Need Help with Blogging

Hi,
I am new at blooging and need some help getting started. A friend told me to post a message here to see if anyone could tell me where I can get SIMPLE instructions on what to do.
Thanks in advance.

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by Christi Sealey

Hi,
I am new at blooging and need some help getting started. A friend told me to post a message here to see if anyone could tell me where I can get SIMPLE instructions on what to do.
Thanks in advance.

Hi Christi,

Thanks for asking!

What is it specifically that you need help with? Is it help with setting up the blog (e.g. technical help)? Or help with finding topics to blog about? Or help with promoting your blog?

Blogging is a big topic, and it would help if you could narrow your question down so our responses can be more specific.

(By the way, we have a number of successful bloggers on this forum. I highly recommend reading through all the posts at Ankesh Kothari's BlogClout blog for blog promotional ideas - http://www.blogclout.com/blog/ . Ankesh could probably compile a lot of his entries there and publish it as a book! His recent blog, Non-Toxin http://www.nontoxin.com , is also fantastic reading too. )

Cheers,

Dien

Hi Dien,

I guess the answer is ALL of the above! Ok, seriously, I really don't know where to start. Do you just post different stuff at forums? Stuff being good information that people need. I have a website (new) that I think i am suppose to add a blog to also. I just really don't know exactly where to start. So whatever you tell me is what I will try. I will take whatever you have.
Thanks for responding.

[Phil]

Hi Christi,

Here's a few Excellent starting resources...

Uptodate until Things change once Again tomorrow....

How to Blog Courses & Blogging info Specialty products are a Hot Trend/Topic...

Smart Marketers are Creating and Cashing in on all kinds of Newbie price points and ideas...

Great business model and Pricing example to Study & Re-Create into other business ideas...

Scroll down the page... Study and Learn from all the Free info & videos...
http://www.blogclassroom.com/blog/

Blogging Resources: Business and Professional Resources and References for Bloggers and Writers
http://lorelle.wordpress.com/2008/03...s-and-writers/

Phil

[Ankesh]

Thanks for asking Christi.

1. I would recommend using WordPress for blogging. WP is very easy to install and is very powerful. (Most hosts also have 1-click WP installation feature. See if your host provides this service too...)

2. After setting up a WP blog on your own domain name, I would think about the design of the blog. There are a lot of free WP themes available that you can use. The downside is, a few hundred people will use these same free themes fot their blogs too.

If you can afford it, and have a blog monetization strategy in place, I would recommend going with a custom blog design. This will help you stand out in your industry.

3. The next step is writing. Before you make your blog live, I would recommend you have 1 months posts ready.

And then setup a writing schedule.

How frequently should you post on your blog?
http://www.blogclout.com/blog/4-blog...ould-you-blog/

4. Once you have the blog up and running, then its time for promotion.

i. Make sure your blog is search engine optimized.
ii. Approach other blogs in your industry and ask them if you can guest blog for them.
iii. Start using stumbleupon.com digg.com and other such social media sites to promote your blog.
iv. Use the proven internet marketing tactics of writing articles and submitting them to article directories.
v. Use PR.

Ok - this should give you a good starting map. If you need further help, let me know where you are stuck and we'll delve into that topic a lot in detail.

* I haven't gone a lot into monetization of the blog because I assume you have a monetization strategy - as you already have a website in place...

Thank you so much Phil and Anlesh. I printed you info and wil start working on it right away. I am sure I will get stuck though, so be prepared.
Thanks again!