How to create a blog on WordPress: my free step by step guide for beginners
Check out my all-inclusive and free guide for beginners that will help you start blogging (and not only) on WordPress from scratch.
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Start a blog or a website: why should i do it?
Starting a blog or website today isn’t just about being online – it’s an awesome way to express yourself, build connections, and even grow professionally. Whatever you’re into—fashion, wellness, tech, or any other passion—it’s your chance to share your unique take with the world.
Think of a blog as your personal canvas where you get to show who you are and what you care about, while connecting with people who get you, no matter where they live. Whether you’re dreaming of becoming an influencer, launching a business, or showing off your expertise, a blog or website becomes your digital HQ, open for anyone to see your work, connect with you, or even hire you.
And on the professional side, it’s a living portfolio that goes beyond a resume, letting potential clients or employers see your skills and passions in action. If you’re a freelancer, entrepreneur, or content creator, this online hub is your 24/7 shop window to the world.
When I started, I kept things simple by using a few printables and resources to plan out my niche and get organized. After a lot of research (and maybe a bit of overthinking!), I took the plunge, and surprisingly, it didn’t take long—within about an hour, I had my blog live! Now, I’m focusing on the basics of running and growing it, making sure it stays true to my vision of simplicity.
So, if you’re on the fence, go for it! Every blog post, photo, and bit of effort becomes part of your online legacy, a space for discovery, connection, and creativity.
Deciding to create a blog, a website or a shop from scratch is very difficult and certainly when you decide to create one it is necessary to have at least one point of reference to lean on.
Surely, if you are reading my words right now, you will think that they are a bit exaggerated and full of doubts, problems, anxieties and uncertainties: it’s true! So, if you are also reading these words, let me say that I understand you very well , I have lived the same situation as you, I have been through it. I understand your emotions and your fear of failure and of not being able to fulfill your “small and big” desire. I understand you and maybe I can help you achieve what you want. Precisely for this reason, I decided to write this article in a sincere and objective way because I believe it is right to give a little concrete help to all those who intend to carry out an online project.
In this article you will find the essential and fundamental steps you need to create a successful blog from scratch (even if you are a beginner) and which essential tools and services to use for the creation and management of your blog and posts in your social media. Consequently, here you will find everything you need to create a blog. As you’ve probably guessed, this article is especially for beginners, particularly those who:
- Want to start a blog (or online shop) but aren’t sure of the first steps,
- Are interested in learning how to monetize their blog,
- Would like more information on increasing their blog traffic,
- Want tips on making their online shop accessible worldwide.
If any of these sound like you, you’re in the right place. Keep reading!
Step one: choose a domain and a hosting plan
The first step in creating a successful blog or website is to think about the name you want to give it. So, take a pen and paper for a moment. The questions you should ask yourself when deciding on your blog domain name are as follows:
– What topic do I want to cover in my blog and therefore what will it focus on?
– What kind of hypothetical readers is it aimed at?
– Do I want to address mainly readers from my own country or primarily international readers?
– Will it be mainly a blog where I will write my articles or do I want there to be an online shop (or just the latter)?
Here, once you have jotted down some ideas, you can think about turning your name into a web domain and registering an actual domain.
The domain is nothing more than the name of your blog. Practical examples: loshopdianna.it, fashionstyle.com, tecnoblog.it.
The examples mentioned above are invented names that I have chosen to make you understand what a domain is.
The main types of domains are generally two:
– Top-level domains: these are all custom domains that can be purchased, for example www.iltuonome.it or www.mypersonalshop.com;
– Second level domains : on the contrary, they are all the domains that you can create for free within a platform, for example www.ilmionome.wordpress.com. In this case your domain cannot be fully customized, because you created it for free within the WordPress platform, as indicated in the domain. Generally, this type of domain has some limitations.
Please, note: once you have registered your domain, you can no longer change or modify it (except by moving your entire site to a new domain in the following years), so pay attention to the name you want to choose. This article is for anyone looking to create a top-level custom domain . Creating a top-level domain can have enormous advantages: it acquires more credibility and authority in the eyes of the reader, it outlines a precise identity and above all it is always accepted by affiliate marketing platforms, such as the one I will talk about in this course (which accepts top-level domains only).
So, if you want to try to build your own shop or you want to try to monetize your blog, then you must necessarily buy a top level domain, otherwise you cannot do any of this.
where can i buy a domain?
To create a blog or online shop, you’ll need both a domain and hosting; you can buy these together, which many hosting providers offer at affordable rates—often around $3 a month, with the first year of domain registration included. Choosing the right hosting service is crucial, as it provides the storage and resources your website needs, much like a phone plan with different data options. In my guide, I’ve organized recommended hosting providers by factors like importance, price, versatility, and reliability, making it easy to find the best options for launching your site.
With SiteGround’s top-notch reliability and stellar support, you can launch your website with ease, starting at just $2.99/month—perfect for those seeking affordable quality!
Get started with BlueHost for as low as $2.95/month, where you’ll enjoy a beginner-friendly setup and a free domain for the first year, making it an incredible value for your money!
Step two: choose a platform
Once you have chosen the hosting, the next step is to choose the platform with which to create your blog. For example, if you create an email address with Gmail then the platform that will host it will be Google, and so on. Again, my choice of the best platforms to create a blog, portfolio or website falls on one in particular:
WordPress is perhaps the most used platform in the world for creating blogs and websites and therefore the most suitable for creating a blog. It has a very intuitive and well-organized interface, numerous features and, as we will see in the next lessons, if you had to choose to create a blog on WordPress you will have many themes (even free) that can be adapted to your blog. So when you choose a hosting service, you will find different offers that include blogs on wordpress. Install WordPress within your hosting space.
Alternatively, you can choose Shopify, Showit or Wix – for example.
Step three: choose a theme
Once you have created the blog, all you have to do is choose the design (or “look”) suitable for your blog, and therefore the theme you want to use to make your blog unique. As for the blogging aspect, there are so many websites that offer a wide range of WordPress blog themes.
If your intention is to use a free theme to create your website, I strongly recommend using Kadence Theme: it is lightweight, SEO friendly and multipurpose. Click here to read more. You can also decide to add more professional functions and use Kadence Pro directly, the Kadence team offers some excellent bundles which you can see here.
Step four: choose a builder
When it comes to building a website, there are tons of options out there, but after trying a few different builders, I found that Elementor, Kadence, and Breakdance stood out for me. Each of these tools offers something unique that really clicked with my needs, whether it’s easy design, flexibility, or powerful features. You only need to choose ONE of these builders. In the next section, I’ll dive into what makes these builders my top choices and why they’re worth considering for your own website.
Ready to build a stunning website in no time? Elementor’s drag-and-drop builder makes it super easy, and with the Pro version, you get even more features to take your site to the next level!
If you want a fast, flexible, and beautiful site, Kadence Builder has you covered – the free version is great, but the Pro version unlocks endless customization options that will really make your site shine! A fast and lightweight builder that allows you to create a website with Gutenberg without adding code that weighs down your site.
Breakdance gives you the freedom to design your site exactly how you want with zero coding – and with the Pro version, you get even more powerful tools to make your website stand out!
Bonus tip: check out my 200+ resources for a professional website here.
Step five: build an e-commerce (optional)
If you’re thinking about launching your own online store or online course website, you’ve come to the right place! Building an e-commerce site can be super exciting, and there are some great tools out there to help you get started. Just remember, you only need to choose ONE of these plugins to get your store up and running, so let’s dive in and find out which one’s best for you! If you do not intend to create an online shop or a digital course site, then you can skip this step 5 and move on to the next step.
WooCommerce is probably the most used plugin for online stores, especially for selling physical and digital products. It has a very flexible free version, but for features such as subscriptions or specific product variations you need to purchase several extensions separately.
SureCart is one of my absolute favorite plugins, it is an excellent tool and particularly suitable for those who intend to sell digital products, subscriptions, bundles, donations, courses (and not only). Its package with annual billing starts at $19 monthly.
It has a fairly complete free version, but I recommend you purchase one of its pro packages to unlock unlimited features like cart abandonment recovery, order bumps, one-click upsells, affiliate platform etc.
Thanks to Adam Preiser and his team, SureCart is always constantly updated to offer you the best possible experience. It is compatible with both Gutenberg and Elementor and its strong point is that, compared to WooCommerce, you don’t have to download a thousand plugins or extra subscriptions to create a shop, but you only need a single plugin. Paired with Gutenberg, it creates a winning combination for an innovative shop that is always up to date. Used together with SureTriggers, you can integrate third-party applications such as Mailerlite or Mailchimp newsletter services or instant messaging apps such as Whatsapp. It’s the pearl of a diamond of an excellent service! I am madly in love with this plugin because in my opinion it represents the future!
(coming soon)
Selling digital products? Easy Digital Downloads is the perfect solution to help you deliver and manage downloads effortlessly while boosting your sales!”
A powerful and well-known tool for creating online courses. Its variety of packages allow you to create an online course website that is perfect for your needs.
An impactful and famous solution to effortlessly manage your events and tickets on WordPress.
Bonus tip: check out my favorite WooCommerce add-ons here.
Step six: security and SEO
When it comes to running a successful website, security and SEO go hand in hand. You want your site to rank well on search engines, but you also need to make sure it’s protected from potential threats. In this article, I’ll introduce two awesome plugins that help you with both: RankMath for boosting your SEO and Wordfence for keeping your site safe and secure. Let’s dive in and see how these tools can work together to help your site grow and stay safe. I think the following plugins are really essential for the proper security of a website and for a good ranking on Google.
Wordfence is an essential security tool for your website, protecting it from malware and hacking attempts. It has a free version, but If you upgrade to the Premium version, you can access all the key features needed to ensure your site stays secure and protected.
RankMath is an essential tool for proper SEO. It guides you in an easy and efficient way to optimize your SEO and ensure your content ranks well on Google.
Step seven: advertise your blog articles (optional)
The following services are not mandatory for the creation of a website, but they help you a lot to create a cohesive image of your project and save you a lot of time in the creation/management of your social posts.
is a real backbone of all of us bloggers and fans of social networks. I wrote about this service here, Tailwind service allows you, for example: to schedule your posts on Instagram and Pinterest, to increase visits to your blog thanks to Pinterest and its groups , to create an effective grid for your posts on Instagram and so on. Among other things, Tailwind also has a free trial period before choosing whether to continue or not. The service is among the best purchases I have made for my blog, useful and super reliable.
Canva makes designing easy and fun, offering a wide range of templates and tools that let you create stunning graphics, presentations, and social media posts – no design experience needed.
Create professional-quality videos of any size for your projects in just minutes with Animoto, a tool trusted by both beginners and pros alike.
Step eight: do guest posting (optional)
Guest posting is when you write and publish an article on someone else’s blog or website. It’s a great way to share your expertise with a new audience, build relationships within your industry, and boost your online visibility. The benefits are plenty: you can drive traffic back to your own site, increase your credibility by being featured on reputable platforms, and improve your SEO with valuable backlinks. Plus, guest posting helps you network with other creators or businesses, opening up more opportunities for collaborations and growth. It’s a win-win for both you and the host site!
Bonus tip: read my tips, experience and insights on guest posting here.
Fiverr is an excellent platform for finding professionals and bloggers to guest post with. I have written extensively about Fiverr here, but I highly recommend this platform that allows you to select professionals based on your niche.
Conclusion
I really hope this article was helpful to you. I would like my guide to be of help to you and simplify the work of creating your website. If you do not have time to design your website, I offer WordPress site creation and design services, click here to learn more about prices and packages.
In conclusion, I also suggest you subscribe to my newsletter from here so that you do not miss any updates on this article and on all the articles on my blog.
WordPress themes & collections
Bonus tip: read my tips, experience and insights on guest posting here.
