How to Setup Your Blog in 5 Minutes

If you’re serious about making money online then it’s essential you have a professional blog. And when it comes to building great blogs, self-hosted and using the WordPress platform is the way to go.

A self-hosted blog gives you access to all plugins; it lets you advertise however you want; and it lets you choose from a wide array of themes. You won’t get any of these benefits if you stick with free hosts like WordPress.com or Blogger.com, which is real problem if you ever plan on making money.

Now you might think the process of setting up your own site is too hard or technical, but it’s actually much simpler than you think. I’ve provided a streamlined set of instructions that make it so easy you’ll be able to get your site up in no time.

How to Setup Your Blog in 5 Minutes Walk-Through

To make things easy I’m going to walk you through the sign up process step by step. Soon I will be releasing a video of myself walking through this process, but first I wanted to create a text and image tutorial so you can walk through at your own pace.

Let’s start by going to the Bluehost website and clicking on “get started now.”

Once you click it, the first thing you’re going to do is put in your domain name. If you need some help creating a domain name then this post should be of use to you.

If your domain isn’t available for use, then you’re going to have to either create a different one or select from the list of available ones they show you.

Brandnewblog (.com) was taken so I changed it to (.org). Not a big deal, but (.com) is generally the better choice if you have the choice.

Now you’re going to fill out all the billing information. Not much to say here, just fill it out like you normally would. Bluehost only offers yearly payment options (1,2, or 3 year account options), but overall the average plan is very affordable and will only cost $4.95 to $6.95 a month depending on how long you would like to sign up for.

There are also a few choices for add-ons to choose from, but you don’t really need any of them except for perhaps “Site Backup Pro.” It might save your butt one day if you need to restore your blog for any reason, so for only $1.67 a month it be worth the investment.

Once you put in your credit card info, go ahead and click “next.” Afterwards you’ll be shown even more add-ons to choose from. Like I said earlier, the only one you might need is the “Site Backup Pro.” You don’t need the others right now, and you can always add them later on if you want.

Scroll down and click “complete” so your purchase finalizes. This will take you to the confirmation page.

Now it’s time to create a password to access the cPanel (control panel) for your new blog. Go ahead and click the “create your password” prompt and you’ll see the next image below.

As with any password, just use some common sense when making it. Don’t use something obvious (password1234) unless you want somebody to hack into your account and mess things up.

I recommend you just use the password generator, just make sure to write the password down and put it somewhere safe, you’re going to need it pretty soon.

Just click “paste” so it automatically inputs the password into the password field.

Afterwards just click “create” so we can move on to the final phase of the process.

Step 3 – Installing WordPress

Did you remember to write down your password? You’re going to need it now to enter the cPanel (the control panel for your website).

Enter your password to login. Once inside you’ll be greeted with an introductory video showing the new interface and tools you can use. You can skip this intro video if you like, as it isn’t that important right now. What you want to do now is click on your cPanel.

If you look up and to the left of the webpage you’ll see the cPanel highlighted in green. Click on it. Next you’ll get a popup asking if you want get started on your own or with the help of the staff. Don’t worry, you don’t need their help. The final parts will be a cinch to do.

Click this option here, and afterwards click “take me to cPanel” when prompted. Now we’ve reached the cPanel.

See where it says “website builders?” Click on the WordPress icon in that section.

Then you’re going to want to click “start” for a brand new install.

Once you do that you’ll be asked where you’d like to install your domain. Don’t change anything, just click “check domain” to move on.

Get Started with Your New Blog!

The walkthrough above might seem a little overwhelming to beginners, but it’s laid out in very simple terms and is very easy to follow along. Follow the steps outlined above at your own pace and you will see how easy it is. Once you are setup with your hosting account you can create as many sites and blogs as you like.

If you are still concerned about setting up your first blog on your own, sign up for your hosting account and then shoot me an email and I will install your WordPress blog for you. I’ll also give you a great selection of premium WordPress themes for you to choose from at no extra cost.

In the next section of  my “Seven Days of Blogging: My Personal Guide to Blogging” I will be covering the basics of WordPress. This includes how to write your first blog post and learning how to use WordPress themes and plugins.