What Are the Benefits of Blogging?

  Gone are the days when people used to write their innermost feelings to a diary and keep it to themselves.

In today's time, Internet marketing is a very important tool for the success of your online business.

While social media has taken the user's interaction to a whole new world, blogging or creating an informational website has given the concept of pen/paper/diary a look that is obsolete.

What is this fuss about blogging? Are there any real benefits to it? Is it yet another marketing gimmick?

To define blogging, we could say blogging is a contraction of words, it could be discussion or it could be an information, that is published on world wide web and shared and read by other users.

What you want to blog about is entirely up to you. https://www.cerdastekno.com You could make a personal blog or a commercial one, which can help you earn a few bucks too.

Some of the very popular websites that allow you to create your own free blog are BlogSpot.com, WordPress.com, Weebly.com etc.

These all are free sites and do not charge you for a personal blog. However, there are some restrictions on these free blogs.

How to Create a Blog?

If you want to create a free blog, you can log on to any of the websites that provide free blogs. For example WordPress.com is a free blogging platform.

Click on "Getting Started", to make new blog. It would take you to a new page, where you would need to type in information like your email address, name, and most importantly name of your blog.

However, if you want to create a self hosted blog, then you need a domain name and a web host to start with.

Make sure you choose a very appropriate name. It should be short and easy to remember.

You are free to use various themes, and plugins on your blog. You could also add videos and images in your articles.

If you are a new blogger, you should make yourself familiar with common terminologies so that you can use them to your benefit. For e.g. "Blogger" is a term used to call a person who writes blogs. Permalink is the unique URL or address of your articles. You could copy & paste this link if you want someone to have a look at your blog articles.

You could find an entire lists of words, slangs and terminology used by bloggers on the internet.

What are Benefits of Blogging?

Blogging is very common these days. However, only few people really know that their passion for writing can earn them some serious good money. A few benefits of blogging are listed below:

Blog as a Personal Diary

People use a blog as a personal diary, religiously noting each and every thought/emotion. It is beneficial for many and a habit for others. They have the option of making this personal diary public or keep it for private view. Online diaries are a lot safer than physical ones. They are password protected and can be destroyed in a matter of seconds.

Blog to Promote/Review a Product

You could use your blog to market a product or review about it. For example, you recently visited a restaurant and you are not particularly happy about its services. You could blog about it and let others know. Similarly, if you want to market a product you could recommend it to your followers and give that product a free publicity.

Blog to Connect

You could also blog to connect to people sharing same interests. If you are a photographer and want to enhance your skills you could connect to people who are interested in same area and share a tip or two.

Blog to Promote Yourself

Blogging is an excellent tool to establish yourself as an expert. If you are good at baking and look forward to turn your hobby into a full blown profession, blogging about your cakes, adding their pictures would help you being noticed in the crowd of millions.

Blog to Help Others

You can use your knowledge on particular topic to help others. If you have had some kind of situation and you want to help people trapped into something similar, your insights could help them. Such blogs can be categorized as tutorials or 'how-to' kind of blogs.

It's easy to create a blog [http://www.bloggingstudio.com/how-to-create-a-blog/]. You don't need any technical knowledge for that. Just follow a simple step by step tutorial with screenshots and you will be able to create a blog in less than 5 mins.

BloggingStudio.com [http://www.bloggingstudio.com/] is a great source to learn the basic concepts of blogging and learn how to create a blog. You will also learn ideas to take your blog to next level.

If you are serious about blogging, don't go for a free blog. They don't look professional and impose a lot of restrictions. Some websites don't even allow you to put your own advertisements.

It is recommended to get a self hosted blog. A self hosted blog gives you complete freedom and ownership to your blogging space. You can install any theme and plugin that you want. You can also put advertisements on your blog. Moreover, a self hosted blog looks professional and your reader will understand that you are serious about your blog.

Finally, a successful blogging career requires hard work and persistence. Don't expect an overnight success.

Why You Should Blog To Make Money Online

The Blog

Before you even start to create your own blog, it is necessary to know what a blog really is. The term blog is actually derived from the word Weblog or Web log. Back in the days, around the late 1990's, these Web logs were utilized by individuals to track updates and references to other resources online. They served as journals, which made them useful as a publishing tool for the user's stream of consciousness. Of course, the readers can still comment and share their thoughts on just about anything under the sun. Technically, blogs are also known as CMS or Content Management Systems. Being a CMS, blogs allow the writers to easily publish to a specific Web site and manage the content without the need of having to deal with the program code. Publishing software also provides users with a GUI or Graphical User Interface for easy pointing and clicking of their articles. Through the use of easy-to-do procedures, you can perform configurations and set up, which can ease your job as a blogger since the tool can automatically organize your published articles the next time you publish.

The Advantage of Blogging

The main question is; why should you start blogging? The first thing you need to know is that blogging can enhance and support your online communications. However, you must first understand the outcome of your blog that you desire in order to attain success. The main reason why you should start blogging, is that it can be both an excellent outlet for your frustrations or excitement. What you are passionate about and profitable at the same time. It does not mean that if you are not into blogging, you should not blog. Being in a business, especially those with dealings on the Internet, requires you to establish a clientele that are actually interested in your products or services. Blogs can do this easily due to its accessibility and being an excellent medium for marketing that it is, blogs are essential for businesses. More so, if you are handling a business, there is a good chance that your competition is blogging about their products and services. This is an easy method for you to examine the competition and what their clients' preferences are. Additionally, blogs can create strong customer relationships since your target market can easily and directly communicate with the authority within your business. This kind of opportunity is hard to resist since a strong customer relationship can eventually lead to lasting trust to your product and services; hence, eventual increase in your revenue.

How to start a blog as a business -- here are 7 steps to get you started on your journey to creating a blog for profit. Follow this step-by-step guide that shows you how to be a blogger who provides value to your readers.

1. Find a Blog Idea (Business Idea) Which "Fits" YOU!

In order to determine how to start a blog, we've still got to go back to the basics of determining a terrific blog idea.

We're back to "fit" again - blogs are just like business ideas -- they need to be a "fit" for you, your personality, interests, and expertise.

2. Check-Out Your Competition

Another important factor for how to start a blog is to take a look at your competition to determine what they might be doing? This is good market research! Spend some time on their blogs...

What is the competition doing well - can you incorporate this into your blog? What ideas do you have to improve your blog compared to the competition? How can you write your blog to incorporate information which you don't readily see available? What will be your internet voice - witty, humorous, serious, challenging, etc.?

3. Brainstorm Some Domain Name Ideas

Sit down with a notebook when you're learning how to start a blog and start jotting down a variety of names which get at the intent of your main topic idea and/or your spin. This will give you and your business a head start determining a terrific domain URL and providing you with the most flexibility and traffic at the beginning for your business blog.

4. Find Your Domain Name

When you're first figuring out how to start a blog, it is easy to fall into the trap of trying to do this as cheaply as possible. Don't do it with your domain name!!!

You're domain name will cost you around $10 - do this step! It's important and will save you problems down the road. Remember that this is like any other business and do the right steps!

Find a domain that has your specific topic in the domain name - this will help you with the search engines and building your traffic organically over time. Maybe you can even get your "spin" in the name to give your domain some character.

Try to purchase a .com or .net URL -- this will serve your business best since these are the most recognized tags on the internet (this may change over time, but for now these remain the standards). Avoid "cutesy" or "weird" domain names - while they're fun in the moment, others may totally miss your point if they find you at all on the internet.

5. Decide On A Software/Hosting

When you are learning how to start a blog, one of the major decisions you'll make is deciding on blogging software and hosting sites, make sure you are comparing apples to apples (and not oranges). Many sites which claim to be "free" are anything but free. There are some perceived cheap options in the hosting world (or so it seems when you're just getting started!)

However, these options may cost you more in the long run since they do not actually provide you with a business building system (BBS) and the support you need and deserve to make your life easier and to help grow your business. As you compare options, make sure you consider both your short-term and long-term needs for your business blog. Ask yourself what tools will be important to your business blog over time.

You'll want to read the fine-print and check out any site restrictions to determine if they will work or may negatively impact your future business plans.

Does your host offer you training (you'll need it for whatever type of business and software you're using)? Look for a system that includes everything you need to build a business -- this includes built-ins which offer keyword searches, software built-ins so everything works together, e-zines, quality monetization models, constant upgrades as the internet and Google become smarter, and support forums to help you grow your business.

Beware of hosting systems requiring you to pay extra for every little plug-in you'll need to build a successful business. With this type of hosting model, you're charged for each individual piece of business software including a separate fee for your domain name, domain hosting, blogging software, keyword searches plug-in, new business plug-ins, premium templates, e-zine support, traffic analytics, even extra charges for additional traffic as your blog followers grow, etc. This can cost your business a fortune!

And as you are learning how to start a blog, make sure to take advantage of any tutorials offered. These will be a tremendous value and benefit for you and your business -- remember you're learning a whole new industry and language. There will be specific nuances you'll need to learn at each step along the way. Keep learning and building your blog so it looks professional to your visitors.

6. Create Good Quality Content for Your Visitors

This is VERY Important step when you are starting a blog! You want to provide your readers with good quality information - and you'll want to have a minimum of 30 pages, but 50+ is much better to get started with. Each of your pages should be between 350 - 500+ words (<350 are not enough to provide valuable information to your readers).

If you plan to make your blog a business, you will need to write proficiently for several hours each day... That's why it's so important to LOVE your topics and write about what you know and are interested in. Many bloggers will quit because this is work and it's a business! This requires dedication just like starting any other business.

When we're talking about how to start a blog, we'd be remiss if we didn't discuss the need for good quality original content. Your content needs to be interesting, honest, and you must be yourself when you're writing. This means you can be witty, charming, motivating, or rugged depending upon your personality. Just keep it real! This will keep your readers engaged, interested, and coming back for more of your terrific featured articles.

Write your blog content for folks with a short attention span - this is not a novel where folks will stick around until the end of the plot. They will be looking to gain their information in quick short bursts.

7. How To Start A Blog & Promote It

One of the best ways to promote your blog is to gain traffic organically through the use of specific keywords being searched for by your visitors. When you use the right keywords, the search engines will reward you by delivering your blog site to readers throughout the world. Get comfortable identifying specific words being searched within your niche.

Make sure to tell your family and friends about your blog - ask them to visit and give you constructive feedback. Make any necessary changes you think will help your blog.

Get your blog link published on your social media websites to encourage your social friends to visit your blog. Look for other media opportunities to get the word out about your blog. You can also advertise in hard copy magazines, online websites, or share links with other bloggers to encourage their traffic to visit your blog.

Who knows... maybe your friends will ask you how to start a blog and you can send them here!

Thanks for reading my article, hope that it was helpful and that you enjoyed.