When I was considering some more things that I could do from home to earn extra money in my free time, I came across the idea of creating a blog. With so many travel blogs becoming increasingly popular and even generating money, I started to do some research on the topic to find out how it can be done.
How can you create a travel blog or another blog site? In order to create a travel blog or another blog site, you will need to start by mapping out a very detailed content plan, including the topic of your site and what kind of information you will be providing to your readers.
In addition to planning and executing everything that will be on your blog, you will need to decide which platforms you will be using and proceed to design an attractive layout. The only things left to do after these steps are complete is to monetize your site and bring more consistent traffic.
Creating a travel blog or similar website can be something that is enjoyable yet also very rewarding. If you are able to put together the correct layout with content that is engaging and relevant, you can generate a lot of success in the world of the internet.
Most people would be surprised to learn that the task of creating a great blog is not as hard as it may seem. By following the simple tips and step-by-step instructions outlined in this article, you will be able to do it, too!
How To Create Your Own Blog
If you are a frequent blog reader, you might have a few favorite websites that are your go-to’s for all of the helpful and insightful information that you seek from the internet. The most popular blogs are usually very well put together and aesthetically pleasing, with organization that brings so much traffic to the content on a daily basis.
Many bloggers have gained a lot of fame and media attention for the blogs that they have created, with some of them even becoming household names.
Contrary to popular belief, this is something that literally anyone can accomplish. With the right plan of action and the motivation to follow through with it, you will be able to create a popular blog site on any topic that you feel passionate about.
In this section, we will be discussing a general overview of how you can make your very own blog. The steps outlined in the list below will give you the entire blueprint from start to finish through a detailed planning process.
How To Create Your Own Blog:
1. Decide what your blog will be about
2. Choose a platform to build your blog on
3. Come up with a clever name and check the domain
4. Purchase domain hosting
5. Design the layout of your blog
6. Create a relevant content plan and decide how you will execute
7. Do some SEO research to bring more traffic
8. Implement some monetizing features into your blog
9. Promote your website on social media
Before you are able to jump into creating your own blog, you will first and foremost need to decide what it will even be about. This is the most important factor that will determine whether your website is successful or not after it launches.
The ideal topic for your blog should be something that you are passionate about or very knowledgeable on if you will be the one writing the posts. If you have no idea about the subject matter on your blog, it will definitely show in your writing and you will not be able to attract a consistent audience.
However, if you are clearly an expert on the topic, your love for the things that you are writing about will really show in each article. Readers appreciate authenticity on blog sites as well as relevant information.
If someone is searching online for tips on how to make vegan lasagna, they will want to read a detailed article with photos from someone who frequently makes the dish and has experience and passion for vegan cooking. Checking out some online photography courses might help you learn exactly what you need to know to take the perfect picture for your blog.
An alternative result that was put together in a lazy manner with little to no details by someone who doesn’t care about the topic and isn’t even vegan will not go over well with the audience.
All in all, it is important to make sure that you actually know what you are talking about and you can provide the answers that people are looking for when they type a question into google. After all, you there has to be some reason that you are creating this blog in the first place.
If this is a project that will be fun for you to complete in your free time, you should make sure that you write about things that make you excited instead of something boring that you couldn’t care less about.
In the case that your motivation for creating this blog is money, on the other hand, you might want to use some different tactics to decide what the topic of your website will be.
Since creating a blog purely for money will be more of a business activity than a personal one that you will do in your free time, you will need to consider what the people want and need to read.
A great tip for coming up with a topic for a monetized business blog is to try to find topics and niches that have not yet been occupied on the internet. For example, there are thousands of blogs that cover the general topics of travel.
However, there might not be any blog results when someone searches for mountain biking tips for a certain trail somewhere in Switzerland. If money is your motivation, you will be able to focus in on this niche topic and corner the market on this topic, becoming the top result for these types of searches.
Regardless of whether your blog will be used for personal or business purposes, the next thing to do after deciding on the topic will be to choose a website platform to actually build it on.
There are plenty of different website platforms to use for creating a blog, with some of the most popular options being Blogger, WordPress, and Wix. The specific types of blog sites that you can choose from will be discussed in more detail within the next sections of this article.
After choosing the right platform for your blog depending on the features that you will need for your website, you can move on to making a clever name for your blog. This name should be unique against all other blogs that are swimming around on the internet, while also easy to spell and remember.
The name of your blog should be catchy and have meaning to what the actual contents of the website are. In addition, it should not be too long, because you will want your readers to be able to type it into their browser, talk about it, and even share it with friends.
Instead of giving them a mouthful with an extra long blog title, you should keep it short and sweet for the best results. Along with just deciding what the name of your blog will be, you will need to make sure that it is available.
Aside from the negative effects of having the exact same blog name that someone else has already come up with and operates under, you will need to reserve your domain name so that your users will be able to type it into the browser.
Domain names can be purchased for just a few dollars per year, and will give you the full rights to the title of your blog that you have chosen. While it is true that some websites can be created for free, you will not get your own domain name unless you pay.
For example, users are able to create free blog sites on Wix without having to pay for the upgrade to their own domain name. However, this initial site will have a less than desirable name in the search bar.
A Wix blog without a domain name will look something like this: www.yourblogtitle.wixsite.com
Once you purchase the domain name, it will look like this:
www.yourblogtitle.com
Paying monthly or yearly for a domain name will pay off in the long run, especially if you expect to bring lots of traffic and popularity to your blog. The second domain listed above is much more professional looking and easier to find and share.
When it is time to actually purchase your domain name, there are some more platforms and companies to choose from. These platforms will be compatible with the actual website platform that you used for your blog, and will require some research to mix and match the right combination for you.
Take a WordPress website as a quick example. When you create your blog with WordPress, one of the most popular and cost-effective options for a website hosting domain is BlueHost.
Other website hosting platforms can be used with WordPress and any other site that you use to create your blog, as long as you can confirm that the two sites will work together.
Once you have established everything that your blog will be about and your website itself is up and running with a reserved domain name, you will be ready to design the layout of how the pages will look.
Depending on which platform you have chosen to create your website, you might be able to implement the ready-to-use layouts and designs for the front end of your blog. This can include colored templates, special fonts, and anything else that you can use to personalize your new website.
If you would rather go with an even more personalized option, you can design your own layout or hire someone else to do it for you. This will cost a lot more than choosing from the existing templates by yourself, but you might come out with a more decorative and detailed result than the contrary option.
Apart from the visuals on your blog, as important as they are, you will need to put a lot of focus in to the actual written content that will be posted throughout the different sections. This will include the copywriting sections on your site such as the About Me page, as well as helpful blog articles that are related to your topic.
Your written content plan should include a variety of blog post and article titles, including a rough outline of each and what you will be talking about within them. Instead of just writing out these plans and letting them collect dust, you should also make a plan of action for when you will write and post them.
Writing these plans into an actual schedule with a calendar will help you to stay focused and on track with your content plan. Establishing a schedule early on in this process will help you to get into the habit of being consistent with your blog, which will help when you gain a consistent following who expect your scheduled posts.
Included in your content plan for your blog should be some SEO research, or search engine optimization. There are several online tools that you can find to help you out with this, but your main goal should be to find the most relevant topics and questions that people are searching and plan to answer them in your articles.
It would also be helpful to come up with lists of keywords to use throughout these pieces that are relevant to the topic, which might provide you with more search traffic in the long run.
After you have done most of the leg work throughout the process of creating your own blog, the only things left to do include keeping up with your content schedule, finding ways to monetize your website if desired, and bringing new traffic to your blog articles as much as possible.
The Best Platforms For Creating a Blog
When it comes to creating a blog or other similar website, there are tons of great platforms to choose from. Each of these hosting sites will offer several different features throughout that will help you decide which one is the best for you.
Take a look at the list down below to get some ideas for the platform that you might want to use for your own blog.
The Best Platforms For Creating a Blog:
• WordPress
• Wix
• Gator
• Blogger
• Tumblr
• Medium
• Squarespace
• Ghost
• Weebly
While you are in the middle of the process of choosing the right platform for you r blog, it is important to consider a few of the main factors that you will want to look for in order to fit your specific needs.
First of all, you will want to choose a platform that is user-friendly and easy for you to use and set up. It should also be organized for the people who will be reading it. The last thing you want is a jumbled up website that your readers will look at for two seconds and proceed to look for a better result.
In addition, you will want to keep the bigger picture in mind of what you would like your blog to be in the future. If you are planning to grow your blog as a business, you will want to make sure that you will be happy with the finished product all the way down the line. Perhaps you are in the process of becoming a travel photographer and just need somewhere to upload your photos. Or maybe you just want a place to write so your friends can keep up to date with all the amazing traveling you’re doing. All of these things will be key in deciding which platform to use.
In other words, you want to create your ideal blog instead of something temporary for the meantime that you are planning to re-do in the future. This way, once you start getting a following and loyal audience, you will not have to go through changing platforms and trying to redirect everyone to a new website.
Finally, you will want to do some deeper research into each platform to make sure that the one you choose is compatible with paid advertisements and other ways to monetize your content. Even if you will not be adding these features immediately, it is good to have the option in order to avoid any changes in the future.
When you have some time in your planning process, it would be a good idea to look into each of the platforms that are listed in this section in order to find the right one for you. Keep in mind all of the factors that you should look for in the perfect platform to rule some of them out and ultimately make the best decision.
How To Make Money Off Of Your Blog
Now that you have read all about creating your own blog and choosing a platform with some subtle hints about monetization, you are probably wondering how you can make money off of your blog.
In this section, we will be going over some different methods that you can incorporate into your blog site to make some money while you do what you love. Take a look at the list down below to get some general ideas, with a deeper explanation throughout the rest of this section.
How To Monetize a Blog:
• Affiliate links
• Advertisements
• Email marketing
• Selling a product (electronic ebook or course)
• Digital products (files, designs, etc.)
• Offer coaching/consultations
• Get sponsorships
One of the most lucrative things that you can do on any blog is to include affiliate links into your articles. You can enter an affiliate program with different companies on the internet that will pay you a small percentage to advertise their products for them.
For example, Amazon offers an affiliate program that you can sign up for with your blog or website. The site must already be up and running, and once your account is approved you will be able to advertise certain indicated products on your blog.
The key to using affiliate links is to make sure that they are used in a way that is helpful and relevant. If you have ever read a blog post about how to keep your hair healthy at night, and somewhere in the body of the article you stumbled across a blue link leading to the best hair brush on another website, it was probably an affiliate link.
Wherever the link takes the reader to on the internet will be tracked, and the blog owner will receive some kind of compensation or percentage of the purchase for everyone who buys directly from the link that is tracked.
While you might not see thousands a month from your affiliate links when you are just starting out, this method can be a huge money maker once you establish a large audience.
Think about if you have an audience of one million readers every month. If only one percent of your readers actually click on your affiliate links and purchase an item, you can expect to make upwards of ten thousand dollars in profits, depending on the terms of your affiliate program.
You can also use features like Google Ads to allow other companies to place ads in small sections on your website. The payment for this method will usually come from your readers clicking on the ad and spending time reading the content.
These ads require no work from you, all you will need to do is wait for your readers to become interested in the advertisement and open it. However, if not placed correctly, they can look like an eyesore and even get in the way when your audience is trying to read your actual content.
Email marketing is another great way to both advertise your own blog as well as make some more money. Once you create an email list, you will be able to send frequent reminders to your loyal audience about new posts and even products that you are selling from your website.
Some of the products that you might be able to sell on your blog, relevant to your niche of course, can include electronic courses and e-books on something that you are knowledgeable about.
For example, a freelance writer with a blog about writing might offer a paid online course giving beginning writers some tips on how to get started making money on their blog.
The same concept also goes for digital files like images and graphics, as well as coaching and consultation services that can be sold directly from your blog site.
The last thing that you can do to make some money on your blog is to gain sponsorships. If your blog posts catch enough eyes and a larger company wants to sponsor you, they might pay to have you advertise a product or even join their team.
How To Market And Advertise Your Blog
Now that you have gone through the process of creating your blog and finding ways to make money from it, there is just one more thing to go over. How will you get people to visit your blog so you can actually earn money?
How To Market And Advertise Your Blog:
• Share links to content (social media, forums, etc.)
• Post content to social media
• Link to your blog on social media
• Interact with other bloggers on their sites
• Host a sweepstakes contest (to win a prize, money, free product, etc.)
First of all, you can share links to your content and repost it everywhere on the internet that you have a presence, from social media sites to online forums. The more places that you can get your content out, the better.
Additionally, you should have a link to your blog in all of your social media profiles in order to make it easier for people to find your website. Whenever someone new follows you, they will see your site and be able to click on it and check it out.
Another trick that you can use with social media is to follow lots of new people every day to get the word out about your blog for free. With so many eyes on your profile link, some percentage of viewers are going to be interested in what you have to say.
You should always be active with other bloggers, frequently interacting with them on social media and even in the comments section of their personal blogs. By sharing a relevant and insightful comment, someone might discover you right fro the comments box.
Lastly, you can hold some kind of sweepstakes contest on social media where the contestants must follow you and repost some of your articles for the chance to win some kind of gift or free product.
As you can see, the entire process of mapping out and executing your own blog is certainly a detailed one, but it will pay off when you have a completed website that offers helpful content to your readers and can even make you some extra money on the side.
(One final thing to consider when creating a travel blog is a new computer. Check out these travel laptops to find the perfect one for you!)