So, after reading about and knowing about the monthly income of Harsh Agarwal (CEO of ShoutMeLoud), you must be thinking about starting your own blog to earn some money online, right?
But…how and where do you get started? There are thousands of blogs writing such articles, and everyone’s sharing and writing different things.
Who should you listen to? Where’s the starting point?
If you are really serious about learning blogging techniques and knowing how to set up a WP blog, then you’re at the right place!
I promise you that in this article, I will provide the step by step guidelines, while enlightening you about the tools and resources that you need to achieve success with your blog.
Luckily, in 2017, setting up a WordPress blog is easier than any other platform.
It does not require any skills like HTML, CSS and PHP. In fact, it’s as simple as creating a folder in your local system.
You just need to follow simple instructions during its installation and setup time.
Over 500 college students have already used my instructions to start their own WordPress blogs after attending my blogging summit in Jaipur.
And now I am writing this post to share the same secrets with you without charging even a penny.
Still, if you happen to get stuck on anything, please don’t hesitate to contact me and I’ll give you a helping hand.
The only thing I want from you all is to just promise to let me know if you find this guide useful and that you share with others to help them out to start their career in blogging.
So, let’s get started!
Setting up a WordPress Blog: What do you need to start?
There are 4 main things you need to start a WordPress blog:
- A domain name idea (You can purchase one of the available domains from Godaddy.com)
- A web hosting account (You can choose between shared, cloud or WordPress hosting)
- A WordPress package setup (You can download it from wordpress.org)
- A beautiful theme (You can buy or design a custom blog theme using Template Monster or Theme Forest)
And in this guide, we will talk about:
- How to Register a Domain Name
- How to Register and Buy Web Hosting
- How to Install WordPress Package on Hosting
- How to Change and Use Your Theme
Ready? Well, let’s get on with it!
Step I: Register A Domain
A domain name is a web address. For e.g. www.wedigtech.com is my company domain.
To have a domain you should register it with a domain registrar like GoDaddy, HostGator or Hosting Raja.
If you don’t have a domain, go to any domain provider and enter the new domain name you wish to register.
If that domain happens to be available, you can get it easily by paying a one or two-year subscription fee.
Refer to the image below to get a clear picture.
Note: For the purpose of this guide, I will register a new domain. If you are using an existing domain, the process is mostly the same.
Step 1. On this screen you’ll choose a brand-new domain and hit the search Button.
Step 2. If your domain name is available, you just need to add it to your cart and click continue to cart.
Step 3. In the last step, select the subscription plan and pay for your domain name before proceeding to checkout. On the next page, fill in your bank account info.
Note: If for any reason you don’t want to use GoDaddy, you can choose another domain registrar like HostGator.
Step II: Select a Blog Friendly Web Host
What is Web Hosting?
Web Hosting is the form of activity or business to provide storage space and access for blogs. Here you can store all the images, files, content and CSS & JS that your blog has.
To run your WordPress blog, you have to register for a web hosting space. And selecting a hosting provider is one of the most significant decisions that you need to make.
Here’s a step-by-step, straight-forward guide for setting up a WordPress blog using Bluehost (or an alternative hosting provider):
- Sign up for a new account on Bluehost or any other web host (HostGator, GoDaddy, Hosting Raja)
- Select your hosting plan (you can opt for the WordPress Hosting or any shared, cloud, Virtual server).
- If you don’t have any domain name yet, don’t worry. Web hosting platforms provide it to you free.
- Make payment by providing your billing and contact information.
- Get WordPress installed using the “1-click install”
Let me explain these steps using an example to make it easier for you:
1. Visit Bluehost.Com
And click on “get started now”.
2. Select Your Hosting Plan
The most inexpensive one will do. After setting up your account and clicking on the get started button, you then choose a hosting package.
You have three choices: Standard, Business and Pro
The standard option will work fine for a single blog. The other two are not really necessary until your blog becomes famous and you’re getting thousands of visitors to your posts.
3. Choose Your Domain Name
After selecting a hosting plan, it will redirect you to choose a new domain (they provide it for you free of charge) or enter existing domain (if you have any for your blog setup).
You can choose among different ccTLDs (country code top-level domains) that end in .org, .net, .blog, .co.in and .in if your .com choice is unavailable.
If you have already purchased your domain, then simply enter your domain name into the form on the right side of the page (see below).
4. Enter Your Billing and Contact Information to Checkout
There are three sections to this final step – the first one is Your Order Summary information. Second, your Contact Details and third would be Payment Options.
Step III: Install the WordPress Package on Your Hosting
After setting up your hosting with Bluehost or with a similar hosting provider, now you need to install WordPress.
If you are using Bluehost, then you don’t need to download WordPress from WordPress.org because Blue Host provide in their build a 1-Click WordPress install.
Here is a simple guide for installing WordPress on Bluehost:
- Login into your Bluehost hosting control panel by visiting my.bluehost.com
- In control panel, go to the website section where you can choose the option to “Install WordPress”.
- It will redirect you to a page where you can select your site destination URL.
Choose your main domain (using www.YourDomain.com and not www.YourDomain.com/blog/).
Step IV: Login to Your Blog to Setup a Theme
Now that your blog is ready to go live, hit your domain name to see how your blog is looking.
You can customize your theme by logging into your administrator panel by visiting the URL that would look like: http://YourBlog.com/wp-admin/.
Enter your username & password that you have chosen while setting up WordPress.
After logging in, you’ll see the admin panel welcome page:
Conclusion
I am confident that you are now proficient in setting up a WordPress blog and that you’re ready to post your very first article.
Keep visiting this post to learn more about how to customize your blog, choose a theme and create posts and pages.
If you found this guide useful, please feel free to share it with others, like and comment.
About The author
Ashish Sharma is a Senior Account Manager who is responsible for building new business tie ups and creating marketing Strategies for WeDigTech – a Mobile App Development Company. He is focused on helping enterprise Startups from domestic to MNCs.
Featured images: author-owned
