Not sure where to start?
All images used are from the Craft Blog UK Flickr Group Pool
Blogging - How do you start a blog?
Gadgets, widgets, badges, pages, slideshows, blogrolls, links and of course what should I write about!
If you have been looking through all of the wonderful craft blogs in the lists or reading the featured blogger interviews you may be contemplating taking the plunge yourself. Perhaps you've just filled up your online shop and now your twiddling your thumbs and looking for a way to promote it!
I asked my group of brand new bloggers why they hadn't started a blog already? Here are a few of the reasons they gave me...
Lack of confidence in my ' e-ability'
Not sure how to attract people into reading it - will anyone want to?
I'm terrible at self promotion...
I lack confidence to be able to openly talk about my crafts let alone sell them!
I don't know how...
How do I keep finding new things to say that will hold someone's interest?
What if no-one follows my blog?
I'll be tackling each and every one of these questions but I thought I'd better start with...
I don't know how...
Here is a very simple and easy to follow tutorial just to give you the confidence to make a start and show you how achievable and user friendly starting a blogspot blog is. (I'm sure other blogs are equally straightforward but this blog tutorial is specifically aimed at starting a blogspot blog)
None of these steps are tricky or involve technical know how, just take things step by step and at your own pace, I also talk about how to choose a name for your blog.
Start your new blog !
- Go to www.blogger.com
- Click on 'Create a Blog' - the large orange button... you can't miss it!
- On the next page add your new account details, passwords - everything has an explanation next to it - click continue
- The next page deals with your blog name and blog address which can be entirely seperate, but it's best if you can get them close or the same so it's easy to remember for people. Again it's very self explanatory with lots of help.
- Choosing a name for your blog - it's worth taking your time with this and not doing it on a whim one evening after a few glasses of wine, although you can always delete a blog and start again!
- Think about your long term goals - don't call your blog, Hilarysbags.blogspot.com if its likely you will sell things other than bags in the future. Equally, Hilarysblog.blogspot is very boring - take a look through the lists here and get some inspiration - do any names stand out? Why? For me http://benmcfuzzylugs.blogspot.com/ takes some beating - you want to know what thats about don't you...
- Think about keywords in the area you will be blogging about. 'Keywords' are basically the most used words for your craft, google has a great keyword tool that's well worth a look. This blog is called craftbloguk.blogspot.com - it's fairly clear what it is about. My personal blog is called www.haptreeandme.blogspot.com - how frustrated was I that haptree.blogspot had gone already! I'm still thinking I should have added a keyword like crafts, gifts or Kawaii into my blog name, so people had a little clue what to expect when they click on the url!
- Ask a friend or ask advice from a craft forum, a second opinion is rarely a waste of time.
- The next page is to pick a template. The template is basically the appearance and there are many to choose from. You can add your own banner and choose what appears in your blog but the template you have chosen defines the style of your blog.
- Choose which ever blogger template apppeals to you most but be aware that some templates are easier to customise than others and you can adjust your template at any point so it's not vital to get it perfect immediately. I'd go for 'Minima' to start with, you can then start to customise it later without too much complication.
- Then you'll click next or continue and go GULP! because that's it you have a blog... It will take you to your 'dashboard' think of this as your new Blog HQ.
- Click on view blog at the top, just next to 'monetise' to see your empty blog!
- To get back to where you were, the dashboard and all the settings click on customise in the top right hand corner of your blog.
Don't worry you don't have to do a post immediately! Just take a deep breath and feel happy that you have made a start. Why not read this article about setting the scene for your blog. before taking a look at the rest of the original blogging tips and tutorials available at Craft Blog UK.
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