Top reasons to start a Blog during Lockdown

                       Top reasons to start a Blog during Lockdown

You’re stuck at home for hours on in due to the coronavirus outbreak. You’ve already run out of shows to binge-watch, you’ve cleaned and organized your home from top to bottom, the yard work is taken care of, and to be quite honest, you’re bored. Other than watching the news or review websites about coronavirus updates (which, of course, makes you anxious), you have no idea what to do with yourself. And insanity is on the horizon. 

Now would be a good time to consider starting a blog. If you’re pretty good at writing and have a topic you’re passionate about, there are plenty of advantages to starting one. Here are some listed below: 

Everyone is Bored

If you think you’re the only one who has no idea what to do with all this spare time on your hands – think again. Just about everyone is in the same situation and dying for something to do. Most people are online watching tv shows and movies, shopping, and catching up on their favorite blogs. If you were to start a blog now, chances are you’d have a fairly easy time getting people interested in what you have to say. 

Ease Your Anxiety

These uncertain and scary times have everyone is feeling a bit more anxious than usual. As you may or may not know, when you’re under too much stress, it can lead to mental health issues and weaken your immune system (which is the last thing you want to do right now). The best way to take your mind off of things is to find something that interests you and indulge. 

Teach People Something New

A great way to pass the time during lockdown is to learn something new. Depending on what you’re bloggingabout, people could gain knowledge from reading your blog posts. Whether you’re interested in starting a bridal blog and giving couples tips on how to choose a theme or send out save the date notices, or you want to start a personal finance blog where you give tips on how to create a budget and improve your credit, your readers can learn things that help to enhance their personal and/or professional lives. 

Learn Something New Yourself

From learning how to set up a blog and develop compelling content to choosing topics and researching facts and statistics, your readers aren’t the only ones who will learn a thing or two from your blog. It doesn’t hurt that these are all invaluable skills that can be added to your resume. 

Bring Awareness to a Cause

Whether you’re passionate about saving the environment, endangered animals, fighting for civil or women’s rights, bullying, or gender inequality, creating a blog not only helps to fuel your passions, but it creates a platform for you to share those passions with others. You can bring awareness to things people may not have known much about and garner support in fighting for what you believe is right. 

Earn Some Extra Money

If you happen to be among the millions of Americans that are presently out of work as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, chances are you’re looking for ways to earn some extra cash. You’ll be surprised to learn that you could make a considerable amount of money blogging. You could rent ad space to relevant companies, become an affiliate marketer, and if your blog gets popular enough, you could even charge a small membership fee to interested parties. 

Build Brand Awareness

Perhaps you’ve already come up with some cool ways to make money online and you’ve decided to start a business. If so, having a blog could help you to bring awareness to your brand while also gaining authority in your industry. Readers who subscribe to your blog and visit regularly are more inclined to find interest in your business. 

No one knows for sure when things are going to return to normal as the coronavirus pandemic continues to unfold. Rather than drive yourself crazy watching paint dry or staring at walls, perhaps you should put this time to good use. Starting a blog, as you can see has many advantages that make this the perfect opportunity to launch.

How much money does it take to start a blogging business?

Making money from blogging can be a lucrative business for some people. In the beginning, you probably won't make much. But as you put in the time and effort, you can earn enough to replace your day job. Eventually, a blogging business can even reach five to six figures in earnings if you get a lot of traffic and target the right niche.

But how much does starting a blogging business cost? We'll take a look at the relevant parts below. Also, personal loans or small business loans can help you begin your site quicker, so that's something to consider.

The three basic costs of starting a blog

Compared to a brick and mortar business, the cost of starting a blog is quite low. You basically need to have a domain name, hosting and a content management system. And as expected, the total cost will depend on your choice of providers.

Getting a domain name

Once you figured out a good domain name for your business, you need to go to one of the domain name registrars to register it. Different registrars will have different options depending on your needs. It might come with private registration or a coupon code that gives a steep discount on the first year. On average, getting a domain name will cost anywhere from £8 to £16 a year.

Web hosting needs

You need reliable hosting to host your business blog. You can go with free hosting solutions. But the downside is you lack control and personal branding with these options. For long-term benefits, it's better to go with self-hosted blogging platforms. And to do that, choosing a good Web hosting company is crucial. Most of these companies come with cPanel that makes installing a blogging platform like WordPress easy. Hosting can cost anywhere between £2-£11 a month for shared hosting to £60-£500 for dedicated servers.

Content management system

The best part about choosing a content management system(CMS) is that the most popular one is free. WordPress is an open-source CMS, and over 35.2% of websites use it. It's easy to install and doesn't require a lot of technical skills to run. Unless you decide to go with a SaaS solution like Wix or Weebly to manage your content, there is no other fee to install and use WordPress.

Other costs to consider

Starting a bloggingbusiness website is relatively easy. The challenge is to grow it into an asset that is worth keeping. Depending on your skill level, you can keep costs to a minimum or spend according to your business needs.

Cost of content

A blogging business needs content. So depending on whether you're outsourcing it or producing your own content, your cost will vary. Typical content creation costs will based on  writing, graphics, or videos that you'll use on your blog.

Designing the site

Again, in the purpose of content creation, you can do some of the work by yourself with various design tools online. Paying for a premium WordPress theme can also be part of your expenses if you decide to go that route.

Marketing your blog

A blog wouldn't be successful without proper marketing strategies. You need to factor in SEO, social media advertising and paid advertising costs for your blog. This would not be necessary for a personal blog. But for a blogging business, this is absolutely crucial.

Having a stable cash flow is essential, so you should consider getting a loan to support your business. You can compare loans with loan comparison websites to find the best lenders to finance your blogging business.

 Advantages of blogging:

Starting a brand new business

Though blogging starts off as a hobby, it's a good business potential in it. Though it cannot termed typical, there are samples of many bloggers who earn over from a company job. this can be possible once you start a blog on what you concentrate on.

Attract people to your existing business

A blog can become a good source of attracting people to your existing business. instead of having a static website, a blog which is updated with regular information can attract clients to your business. this can cause you to be treated an expert within the field concerned.

Become an honest writer

Since blogging involves lots of writing - pages after pages- on a day after day, it'll hone the author in you. The more you write, the more professional the author in you may become.

Gain knowledge in your field

Since you're propelled by the requirement to update your blog on a day after day, you may keep trying to find information. this can facilitate your gain more and more knowledge in your field.

Helping people

You give a solution to other people with their problems through your blog. you'll educate the larger audience with recommendations on the way to reduce, raise children or make money online. Blogging is an efficient medium to teach or inspire people and to bring like-minded people together.