Kick Start Your Blog

Why are there so many blogs?

Blogs are plentiful because they are easy to create for free by making use of software and hosting such as found at http://www.blogger.com. Starting a blog is a great way to create a web presence. A beginner (or newbie) may however find the first steps towards creating a blog confusing. This article aims to provide a few pointers for the newbie who wishes to take these first steps. Remember we were all newbies at some stage - and many of us still are!

The evolution of blogs:

Blogs have grown from a place to communicate with others who share similar interests to forums being used for various purposes. Yes, you can even earn money by blogging, but that doesn't just happen out of thin air. It requires training, hard work, planning and research. But we all have to start somewhere so why not start by creating our own blog for free? This is a fairly simple process and once you have your blog(s) you can test different designs, postings and content. The sites mentioned above will allow you create a number of different blogs but remember that you have to maintain them to be effective - so don`t overdo things! (see further down for excellent articles on software and places to host your blog for free).

Blogs vs. web sites:

In general it can be stated that it is more difficult and expensive to create your own website than creating a blog. To establish a web site one must go through the process of registering a domain name and designing the web site. It is more costly as such a web site also needs to be hosted compared to the free hosting and pre-designed layouts available to bloggers.

So why not get started with a free blog?

Blogging is about writing - not like writing a novel, but just writing about something as if you are talking to a friend. Keeping a blog can sharpen your writing, researching and internet skills. You may write or even find short, helpful articles that can help to drive traffic to your blog. These skills can be put to good use should you later want to create your own hosted web site.

Once you feel comfortable with the blogging process and you decide to make money, you can get back to the hard work. There are many experts suggesting to us how to make money from blogging. However, the fundamentals are too often ignored in the rush to make money. The truth is that in order to make your blog profitable, you need training, good content, good promotion, lots of marketing and plenty of hard work.

Get started - and happy blogging!