We wrapped up our blogging course yesterday with 7 students in attendance. Of those in the class only 2 had active blogs. The rest had maybe signed up for a blog but not done much with it as of yet. There were different people blogging for different purposes but all were trying to get their heads around the idea of why do I need a blog and what is the easiest way to get started.
One question that came up towards the end of the course which I thought was worth hashing out here was, “Can you recap the basic steps necessary for us to get started blogging?”
Basically the person was asking, can you summarize the last 3 hours in 2 minutes. Here was my attempt.
1. Understand why you want or need a blog. If you don’t believe in it’s value or purpose eventually you will give up. Most of the people in the room were business owners with already full plates. They do not need another thing to do, but if blogging enhances their current marketing plan and builds stronger connections with clients and prospective clients then it is worth finding time for.
2. Get a blog setup. Sign up for a Free blog at WordPress.com I know that many people disagree with me on this point and believe that if you are going to have a business blog, you should go self-hosted right away. Why start with WordPress.com – It’s easy and going this route will allow you to get to the next step, which is the most critical step, very quickly
3. Start writing. Write about technical jargon.. write some how to’s.. write about how you got into this profession.. write, write, write
Sometimes people tell me, “I’d like to start blogging but I’m still trying to find my blogging voice.” Honestly, I don’t even know what that means. If you are in business and have customers, then you have some expertise and experience and something to write about.
4. Start connecting with other bloggers. Go to Google Blog search or Technorati and look for other bloggers in your profession that you can connect with or connect with local bloggers in your area. One way to do this is google “‘your city’ blogger” obviously replacing the words, “your city” with well, the name of your city. Once you find some blogs of interest, subscribe to them and comment on those blogs.
Hope that helps you get started from a totally blogging newbie to at least getting your feet wet in the blogging world.
What would you add to the list? What questions did you or are you considering as you work to grow your blog?
Drop a comment below with some of your questions or ideas.
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