How To Start A Sustainable Self-Hosted Blog

When my friends ask me how start a blog, I keep it simple and honest.  I’ve been blogging for almost 6 years now, and I’ve established all three of the websites that I own in this exact same way.  My self-hosted blog journey has led me to want to help others with their blogging journeys, as well.  I hope these three tips will help you quickly set up your self-hosted blog, too!

Disclosure: Old World New uses affiliate links.

Choose a Blog Name

According to Shakespeare, a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet.   He had a valid point when he wrote that line.  A rose will always smell like a rose, and it will always attract many people because of its sweet smell.  However, a website called www.sparklythingsandstoriesthatilovesomuch.com will not go over as well as www.glittertales.com.  For starters, its too long.  It contains a lot of words that have the potential to be mixed up and mispelled.  It is easy to forget because it has too many parts.  Glitter Tales, on the other hand, is short and sweet.  Anyone who loves glitter and sparkly things will be intrigued by the title Glitter Tales.  Choose a meaningful and memorable blog and website name.  The site name could be your given name or a quick and clever phrase that explains what your website is all about.

Once you choose a name for your self-hosted blog, check to see if that domain is available and if it is available on social media platforms.  I like to use the website namecheckr.com for this.  It allows you to input a name and it will then check several social media sites and domains to see if the name is already claimed.  You will may have to rework your name at this point, and that’s ok.  If a website already exists with the name you want, don’t feel discouraged.  Think of it as an exercise in creativity and create a new name that fits just as well.  The most important part is that your message is still conveyed.  

How I Chose My Blog’s Name

My blog’s name started out as “Old World New Girl” because I love old things – architecture and fashion – but I’m also very forward thinking and “new” – sustainable living and somewhat tech savvy.  I updated it to remove “girl” and to give it a more sophisticated sound.  That is how I have created the brand Old World New.  I use the “.us” extension because the “.com” extension was too expensive to purchase.  There are a few other people who have similar brand names across the globe, but we are not in direct competition with each other.  My brand name is unique and I believe it is intriguing to those who view it.  I hope it makes y’all want to explore my site and learn more about it when you see it!

Buy Your Self-Hosted Blog Domain From Green Geeks

After you’ve established that the domain name will work, you need to buy the domain!  The big question once you decide to start a self-hosted blog is “what platform should I host my blog on?”  That answer was easy for me – GreenGeeks.

3 years ago I was searching for a cheap way to host my blog, let’s just be honest.  Affordability was one of my main concerns.  In that search, I also discovered a sustainable platform.  I guess what they say about the thing you wanting most finding you is true.  My motto is “everything can be done sustainably.”  I have to live up to that, so I was elated when I found GreenGeeks.  Hosting my blog on the GreenGeeks web hosting platform has one of the best decisions I’ve ever made for my business and brand.

Quick GreenGeeks Facts:

• By 2005, the web hosting industry had used energy equivalent to that of 14 power plants.
• “Studies have shown that by the year 2020 that the web hosting industry will be as big of a polluter as the airline industry.” – GreenGeeks
• GreenGeeks is powered by 300% wind energy.  For every 1 unit of power that GreenGeeks pulls from the traditional power grid, they purchase 3 units of wind power energy credits to put back into the grid.
• Expect 99.9% uptime on your website.  I can attest to this – they send you an email as soon as your site goes down and as soon as it is back up.  Their response time is FAST!
• 24/7 assistance is available with just a quick chat on their website.

Why I love GreenGeeks

I love so many things about GreenGeeks.  My hosting plan is the EcoSite Pro plan.  It can be purchased for as low as $3.99/month (paid yearly or triennially).  From the middle of the night chats to help me setup things that I don’t know how to do on my own, to the security updates in my email.  I was so afraid to start a self hosted blog because I didn’t think I knew enough about all of the technical mumbo jumbo associated with it.  That fear went right out the window when I learned that I could ask the GreenGeeks team almost anything.

Install WordPress

WordPress is my go-to platform for blogging.  I’ve been using it for 5 years!  With GreenGeeks, you can use WordPress as your main platform, and you can install it in just a few clicks.  When I started my self-hosted blog, I had to migrate my wordpress.com site information.  I honestly would have been lost had I tried to do this task on my own.  Luckily, GreenGeeks did if for me – for FREE!

Why I love WordPress

WordPress is easy to use no matter how much knowledge you have about blogging.  I didn’t know anything about blogging back when I first started, but WordPress made it easy to learn!  I definitely didn’t know anything about having my own website, either.  Through my blogging on wordpress.com and my self-hosted blog on WordPress via GreenGeeks, I’ve learned a lot.  Setting up a blog is so easy for me now.  I can change how my blog looks any time I want.  I can create blog posts and pages with just a few clicks.  Working on WordPress has taught me so much, and I can’t wait to share that knowledge with others who need it.

Stay tuned for future posts and an eBook as to why WordPress is my favorite, and some tips and tricks I’ve learned by using it for nearly 6 years now.  Feel free to reach out to me via email – addiethewriter[at]gmail[dot]com – if you’d like to learn more.  Let’s chat about my GreenGeeks and WordPress experience and how you can use them for your brand, too.

Remember: Everything can be done sustainably!  Even your website can be sustainable when you create it with GreenGeeks!

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