How to Start a Blog in 2025: Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners

Before Starting a Blog

At the beginning of our journey (2016), we had no idea how to start a blog and become successful. Nevertheless, we were determined to follow our passion. Fast forward to today, and we’ve quit our 9-5s, built one of the top travel blogs, and sometimes even rank higher than multimillion-dollar companies on Google!

We get asked all the time, ‘Is blogging still relevant today?’ ‘Can I still make it as a blogger?’ and so on. The short answer is absolutely!

• 77% of internet users still read blogs, and WordPress alone sees 70 million new posts every month. It’s safe to say that blogging is aging like a fine wine — it just gets better and better!
• Websites with blogs gain 55% more traffic and 97% more backlinks than those without, underscoring the value of blogs in driving organic visibility.
• Blogging is a growing source of income through channels like affiliate marketing, sponsorships, and digital product sales.

Blogging Foundations

In order to figure out how to start a blog and create your content, it’s crucial to get a few things in order.  

1. Find your blogging niche

Your niche is the specific subject you’re passionate about. It will be the foundation of your blog, guiding the content you create and helping to attract a dedicated audience. By choosing a specific niche, you not only differentiate yourself but also establish yourself as an authority in your chosen field.

Note: There are so many potential niches you could pursue. For example, travel blogs like ours, a fashion blog centered around outfit inspiration, a craft blog sharing home decor ideas — the list goes on!

2. Define your target audience

Your target audience isn’t just a vague demographic; they’re the people you create your content for. They’re the key to building meaningful connections and driving engagement on your site. Who are you hoping to reach with your content?

3. Create your logo, design, and branding. 

Your blog’s design is the first thing readers notice, so make it count! A well-chosen color palette, fonts, and logo not only make your blog visually appealing but also create a lasting impression that reflects your vibe and values. Think of your branding as the personality that sets your blog apart and makes it unforgettable!

4. Build a blog’s business plan

Besides the audience, it’s good to think about building your business plan, too. This is the roadmap for your venture, outlining the details of your brand and goals, and keeps you on track during your blogging journey.

How to Start a Blog: Step-by-Step Guide

1. Choose Your Blog Name

Choosing a name for your blog is one of the essential steps branding-wise. It’s more than just a catchy phrase — it’s your brand identity in the digital world, the first impression you make with your audience, and the essence of what you stand for. 

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When it comes to choosing your domain (URL), the nickname you’ll market yourself with, and the identifier that will stick in the mind of your audience, it’s good to choose a name that not only stands out but also resonates with your brand and content. 

Our name ‘Salt in our Hair’, for example, represents our love for adventure and the seaside, captured in a single phrase. It came to us one lovely sunny day at our local beach in the Netherlands when we drove home with salty hair, so inspiration can truly strike at any moment.

Purchasing your Domain Name

Once you’ve got a list of potential names, it’s time to see if they’re available. Head over to a domain registrar like Namecheap or GoDaddy to see if your desired name is available — a crucial step as it’ll serve as your online address (the gateway to your blog). 

If your domain name is available, don’t waste any time. Purchase it through the instructions on the registrar site and secure the associated socials. When purchasing your domain, make sure to turn on automatic renewal, ensuring that you never lose ownership!

2. Pick the Best Host for Your Blog

Web hosting is a service that stores all your files and data in a web server, either physically or in the cloud. Starting a blog with a good host is important. Once your website has a host, it can be accessed by anyone with an internet connection! 

Note: Hosting isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution; there are various types of hosting to consider, like virtual private server hosting or shared hosting. 

Siteground is our number one choice for hosting a WordPress blog. They have 24/7 support, daily automated backups (for free!), and a super easy WordPress installation without having to work with difficult code. Often, a free domain name registration is included. 

3. Install your CMS for Starting a Blog

In simple terms, a CMS is a software application that allows you to create, manage, and publish your content. You can think of it as the working engine of your website! Ideally, you choose a platform most suitable for you from the beginning, as changing over in the future (although possible) may be a hassle. 

The CMS you choose should be suited to the level of control and customization you’re after. Personally, we’d recommend using WordPress.org (not to be confused with WordPress.com) for your blog, which is the same platform we use for this website.

4. Start Configuring Your Blog

When you first access your new WordPress site, it may all feel a little overwhelming if you’ve never built a website before. In our course, we dive into a complete step-by-step process of setting up your WordPress site.

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In your blog’s WordPress dashboard, navigate to Settings -> General Settings.

1. Disable “Anyone can register.”
2. Set your site language.
3. Set the correct time/date format.

Let’s say you start a blog article named “Bangkok’s Great Food” and attach it to the category Thailand. WordPress, by default, creates a URL like http://yourtravelblogname.com/?p=400

5. How to start a Blog: Choosing a Layout

There are two routes you can go when you start picking a blog layout. You either:

1. Create your own unique template by hiring a developer.
2. Buy one from a WordPress themes webshop or Kadence. 

Pick a Blog Layout 

Most themes come with a range of templates to choose from, which are pre-designed layouts that you can use when starting a blog, saving you a lot of time and effort, especially if you’re new to designing websites. Depending on your chosen theme, you’ll have different page builders you can use. Here, you can add your logo, adjust colors, fonts, layouts, and much more. 

Elegant Themes

Elegant Themes is the place to get a quality theme if you’re on a budget. Start searching for a blog theme that includes the features and design you want on your website. These are easily installed via the installation guide included, and values like colors and positions of most elements can be adjusted afterward. Here’s a discount at Elegant Themes for all Salt in our Hair readers!

Note: Saltinourhair.com is not a theme that’s for sale. Hannah and I custom-made the layout ourselves!

Kadence

One theme we highly recommend is Kadence if you’re going to take blogging seriously. It’s super easy to customize, works seamlessly with the WordPress block editor and other popular page builders, and comes with pre-designed templates and a library of pre-built blocks for even more site customization. There’s a freemium option, where the core theme is free, and you only pay for the add-ons. 

6. Install the Essential Blogging Plugins

WordPress plugins are an extension to your WordPress dashboard or website that’ll enhance its features. With thousands of plugins available, you can customize your website to suit your needs, whether it’s adding contact forms, social media, or e-commerce options. 

Yoast SEO

Yoast SEO is a powerful tool for optimizing your content for search engines. It provides valuable insights and recommendations for improving your on-page SEO. This way, you can increase your chances of ranking higher in search engine results and attract more organic traffic to your blog. We’re super proud to say that Yoast is one of our partners in our Salty Academy Blogging Masterclass.

Did you know? Yoast SEO uses a traffic light system when you’re working on WordPress, making it easy to see if you’re on track. It even has a readability score, telling you what your text needs to read better. 

Akismet 

Start the conversation on all your blogs by allowing comments. Unfortunately, this also attracts spambots. That’s where Akismet comes in, which effectively filters out spam comments and form submissions. This is a must-have plugin for every blogger, saving you time moderating your blog and ensuring your comment and form sections are clean and spam-free.

Social Share Buttons

As a blogger, sharing your content across social media platforms can boost your content’s visibility, engagement, and SEO. Plus, your articles deserve to be read by others! By installing the Social Media Share Buttons & Social Sharing Icons plugin or Spectra, you add some great share options for your readers.

7. How to Start a Blog: Create Your Pages & First Article

The pages in WordPress serve as static content containers and, unlike posts, are not organized chronologically and aren’t part of the blog feed. However, they make up your site’s structure and navigation. 

Tip: Extend your blog by telling your readers a little more about you, how and why you started, and what they can expect. In your WordPress Admin, navigate to Pages and add a new page. Write out your information and make sure to add it to your menu bar.

Posts

Posts are where you create, edit, and manage your blog posts. You can categorize these and add tags, schedule them, and preview drafts before publishing. 

8. Track Your Website Visits

During your journey of learning how to start a blog, you’ll often have a look at your analytics. In simple terms, analytics refers to collecting and analyzing your website’s data to make better decisions. It’s about understanding your data; it helps you figure out what happened on your site, why it happened, and how you can improve things. 

Google Analytics is a great tool to track your website traffic. Especially at the start of your blog, it’s useful data that can help you follow your readers’ journey. It shows you: 

• Where do visitors navigate on your website?
• How long do people visit your website?
• What medium did they use to get to your site? 

9. Attract Visitors to Your Blog

The hardest part of starting a blog or any kind of website is getting constant visitors. However, getting organic traffic flowing to your blog is crucial for long-term success. Not only is it an entirely free way to attract visitors, but it also helps build trust and credibility with your audience. 

It can take a while before you see a good number of visitors each day. We’ve listed four methods below to help you start seeing traffic on your blog.

How to Start a Blog: Google Traffic

Firstly, prioritize creating high-quality content that resonates with your target audience. Google Search is one of the best ways to generate traffic. However, getting your blog between those Google Search results is one of the hardest things to do.

You’ll need to apply all the SEO techniques, post consistently, have a well-functioning website, and so much more. Obviously, you can’t do everything ‘right’, but we all try our best.

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SEO – What’s SEO?

Next, conduct thorough keyword research to identify the phrases and terms your audience is searching for. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimisation, in other words, getting readers to your blog. Search engines like Google rate your website’s SEO score by comparing it against a massive list of rules. The Yoast SEO will help you with the first steps once you’ve found your keyword(s).

However, optimizing your blog for SEO goes beyond just keywords. Think about your website URLs; they should be clear and descriptive. Optimize images by giving them relevant alt tags, and create catchy and interesting meta descriptions that accurately summarize your content. 

Consistency

It took saltinourhair.com over 5 months of weekly posting to finally see a growth in visitors. Admittedly, it was quite discouraging then. But the key here is to keep posting consistently and try to improve every new article. Publishing regularly is essential for maintaining momentum and keeping your audience engaged.

Let Google Know You Start a Blog

Google and other search engines won’t know about you if you don’t tell them you are there. Start submitting your blog’s sitemap to Google. The Yoast SEO plugin created a sitemap for you, which is an extensive list that includes all the pages of your blog.

How to Start a Blog: Pinterest Traffic

Whereas Google takes a while, social media is the perfect way to kickstart getting visitors to your blog. If you’re serious about blogging, Pinterest is a platform you absolutely can’t afford to overlook.

This is a powerful visual search engine that can drive significant traffic to your blog! Create an image in an app like Photoshop and give that image a title. Then, pin it on Pinterest. The more readers, the more Pinterest will show your image to other people searching on the platform.

Get blog traffic via Instagram

If you’re in the travel, food, fashion, or lifestyle game, this is where you can show off your creativity! Think stunning photos, quick tips, and engaging stories — Instagram lets you build a personal connection with your followers through beautiful imagery and bite-sized videos.

This is also where you can refer them to your blog. We use a 360-degree marketing method to promote our blogs, including social media. Don’t be afraid to promote your work! Share your blog posts across your socials and interact with your followers.

Starting a Blog: Facebook Traffic

There are loads of niche-specific Facebook groups out there with thousands of members searching for answers you might have. Although it’s not the quickest option anymore to grow your community of readers, it’s definitely worth it if you focus on it.

Search for the subject that fits your blog on the platform, like ‘traveling Iceland’ or ‘backpackers South America’, and answer people’s questions with a link back to your article. 

10. How to Start a Blog and Make Money

While you should start your blog out of pure love for sharing your interests with people, we’d all be lying if we said that making money from our sites isn’t a goal, right? And let us tell you, it can definitely be done and can be very lucrative with the right approach.

Don’t get us wrong; it’s not going to be something that happens overnight, like many people will try to tell you. It takes time, but it’ll definitely be worth all the effort! There are a few methods you can implement to start earning an income with your blog.

Method 1: Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is a very effective way to start earning money with your blog if done correctly. This method involves promoting products or services and earning a commission for every sale made through your referral link. 

Always choose products that are relevant and valuable to your audience to ensure that you remain trustworthy. For a tech blog, this could mean promoting gadgets or software, for example. 

Where to Sign up for Affiliate Marketing?

There are numerous affiliate platforms that you can sign up for to start earning a commission on sales generated from your blog. 

Awin

Sign up at Affiliate Window (Awin); they have the most significant companies connected to their system and reliable tracking. Once you are signed up, register via the Awin dashboard at one of their partners, like Agoda.com. In the top menu, go to Advertisers -> Join Program.

How do you generate an affiliate link at Awin?

Once Agoda.com (or another partner) accepts your blog for their program, you can start adding links to your blogs. In Awin, go to Links & Tools -> Link Builder.

How much will I earn at Awin?

Your earnings depend on a number of factors;

• The number of affiliate links in your article
• How likely people will click those links
• Luck that the reader books or buys something via that link

Method 2: Ads on Blogs

The second method to start earning money with your blog is by placing ads on your website. If you’ve ever wondered how those little banners and pop-ups can transform your blog into a revenue-generating machine, you’re in the right place; we go way more in-depth about it in our Blogging Course. 

Alternatively, there are high-quality ad networks like Mediavine and AdThrive. However, these premium networks require higher traffic levels — for Mediavine, it’s 50,000 sessions per month, and 100,000 page views per month for AdThrive. 

Method 3: Set up a Mailing List for your blog

While this might not sound like a moneymaker, setting up a mailing list can give your blog many extra visitors each month. More visitors equals more income via affiliate links and ads.

Add a Brevo form in your articles, either in a pop-up or at the bottom of your website. Here, you can ask your readers to subscribe to stay updated with your blogs.

Method 4: Sell a product via Sellfy

What are you good at? What can you do that many others wished they could? If you have something to offer, you can sell this as a product on Sellfy. It can be anything as long as it adds value to your readers. For example, we sell our own photo presets, e-books, and prints. 

Note: Everything can be for sale as long as it is downloadable, aligns with your brand, and brings value to your readers!

Sellfy is the best place to offer these online products. For example, there is a man who makes a great income by selling tutorial videos on how to do magic tricks. See? Dig deep and sell your skills!

Blogging Masterclass

Great, you are ready to start blogging! This was just the start of blogging and generating traffic; our blogging masterclass includes:

• How to write blogs that score on Google
• Optimizing your website to rank higher in Google
• Earning a steady revenue from your blog
• Adding security to your blog
• Our top tips for sharing blog content on Social Media
• How to speed up your website to rank higher in Google

Ultimate Blogging Masterclass Discover how we built a top-ranking, profitable blog – and how you can too! 👉 Learn Blogging Like a Pro