Liquid Web Hosting: WordPress for Webmasters
Hi, I’m Grant Morrison, the founder of Liquid Web Hosting. For most people, hosting is hosting – it’s just storing information on a server while someone else accesses and uses that information. But for webmasters, it’s much more than that. It’s a way of life. WordPress is the most popular content management system, and over the years, we’ve helped hundreds of bloggers and website owners to find success with their sites. In order to achieve that, we’ve had to learn a lot about what makes a successful blog and a happy webmaster. So in this blog post, we’re going to run down what we think are the essential elements to establishing a successful blog and converting that blog into a commercial venture.
Pick A Niche
If you’re reading this, it’s probably safe to assume that you’re either a) a webmaster looking for ways to monetize your site or b) a fellow blogger looking to make some extra cash. There are a lot of different ways to monetize a blog, but the most reliable way is through affiliate marketing, which we’ll get to in just a moment. But first, it’s essential that you pick a niche and establish yourself as an expert in that niche. There are dozens of different niches that you can choose from, all with the potential to make you money online. But if you want to succeed as a blogger, develop a niche that’s going to make money and then dominate that niche. Why? Because when people are searching for information about your niche, they’re already most likely to land on your site. And when they do, they expect to find the information they’re looking for and, hopefully, make a purchase or find a useful service. So if you can become an expert in your chosen niche and can prove that you are, then you can effectively monetize your blog, no matter what platform you use.
Find Your Perfect WordPress Theme
You’ll notice that most blogs are built on a foundation of WordPress, and it’s easy to understand why. WordPress is a free, open-source content management system, which can be easily integrated with a large number of third-party tools and plugins that can make your blog much more functional and customizable than you could ever dream of. If you’re looking for a blogging platform, it’s probably the best choice available, as it’s incredibly popular and easy to use.
There are hundreds of different WordPress themes that you can choose from, all with their perks and quirks. To ensure that you find the right theme for your blog, try out a few of the free themes that WordPress provides and see how they work for you. If you find that one of these themes doesn’t serve your purposes, then you can always install a new theme or upgrade the existing one. Finding the right theme for your blog is a critical decision, and it can potentially impact your entire blog’s design and functionality. So take your time in finding the right match, try out a few free themes, and enjoy the process.
Choose The Right Hosting
Once you’ve found the perfect theme for your blog, it’s time to choose a host. A host provides the technology and space for your blog to function, so it’s important to pick a reputable company that understands how essential hosting is to the success of a blog. In addition to offering reliable service, a good host will also offer features like reliability, security, and a commitment to customer service.
There are a few different hosting companies that you can choose from, all with their perks and quirks. For example, Bluehost is a popular choice among bloggers because they provide a free domain and hosting to new customers. Plus, they offer a money-back guarantee if you meet the right conditions. Another popular choice is WP Engine, which provides a ton of features for a low price. In the end, it’s all about personal preference, so try out a few different hosts and see which one works best for you.
Pick A Social Proof Strategy
When you’ve found a suitable host, it’s time to find the right social proof strategy for your blog. A social proof strategy is a tool that you can use to grow your blog’s audience. Typically, social proof strategies involve getting testimonials or case studies from respected industry insiders. When someone researches a product or service on Google, they often don’t just search for that product or service – they’ll also look at how many other people are talking about the product or service online, as well as who those people are.
Getting social proof can be a daunting task, as it requires you to leave your comfort zone and do things like get featured on platforms like Google and YouTube or grow your Facebook community. However, with a little bit of research and a solid strategy, it’s certainly possible to succeed in getting the necessary social proof for your blog. After all, getting 200 likes on your Facebook page doesn’t mean that much if you don’t know what you’re doing and don’t have a strategy to grow your audience. If you want to be able to get social proof for your blog, develop a plan and put in the necessary work.
Monetization
Finally, we’ve arrived at the most important part of this entire process – building a monetized blog. As we mentioned above, the most reliable way of making money from a blog is through affiliate marketing. In affiliate marketing, you’ll build links to various products and services that you think are relevant to your niche. When someone clicks on those links and makes a purchase, you’ll earn a commission.
There are a number of different affiliate marketing tools and platforms that you can use to get started, including Google Adsense, which is a free program that can be used to generate income from your blog. You’ll need to build a monetized blog using either Google Adsense or another platform like Amazon Associates. As mentioned above, becoming an expert in your chosen niche and then applying that expertise to create useful content will naturally lead you to monetize your blog. Once you’ve started making money from your blog, continue adding more revenue streams until you find a system that provides you with consistent monthly income. Then, you can start investing in additional tools and features that will help you grow your blog and earn more money.
WordPress itself is free, but you’ll need to pay for web hosting in order to run your blog. Typically, you’ll want to get a dedicated IP that’s tied to your domain name. A dedicated IP is a unique address that’s assigned to you by your web host, which ensures that all of the traffic that comes to your site will go to your site and not a competing site. With a dedicated IP, you can simply install WordPress on your server and start creating content without having to worry about having your content shared with others. In addition, you can use tools like Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to make your site more discoverable when potential customers use search engines to find information online. In the end, having a monetized blog, whether it’s an absolute moneymaker or simply a way to earn a living, is something that every blogger dreams of.