If you are considering starting your own blog, you may be wondering how I got this far (I have had a whopping 3 readers so far!). Seriously though, some may not find it easy to figure out those first few steps to getting an online blog presence. Sure, you can use a blog service, like Blogger or Wordpress. In fact, I think they are both very good blogging platforms. However, there are definitely some benefits to hosting your own blog. When you host your own blog, you have more freedom to customize it, are able to be more creative, and most importantly, you can choose the best platform for your needs. So here is a quick checklist showing exactly what I did to get started.
1. Come up with a catchy name for your blog
Ok, BuzzMyBlog may not be catchiest name out there (you'll see why I chose it soon). Once you have a good name, register the domain name. I use GoDaddy.com 
to register my domain names. Their website is a little confusing because there is a lot of "stuff" there. But they do offer a lot of good services and their prices are very affordable.
2. Open a Hosting Account
You would not believe how cheap some of these accounts are these days. You can get a basic web hosting account for as little as $3 bucks a month! You might have to upgrade as your site/blog grows, but that should get you started. You often have the choice between Windows or Linux hosting. This really depends on your own level of experience and personal preference. If you are just getting started, a Linux hosting account will be your best bet. With that, you can choose a blogging platform based on PHP that uses a MySQL database. If you want to use ASP.NET and need a SQL Server database, then choose a Windows hosting account. (Don't let me scare you with talks of databases and PHP and ASP, etc. - you don't need to know it to have a successful blog).
I chose to open a Windows hosting account, again with GoDaddy.com. I chose a Windows hosting account because I have a lot of experience with ASP.NET and want to be able to customize everything to my liking.
3. Choose a blogging platform
A good blogging platform is vital to the success of your blog. The platform will handle a lot of the magic behind the scenes like trackbacks, pings, and referrals (I will discuss these in more depth in a future post). Luckily, most web hosting companies will provide an option to set up a blog platform automatically. Take advantage of this because you can still customize it later. If you have a Linux hosting account, your best choice is by far WordPress. If your web host doesn't install it for you, you can easily upload it and install it yourself. The installation script is super easy - you just need to know your MySQL settings.
Since I have a Windows hosting account, I went with BlogEngine.NET. I am very happy with it. It is very powerful and easy to customize if you are familiar with ASP.NET.
4. Customize your theme, then blog away!
It might take you a little while to get the hang of your new blogging platform. One of the best ways to get the hang of it is to customize your own theme. This does require some basic knowledge of HTML and web page design. A good idea might be to start with an existing theme, copy it, then play around with it to tweak it to your liking. Change the colors, add your logo, change the font, etc. In no time your blog will be completely unique.
Once your framework is established, start blogging away. It is important to generate good content as quickly as possible (like I am trying to do now 
). Also be sure to include links in your posts - they are very important and I will discuss them in more detail in another post. Once some good content is established, we can talk about attracting more visitors.
Happy Blogging!
