How To Get Started Blogging as Mom or Lifestyle Blogger

I was touched when I received this email from one of my readers. It is the same question I always hear: how do I get started blogging? A little surprised too because I have not been blogging as much lately. The email inspired me, however, as I thought about how much I used to write. I always love blogging. It is my outlet for sharing my personal stories and being creative. I would spend hours a day writing, editing, and shooting the right picture. I would get lost in time because I loved what I did.

There was even a time I was listed as a “top blogger” or influencer. I was paid well for my work that I was able to and did resign from my full-time job. I wrote what inspired me, built up my traffic and following and received paid opportunities. Plus I freelanced for a number of great sites that saw the value of my worth and paid me good money for a minimum of 500 words. I attended conferences, I went on press trips. I was featured in a number of outlets. So happy that I even had a TV appearance or two.

Between blogging and my influencer agency, The Network Niche, I was earning a good living.

Thankfully, I got a great opportunity to return to full-time work outside of the home. My days were very busy. Eventually, things had to slow down. It made me decide to put life first. I made the decision to sleep more than five hours a night, spend some time with my kids after dinner, maybe even relax a little. But I could not do both anymore. Because of this, my blog took a back seat.

When I received an MBA mom’s email, I did nothing with it just yet.  For some time I was planning on making my comeback to blogging “soon.” I shifted from blogger to working with bloggers and brands. I spoke more on the how-to of blogging and influencer marketing.

When I started blogging, it was 10 years ago and the industry was totally different. Today, you can go into blogging with the intention of earning a good living and building a successful business. Or, you can go into it simply with the intention of finding an outlet to write and build a community. Whatever your reason to get started blogging, here are my tips and my favorite tools and resources to help you get going. Then, leave your questions or thoughts in the comments and I’m happy to answer them!

How To Get Started Blogging*

1. Decide your URL and Brand. Think of your domain name and see if it’s available by searching for it on Bluehost. This is a pretty important first step because it sets the platform for your brand moving forward. Decide if you’ll use your name or something else. Here’s a great article on Branding for Bloggers over on my sister site, The Network Niche with tips from three of our top influencers. Once you decide, buy the URL and a hosting platform so your URL is “parked” somewhere on the web. I like Bluehost over GoDaddy for many reasons but most importantly, Bluehost offers great tech support and often will walk you through any fixes/questions you have at no additional cost. They also have great DIY videos.
2. Pick a blog design. The best platform to get started blogging is WordPress. Don’t use Wix or Blogger. You can build or design your site on WordPress using many templates. Some even free. There are thousands and thousands of themes/templates available but Pretty Darn Cute Design is my favorite designer for lifestyle/mom bloggers. They offer several suppppeeer cute designs that are perfect for this niche and food/travel/DIY blogs too. Bonus. The designer also offers online workshops called the “Tada workshops” so you can learn to do things on your own. The Pretty Chic Theme is another great option for lifestyle blogs and very easy to use.
3. Set-up your blog. Hire someone to set up your WordPress blog using your theme. I recommend investing in someone to install and customize your template. My favorite guys to do this work over at Pix-l Graphx. If you’re on a tight budget, I actually paid someone $30.00 on Fiverr to customize this template I’m using to make it look just like the demo. My guy’s name was Cemscan. You can search for him on Fiverr. Ask questions before you start or find anyone who can set-up the theme you purchased. I was very doubtful it could work but it did and I saved myself $500 dollars, at least. But I had the advantage of having WordPress knowledge when I went into this.
4. Set-up social media accounts. At the very least, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and a Facebook page. Follow the same branding as your blog. Use the same image for your profile. Make your entire brand cohesive. The end.
5. Write a good bio. Readers and brands will want to know more about you. Use an image. Include the city/state where you live. Fun facts. Goals. Whatever other info you want to include to help them get a sense of who you are. And remember, you can change this page and update as needed when needed. You’re not locked into anything unless you lock yourself into something. Read our tips on what to include in your blogger bio.
6. Start writing.  What should you write for your first post? How about a welcome to my blog post? Let your readers know why you started, your story, introduce yourself, have fun. Continue to build your story. Share what inspires you but don’t overthink this. Just start writing.
7. Get an inspiration to write. For subsequent posts, know that there’s inspiration everywhere. Write on a challenge you faced that week, a solution you came up with, reflect on something in the news, whatever. Don’t overthink it. Some blogging pros will tell you to spend 15 to 30 minutes just free writing whatever comes to mind every morning or every night and soon enough, a blog post will come. Another idea, look through your pictures on your phone and find stories in them. I often find a story in my gallery on my cell phone and can write great reflection posts from those.
8. Spread the news. Tell your mama, tell your cousins. You have a blog. Share your links on your Facebook page, get your social channels up and running. Share the post, share it again, share it another time.