Many aspiring entrepreneurs look to blogging as their first step to starting their own home based business.
Who could blame them?Blogging is a quick and easy way to build a presence on the web and an authoritative platform for whatever your business goals may be.
With the economy sinking on a daily basis, it is important to understand that owning your own online business can provide the stable income that jobs no longer promise.
When entrepreneurs look at the fine details, however, the task of starting an online blogging business can start to appear very daunting to say the least.
Luckily, there are many ways to answer the how do I get a blog? question, so don't fret.
There are actually many free ways to get your blog started.
It will just take a little time and effort.
The first thing to do when setting up a blog is to decide where your blog will be hosted.
There are many popular and free options out there.
Providers such as Blogger, Word Press and Live Journal will host your blog at no cost while allowing you to gain experience.
They provide easy, non-technical templates with simple publishing for the online presence of your new home business.
The next step is to decide on the theme of your blog.
Each of the providers above will have ready-made templates.
Before you settle on one, it is important to decide on a theme.
If you will blog about lifestyle, the template colors and structure will need to reflect that.
Similarly, if you are targeting the tech-savvy crowd, the appearance of your blog will need to appease your audience.
If you are not sure what your focus will be right now, a clean and simple theme would be ideal.
This would also be appropriate if you are targeting the business or work at home community.
Last and certainly not least, you will want to create a few posts to test out your new blog.
It is often helpful to visit your blog from many different browsers in order to make sure that the format is preserved across common pc settings.
If possible, have a few friends to visit your new blog and get their feedback.
Their support will also be invaluable when sharing your new online presence with the world.
If you have already decided that you will blog to make extra income, it is time to select a product or service to offer to your new audience.
It is important to select a quality product that people want or need.
Also choosing a product with a good price point is critical.
If you can't quite decide on a product, it is helpful to visit blogs with a similar theme in order to get ideas on what you might offer.
Once you have your blog set up the way you want it, it is now time to work on your marketing strategy.
Keep in mind that a good marketing plan can make or break a business.
If you have a great product that no one ever gets to see, then it is useless to your bottom line.