You need to choose who is going to supply you with your blogging platform, well actually you don’t, I am going to tell you exactly who to use, and that my friends is WORDPRESS just in case you didn’t hear me WORDPRESS (Sorry for shouting).

You need to put your content on a platform that allows you to use everything that Web 2.0 marketing has to offer us, plain and simple.

Using WordPress to set up your blog can turn a complete newbie into a Savvy web designer, in the eyes of your audience and that carries a lot of weight.  If you sound professional and your content is on a stale lifeless website your visitors won’t stay long at all and your credibility (if you have any) well you might as well kiss it goodbye.

If you’re a newbie then having a Web 2.0 site can do wonders for your credibility and the best thing about it, is that you can build it all yourself (with a little guidance from how to set up a blog) because when you’re starting out running an online business, venturing into the world of Internet Marketing or the MLM industry then money can be tight. (Trust me I remember it well)

Anyway back to business!

Now that we’ve established that you need to use WordPress what next where do you go from here, and what do you need to get a blog on the Internet?

Well for starters you need a domain name to start with I would use your own name because when you’re building relationships with people using social networking etc. people will Google your name; they do it to me all the time (Eugene Dunkley) and when they do they find my personal website, the site I use to provide information on how to set up and run a successful online business.

You can dramatically increase sales you make over the Internet by using ‘attraction marketing’ and this starts with having your own personal website using your own name for the address (domain name) or if your name has already been taken then get creative use things like www.meetyourname.com, www.workwith or www.thereal; you get my drift?

Off on a little tangent!

Attraction marketing formula: build a list + build a relationship with that list = the ability to market to your list time and time again. Instead of selling a product or service to someone, one time only, using the attraction marketing method you gain the ability to monetise your list time and time again. As long as your providing something of true value!

Back to business Again!

So in the beginning what else is needed?

A domain name then a Hosting Account (don’t you dare opt for the free WordPress account, it doesn’t allow you to do half the stuff you need to do and the credibility factor comes back into play again.

So your going to need a hosting account (you guessed it) to host your own blog which this will put you in total control of the way it looks, functions and the content you display on it (keep it clean people, keep it clean ) which is what you want.

If you opt for the free account your site will be something like eugene.wordpress.com and that screams ‘I’m bluffing my way through this so buy from me at your own risk’ (or something to that effect)

When choosing a hosting account you need to choose one that has Fantastico De Luxe which is an amazing cPanel/PHP based Web application. It integrates with cPanel and gives you the ability to automatically install popular Open Source Applications like (you guessed) WordPress.

What this means; is with the push of a button from within your hosting control panel (cpanel) you can set up your WordPress Blog with the click of a button, believe me it’s way cool for a beginner and anyone else for that matter. (If that sounded a bit technical then get your hands on these how to set up a blog video tutorials.

Once you’ve chosen your domain name and set up your hosting account, you can go live on the Internet in minutes I kid you not.

If you wanted to get your hands on video tutorials that take you through the setting up and everything else you’re going to need to know then grab how to set up a blog video tutorials you’ll be laughing all the way to the bank.

So where to go from here?

I can recommend this Hosting provider choose Prohost 2 it has everything you need and comes with the must have Fantastico De Luxe;  it’s the one I use and it’s not an affiliate link, in case you’re wondering, it only cost $9.95 too.  If you don’t have a domain name you can register one through them too.

Need to know anything else then let me know below and I’ll get back to you.  Otherwise see you in the next post.

WordPress is by far the best blogging platform available; it gives you flexibility like no other. You will be able to choose to have a free wordpress account or host your own and I would seriously advise that even if your flat broke and don’t know how to set up a blog or the first thing about having a hosting account… to still opt to host your own.

I will personally take you through the steps you need to take so you know how to set up a blog optimise it for the search engines like Google and how to monetise it from the word go.

Hosting account for your blog

A Hosting account for your blog should cost you no-more than $10/£5 a month and that should allow you to host more than one domain name (website or blog) allow you to set up as many personal email accounts (yourname@yourdomain.com) you need.

I’m not going to go to deep into the hosting side of things that will come in an individual post in the next few days…

Question “why do I need a hosting account”?

Answer “To remain in complete control of your blog and write whatever you like”

FTP for your blog

When I started out no one told me what FTP was so when it came up in conversations I did what you’d see Joey do in Friends and smile and nod, you don’t have to do that because I’m going to be like your own personal encyclopaedia.

File Transfer Protocol

Basically it means taking files you have created or stored on your PC and uploading it to a server where your hosting account is, this allows you to add images, videos, PDF’s, word documents and any other media format you like (within reason) this can help bring your blog to life.  WordPress comes with its own built in upload facility (like most Content Management Systems these days) however it’s good to your own FTP software on your PC at home.

I will be writing a post on this too in the next few days (Can you tell I’m gonna be busy) to help you out, and I have created a video tutorial that forms part of the how to set up a blog course which is ready for you to watch now.

Your Blogs Domain Name

The easiest domain to grab when your first starting out is your own name and use that as the address for your new blog www.eugenedunkley.com that’s mine that I have secured and that’s my main blog site (if you’re interested) but don’t go clicking over there just yet until you’ve finished reading this blog post.

A Plugins List for a WordPress Blog

Now that title’s a mouthful and I didn’t even write that for the sake of keywords honest.

WordPress Plugins are just one reason why it is such an awesome blogging platform when you use the right plugins in the right way they can catapult a complete newbie (person new to the internet) to instant success and have their blog appearing on the front page of Google for certain keywords.  Appearing on the front page will undoubtedly lead to sales.  This is what you want.

Products

Do you have to have your own products to sell via your blog? no but it’s certainly something you should aspire to and it’s not hard at all creating your own products these days (and yes I will post an article here or on my other blog that shows you how to do this) I have done it.

How to set up a blog is a product that not only shows you how to set up a blog, which plugins to install and how to monetise your blog but it also has some damn good products that I am allowing you to sell as if they were your own (don’t say I never give you anything) that will get you started.

Don’t question whether you need a blog or not because the answer is if you’re setting up an online home business or already have an online business then you need to have a blog. Don’t say you don’t know how to set up a blog because that’s a complete cop out.

Search Engines love blogs especially WordPress Blogs…

But host it yourself with your own hosting account.

If you have any questions that need answering before I post the next article leave them below and I’ll get back to you.