How to Create a Website and Make Money Blogging

How to Create a Website and Make Money Blogging

Is it still worth creating a website?

Of course, it is worth creating a website. You are one now, so you must realize its importance. Over the past decade, the world of website development has changed a lot, yet many things have remained the same. This guide is dedicated to those who are starting their website for the first time, with all the tips and tricks we want when starting out for the first time.

The website you are currently on is considered a blog, and since blogging began, millions of blogs have appeared and collectively generated billions of dollars in revenue. (Maybe even trillions!)

And if you're reading this, you're probably wondering if blogs can still make money.

The answer?

A resonance, yes!

How to create a website

Our guide to creating your first website includes:

If you have 20 minutes and $5 right now, you can choose a name, get hosting, setup the website, and customize your design.

1. Get a domain name (5 minutes)

2. Get Website Hosting (5 minutes)

3. Install WordPress (5 minutes)

4. Customize your website design (5 minutes)

5. Creating content for your new website that will attract visitors

6. Optimize your website for search engines

7. Promote your blog

8. Start an email list

9. Pivot through failure to achieve success

10. Don't forget about your 9 to 5

11. Save money and pay for help

12. Quality over quantity

13. Earn as many relative, quality backlinks as possible

14. Focus on user experience

15. Monetizing Your Content

How much money can you make from building a website?

My usual answer is zero to million...

But let's qualify it.

Most people earn nothing or very little. (sorry!)

But I'm guessing if you're reading this you don't want to fall into that category?

While the majority cannot make it, there is a significant minority who are going to make a significant income.

Earning enough to replace a 9 - 5 income is certainly possible.

Realistically (with application) a 4 or 5 figure monthly income is possible in your first year.

And within 2 or 3 years you can generate a substantial 6 figure annual income. (even 7 figures).

So yes, you can still make money blogging!

The question you should be asking is – how much money will you make by building a website?

Everything you need to know about building a website

First things first…

The basics of starting a blog have changed slightly and if you are already a blogger you will be familiar with the first 4 points below.

However, what has changed is the "basic" implementation.

1. Decide what to name your website

(And find a good domain name to go with it)

Earn Money Blogging, Buy Domain Name

When I build a website, I don't start until I find a domain name that I think is good enough.

Sometimes it makes sense to buy an already registered domain from a domain broker

For example, IncomeDiary.com was purchased from a fellow blogger for $100.

Keep the following questions in mind when deciding on a name:

• Does it reflect what your blog is going to be about?
• Will your target audience like it?
• Is the name easy to say and spell?
• Is it short and concise?

I recommend choosing a .com whenever possible and keeping it three words or less

You can register your domain name from the following, trusted registrars: HostGator

The three registries mentioned above are established, secure and neutral.

Once you've secured your domain name, it's time to connect to the World Wide Web.

2. Get website hosting

Now that you've chosen a catchy name for your blog, it's time for step 2.

You need to sign up for a web hosting service to get your blog live and connected to the internet

We confidently recommend the following, secure, fast and unbiased web hosting companies:

Host Bandwidth WordPress Free Domain Live Chat Price

HostGator Unmetered Yes Yes Yes $3.75

BlueHost Unmetered Yes Yes Yes $1.99

Nexcess 2TB Bandwidth Yes No Yes $21

WordPress.com

unmetered

yes

yes

yes

$5.00

Get 70% off your HostGator hosting

With this coupon: SNAPPY

You are doing great!

Now it's time to install WordPress.

3. Install WordPress

Install WordPress, earn money with a blog

You have your web host, next you need blogging software.

Most modern blogs run on a CMS (Content Management System) known as WordPress.

I trust WordPress to run all my blogs because it's user-friendly, feature-rich, and free.

If I've never built a website before and just bought a domain and hosting, I'll go straight to my hosts live chat and say the following:

hi,

I just bought hosting from you for website.com (your website URL)

I would appreciate it if you could install WordPress on it as soon as possible, because I am eager to start using it immediately.

thanks,

Note: Most hosts these days offer 1-click installation for WordPress. This means you don't have to worry too much about the technical side of things.

Once you've installed WordPress, it's time to design the look of your website.

4. Customizing your website design

To design a blog, you need to select an attractive and affordable WordPress theme.

Why do you need this?

Well, after signing up for WordPress, your blog will look very boring and empty.

You want to make it attractive by having an organized structure and a visually appealing layout

For this, we recommend you visit Themeforest, they have a catalog of thousands of different website designs to choose from. Alternatively, if you want someone to design your website for you, you can consider WordPress design services.

Now that you've implemented your site design, it's time to start creating content.

5. Creating great content

some say

"Write what you love and you'll never work a day in your life."

Well, I tweaked that statement a bit to fit my description, but you get the idea.

Choose what you're most interested in with the old knowledge, then build a blog around it

As we mentioned above, this is not a terrible idea.

But that's not a great idea!

The problem with this approach is that what we like doesn't always put money in the bank.

Instead, focus on solving your readers' problems.

Blog about problems your readers are actively looking to solve.

These topics are more likely to make you money.

New website owners have a big problem though: they need to create a lot of content to generate a lot of traffic. When I first started my blog, it took me about a year to write 100 articles. That was 15 years ago, though; All you need to create content quickly is an idea and AI. Check out a great tool called Contentshake AI. All you have to do is select a content idea and it creates a complete article optimized for users and search engines.

They have a free seven day trial, so you can try it out and create 25 articles if it's not for you, cancel and you'll walk away with 100,000 words written for free.

Note: When creating content for our site, we want to come up with a title first and then build around it.

Related Article: 10 Writing Tips for Writing Engaging Content Your Readers Will Love.

6. Optimizing your website for search engines

If you want to make money blogging, search engine optimization (SEO) is very important because, for most bloggers, it is their biggest traffic source. Without it, your chances of making money become highly improbable. The goal of SEO is to optimize your website so that it ranks higher in search engines for specific keywords and phrases.

To optimize your WordPress blog, you can use a Yoast SEO plugin. To download it, go to the Plugins menu, click Add New, search for Yoast SEO in the search bar, and install and activate it. This plugin will provide a number of optimization tips and suggestions based on your chosen keywords to help you optimize your content. As much advice as possible can help improve your SEO and content readability.

There are over 100 ways to optimize a website for search engines; The five most important are as follows:

Give your post a name, and the URL for the keywords you want to rank for in Google, for example, create this article a website and the URL is infomediary.com/create-a-website

Build as many backlinks as possible. The best way to get links is to create great content and network.

Link all your articles together using the keywords you want to rank high in Google For example, above, I mentioned backlinks and that link will take you to my backlink article. It powers Google's content.

Publish lots of content. More content means more opportunities to rank higher in Google, more opportunities to link and share your content, and more opportunities to interlink content on your site.

Keyword research is probably the most important thing. Keyword research involves finding out how much traffic a search term gets on Google and then optimizing your website for that keyword. If you don't do this, the search volume for your targeted keywords could be low, meaning all your work will be wasted.

8. Start an email list

Time and time again, bloggers and website owners tell us their biggest regret is not starting an email list sooner.

Why? Because it's the easiest way to send the traffic you want.

Got a new blog post? Please email your list.

Got a new product for sale? Please email your list.

Want to promote an affiliate product to make money? Please email your list.

To get started, read our beginner's guide to email marketing. Once you've done that, sign up for Omnisend (they currently have a free signup to test it out). Then, start collecting those emails and sending messages to them

The three best ways to get someone to sign up for an email list on your website are:

Popup (try this plugin).

Squeeze the pages.

Place an opt-in box in your sidebar (or footer).

I can leave you with one last tip: Once someone signs up for your email list, email them immediately using an autoresponder (a tool Omnisend offers). All you have to do is enter the email, set it to send automatically to every new subscriber, and it's off to you.

9. Be consistent

"Find a schedule that works for you and stick to it through thick and thin."

Today, more than ever, consistency still matters. However, the problem with the above advice is that it gives the impression that you can follow an arbitrary schedule and expect positive results.

big mistake

Instead, you may want to consistently publish high-quality posts.

For example, Orbit Media found that blogs that publish regular daily posts almost always see more success [1].

This is the most advanced blogging strategy I have ever shared.

10. Don't forget about your 9 to 5

"That's all you need to do to create a blog. Forget about your job and dive in."

Creating a blog requires a lot of time and effort if you want it to be successful.

The problem is that most people can't immediately quit their day job to write about their passion.

This is a recipe for disaster.

Instead of giving up, consider the benefits of your current career.

If you're a paralegal, create a blog that helps people answer legal questions.

Or maybe you're a full-time mom. Write about parenting and children's entertainment.

Perhaps you are a mechanic, write about common modifications, problems and solutions to the vehicles you work on.

The beauty here is that you can use professional experiences established through your day job to improve your blog.

Remember that people resonate with reality; So don't lie and pretend to be something you're not.

Authenticity and transparency are two of the most important ingredients for online success.

Related: 10 Ecommerce Trends Every Blogger Needs to Know!

11. Save money and pay for help

There is nothing wrong with building your blog from the ground up.

But if you're a beginner, you may run into problems that are too big or complicated to solve on your own.

It happens to all of us. (One of the benefits of the training we offer is that it gives you access to a private Facebook group where you can ask questions about any challenges you may have)

This is why business-savvy people treat a blog as a startup and outsource many processes to experts.

By outsourcing your blog's design, structure, content, social media growth, etc., you'll have more time to do everything else (like promoting your content) to make it successful.

12. Quality over quantity

Many blogs of the past focused on publishing multiple short posts several times a day in an attempt to gain traffic.

This results in thousands of blogs churning out millions of posts with useless and unread content.

Many even resort to plagiarism to blow their daily post quota.

Content is king these days, especially since long-form content (posts of 1500 words or more) seems to be more popular than 1000 words or less.

You want to engage with your users.

The more time users spend on your site, the more authority you display to Google and other search engines.

Also, modern search engines know which website published the content first and penalize those who plagiarize or cut (reorder to avoid detection of minor plagiarism).

Related Article: Creating Blog Posts 101

13. Get quality backlinks

Create quality content for your blog that people will link to

An SEO trend of the 2010s was to get as many backlinks as possible - regardless of quality.

A backlink is a link from a website that points to your website.

They can come from social media sites and directories, but they often come from content on other blogs.

The more backlinks you have, the more likely your blog will appear at the top of Google's search pages.

This trend has given rise to websites paying to get more backlinks despite questionable sources

Times have changed and all the major search engines are on them.

These days, quality over quantity doesn't just apply to word count and time spent writing blog content.

It also increases the quality of your backlinks.

Getting high quality backlinks (backlinks from high domain authority websites) means a big improvement in your own site's domain authority and search engine presence.

Also, if you run a blog about organic gardening, getting backlinks from an automotive website won't do you much good.

Search engines won't reward you for it.

There is no debate today that having more backlinks or quality backlinks is better.

Quality wins.

If you're a beginner, this SEO Starter Guide from Google is a good place to start.

14. Promote your blog

There are thousands of ways to increase website traffic, but it's best to try something proven.

Listed below are several methods that currently work to not only attract new users to blogs, but to keep those users on the site and coming back for more.

Let's break it down into separate categories, onsite and offsite.

Start with onsite promotion:

Resource Page - Top content located in one place

Thank You Page - Encourages trust and support

Favorite Products Page - List of your favorite products from Home and Associates

Repurpose Your Content – ​​Turn your top blog posts into infographics, podcasts and videos.

Host a 30 day challenge - keep people sharing your stuff and coming back for more

Interview Thought Leaders - positions you as an authority and encourages quality backlinks.

Run a contest or giveaway - great way to get email subscribers and social shares

Sell ​​an eBook of your best posts - Take your most popular posts and package them into a PDF to sell.

Bonus content must be shared - Lock content until a user shares it with social media.

Expert contributions to roundup posts

Now let's discuss offsite promotion: (and assuming you're creating quality content)

Ad swap – cross-promote a competing or relevant business

Use Sniply - Add a call-to-action to every link you share

Social Media - Publish images, videos and in-depth posts with links to your site

Use QR Code - Use any offline medium; T-shirts, posters, flyers, even billboards.

Sending Emails - Start building your email list with how we use Omnisend and send emails with MailChimp.

Submit on Quora - People all over the world have questions that you can answer with your content.

Wear and Sell Brand Swag – Connect with a dropshipping service like Printfy and model your own gear.

Posting on Medium - Republish your existing content and expose it to new readers

Answer Questions on HARO - Reporters request an expert quote, opinion or story, then provide free publicity for their contributors.

Drive traffic with your email signature - Add a link to a popular page or post in the footer of every email

Include a custom link on the business card - Create a link with a catchy title and short URL to grab attention

15. Focus on user experience

Successful blogs create a great user experience

Another trend in the early 2010s was to focus entirely on SEO rankings for blogs.

Many people create content to please search engines rather than their users.

This trend leads to an influx of sites with low quality content that rank high in search engines.

That doesn't work anymore!

Search engines can tell if your content is plagiarized, keyword stuffed, and overall low quality.

There are several metrics that reveal this.

For example, how much time a user spends on your site, how far they scroll on a particular page, and how many other pages they view all factor into your ranking and perceived value.

Today, you will find that SEO trends focus heavily on quality user experience.

15. Monetizing Your Content

Ways to make money with great blog content

Now is the time to make money from your content!

There are multiple ways to go about this.

Here are the most common:

• Search ads
• Online shop
• Sell ​​a service
• Affiliate links
• Software sales
• Resale of products
• Content Locker
• Selling advertising space
• eBooks/Digital Products
• Let's break it down one by one...

Search ads

Search networks are one of the best places to advertise.

Search networks are simple:

Someone goes to Google and searches for a topic related to a burning pain point or need.

Then, they click on the ad and fill out the form or purchase the product directly.

Search ads are best when you want to capture intent

Online shop

You can use a service like Shopify (non WordPress) which is an out-of-the-box storefront where you can add a blog.

We love WordPress and sell things from home.

If you want to go this route, you can simply install the WooCommerce plugin and list products immediately.

You can also integrate with a service like SamCart or OptimizePress that allows you to list and sell your own products with custom checkout pages.

WooCommerce, SamCart, and OptimizePress fully integrate with WordPress and Stripe (payment processor that accepts credit cards).

Sell ​​a service

Depending on the topic of your blog you can accept payment for a service.

Whether your service is physical or digital, you can add a payment link by:

• striped
• PayPal
• Samkart
• WooCommerce
• Affiliate links

It's classic, and a method you're probably familiar with.

There are literally thousands of affiliate networks available online.

In fact, almost every major brand has some type of affiliate program.

Just go to your favorite search engine and type in your brand name, then enter "affiliate program".

What you will find is that most companies use a 3rd party to handle affiliate sales.

You can redirect yourself to one of the following networks:

• Rakuten
• Clickbank
• AvantLink
• FlexOffers
• ShareASale
• Radius of influence
• Amazon Associates
• Software sales

Does your blog use, discuss or provide a specific software?

Maybe you have a need that doesn't exist yet - hire someone from Upwork and build it.

You can then use your blog to drive traffic to your SaaS (Software as a Service) product.

How to make money blogging reselling products

It has been a pillar in the offline world for decades.

Buy low and sell high.

If your blog revolves around a topic that involves physical products, see if you can find those products at a discount and sell them at full price or more.

Content Locker

This is one that gained a ton of notoriety in the early 2010s and slowly faded away.

However, they still work.

There are companies like CPAlead and PayWithAPost that will allow you to place a popup block on content until the user takes a survey, shares content, opts-in, or pays a fee.

While I personally don't like this approach, there is no doubt that it still works well for some niches.

Buy display ads

While keywords have purpose on the search network, they don't on the display network.

Display networks (think Facebook, Instagram) work to create demand rather than answer demand like search networks.

Display networks help create a sense of need and want rather than immediately capitalizing on an already existing demand or need.

You reach users on the Display Network while they are browsing various sites and forums.

This means that they are not actively looking for your product (yet).

Instead, they are researching their options.

They are looking for the best fit to solve their problems.

This gives you the perfect opportunity to introduce yourself through a display ad to create awareness

Selling advertising space

Once you start getting traffic, advertisers will take notice.

It is our experience that there is no need to tell anyone about it.

People will contact you and ask if they can buy advertising space.

However, if you want to encourage it a bit more, mention it on your contact page or create an "Advertise with Us" page.

Decide what you want to charge, where you want to advertise and for how long.

It will all depend on the amount of traffic you are getting and the quality of your content.

At IncomeDiary, we don't like paid advertising, as we prefer to recommend products we know and trust.

That doesn't mean it won't work or be positive in your own business.

How to make money blogging with ebooks/digital products

Lawlessness starts from here.

We started as a blog and created a free ebook to teach people how to set up and make money in 7 days.

All we've done is explain what we're doing, why it works, and provide affiliate links

It made us over 6 figures soon after launch.

It is still a viable option today!

You may want to enhance your content a bit and include both audio, video and engaging graphics where you can

Canva has a beautiful drag and drop template that you can easily use to create high-quality audio, video and static files.