Like many people, I floundered around with my my first blog site back in 2013/14.

That initial foray into blogging was an outlet for my musings on life. Many of the posts are no longer available, but you may stumble across some early words in the archives on this site. They’re interesting to look back over and see how much my writing style has evolved.

Please also look at some of my more recent posts if you’re thinking of working with me as they’re much better at showing how I can help.

The free options for a blog back in the day were pretty much a choice between WordPress .com not .org (yes there is a difference, this post tells you more) and Blogger (owned by Google). To cut a long story short, I chose WordPress.

By the time I started my outdoor blog in 2014, I could easily navigate around the WordPress.com dashboard, so it was a natural choice to jump straight onto that platform.

It’s a great free way to get started, but does come with a word of caution 👇

If you’re setting up a blog and website for your business, make sure you check out the alternatives as it can cost a fortune to scale up to the price tier which gives analytics and other features.

Writing is the easy part

One of the big things I learned over the years is that writing is the easy part.

Suddenly I had to learn how to share and promote blog posts. Link platforms. Understand reach. And get my head around analytics.

Terminology like meta tags, keywords, search engine optimisation and analytics became normal everyday words. Building websites and navigating my way around the tech became a new skill.

I soaked up as much information as possible: attending workshops to learn from experts, reading online articles, searching forums, attending the Google Digital Garage, and chatting with other bloggers in my network.

Nowadays, there’s a better choice of platforms to host your blog. Mine is on Squarespace, but others do the job equally well. And it’s not just about your own website. Sharing your writing as a guest blogger can give you backlinks to your site. And that’s great for visibility and search engine optimisation.

Grab my free blogging checklist

I’ve learned tons since starting that first blog, and I continue to learn as technology changes.

My free blogging checklist is packed with practical information which you can use on your own blog. You’ll find writing tips, SEO tips, and strategic tips.

To grab a copy, fill in the form above (note, you’ll be added to my email list too but can unsubscribe any time).

Jacquie Budd is a marketing content writer specialising in Google-friendly blog posts which connect with customers.

Get in touch to chat about working together.