What sites are good for setting up your own blogging site that are free or inexpensive?

Just wanted to know how to get started with freelance blogging. I have some writing ability but have never blogged for a living before. Know nothing about what SEO is, etc. So, if anyone can help me get started and give me simple instructions and knowledge on how to become a blogger and how to get started; I would appreciate it. Thanks ahead of time for anything you can offer me. If you want to be one of my blogger buddies where I help you and you help me...fine. Just as long as you are a serious and honest person.

I read my way through things.
What are your strengths?

nononsense in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania said: Just wanted to know how to get started with freelance blogging. I have some writing ability but have never blogged for a living before. Know nothing about what SEO is, etc. So, if anyone can help me get started and give me simple instructions and knowledge on how to become a blogger and how to get started; I would appreciate it. Thanks ahead of time for anything you can offer me. If you want to be one of my blogger buddies where I help you and you help me...fine. Just as long as you are a serious and honest person.

Some of our team members "blog" about their business. I have not started my own 'blog" as of yet for my business but maybe one day. We have training & tools available. For more information visit wwww.smellthesuccess.net

I have a blog at blogspot.com. It's a comedy blog, and I have about 400 regular readers so far. I post once a week, and usually get between 60 and 90 comments per post.

I would highly recommend signing up with blogspot. It's easy to get started, it's free, and they do not show ads on your blog (although you can run your own ads). There is no need to make it complicated by trying to host your own blogging software, because, really, nobody cares.

As for SEO, don't worry about it. SEO is "Search Engine Optimization", which is the practice of making websites friendly to search engines. I'm a professional web developer, and I know all about SEO. Blogspot just happens to be owned by Google, and it is already set up to be VERY search engine friendly. Not that it really matters anyway, because, in the blog world, search engines are not the way to get traffic.

Here is how you get traffic to your blog: leave comments on other people's blogs. When they see your comment, they will almost always click that comment link and check out your blog. Often, they will leave a comment on your post. When people leave comments, respond to them. Always. The more comments you leave on other blogs, the more visitors you'll get.

If another blogger visits your blog and really like what they see, they will often put a link to your blog on their own blog. The list of links you see on a person's blog is called a "blogroll". You should start your own blogroll, which will developer over time as you add links.

Other useful things: register your blog with technorati.com., and use their "ping" service. Also, you can track your visitor traffic with statcounter.com. All this is free.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

Phil in Tallahassee, Florida said: I have a blog at blogspot.com. It's a comedy blog, and I have about 400 regular readers so far. I post once a week, and usually get between 60 and 90 comments per post.

I would highly recommend signing up with blogspot. It's easy to get started, it's free, and they do not show ads on your blog (although you can run your own ads). There is no need to make it complicated by trying to host your own blogging software, because, really, nobody cares.

As for SEO, don't worry about it. SEO is "Search Engine Optimization", which is the practice of making websites friendly to search engines. I'm a professional web developer, and I know all about SEO. Blogspot just happens to be owned by Google, and it is already set up to be VERY search engine friendly. Not that it really matters anyway, because, in the blog world, search engines are not the way to get traffic.

Here is how you get traffic to your blog: leave comments on other people's blogs. When they see your comment, they will almost always click that comment link and check out your blog. Often, they will leave a comment on your post. When people leave comments, respond to them. Always. The more comments you leave on other blogs, the more visitors you'll get.

If another blogger visits your blog and really like what they see, they will often put a link to your blog on their own blog. The list of links you see on a person's blog is called a "blogroll". You should start your own blogroll, which will developer over time as you add links.

Other useful things: register your blog with technorati.com., and use their "ping" service. Also, you can track your visitor traffic with statcounter.com. All this is free.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

Your advice and instructions you have given are very precise and helpful.
Thank you for taking your time and giving your generously.

if you are into writing and want to become a part of a global community of citizen journalists, you should check out www.allvoices.com/rewards/aaa

How do you actually create any income by blogging?

Set up a blog - add affiliate links and adsense.... read the post above for some great info on it.

The most beneficial way of promoting your website is search engine optimization. This increases your page rank on search results and increases your visibility to the public.
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