How Do I Start a Blog with $100 or Less? - Infographic
I saw Pat Flynn’s advice on how to start a blog with $100 on bloggingtips.com. Basically Pat was saying take an expert blogger to dinner and the two hours you spend will be the best education you can get. I don’t disagree with my mentor – Pat, but which expert blogger will come to dinner with a newbie? So I thought of creating a post on how to start a blog with $100 or less. This is how I started…
You can download this Infographic and use it in your site as long as you give credit to us with a link-back.
Step 1: Buy a Domain Name for $20
Spend $20 on buying your own domain name. This
is a must if you want to succeed as a blogger. You certainly need to come up with a niche first but this list is about starting a blog for $100. Spend some time finding your niche then spend some time looking for a domain name. I use NameCheap and they have no upsells like goDaddy and it is a simple painless process. NameCheap is also the lowest priced for domain names in my research.
Budget Remaining = $80
Step 2: Get Some Basic Education about Blogging for $0
You need to get some structured education that will
not put a hole in your pocket. You can simply crawl various websites to do this but that won’t be structured, might not have video classes, your questions may not get answered and need I say how time consuming that is going to be? I am recommending Wealthy Affiliate as this is how I started and there is no cost for a starter membership. Learn the basics as no one is going to teach you this. Wealthy Affiliate has a task list to be completed after each lesson and encourages you to take action.
Word of Caution: Wealthy Affiliate recommends using their own keyword research tool Jaaxy and I did not find Jaaxy to be accurate. I use another tool - MarketSamurai.
Budget Remaining = $80 (Nice one!)
Step 3: Find a WordPress Hosting Provider for $30
WordPress is the preferred platform with 66% of market share.
You have 2 options for WordPress hosting. You can upgrade to premium membership at Wealthy Affiliate and get free hosting, email and further advanced training courses or do this independently. I chose Wealthy Affiliate as I loved their training and wanted to keep going but purely to be unbiased I will give you another option: WPEngine. I am recommending WPEngine as they are a pure WordPress host. I put an Infographic on WordPress performance improvement and the research lead to good reviews of WPEngine.
Word of Caution: Don’t use a cheap shared hosting; this will have performance impacts!
Three things to look out for when selecting a hosting provider:
- You need WordPress hosting
- Good support and a plan that backs up your site
- Domain specific email (WPEngine provides hosting only and you may want to get Gmail for businesses for an additional $5 per month or simply use a free Gmail personnal account)
Wealthy Affiliate: cost for the 1st month is $19 and $47 per month thereafter.
WPEngine: cost is $29 per month for a personal plan which is good enough for starters.
Budget Remaining:
Using Wealthy Affiliate = ~$60
Using WPEngine = ~$50
Step 4: Get a Logo Designed for $5
This is not a mandatory step but to make your blog
look professional and stand out go to Fiverr and get a logo designed by a graphic designer. This will be the best $5 you ever spend in your life. I have filtered the link above by top designers but you can have a look at tier 2 sellers as well. You can get a 3D design, a modern design, a cartoon design or any other design you fancy. This is a fun step so don’t miss out and also the step with the most bang for buck.
Budget Remaining = $45 (using the lower remaining budget)
Step 5: Get an Autoresponder for your Website to
Build a Mailing List from Day 1 for $20
Most expert bloggers advice is to start the mailing list from day one. The most common regret from expert bloggers is not building a mailing list earlier; so take their advice and start the list now. I recommend aWeber the best autoresponder out there and they also have a free one month trial, cool! Their cost per month after the trial is $19 per month up to 500 subscribers.
Budget Remaining = ~$25
* Please note some links above are affiliate links and there is no additional cost to you. These products are tried and tested. I don’t recommend products I haven't used with the exception of WPEngine. I have read great reviews about WPEngine and if I have to move to a different hosting provider then it will be WPEngine.
Summary
There you have it; we have covered how to start a blog under $100, in fact we only used $75. Keep the remaining budget as a buffer or use it for the following month’s expenses.
If you didn’t know how or where to get started, you don’t have that excuse any more. Use your $100 wisely. Get started and don’t look back. The journey is exciting and can bring the creative side in you.
Continue reading here: 15 SEO Mistakes That Can Cost You Search Engine Rankings - Infographic
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