How to Start a Blog and Make Money Blogging

Starting a blog may be the best decision I have ever made in my career so far.

Now that I’m doing it, I can count endless reasons on how a blog changed my life.

From gaining influence to building an awesome network of people that share the same goals, dreams, and ambitions as you, to the ability to express yourself creatively, record your memories for “future you” to enjoy, and help others succeed in the process.

Making a blog can be one of the most fulfilling things you could ever do in your entire life.

But not only can blogging be fun, you can also make some serious cash with it if you have the persistence.

Learning how to make money blogging is a simple process:

Create Your Blog
Focus On Building Your 1000 True Fans
Create Content That Solves a Problem
Get People to Opt-in to Your Email List
Offer a Product to Solve The Problem

1. Create Your Blog

First things first, my friends. We need to host your website. Hosting can get really complicated when explaining it but it’s basically you renting out a piece of the internet for your blog to call home.

It’s actually super cheap to get started and only costs around $3.95 to $5.95 per month to set up. Simply click on the image below.

Bluehost is the web hosting that I use for mohammadmortada.com and they have been amazing. They have a 30-day money back guarantee and their customer service rocks. There were many times that my brain couldn’t understand the simplest of things and they guided me throughout the entire process no matter how long it took me to understand so I one hundred percent recommend them.

After you click on the image above or visit Bluehost’s website here follow the instructions below:

Part A) First Things First

Click on the big green button that says get started now

Part B) Pick Your Plan

Don’t worry the cheapest option is fine, to begin with.

Part C) Choose Your Free Domain Name

An example of mine is mohammadmortada.com. Use the below widget to check if your domain is available.

If the domain name you wanted isn’t available, keep on brainstorming ideas until one is available for you.

Part D) Fill In Your Details

Choose how long you want to host your website. If it’s your first time blogging then the 1-year option will be your best bet. You can also remove all the extra options they offer you at the beginning; you can upgrade as you start making progress.

Part E) After You are Done Creating Your Password

You want to login to your Bluehost account and look for the “Install WordPress” Icon then press start on the next page

Part F) A New Page Will Pop Up

Find the domain you chose from the drop-down menu and select it. Then press check domain.

Part G) You Will Then See This Page

Leave the first box unchecked but make sure to checkmark the terms and conditions part.

Part H) Installation Complete

The next page will then confirm that the installation is complete. Click View Credentials.

Part I) You’re Ready to Rock and Roll

Log into your blog in the URL provided or go to whateverthenameofyourblogis.com/wp-admin/.

Go over to the appearance tab on the left
Pick a theme for your website (don’t worry we can customize it later)
After you chose a theme you can activate it.
Then go over to the posts tab on the dashboard on the left and create your first blog post!

Voila! You just created your first blog!

2. Focus On Building Your 1000 True Fans

The next step of this process is focusing on building your 1000 true fans. This is based on Kevin Kelly’s 1000 true fan theory that states all you need is 1000 true fans and you never have to work again.

Let’s take Michael Jordan. Whenever ever he comes out with a new shoe, right before it is released to the public, millions of people are such big fans that they literally camp outside the store overnight and wait till it opens in the morning – all for a shoe! They are so crazy in love with Michael that they are willing to wait all that time just to spend several hundreds of dollars for a product that simply has his name on it.

This is what it takes:

A true fan is someone that loves your work so much, they are willing to buy whatever it is that you make because they love you that much.
You don’t need millions of fans like Michael.. all you need is 1000 that truly love what you do.

For example, let’s take a starving musician who loves playing music and nothing else. All he or she needs to do is find 1000 people that are obsessed with their music. So much so that every year whenever this musician comes out with a new Album, T-shirts, or a concert. these 1000 people are willing to give them $100.

That would be $100,000 a year. Do you think you can live off of that?

And if you are worried about if you need to be a musical prodigy or a 6 foot 6″ basketball superstar for this to work… good news is YOU DON’T!

All you have to know is just a little bit more than the next person and BAM you are an expert in that person’s eyes.

3. Create Blog Content That Solves a Problem

Figure out what it is you feel passionate about and start writing about it.

Like anything, it is going to take a whole lot of time and effort, and at times, it will feel like no one but your mom is reading your blog posts. Don’t quit. Give it 1 year before calling it quits as 95% of people that ever start anything end up quitting when things get just a little bit hard. But to live how others can’t you need to do what other’s won’t.

Jacob Hiller was making videos and writing blog posts about “jumping high” years before anyone even found his stuff. But now those blog posts and videos that he made years ago still make him over $1000/day without EVER having to work ever again. All because he found his 1000 true fans.

So ask yourself.. is working hard for 1 year with no results worth a lifetime of freedom?

HELL YES!

If he can do it with just teaching people how to jump.. imagine what you can do with your passions.

4. Get People to Opt-in to Your Email List

By now, you are probably wondering how you can communicate with all these people directly? The most effective way is by building an email list. The email list is the main component when learning how to start a blog and make money.

This is exactly how I do it for mohammadmortada.com:

I find out what it is people want the most and I turn it into a bite-size piece of information that people can easily consume. In my case, it’s my free e-book.
I have people give me their email address in exchange.
Then I send them value-packed, and slightly intimate details about myself at times; all while recommending products that I believe will help them out.
The email software I use is Mail Chimp. It’s totally free up to 2,000 subscribers and 12,000 emails per month. This is exactly what I use when I send out my newsletter.
This is also what I use to automatically send out my cheat sheet and collect emails.

5. Offer a Product to Solve The Problem

Your biggest goal is to first build an audience of 1000 true fans. Building your audience is your biggest priority over making money at first. Remember this is a marathon, not a sprint.

Don’t worry though; you can still make money by recommending products in your niche even though you haven’t created your own yet. This is called affiliate marketing. Focus on this for the first year while you are building your audience before selling your own products.

Simply create your account with clickbank.com or amazon.com Associate Program, go to the marketplace, and find products that fit your niche.
As you can see, there are so many niches out there that you can make money from; from fat loss to helping people with diabetes, to even helping people cut wood. The possibilities are endless.
The best thing about this is you didn’t even have to create a product, and you get to keep from 3 to75% of the sale. You don’t have to do any customer service or handle refunds. Your only role was to recommend things that you think would help.

After you have a good amount of emails, send out an email newsletter in your Mail Chimp account and ask what is your audiences biggest pain point and that if you would create a product that would solve this would they buy it?

Now you know exactly what it is they want and you made a confirmation that they would actually make a purchase.
The next step is focusing on building a product that you can now sell for yourself. You no longer have to waste time creating a product that people might not even want to buy which would have been the biggest waste of time.
Only do this after you have a decent-sized audience and email list.

Hope this “How to Start a Blog and Make Money Blogging” Definitive Guide was helpful!

Making a blog and earning a living from it is both challenging and exhilarating. And with everything that you now know on how to monetize a blog, get ready for an exciting adventure that awaits you.

6. Improve your Blogging Skills

Blogging is not the same as writing.

Writing is mostly about grammar, vocabulary, and smooth use of words.

blogging requires more tech skills like SEO, email marketing, personal branding, and much more.

learn the exact difference between blogging and writing so you can develop the missing skills.

Question: What are you most passionate about that you would love to share with the world? Leave a comment below!

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And for more tips on how to make money online make sure you check out the following:

How to Start a Blog and Make Money | The Definitive Guide