If you were to search Google for a phrase like "how to start a blog", you would come across millions of articles and resource guides that walk users through the most simple and basic steps of starting a blog. This isn't one of them.

Instead, we are going to focus on the important components every blog must have in order to create effective content, engage with their audience, and ultimately rank higher in Google and attract new audiences. And, if your goal is to make money with your site, then we will be covering a little bit of that as well.

Best of all, if you already have a website or blog in place, there is still time to implement these changes to start seeing improvements across the board.

Let's get started.

1 - Find a Reliable WordPress-Focused Hosting Solution

In addition to searching for "how to start a blog" in Google, you will likely also find millions of articles and guides on "how to get web hosting" as well. Once again, we aren't going to dive into the basics of this, but we can't stress enough how important it is to go with a web hosting solution that is focused on WordPress powered sites.

There are many reasons for this, such as:

●     Server compatibility and performance

●     Hosting staff must have WordPress experience

●     Support teams can better answer WP requests

●     Every WP powered site has different needs

These are just a few of the reasons why your WordPress site should be running off a WP focused hosting solution. To learn more about these metrics and also find reviews on some of the best hosting providers out there, be sure to check out this WordPress hosting guide.

2 - Optimize Your Site with Speed Tests and Quick Tweaks

As great as WordPress is right out of the box, there are going to be some hiccups and data problems along the way. From too many characters being used in the titles of your content, to permalinks that might be too long -- there is always going to be room for improvement when it comes to running a site.

There is a great article on this blog about the importance of UX and UI design. The article goes on to recommend a few design tips on how to better brand your site and make it more useful for it's visitors as well. In addition to these improvements, we recommend the following quick tips, tests, and implementations for a much improved site on all fronts.

●     Run a Google Speed Test and Responsive Mobile Test

●     Eliminate any old content that is outdated or has no search rankings

●     Minimize the size and data load of images on your site

●     Improve performance and speed with a content delivery network

●     Use SEO tools like ahrefs or semrush to run a free audit on your site

Before and after such tests and changes are made, it's important to document your progress. Make sure you know where your site content is ranking in Google, so you can see how your improvements have helped with SEO as well.

3 - Visual, Data, Videos and Shareable Content

The problem with most website and blog content on the internet these days, is that it's usually all the same stuff and doesn't really offer any value. At the same time, just written text content is old news. Now it's all about social media, video, and live content to keep our audiences engaged and not leaving after just a few seconds on a site.

With that being said, it's extremely important to include original visuals, data, videos, and shareable content within your site. Not only will this break apart your content and make it easier to read, it will also make your site look like more of an authority and likely gain more trust in the process.

When it comes to shareable content, if you are willing to put in the time and effort, you might want to turn your best blog content into infographics or slides that you can submit to a site like Slideshare.net.

While these aren't the most heavily trafficked sites or a big help for SEO, they can definitely reach new audiences all the time. And if you are making any type of visuals or videos to compliment your content, this will likely send an increased amount of social shares back to your site as well.

4 - A Custom WordPress Theme and Premium Plugins

No matter how big or small your site, brand or business might be, Wordpress is simply the best way to grow and scale it to where you want to be.

Through the use of custom WordPress themes and plugins, one can place advertisements on their site, social media sharing buttons, create a membership site, and even add in call to actions or popup windows throughout their site as well.

The most important thing here is that you familiarize yourself with the WordPress theme marketing and plugin industry. There are so many tools and platforms out there to choose from, it would be a huge mistake to not be using some of them.

Since WordPress plugins in themselves can relate to a wide range of audiences, we simply recommend you read through this guide of 24 WP plugins that every site owner and blog should consider using.

5 - Your Blog Should Act as a Lead Generation or Sales Funnel

More often then not, people will start a blog because they ultimately want to make money online. However, what most people don't realize, is that if you want to make money with a blog, you need to actually treat your blog like a business and have some type of monetization in place.

Monetization comes in many different shapes and sizes.

For example, Google Adsense is one of the most basic (yet effective) ways to make money with a blog. All you need to do is join their Partner Program, and add a line of code to your site. Then Google starts displaying ads to your audience, and you get paid every time someone clicks on those ads.

Another good example is affiliate marketing, where you would earn a commission for every time you end a new customer or sale to a website. Amazon.com has an affiliate program, and they pay out millions of dollars monthly to their site partners.

However, not all blogs are meant for these types of ads. If you have a brand and are looking to increase subscribers, brand loyalty or repeat traffic to your site, you might be better off starting a mailing list and using your blog as the platform to reach new audiences.

In either case, understand what your goals are for your site, and how you can provide value to your audience at the same time. The most profitable and successful blogs in the world today have a great understanding on how to build a business and brand around both.

How Will You Grow Your Brand or Business with WordPress?

When it comes to WordPress, there is a whole world of opportunity just waiting there for you.

In reference to what it takes to create a successful WordPress site, more often than not -- it all comes down to the value provided to an audience.

If you have content that people find valuable and if you are willing to put in some effort on your marketing efforts, then you may soon find other websites, blogs, social media accounts, and forums start linking back to your site time and time again. This is why it's important to focus on creating real content and doing some extra work on shareable content as well.

Take some time to study each of the methods laid out above, and see where your efforts and focus might be lacking. Once you're reading to take the next step and shoot your blog to that next level, start working on an effective content creation and marketing strategy that makes sense for your brand.

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