It seems like just about everyone has a blog on the internet these days and in fact… most of them have more than one!
For example, internet marketers who are actively involved in promoting multiple products often find it worthwhile to maintain separate blogs for each promotional campaign.
While there are many different services and software packages you can use to set up a blog, the most popular one that most of us are using is WordPress.
WordPress.com
Many people set up their blogs by using the WordPress.com website because this is by far the easiest way to get started.
The service is free and you simply go to the website and sign up for an account by selecting a unique username.
Not surprisingly, though, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find a unique username on the WordPress.com service (or at least one that isn’t overly long and unwieldy).
In addition, using a WordPress.com blog makes it challenging to market your blog, because the blog is hosted on the WordPress.com servers.
For example, which of the following URLs do you think will be easier for you to promote (and easier for your prospects to remember): “thisismyblog.wordpress.com” or “thisismyblog.com”?
You need to self-host your blog (or pay WordPress.com an additional fee) to get a web address like the latter, and to get greater control over how your blog looks.
Setting Up A Self-Hosted WordPress Blog
Self-hosting simply means that you run the blog yourself and as a result you have complete control over how it looks and functions.
Setting up a self-hosted blog can be almost as easy as using the free service on WordPress.com.
The first step is to select a web host. A web host is a company that provides you with a portion of a web server and gives you space to build your own website.
In fact, even the most basic web hosting plans (some starting at just a few dollars per month) actually allow you to host multiple blogs on a single account.
The one that I use for all of my websites (which at this time is near 200) is HostGator and they have EXCELLENT service!
And if you click here ==> HostGator and use this coupon code “savemoneyrightnow“ you can get your first month of hosting a penny!
Now many web hosts offer a streamlined set-up process for WordPress and in the past, you’d have to download the WordPress software, upload it to your Web server, set up MySQL databases, and hassle with a number of different settings and configurations.
Thankfully, the set-up process today generally involves choosing your username and password and and if you use HostGator, they literally have a one-click installation service that takes care of everything for you in just a few seconds!
Customization And Personalization
The basic set-up process only gets a WordPress blog up and running in its most basic form.
This means that the look and styling of the blog will be in a “default” configuration.
To set up your blog to look exactly the way you want, you’ll need to select a “theme” that suits your needs.
There are thousands of different themes available for your blog. Most of these themes also allow different customizations, so there’s a good chance you’ll be able to set up your blog to look exactly the way you want.
The best resource for free WordPress themes is here.
There are also a number of different “premium” WordPress themes that are available through different companies on the internet.
Sometimes these premium themes can be worth the cost if you are looking to distinguish your blog from the countless others that are on the internet.
Have an awesome day!
Pam Lawhorne
