a domain name I recommend namecheap.com
• For purchasing a hosting service I recommend nixihost.com

Of course there are plenty of other services you can use if you prefer. Follow the directions from the providers you choose to get set up, and now you’re ready to move on to the final step!

Step #4 – Using WordPress to Build Your Site

Once you’ve purchased your domain and hosted it, it’s time to install a content management system. In this tutorial we’ll focus on using wordpress.org (WP), as it’s free and the most popular CMS used for blogging. Many hosting providers offer a one-click WP installation.

After WP is up and running, it can be very overwhelming what to do next with all the options on screen, so let’s break it down and start with something easy: picking a theme. You can select a theme from the “Appearance” tab. WP is currently working on a new block editor that allows you to drag and drop website elements (blocks) directly onto your site. A lot of newer themes support this new editor while older ones do not. The block editor has templates and saved block elements like headers and footers, I encourage you to play around with these and utilize them to be hyper-efficient designing your site. Pick a theme that suits your style and start playing around with it!

You can spend a lot of time perfecting the look and feel of your site. Look at other websites to see what inspires you and create your own custom corner on the internet. It doesn’t have to be perfect at launch, but it should be functional and presentable.

After your site is up and running, let’s take a look at adding some plugins. WP plugins offer additional functionality for your website. WP comes with two pre installed plugins. I suggest deleting these (because there are better alternatives), along with any unused themes (to improve website loading speeds). These are the plugins I use for my blog:

Congratulations!

That’s all there is to it! This is just the beginning of what WordPress can do for you, but it’s enough to get your first blog up and running. Now all that’s left to do is publish your first post!

Is there something I missed? Leave a comment below, I respond to all comments!