How to Start a Profitable Blog Course

DAY FIVE

Welcome to Day 5! Let's be honest: the word "launch" sounds big, scary, and stressful. It brings up images of perfection, huge audiences, and a ton of pressure.

I want you to erase that picture from your mind.

For a new blogger, "launching" simply means turning off the "coming soon" page so the world can see your site if you share the link. No one is going to magically find it on Day 1. This is just a technical step that opens the door for all the good stuff to happen.

Quick Note: Still haven't started your blog? That’s totally fine, you’re not behind. You’ve got access to this course beyond this week, so you can start now and catch up to today easily. When you're ready, the step-by-step 15-minute getting started guide is waiting for you right here.

Part 1: Why You Should "Launch" Sooner, Not Later

When I started my blog, I waited until I had multiple posts and a perfect design. It was a huge mistake that cost me time and money. You don't need a perfect blog to launch. You need to launch to build a profitable blog.

Here’s why flipping that switch is so important:

  • To Monetize Your Blog: As we talked about yesterday, you can't get approved for most affiliate programs (like Amazon) or ad networks until they can see a live website. Launching unlocks your ability to earn.

  • To Connect with Social Media: To get your blog officially set up on platforms like Pinterest, you need to "claim" your website, which you can only do if it's live.

  • To Start Tracking Your Progress: You can't set up tools like Google Analytics to see who is visiting your site until it's live.

Part 2: A Note on Perfectionism (from a recovering perfectionist)

Can I be really honest with you? The single biggest thing that will keep you from succeeding is waiting for the "perfect time" or the "perfect website."

I see it happen all the time. First, people try to wait to start their blogs until it’s the “right time,” a time when they will have motivation, free time, and a great idea. The truth is, most people never have all three at the same time. If you want to have a successful blog, you’re going to have to start before you’ve got all three. It’s the only way.

(I’m going to help you through starting, and be there to answer your questions, but you’ve got to actually start. (Here’s the step-by-step guide to starting, and on the same page is where you can sign up for my free live Q&A sessions))

Then, once people finally convince themselves to start their blog, they get it set up, and then they spend the next six months tinkering. They change the colors. They redesign the logo. They write ten posts but never hit "publish" because they're not "good enough" yet.

That's not action; that's fear disguised as productivity.

Your blog will never be perfect. My blog isn't perfect! But it's profitable because I took messy, imperfect action. I hit "publish" when I was scared.

You don't need a perfect blog. You just need a live blog. The one that's out there, ready to be found, ready to make money, and ready to change your life.

Part 3: The "How-To" Checklist (It's Really This Easy)

Ready to do it? It will take you less than 60 seconds.

Step-by-Step: How to Launch Your Blog

  1. Log in to your Bluehost account.

  2. On the left-hand menu, click WordPress.

  3. Once you're in your WordPress dashboard, find the Bluehost section in the left menu.

  4. Go to Settings.

  5. You should see a section for the "Coming Soon Page." Find the toggle switch that is currently ON.

  6. Click the switch to turn it OFF.

You Did It! Your Blog is Officially LIVE!

Congratulations! You just took a huge step that most people are too scared to take. Your corner of the internet is now officially open for business. I am so proud of you!

Your Action Task: The 3-Sentence "Hello World" Post

Now that your blog is live, let's get something on it! This is not about writing a masterpiece. This is about breaking the seal and getting over the fear of hitting "publish." We're going to do it together, right now.

    1. In your WordPress dashboard, go to Posts > Add New.

    2. For the title, write something simple like, "Hello World!" or "Welcome to My New Blog!"

    3. In the body, write just 3 sentences. You can even use this template:

      • "Welcome to my new little corner of the internet! My name is, and I'm so excited to start sharing [what you want to blog about]. I can't wait to get started on this journey!"

    4. In the top right corner, click the blue Publish button.

You are officially a published blogger! It doesn't have to be more complicated than that.

Tomorrow:

In our final lesson, we'll put all of this together and create a simple, stress-free plan to help you stay motivated and consistently grow your new blog.