How to Create a WordPress Blog

So you want to create a WordPress blog… Congratulations! WordPress is an excellent solution for how to start a blog, plus we think blogs are super awesome!

Better yet – it’s also surprisingly simple to create a WordPress blog. That’s why we say you can do it in under 15 minutes.

But as simple as it is to get started with a free WordPress blog, knowing what you need to do and how you can do it is still important so you don’t waste time. That’s why we made this guide.

We’ll show you every single step you need to take to start a blog using self-hosted WordPress. And we’ll do it with tons of screenshots and beginner-friendly instructions.

How to create a blog: what you’ll need

If you want to create a blog, here’s entire process step-by-step:

1. Sign up for web hosting (we recommend Bluehost).
2. Pick a domain name for your blog.
3. Install free WordPress blog software.
4. Log in and write your first blog post.
5. Change your blog design by picking a theme.
6. Install a couple of essential plugins.
7. Don’t forget marketing

We’re going to cover each of these steps in detail below, but for now, what you need to know is that neither of these steps requires in-depth technical knowledge. Yes, you really can figure out how to set up a blog on your own!

Once you get your free WordPress blog up and running, you’ll probably want to start writing and likely tweak its appearance/functionality. To help you do that, we’ll also show you how to:

• Write your first blog post using the WordPress editor
• Change how your free WordPress blog looks using a “theme”
• Add functionality to your blog using tools called “plugins”

As long as you know how to use sites like Facebook and have an overall confidence when it comes to “web stuff”, you can follow this guide. We promise!

Step 1: Purchase hosting and your domain name

Making your free WordPress blog accessible to people around the world requires two things:

•  Hosting – this is the engine that powers your site. While you don’t “see it”, every single website on the Internet has a host powering it.
•  Domain – this is like your blog’s permanent address. For example, ours is themeisle.com. Check out this post if you need help coming up with a good name.

You can purchase your hosting and domain at the same time – so don’t worry too much about the nitty-gritty details right now. But before you can do that, you need to choose a WordPress host. Because of WordPress’ popularity, there are a huge number of WordPress hosts.

We’ve personally tested the performance and reliability of many hosts. With the results of all these experiments in mind, we can recommend Bluehost to new WordPress bloggers.

Here’s why:

• It’s affordable. You can host your site for the price of a small latte each month – it’s just $2.75 per month for your first 12 months.
• You get a free domain name when you sign up. This ties in with affordability – your own domain would otherwise cost $10+.
• You can easily install WordPress. With just a few clicks, you can launch the WordPress software and have a working blog. No tech knowledge needed!
• It has enough performance to get you started. When you’re just starting out, Bluehost offers plenty of performance to keep your site loading.

All in, it will cost you about $33 to host your blog at Bluehost for the entire year, which includes your free domain name.

og