Due to COVID-19 and the resulting shelter-in-place orders around the world, many people are now working from home.

If they’re lucky, that is.

Others are left scrambling, trying to figure out how to make a living since they’ve been laid off from their jobs. Or trying to get a side hustle going to supplement their diminished income.

That’s why in today’s post, I’m going to discuss one of the best opportunities for those who want to survive in today’s freelance, work from home, social distancing, gig economy.

It’s something that anyone with a Wi-Fi connection can do. It costs very little to start up. And the potential for success is practically unlimited!

I’m talking about blogging.

(*Related article: 10 Ways to Make Money Blogging)

It’s 2020 and starting a blog has never been easier.

So, if you haven’t started a blog because you didn’t think you could do it or you thought it wasn’t “the right time”, think again.

Now is the perfect time to give it a go.

* This post contains affiliate links. I am a Bluehost, Thrive Themes, ConvertKit & Tailwind affiliate, meaning that if you click on a qualifying  link and make a purchase, I may earn a commission.  Please read the Disclaimer for more info.*

If I Can Do It, You Can Too!

Gone are the days in which one had to be some sort of technological wizard in order to build a website – if you’ve got drive, commitment, and a willingness to learn, you can do it.

I’ve been blogging for a year and a half now and boy have I learned a lot!

Related article: What You Can Learn from My First Year of Blogging

Before I started this blog, I had absolutely no prior relevant experience – in fact, I didn’t even know what a blog actually was.

I had zero coding, graphic design, or other technological skills, and no marketing or copywriting experience.

I didn’t know anyone in the blog-o-sphere. And I didn’t have any friends/family who would be willing to share my content or help me get my blog off the ground.

But in this short time, I’ve managed to go from 0 to 1.5 million monthly views on Pinterest and exponentially increase the traffic to my blog – which continues to go up each month.

So, I wanted to share my methods and tools with you in the hopes that they help you to achieve blogging success.

Here’s how I consistently get over 1 million monthly views on Pinterest – and you can too.

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(a regularly updated collection of free downloadable self-help content)

Also, you can get both your domain name and hosting through them, which I prefer because I think it’s easier to have as many services as possible through the same provider.

I save them to 10 of my relevant boards, spread out over the course of 2 weeks, along with other blogger’s pins that are relevant to my topics.

Pinterest has been the single biggest, most essential key to my blogging success. It drives the majority of my blog traffic and there really is a beautiful community of bloggers to connect with.

Pinterest not only drives free traffic to your site, but pins have a longer “shelf life” than other content like Facebook posts or Tweets.

You also have the potential for one of your pins to go viral right from the start, unlike other platforms where you must already have a significant following for any of your content to get any traction.

But the thing about Pinterest is that you have to post an average of 30 times a day for optimal results. And it’s difficult to figure out when exactly you should be posting.

Tailwind: The Most Powerful Tool for Pinterest &Blogging Success

That’s why I use Tailwind. Tailwind is an automated pin scheduler – you can save pins in a queue in advance and have them go out at their scheduled times.

It saves me from having to manually pin all day every day. I can save as many pins as I want to whatever boards I want for as far out as I want!

And the best part is that Tailwind tells you when your audience is most active -so you know exactly when you should be posting your content.

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Starting a blog certainly seems like an attractive proposition!

Especially if you’re an introvert like me or you have social anxiety.

After all, you get to work from home (or anywhere in the world with Wifi). You get to be your own boss, set your own hours, and design your own days.

And there are also many other reasons to start a blog, including that it allows you to:

If you’ve been thinking about starting a blog for a while, then you’ve probably done the research.

You know that blogging is a unique opportunity that makes all these wonderful things possible!

But you may be questioning, “Should I start a blog?”, or “Am I really cut out to be a blogger?”

* This post contains affiliate links. I am a Bluehost, Thrive Themes, ConvertKit & Tailwind affiliate, meaning that if you click on a qualifying  link and make a purchase, I may earn a commission. 

3D Success, LLC. is also a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com

Please read the Disclaimer for more info.

You Don’t Need Any Special Experience, Education or Connections to Become A Successful Blogger

When I first started out, I had no idea what a blog even was. I had absolutely no prior experience and I was most definitely not tech savvy.

I also had zero social media followers and no connections in the blogosphere.

But, as with most things in life, these obstacles can be overcome with ingenuity and determination.

Don’t let lack of experience, connections or technical know-how hold you back from starting a blog if you really want to.

That would be like setting out on a road trip and then turning around the first time you hit a speed bump!

So, if you are struggling with writing or you’re feeling overwhelmed by the technical side of blogging and things like WordPress, themes, plug-ins, digital marketing, email automation, opt-ins, etc. like I was – just know that – in the words of Marie Forleo – everything is figure-out-able.

*Here are some blogging resources I use on my blog, many of which are free. *

Update: How I Get Over 1 Million Monthly Views on Pinterest

Is Your Blog Going to Be a Hobby or a Business?

If you are starting a blog as a hobby or otherwise personal endeavor, then you shouldn’t have any problems. You are free to write about what you want, how you want, when you want, as often as you want.

But, if you are planning to make money from your blog, know that there is a lot of hard work, dedication and perseverance involved.

You must treat blogging as your job and consistently keep at it for a while before you start raking in the dough.

So, is it worth it to you to invest all that time and energy? And are you ready for the challenge?

Blogging Isn’t for Everyone

Blogging certainly isn’t for everyone, including people who:

• Aren’t willing to work hard- Like almost anything worth having in life, blogging requires a lot of consistent hard work and discipline. If you think blogging is easy, think again.
• Are not self-motivated: Because you are your own boss, you must be driven and self-motivated. If you think blogging/working from home involves watching TV or being on social media all day, you probably won’t succeed.
• Don’t have the time/can’t be consistent: You’ve got to be consistent when it comes to your blog. If you are too busy to consistently create content and interact with your audience, blogging may not be for you – at least for right now.
• Expect instant success - It will most likely take some time for you to start making money from your blog. It doesn’t just happen overnight (despite what some “expert” bloggers would lead you to believe). If you are looking for to get rich quickly and without much effort, you will probably quit before making your blog a success.
• Are closed-minded - To make money blogging, you have to be open to feedback and new ideas. Successful bloggers are constantly learning and growing. If you are not open to criticism or you’re not willing to change, you will probably not reach the level of success you desire.
• Don’t like to write - If you hate writing, then you probably shouldn’t start a blog. However, there is always the possibility that you may grow to like writing as you practice and improve, so don’t give up on it right away. Vlogging is another option – have you thought about starting a YouTube channel? Video is continuing to grow in popularity – Forbes calls it “the future of content marketing”.  

On the other hand, you’d probably be a great blogger if at least a couple of the following statements describe you.

You:

Head over to the Freebie Library! 
(a regularly updated collection of free, downloadable self-help content)

Start Your Blog This Week

“You may delay, but time will not, and lost time is never found again.”- Benjamin Franklin

If you have even a few of these qualities and you’re willing to put in the work, I encourage you to start your blog today!

Just think where you could be one year from now.

I don’t know about you, but it always amazes me how quickly time seems to pass.

My first year of blogging went by so fast I can hardly believe it’s been that long!

It seems like just yesterday I was getting a domain, setting up hosting, and designing my blog. 

Pro tip: Get your domain, even if you don’t plan on writing a single blog post for the next few months.

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Are You Ready to Start Blogging?

I hope you found this post useful and that you have more clarity on whether blogging is for you.

If it is, don’t waste any more time. Back your decision up with some action today.

Please leave a comment and let me know if you are going to start your blog – I’m here to help you and I am rooting for you all the way!

If you want to start a blog but you’re not sure what kind of blog you should start, take this short quiz to find out what type of blog best suits your personality and blogging goals.

When I first looked into blogging, I didn’t know anything about it.

I didn’t know:

• what a blog is
• how blogs work
• how people make money from blogs
• what it takes to get a blog up and running

I also had no technical experience with things like WordPress or coding and no marketing experience, internet or otherwise. 

Partly because there was so much to learn and partly because I was suffering from analysis paralysis, I researched and prepared for 11 months before starting my blog.

You definitely do NOT have to wait that long to start your blog! Especially since you can learn from my mistakes and capitalize on my research.  

I started my blog completely from scratch with ZERO experience and you can too (probably a lot faster).

Today, I’m going to share with you four essential tools that will lay the foundation for your blog and its success. I use all of them and highly recommend them for any newbie blogger.

* This post contains affiliate links. I am a Bluehost, Thrive Themes, ConvertKit & Tailwind affiliate, meaning that if you click on a qualifying  link and make a purchase, I may earn a commission.  Please read the Disclaimer for more info.*

 Check out the Freebie Library!
(a regularly updated collection of free, downloadable self-help content)

Domain & Hosting: Bluehost

Choosing a Domain Name

To start a blog, you will first need to come up with a domain name.

Advertising Disclosure: I am a Bluehost affiliate so if you click on the link below and make a purchase, I will earn a commission. Please see the Disclaimer for more information. 

You may want to consider naming your website after yourself, especially if you are in the personal development niche, because it’s good for branding and doesn’t pigeonhole you into one narrow topic. Consider popular personal development blogs like jamesclear.com, marieforleo.com and briantracy.com.

However, if your name is difficult to spell or pronounce (like mine!), you may not want to go that route. Instead, try to come up with something short and memorable that contains a keyword related to your niche. For example, 3dsuccess.org contains the keyword “success” and 3dsuccess is less than 10 characters.

It’s generally considered best to get a .com just because it’s the most recognizable but a .org is good too and might be worth the trade-off if the name you want on .com is taken. Just make sure there’s not already an active company with the name you want!

Web Hosting

Advertising Disclosure: I am a Bluehost affiliate so if you click on one of the links below and make a purchase, I will earn a commission. Please see the Disclaimer for more information. 

Theme: Thrive Themes

A theme determines how your blog will look (fonts, colors, content organization).

If you don’t know how to code or you don’t want to spend $2,000 + hiring a website designer, you will need to install a theme for your website.

Free vs. Paid Themes

There are both free and paid themes out there. If you are planning on making money from your blog, it is crucial to go with a premium theme. Premium themes have greater functionality and make your blog look professional. 

If you do decide to go with a free theme, choose one from the WordPress.org Themes directory. Other sources may be unreliable, so stick with WordPress themes to be safe.

But, keep in mind that free themes have limited features and support options. 

If you’re running a personal blog, a free theme would definitely be sufficient but if you are looking to run a business and make money blogging then a premium theme is definitely the way to go.

What Sets Thrive Themes Apart

I decided to go with Thrive Themes. Four things that really set them apart for me is that their themes are:

• Conversion-Focused: Their themes are designed specifically with blog marketing in mind. They are elegant, highly-customizable and most importantly – conversion-focused.
• Highly customizable: Fonts, colors, backgrounds and layouts can all be tweaked to your preferences easily so your site will look beautiful, professional and unique.
• Mobile-Responsive: All their themes are fully mobile responsive, which is super important given that approximately 65 percent of online content is consumed via smart phone.
• Lightweight and Speed-Optimized: Most people expect websites to load in two seconds or less and they won’t think twice about bouncing from your site if it takes longer than that. So, it’s absolutely essential that your blog loads quickly and is not bogged down with bloated code.

Thrive Themes Membership

When you become a Thrive Member, you get access to all their templates and their full suite of plugins. You get all the plug-ins they currently have and all the ones they will come out with in the future.

You also get constant updates, unlimited support and access to Thrive University, where they post marketing tutorials and webinars to help grow your blog. 

Thrive Themes Plug-Ins

Even if you don’t become a member, you can purchase each plugin separately. They’re all fully compatible with WordPress and will work even if you don’t have a Thrive Themes theme.

Here are some popular Thrive Themes plug-ins:

• Thrive Architect/Content Builder: Drag and drop WordPress editor and page builder (*If you can only get one thing, this is IT. As someone who has no idea how to code and absolutely no IT knowledge/experience, Thrive Architect has been a total life-saver!)
  

• Thrive Leads: Create all types of opt-in forms to increase conversions
• Thrive Ovation: Display testimonials
• Thrive Ultimatum: Display evergreen countdown timers for your product launches
• Thrive Headline Optimizer: A/B test headlines
• Thrive Quiz Builder: Make quizzes for your audience to take
• Thrive Optimize: A/B test landing pages

* A note about some other themes: I notice some bloggers are recommending the Genesis Framework by Studio Press. Be warned - if you do not know how to code, this theme will be too difficult for you to manage without hiring expensive website designers to help you.

Another commonly recommended theme is Avada. While it does have some nice features, it is a notoriously slow and bloated theme. It also has a back-end page builder which doesn’t allow you to see changes as you are making them. This can take you waaay longer to build your website than with a visual page builder like Thrive Architect.

Email Marketing: ConvertKit

Advertising Disclosure: I am a ConvertKit affiliate so if you click on the link below and make a purchase, I will earn a commission. Please see the Disclaimer for more information. 

Your Email List is Your Most Valuable Business Asset

I'm sure you've heard this before - you need to start growing your email list from the beginning.

Email marketing outperforms all other types of marketing time and time again. That means, if you are planning on selling anything on your blog, your email list will be your most valuable asset.

Google and Facebook algorithms are changing all the time and you never know how that will affect your traffic. LittleThings, a company that built a huge following on Facebook, was forced to shut down when their profits plummeted because of an algorithm change that cost them 75% of their organic traffic.

When you have an email list, you don’t have to worry about losing all your profits because of an algorithm change. You can reach your audience without relying on someone else’s platform.

Even if you are not selling anything yet, your email list will help increase traffic to your blog as you notify subscribers of your new posts.

But, personally sending an email to each person that subscribes and keeping track of your subscribers’ activity would be extremely difficult to manage, especially as your list grows.

Professional email marketing services allow you to prepare your emails in advance and have them automatically sent out to your email list on scheduled dates and times you select.

ConvertKit Was Built For Bloggers, By Bloggers

I used ConvertKit and highly recommend it to anyone serious about starting a profitable blog.

Before creating ConvertKit, founder Nathan Barry was a successful blogger. The company was built with bloggers' specific needs in mind and that's one of the reasons it's unparalleled.

Email List Segmentation

With ConvertKit, your email list can be segmented according to their interests. So, you can send different emails to those who signed up because of their interest in Topic A than those who signed up because of their interest in Topic B.

No Duplicate Emails

Let’s say someone signs up for more than one opt-in offer. You don’t have to worry about them receiving duplicate emails (for example, your welcome email) – ConvertKit takes care of all that for you automatically.

Or let’s say someone buys your product in the middle of your email sequence. You don’t have to worry about them receiving the rest of your sales pitch emails (cringe!)– ConvertKit takes care of that for you too.

A/B Testing

You can also run A/B tests to see which content or offers work best by sending one to half of your email list and one to the other half.

Analytics & Reporting

Yet another benefit of ConvertKit is that you get access to subscriber analytics and reporting tools. This allows you to see where your subscribers are located, whether they opened your emails and whether they clicked on any of your links – priceless information!

Plus, ConvertKit’s plain text emails help you to avoid spam filters so your emails actually make it to your subscribers’ inboxes. And they will automatically resend unopened emails, which means higher open rates and more sales.

*Be careful if you decide to go with a free email marketing service like MailChimp. They do not allow affiliate marketing in their emails! This is a huge downside, especially for new bloggers who make most of their income through affiliate advertising.

Like Bluehost, ConvertKit has excellent customer service and they also provide live trainings, workshops and open office hours. And right now it’s only $29 a month for your first 1,000 subscribers. 

Try it for free!

Social Media Marketing: Pinterest/Tailwind

Advertising Disclosure: I am a Tailwind affiliate so if you click on the link below and make a purchase, I will earn a commission. Please see the Disclaimer for more information. 

Now more than ever, social media marketing is SUPER important for your blog/business.

There are many social media platforms on which to promote your blog including Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, YouTube, LinkedIn and Instagram.

Pinterest is the Best Social Marketing Tool

Pinterest is the best social marketing tool because:

• It drives FREE traffic to your site
• Pins have a longer “life” than posts on other platforms such as Facebook, meaning you get consistent traffic to your posts over time
• Pins have the potential to go viral, which can drive huge amounts of traffic to your site
• Most people on Pinterest are high-income earners and use Pinterest to plan for purchases

Tailwind, an automated pin scheduler for Pinterest, helps you to post at a good frequency and at the times when your audience is most active. I love being able to schedule my pins in advance - as opposed to manually pinning 30+ times a day!

*Update April 2020: How I Get Over 1 Million Monthly Views on Pinterest

Also, Tailwind Tribes helps to get your pins in front of other people’s audiences (which is especially helpful in the beginning, when you don’t have many followers of your own). 

When you join Tailwind, you get 30 pins a month that you can add to up to 5 Tailwind Tribes.

Click here to try it for free. 

So, my top 4 Must-Have Tools for New Bloggers are:

-BlueHost
-Thrive Themes
-ConvertKit and
-Pinterest/Tailwind. 

These tools are absolutely vital to starting and growing your blog. They were extremely helpful to me and I hope they are to you as well!

Over to you – Any tools or resources that you love & recommend that I haven’t mentioned? Let me know in the comments!

*Update 10/1/19: It's been a year since I launched this blog! Check out this post for lessons learned in my first year of blogging - What You Can Learn From My First Year Blogging.*

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