Blogging has become an incredibly popular platform for sharing ideas and experiences and connecting with like-minded individuals.
Starting a mom blog can be an excellent way to express yourself and connect with a supportive community if you’re a mom with a passion for writing and a desire to share your parenting journey.
However, getting started can be daunting if you’re unfamiliar with the process.
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk you through the essential steps to start a mom blog successfully. From defining your niche and setting up your blog to creating engaging content and building an audience, we’ll cover everything you need to know to kickstart your blogging journey.
Let’s dive in!
Step 1: Choose a Niche For Your Blog
The first step to starting a mom blog is to define a niche – the specific area you want to focus on within the mom blogging world. Consider your interests, expertise, and the unique perspective you can offer.
Are you passionate about natural parenting, DIY crafts, healthy recipes, or travel tips for families?
Finding your niche will help you target a specific audience and differentiate yourself from the vast sea of mom bloggers.
Check out Clean Mama. Becky started this blog in 2009, where she shares her products and routine to keep moms from choosing between a busy life and a clean home.
However, though it’s recommended to focus on one topic (like cleaning for Becky,)some mom blogs also combine different topics into one.
Take Scary Mommy, for example. Though it mainly focuses on the mom parenting side, it also publishes content on fashion & beauty and health & wellness.
To conclude, choosing a niche is your first step to creating a profitable mom blog.
Read more: How to Choose a Profitable Niche for Your New Blog?
Step 2: Choose a Name for Your Mom Blog
A blog name is what people will call your blog. It’s also the same name you will use for your domain name (www.blogname.com).
For example, Iconic Blogging is a blog, and iconicblogging.com is the domain name.
Your blog name should reflect your niche, resonate with your target audience (moms), and be easy to remember.
Review the two mom blogs mentioned earlier. Both Clean Mama and Scary Mommy resonate with mothers. Even men can easily know that these websites target women.
Here are some tips to help you choose the perfect blog name:
1. Brainstorm:
Start by brainstorming words and phrases related to your niche, motherhood, or your unique perspective.
Include keywords that describe your content or evoke emotions associated with your blog’s purpose (like clean or scary).
2. Keep it Simple:
Select a blog name that is easy to spell, pronounce, and remember. Avoid complex or ambiguous names that may confuse your audience.
3. Check Availability:
Once you have a few potential blog names, check their availability as domain names.
You can use a website like Godaddy.com to check domain availability.
1. Enter your blog name and click ‘Search Domain.’
2. The result will show you if the domain is available.
Pro Tip: Use .com as your domain extension. Also, your blog name should be the same as your domain name. Do not have a blog name called ‘Mom Heroine’ and a domain called ‘theblondesmith.com.‘
Still, I know that it can be difficult to find an amazing and cool name alone. That’s why I recommend using blog name generators. Check out my guide on the best blog name generators and use them to find fantastic names for your mom blog.
Step 3: Choose a Blogging Platform
There is more step to start a mom blog. You need to select a blogging platform.
This platform is where you will publish your articles. Your community and other moms like you will interact with you on this platform.
Use WordPress (WordPress.org) if you want the best platform to start your blog.
It’s free and easy to use regardless of your experience. Moreover, you will have access to dozens of themes (templates) for mom blogs.
Step 4: Choose a Hosting Service and Install a WordPress Theme
To make your mom blog live, you need to purchase hosting. Hosting is a service that allows people to access your blog via the Internet. Simply put, without hosting your blog, it will not exist and will not be available on the internet.
I recommend Bluehost as it offers a free domain name and SSL certificate with each plan. It’s a reliable WordPress hosting provider. Once you sign up for hosting, you will get a one-click installation to install WordPress.
1. Go to Bluehost > WordPress Hosting.
2. Select a hosting plan. I recommend the Basic plan as it provides all the resources you need for a beginner blog.
3. Enter your domain name under ‘Create a new domain’ and click Next.
4. Enter your Account and Package Information.
5. Select the Package Extras you need and enter your payment information.
6. Finally, click Submit to create your Bluehost account.
Bluehost will guide you till you install WordPress.
Now, it’s time to choose a WordPress theme for your blog. Remember that your blog should have an aesthetic design that speaks to moms and offers a beautiful experience.
With the help of thousands of free and paid themes, you can create an amazing blog without spending much money.
The default WordPress themes are great but consider choosing a theme that has been specifically designed keeping in mind the needs of mom bloggers. This will save you time and ensure your blog looks awesome from day one.
But if you can’t find a specific theme that suits you, consider themes like Astra, Divi, Hestia, or OceanWP. At Iconic Blogging, we use Elementor (a website builder) and Hello Elementor (a theme).
Once you have chosen your theme, read our tutorial on how to install your WordPress theme.
Step 5: Create the Necessary Pages
As a mom who wants to impact the lives of other mothers, you will need to create some pages on your blog.
These pages allow you to segment your blog’s content and connect with other mothers.
Think about the About page, for example. Thanks to this page, you will tell other moms your story: what happened in your life, the number of kids, the problems you faced, and how you solved them.
I also highly recommend that you have a Home page. You can use it to explain why your blog is the best place for moms of all backgrounds.
Add other essential pages like Contact, Blog, and Privacy Policy. If you want to segment your content, indicate it on your blog.
To segment your content, create additional pages that focus on specific categories, like Food, Education, Travel, etc.
Step 6: Install Useful Plugins
When you make a WordPress blog, you need to install plugins. These are special tools that help your blog work better.
Some examples of plugins are Jetpack and Yoast. Jetpack helps with security and design, while Yoast SEO helps with things like adding keywords so more people can find your blog online.
Here are seven additional plugins I recommend installing:
1. Wordfence Security: This plugin adds extra security to WordPress and helps protect your blog from hackers.
2. Akismet: It helps reduce spam comments on your blog.
3. WPForms: This allows you to create contact forms, surveys, and other forms on your WordPress blog.
4. Site Kit by Google: You’ll need this to track your website statistics, like how many people are visiting your blog and what pages they’re looking at.
5. WP Rocket: This WordPress plugin optimizes your blog’s loading speed and performance. It can reduce page loading times and improve the user experience for visitors.
6. Imagify: You’ll definitely take pictures and upload them to WordPress. Imagify helps optimize and compress images so they don’t slow down your blog.
7. UpdraftPlus: This free plugin allows you to back up your WordPress site and restore it in case of an emergency.
Check out this blog post to learn how to install WordPress plugins.
Step 7: Publish Your First Blog Post
It’s good to start a mom blog, but it’s more fun when people can read your ideas.
It’s time to write your first blog post! Now that you’ve created your blog, you can start publishing content.
Think about the topics that interest other moms and create content around those ideas. Make sure each post has educational value, is well-researched, and includes helpful tips.
Take the time to write a captivating title and add relevant images.
Keep in mind that blogging is a marathon, not a sprint. Don’t rush through posts or post content with errors. Take your time to create quality content and build an amazing resource for mothers everywhere.
Step 8: Promote Your Blog
Once you have written your first blog post, it’s time to promote it. You can do this by using social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter.
Create an account on each platform and share your blog posts. Join mom-related groups so that you get more exposure for your posts. You can also link to your blog in guest posts and comment on other blogs in the same niche as yours.
You can also use email marketing to reach out to people who are interested in what you have to say. With an email list, you can send regular updates and promote new content (of course, you will use this tip once you grow an email list).
Finally, don’t forget about SEO. Optimize your blog posts for keywords that people search for and get backlinks to increase visibility.
By investing in promotion, you’ll be able to reach a wider audience of moms who can benefit from your content.
Step 9: Make Money From Your Blog
Money is the main reason we start blogging. And don’t be shy to say it proudly. There is nothing wrong with monetizing or selling your knowledge, and more money means better content.
You should start thinking about making money from day one.
One way to monetize your blog is to use affiliate marketing. This involves promoting products and services that are related to your blog’s niche and getting a commission if someone buys them using your link.
Some companies might also contact you and request you to write sponsored posts and talk about their product to your audience.
Another way to generate income is to offer services related to your blog’s niche. For example, consulting, coaching, or editing services are all great ways to make money from a mom blog.
You can also use membership options or create an online store and sell products related to parenting. It’s up to you how you want to monetize your blog, but the opportunities are endless.
Conclusion
In this blog, you learned how to start a mom blog. You saw that the process is easier than you many people think.
With the right tools and strategies in place, you can have your mom blog up and running in no time.
Follow these nine steps to make a WordPress blog specifically tailored to moms:
1) select a niche
2) choose a domain name
3) choose a blogging platform
4) host your blog and install a WordPress theme
5) customize your design and create pages,
6) install plugins
7) publish your first blog post
8) promote your blog, and
9) make money from it.
With dedication and hard work, you’ll be able to create a successful mom blog that engages visitors. But what do you have already? Your niche? Or maybe your blog name?
We will be happy to read your thoughts and chat with you to solve any issues. We love reading comments. Just leave one!
