One of the most common questions I receive is: How do I become a blogger?
This post is the first in a series about becoming a “star blogger,” and it covers how to start a blog from scratch. I will take you through the entire blog universe, so you will learn,
Tools & Courses I Use:
Here’s where I would start if I were starting today – in terms of the best marketing tools.
- MorningScore (a must for SEO analysis & topics).
- Dashthis (data overview for beginners).
- Kinsta (server hosting).
- Justin Welsh course for personal branding
How to start a blog from scratch, how to write, how to build an audience, and how to ultimately make a living from it—it is indeed possible, and you can actually live very well from it!
1. What should you write about?
When aiming for success in blogging, the first thing you need to figure out is what you want to write about.
You might think, “my life isn’t that exciting to share”—and that might be true. But others might find your hobby, education, or daily routines interesting.
Love for cars? Share car tips
Love for fitness? Share motivation, fitness, and nutrition tips
I’m sure you’ve already caught my point! You don’t need a Master’s in philosophy or your own TV show to blog. The only thing you really need is passion!
In other words, you should not start a blog based on what other people want to hear.
You need to be passionate about what you write about—otherwise, you’ll give up your blog long before it becomes popular.
2. Finding the right blog platform
One of the biggest challenges when starting a blog is the technical aspect. It can seem very complicated to build a blog from scratch—so there are several alternatives you should explore before diving into blogging.
Free platforms
- Bloggersdelight – offers to host your blog on their platform
- Blogger.com – owned by Google (large blog platform)
- Tumblr – a huge mini-blog site, very popular abroad
- WordPress – offers both hosting and a wordpress.com blog
Pros/Cons
The biggest advantage of choosing an external hosting platform is that you avoid the technical hassle. You enter an already established framework with limited access to change the appearance and style. Additionally, you don’t have to worry about domains, server hosting, coding, etc.
In my opinion, the biggest disadvantage of free platforms is that you don’t have control over your own content—you are, in other words, contributing to that site to increase their traffic.
Even though the alternatives I mentioned earlier have become quite good today, I still believe that a proper blog deserves an independent domain and platform. It takes a bit more time to build a blog on an independent domain, but you also have the opportunity to change everything—and thus shape the site as you wish in terms of design and style.
Self-hosted blog
I always use WordPress when creating new blogs, and the same goes for my own blog. It is super quick to set up a blog on WordPress, and the platform offers a lot of free tools (plugins) that you can install without having to pay for an expensive developer.
When you start making money, you can, as I have done, expand your site with a developer’s expertise to make it more tailored.
- My own blog, which you are currently reading.
- Aarhus Osteopati – Denmark’s largest health blog
- Peter Bendtsen – Denmark’s best personal trainer
- Helsebixen.dk/magasin – Denmark’s largest health blog
I have also helped build several websites on the platform, including Sorry Mom, Tattoodo, SlikhaarTV, and many more. Even if you have a larger webshop, you can certainly utilize the potential in WordPress.
Domain name
One of the first things is to find a domain name. Once you’ve found the right name, you can really start your blogging adventure.
When choosing a domain, remember that the name should be easy to remember and not too difficult to spell.
Yes—the very good domains like “recipes.dk” are taken, but that shouldn’t stop your search for a good domain.
If you’re starting your own business, I recommend Brandroot.com, as it offers the opportunity to buy some expensive but good names. If you just want to start your own personal blog, there are several paths you can take.
If your name is Laura, and you love blogging about cake recipes, for example, you could go for a domain name like “lauraskagehus.dk” or “lauraskager.dk”. Alternatively, you could choose your full name, as I have done, if you want people to know you—but I would only recommend this if your name is a bit unique.
Setting up in WordPress
WordPress is the most used blog platform in the world. To be precise, about 10% of all websites in the world are built on the WordPress platform—and with good reason: it’s super easy for everyone.
When you buy your domain, most web hosts have a WordPress installation in the back-end, so all you need to do is click on “install”—but if this is not the case, you can read this full guide on installing WordPress.
Both One.com and Unoeuro.com have the simple 1-click installation of WordPress. Here’s an example of an installation on Unoeuro.com.
After that, you just need to choose which domain you want to install it on.
When you’re done installing your website, you’ll be able to log in to what’s called the “backend”—where you can write posts, edit pages, and much more.
When you install WordPress, your site will automatically have a standard theme (appearance)—but you can change this once you get started—this way, you can also get to know the system better—it’s pretty intuitive!
Tip: Having your own domain may cost around 300 kroner per year, but it’s 100% worth it because you “own” your own content, and it’s much easier to start on your own domain than to “move” a blog to a new web address—trust me! And an email without Hotmail or Gmail is much more professional!
WordPress themes
When you’ve installed your WordPress platform, you’ve come a long way! You should now be able to see a blank page on your domain—this is your standard page.
And now, the fun part begins. Once you’ve installed WordPress, as mentioned, you’ll be able to see a standard theme on your URL, which you can keep, but you can also create your own unique theme—that’s the cool thing about WordPress—and I definitely recommend you do so.
If you want your website to look fancy, and if you’re interested in building your own site, check out Themeforest.com!
Themeforest is a marketplace for WordPress themes—some of them are quite expensive but also very impressive.
Make sure to purchase some of the most downloaded themes if you want to be sure to have a good back-end to work with. (The back-end is where you create your blog posts and customize almost everything. Some themes are associated with difficult systems and options, so stick to those with good recommendations).
I highly recommend Enfold, Total, Petit.
A good example is the blog of Seth Godin. His blog is not the most beautiful in the world, but it’s probably among the most read in my field—and in marketing in general.
Mobile friendliness is key!
Later in this post, you’ll get a preview of how the right marketing can help you attract more readers to your blog: spoiler alert, we’ll be diving into social media.
That said, it’s important to mention that users access the vast majority of social media platforms via their mobile devices.
When promoting your blog on various social media, it’s crucial that your blog also looks good on a mobile device.
Here we’re talking about responsive design.
But in short, it’s about ensuring that your blog looks sharp no matter what type of screen your readers are using: mobile, tablet, or computer.
A responsive design allows your blog to adapt to the respective screen when it comes to text elements, image format, CTAs, etc.
All in all, it contributes to a significantly better user experience for your blog and increased accessibility.
3. Plan your content
Writing good content doesn’t come easily, and you won’t become a star blogger from day one. To become a good blogger, you need to plan your content in advance. Make an agreement with yourself about how many blog posts you want to write each month, and then set aside time to write them.
Of course, creativity comes when we least expect it, so make sure to take notes, and don’t rely on your memory!
Proper preparation is key to your success. You can easily take notes using the app, “Todoist“—a free to-do app that’s super easy to use.
Planning your content doesn’t mean you have to write 4-5 blog posts in advance: That’s too difficult in the beginning. Instead, try planning your headlines.
Good content takes time to build—that’s just how it is. This blog post took me “only” one day to write, but it took me 4 years to know all of this.
Nurture your mind, invest in books, read blogs, and constantly challenge your knowledge—that way, you’ll also create interesting content for your users. This will ultimately increase the quality of your blog posts. Since this is your hobby, it shouldn’t feel like a challenge—it should be fun.
That’s how I feel when I read about marketing or when I write these posts.
Likewise, I hope that you and others will get a lot out of reading my tips!
Need inspiration for new books? Read about the books that have changed my life here.
4. Distribute your content
This post is just the beginning. In the next blog post in this series, I will share my secrets on how you can build an audience and get over 100,000+ readers by distributing your content the right way.
For those who can’t wait to get these content distribution tips, here are a few pointers.
- Make sure your content can be read on smartphones, iPads, etc.
- Ensure you have installed social media buttons on your website
- Vary your content and combine videos, graphics, and text
- Get your family and friends to read what you’ve written
- Engage in conversations on online forums or blogs within your niche
- Mention experts in your blog. Just like I mentioned Seth Godin
- Ask your readers to comment and discuss. Or create a poll that involves your audience—it creates loyal readers because they feel they’re part of your universe.
- Almost all viral blogs start small. The same goes for your blog. If your content is really good, you will attract more and more readers. It takes time to learn how to create viral content. When you see things in your news feed, on TV, or maybe hear something on the radio—try to see if any of the principles you see or hear can be used to build your blog and make it more interesting.
5. Don’t give up
These days we hear the phrase “Don’t give up” all the time. And when it comes to blogging, it’s absolutely relevant.
You simply can’t give up.
A large percentage of bloggers quit after just one or two months. Why? Because they forget the percentage rule I mentioned earlier.
More content does not automatically mean more readers.
How to promote your blog
Let’s start with a few tips on how to market your blog:
- Ask other bloggers or use social media to promote your content
- Try Facebook ads and test your content (more on that in the next post)
- Leave valuable comments on other blogs – and link back to your own
- Create social media profiles. It’s often easier to gain followers than readers, so use social media to build a network and then introduce them to your blog content.
I actually used this exact strategy with Tattoodo.
First we grew their Facebook page to more than 1,000,000 fans, and then we started systematically publishing blog posts. Suddenly we had over 4,000,000 monthly visitors.
You can also write guest posts on larger blogs and link back to your own.
It doesn’t have to be major media outlets like TechCrunch. Smaller blogs are often looking for great content – and that’s where you can contribute.
The hardest part of being a blogger is attracting readers.
Simply sharing your posts with friends on Facebook or X isn’t really marketing.
You need to dig deeper.
6. SEO for bloggers: The basics of search engine optimization
Once you’ve written your first pieces of content and started sharing them, it’s time to talk about one of the most important disciplines in blogging: SEO.
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, and at its core it’s about making your content visible in Google.
When someone searches for something on Google, you want your blog to appear among the top results.
For example, imagine you have a blog about running.
If someone searches for “best running shoes for beginners” and your article appears among the top results, you could potentially get thousands of free visitors every month.
That’s why SEO is so important.
But don’t worry, you don’t have to be a technical expert to get started.
You can begin with these basic steps:
1. Write about topics people actually search for
Before writing a blog post, research what people are searching for on Google. Personally, I use tools like MorningScore to find ideas and analyze keywords.
If no one is searching for the topic, it’s difficult to get traffic – no matter how good your content is.
2. Use your keywords naturally
If your post is about “healthy breakfast,” that phrase should naturally appear in:
- The headline
- The introduction
- A few subheadings
- The body text
But remember: always write for people first, not just for Google.
3. Create better content than your competitors
Google loves content that genuinely helps the reader.
If most articles on a topic are around 500 words, you could write a 2,000-word guide, include images, examples, and actionable tips.
In short: be the best resource on the topic.
SEO takes time. Often it takes several months before a blog post starts getting traffic from Google. But once it does, a single blog post can generate traffic for years.
And that’s exactly why blogging is so powerful.
7. How to make money with your blog
When people ask me how bloggers make money, they’re often surprised by how many opportunities actually exist.
But there’s one thing that’s important to understand:
You won’t make money from your blog in the first month.
First, you need to create value, traffic, and trust.
Once you’ve done that, the opportunities start to appear.
Here are some of the most common ways bloggers make money:
Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing means recommending a product and earning a commission if someone purchases through your link.
For example, if you write an article about the best coffee machines, you can link to the products and earn money when your readers buy them.
This is one of the most popular ways bloggers generate income.
Advertising
Once your blog starts getting traffic, you can display ads on your website.
The more visitors you have, the more you can earn.
Google AdSense is often where many bloggers start.
Sponsored posts
As your blog grows, companies may pay you to write about their products.
This could include reviews, guides, or product mentions in your blog posts.
But be careful: only recommend products you genuinely believe in.
Your credibility is far more important than a quick payment.
Your own products
The most profitable model is often selling your own products.
This could include:
- Online courses
- E-books
- Consulting services
- Workshops
Once you’ve built an audience that trusts you, this can become a very strong business model.
Many successful bloggers earn far more from their own products than from ads.
8. The Biggest Mistakes New Bloggers Make
Let me end with something that can save you a lot of frustration.
After working with blogs for many years, I’ve seen the same mistakes again and again.
If you can avoid them, you’re already far ahead of most people.
1. They give up too early
The biggest mistake is simply quitting.
People write 5–10 blog posts, get almost no traffic, and conclude that blogging doesn’t work.
The truth is that most successful blogs only start growing after 6–12 months.
It requires patience.
2. They focus too much on design
Many people spend months searching for the perfect theme, logo, or color scheme.
But the truth is that content will always matter more than design.
A simple website with great content will always outperform a beautiful website with poor content.
3. They write without a strategy
If you write random blog posts without thinking about search intent, audience, or distribution, it will be difficult to grow.
Successful blogs focus on:
- Keywords
- Content planning
- Distribution
- Collaborations
4. They don’t market their content
As I mentioned earlier:
It’s not enough to just write.
You need to actively share, promote, and distribute your content.
Even the best content won’t make a difference if no one finds it.
One of the most successful bloggers in this area is Neil Patel, who has truly mastered content marketing.
If you can’t wait for my next blog post on the topic, I recommend reading his guide and absorbing as much knowledge as possible.
Otherwise, you’ll have to wait for the next article where I’ll walk you through exactly how to distribute your content effectively.
There has to be something to look forward to, right?
I know your time is valuable, so thank you for taking the time to read this post. It really means a lot to me.
If you found any of the ideas or tips useful, or just want to send a little social karma my way, I’d really appreciate it if you shared, liked, or commented on the post.
FAQ: How to start a blog
Can you start a blog without technical experience?
Yes, you can start a blog without technical experience. Modern platforms like WordPress make it easy to set up and manage a blog without any technical background.
Most themes and plugins can be installed with just a few clicks, and there are plenty of tutorials and guides available online. If you later want more advanced features or customization, you can always get help from a developer or a web agency.
For most bloggers, the biggest focus should be on creating valuable content rather than worrying about the technical side.
How much does it cost to start a blog?
Starting a blog is relatively inexpensive. Most people begin by purchasing a domain name and web hosting, which can often cost just a few dollars per month.
If you use WordPress with a free theme, you can get very far without spending much money. Many new bloggers start with a simple setup and invest in design, plugins, or marketing later on.
In the beginning, the most important thing isn’t the budget but simply getting your blog online and starting to publish content. As your blog grows and begins attracting traffic, you can always upgrade your design, features, or hosting.
What is the best CMS for starting a blog?
When starting a blog, most people choose a CMS (Content Management System) to manage their content.
The most popular option is WordPress because it is flexible, user-friendly, and offers thousands of plugins and themes. It allows you to build a professional blog without needing technical skills.
There are also alternatives such as Webflow, Ghost, or Squarespace, but WordPress is still the platform that most bloggers and businesses use to build their websites.
How do I find a good niche for my blog?
One of the most important decisions when starting a blog is choosing the right niche.
Many beginners make the mistake of writing about too many different topics. The most successful blogs usually focus on a clear theme or area of expertise. This could be marketing, sustainability, fitness, personal finance, or something entirely different.
Start by choosing a topic where you have both interest and knowledge. Then research whether people are actually searching for that topic online. A good niche often sits at the intersection of your passion and a real demand from readers.
How important is design for a blog?
Design is more important than many people think.
Your blog might have great content, but if the design looks unprofessional or is difficult to navigate, readers may leave quickly. First impressions matter, especially online.
That said, you don’t need an advanced design from the beginning. A simple, fast, and user-friendly layout is usually more than enough when starting out. Over time, you can always invest more in branding and visual identity as your blog grows.
How often should you publish new blog posts?
There isn’t a single correct answer to this question. Some blogs publish content several times per week, while others publish only a few times per month.
The most important thing is consistency. If you decide to publish a new post every week, try to stick to that schedule.
Over time, both Google and your readers will begin to expect new content. However, quality should always come before quantity. One well-written article is often far more valuable than several rushed ones.
How do you get the first readers to a new blog?
When you start a blog, traffic rarely appears overnight. In the beginning, you need to actively work on attracting your first readers.
You can share your articles on social media, write guest posts for other blogs, or participate in relevant communities and forums.
SEO also plays a major role, since many bloggers receive most of their traffic from Google. The better you understand keywords and search intent, the easier it becomes to attract new readers to your blog.
How long does it take to build a successful blog?
Many people think a blog can become successful within a few months, but in reality it often takes longer.
Most blogs start gaining consistent traffic after six to twelve months if they focus seriously on content and SEO.
Blogging is very much a long-term project. If you continue publishing valuable content and improving your strategy over time, your traffic can grow significantly.
How do bloggers make money?
There are several ways to earn money from a blog.
Some bloggers use affiliate marketing, where they recommend products and earn a commission when someone makes a purchase. Others make money through advertising, sponsored posts, or by selling their own products or services.
The best approach depends on your niche and your audience. Many successful bloggers combine several revenue streams to build a stable income over time.
Is blogging still profitable today?
Yes, blogs can still be a very strong business model when built correctly.
Even though social media has become more important, Google remains one of the largest sources of traffic on the internet.
A blog allows you to build authority, attract readers, and create a platform around your expertise. With the right strategy, a blog can develop into both a personal brand and a sustainable source of income.
When does it make sense to get help from an expert?
If you want to take your blog seriously from the start, it can sometimes be helpful to work with an expert.
A marketing consultant or SEO specialist can assist with strategy, keyword research, and the technical setup of your website.
This can help you avoid common mistakes in the early stages and make it easier to grow your traffic. That said, many bloggers start on their own and only seek professional help once their blog begins to gain momentum.
These are some of the most common questions people ask when they want to start a blog. If you follow the steps in this guide, you’ll have a solid foundation for building a successful blog over time.
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