How to start a professional looking website in minutes

It’s important to start a blog or website as a Makeup artist or Beauty guru as it is one of the easiest ways to elevate your brand image. A makeup artist or beauty guru with a nice, professional looking website will be perceived differently from one without one and this goes for almost any product, brand or service provider around the world.

It’s truly amazing how much impact we can have through social media and online platforms like blogging. If you are not a makeup artist or beauty guru but are just looking to share topics you are passionate about, this guide is for you too. With user-friendly hosting services likeBlueHost and a variety of plug-ins and themes available with Wordpress.org, creating a website, without paying thousands to a programmer, has never been easier.

The focus of this guide will be on creating a top-notch website with your own personalized domain name as opposed to a free-hosted website.

This website was created entirely by me (not so humble brag) so I know a thing or two about building a responsive and professional looking site guaranteed to look beautiful, attract potential clients and take your branding to the next level!

Okay…let’s make you a media mogul!

FIRST STEPS

1.Choosing a Name

Rather than just choosing a name you like, there are some strategic methods for picking a blog name that can impact your blog traffic. Google Trends is a free tool that allows you to see the worldwide interest level of keywords you choose. It also allows you to compare the popularity of different terms.

If you are starting a natural hair blog for example, keywords you could consider as part of your name are “shea butter”, “coconut oil” or “natural hair”. Using Google trends, let’s see the popularity of these terms over time.

From our quick search with Google trends, it is clear that natural hair and coconut oil are both more popular than shea butter alone, with coconut oil being the most popular of the three. From this information you can make a decision to call your natural hair blog “Coconut Oil Girl”, “Coconut Oil love” etc. This is just a small step but having a name with a high level of interest will be helpful for the traffic of your blog in the long run.

2.Choosing a Platform

If you serious about creating a professional looking blog or website which you can eventually monetize, the best platform to use is a self-hosted Wordpress.

A self-hosted Wordpress is superior to free options you can get with Tumblr.com, Wordpress.com and Blogger/Blogspot.com. With this option you get your own domain name, the opportunity to monetize your blog and the ability to customize your blog in anyway that you wish!

Many people are intimidated by running their own website but continue reading to see how you can do it without paying a developer or expert hundreds or thousands of dollars.

THE FUN BEGINS: START YOUR BLOG IN MINUTES

You will need a hosting account so that your blog can “have a permanent home” in cyberspace.

Step 1: Sign up with BlueHost

Bluehost is the hosting service used for this website and is by far the easiest option for most beginners to use.

To begin, go to the Blue Host homepage and select the Get Started Now button. The most popular option is the Plus Plan because it gives you the ability to host an unlimited number of websites with just one account.

Bluehost only costs about $3.99 to $14.99 per month, depending on the plan you selected. Feel free to ignore most of the upgrade options that appear though, they are essentially just upselling you on products you are unlikely to use any of these.

Step 2: Install Wordpress

Congratulations! You are one step closer to creating your own website, run and operated by you. Once you have created a Bluehost account you will see a host of options available to you. Don’t be intimidated by the number of buttons on the mainBluehost site,  simply scroll down to the “Website” section and click on the “Install Wordpress” button to get started.

And that’s it! You are done. You can select a free theme or buy a theme if you like and begin your first post!

FINAL STEPS: MAKE IT BEAUTIFUL

There are a host of free plug-ins you can add to your site to make it look pretty! You can add an Instagram feed to your website, a Facebook Like box and any other plug-ins you are interested in. Be careful not to add too many as it will make your site slower.

For blog graphics which helps you content look more pleasing to the eye and easier to read Befunky.com is a great site to use.

These tips & tricks will be helpful as you start your blogging journey. Goodluck and happy blogging! 

                                                     Source: Ignitespot