The Short But Sweet Guide to Launching a Blog in 8 Minutes or Less [Screencast]

I’m gonna cut to the chase: You need a blog. Why? Because the world is changing and moving on without you. And it’s time you had a platform of your own.

Photo Credit: dreadfuldan via Compfight cc

There are over 60 million blogs on WordPress, one of several platforms that allows you to publish online. This number, according to one source, represents only 43% of all blogs, which are viewed by over 400 million people each month. And that’s only one place people are connecting online.

You’d be hard pressed to argue there’s not a tremendous opportunity here. But are you taking advantage of it?

It’s never been easier to connect with an audience and get your message heard… but are you engaging in the conversation? [Tweet that]

Don’t miss this opportunity

Forget for a second the technological hurdles and learning curves associated with acquiring a new skill. And just imagine: If you had the chance, what message would you share with the world? What could happen if people listened?

Time to dive in to this thing called the blogging and figure out how to get heard. The cost of not doing so is just too great. What happens if you don’t do this? Well, nothing. You keep getting what you’ve gotten, which probably means:

No attention
No trust
No permission

You stay invisible, and your message remains irrelevant. If that’s okay with you, keep doing what you’re doing. But if not, maybe it’s time for a change.

For years, I dreamed of having my own personally-branded website that I could have full control over. But once I started getting bogged down by the technical aspects of blogging, I’d freeze. Then stall. And eventually give up.

But you don’t have to do that. Setting up a self-hosted blog sounds technical but is, in fact, pretty easy — if you do it the right way. (And yes, I think it’s worth investing a little money into having full control of your website.)

An eight-minute walkthrough [video]

In this eight-minute video, I’m going to share with you what I wish someone would’ve told me years ago when I got started with my blog. It would have saved me a lot of time and pain.

Four steps to launching a blog

Get a host. A web host is where your website “lives.” You own it, but you pay a small fee (less than $5/month) to keep it online (kind of like paying property taxes to the government). I recommend Bluehost.
Register a domain. You can register a domain name (e.g. goinswriter.com) through your hosting company. Which I recommend so you can keep everything streamlined (with Bluehost, this service is free with a hosting plan). If you’ve already registered a domain through a service like Godaddy.com, you can either transfer your domain registration or point your name servers to the host.
Install WordPress. Blogging requires software, and the best I’ve found is WordPress. It’s easy, quick, and free to install. You can do this through your host (another reason I recommend Bluehost: they do this for you). Otherwise, you’ll have to go through WordPress.org to download the software and then upload it to your host. (Note: this is different from signing up for a free blog at WordPress.com. This infographic explains how.)
Get a theme. When you join the rest of the cool kids on WordPress, you get access to a bunch of beautiful blog designs (called “themes”), many of which are free. For those just getting started, I recommend Platform. I used it for the first year of my blog, before upgrading to a custom theme.

That’s it! Now you’re ready to start blogging — and that’s where the hard work of writing really begins.

For more on getting started with a blog, check out: The Complete Step-by-Step Guide to Launching Your Own Blog. Or if you’re ready to get started with Bluehost, you can use my affiliate link which saves you an additional $2/month. Click here to begin.

Disclosure: Some of the above links are affiliate links, which means if you buy something through them, I get a commission. This happens at no cost to you. I only recommend products and services I use and love, and it’s my way of keeping this blog going.

Do you have your own self-hosted blog? If you do, what do you love about it? If not, what questions do you have? Share in the comments.