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How to Start a Beauty Blog

priyanka

June 1, 2021

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Introduction

Hey there, sunshine! Wondering how to start a beauty blog by yourself? Or if you are still considering whether or not you should start a beauty blog? If you ask me then I would say go for it. Beauty blogging is a cash cow if you can do it correctly. It is one of the top 3 blog genres that generates an insane amount of money. So after finishing this article if you start a blog and turn it into your full-time work to make a decent amount of money I won’t be surprised.

Everything has a starting point so does beauty blogging. You might have heard many stories of failure by now. There are reasons for those failures. If you are working hard but not on the right path then what’s the point? So I’m glad that you are doing some research before starting. That is the first step to success. Kudos to you.

Now let’s get to the real business. By now You might have checked many articles stating the steps of initiating beauty blogging. They are confusing and overwhelming. aren’t they? First, do this then that. So much work before even starting. Trust me the whole process of starting the blog will take only 30 minutes. Even those technical steps.

Here I’ll explain the whole process in 3 macro steps so that you can differentiate between the technical and non-technical tasks. Want a quick brief? To start a beauty blog first you need to choose a niche. ( niche is the topic that you will write on). After that, you have to purchase a virtual name and residence for your blog post which is a domain name and web hosting solution from a web hosting company.

Then start blogging and spread the word through social media. What? You were expecting a long list of work? Told you it’s easy you just need to click, click and click to enter the amazing world of beauty blogging. To learn in detail keep scrolling down it will take a few minutes only.

Before we start let’s bust some common myths that hold a potential beauty blogger from starting their journey. Shall we?

Myth Busters

There was a time blogging was not for everyone. Eventually, it has gained popularity among the common even. If you have knowledge and passion about particular stuff like the beauty industry you should introduce that to the outside world. Blogging can be a great platform to portray your knowledge, understanding, and love for beauty.

Surely negative thoughts are pulling you behind. Aren’t they? Let’s address all the common myths of this industry and check the real facts.

1. Blogging is expensive

it is the most commonly heard and disheartening myth about any kind of blogging. Though it is not true. Running a blog costs less than running a food cart on the roadside. On the contrary, sometimes it can generate more money than that. Well, will talk about the expenses later on but the range is $10-$15 to get started. Sometimes even less than that. Don’t want to spend a penny? I’ll also suggest how to start a blog for free also.

2. Blogging is hard

If you can write that could be deciphered by a 4th grader then you are perfect for blogging. In Fact, most people struggle to achieve that simplicity. So blogging is easier than the easiest. But keep in mind generating money from blogging is another fact.
But that’s not rocket science either. With a sense of SEO and knowledge about your target audience, you can easily master that also.

3. Confusing setup

Another myth about blogging is the setup process is confusing. I hope this article piece will show you enough reasons why it is not confusing at all. With a proper step-by-step process, you can start a beauty blog without any confusion.

4. A small blog is a lost project

what do you appreciate more quality or quantity? For most people quality stands before quantity. So it’s not a problem if you can’t write a bigger post until your blog posts are relevant and helpful. It will be appreciated by your audience.

5. WordPress templates don’t look good

WordPress is used by most of the leading bloggers for its theme, fonts, and customization options solely. So that busts the myth that WordPress blogs don’t look good enough.

6. Using WordPress is hard

With a proper web hosting solution and a bit of practice using WordPress are as easy as scrolling a browser. So don’t get upset with the fact that you won’t be able to start a blog if you are not a techie. The first few days might not be comforting. But hey you can learn for the love of beauty. right?

7. Web hosting costs a lot

The cheap web hosting solutions start from $2.65-$2.95 per month. Does it sound expensive to you? There is no reason to hold yourself back if you were believing any of the above-mentioned myths.

Now let’s jump into the steps to start your first blog. Here I’ve categorized the steps into 3 macro parts depending on the objective of the task. First, we’ll talk about how to technically get yourself ready. Then we will organize the content. Right after that, we will take help from social media to spread the word.

Macro step-1: Technical setup

Equipment Needed

Okay, I know you know it and it’s obvious but still here’s a quick checklist of the equipment that you will need to start beauty blogging.

1. Camera

Now it depends on the quality and resolution that you want to provide. Still a basic professional camera, even an iPhone is good enough to get the stills that will convey your message to visitors. Take visual representation seriously to achieve success in blogging much early.

2. Lights

I’ve just mentioned the seriousness of visuals. Think to yourself, would you like to read block after block of content without any pleasing pictures? No right? To make your pictures look pleasing you need proper lighting. There are tons of lighting equipment that will surely fit into your budget. Don’t want to spend a penny now for light? Okay, take the help of natural light. The sunlight. I hope Greek sun god Apollo will bless your blog with some sunshine.

3. Desktop or Laptop

For the obvious reason you need a desktop, laptop, a tab, or any gadget that will help you to compose your post and do your basic photo editing. It is your personal preference which gadget you want to use.

4. Photoshop

Pictures sell the product these days. To get a batch of aesthetic photos ready to be attached with your blog post you can do basic to advanced level editing with photoshop, Lightroom and newly introduced Canva.

5. A website

A website is a home for your blogs. Purchase one from affordable hosting plans available in the market.

Step-1 Choose a Blogging Platform

The basics of blogging start with choosing a platform. There are endless numbers of platforms where you can uphold your blogs. The thing is not every one of them will serve you in the same manner. Choosing the platform also affects the visibility of your blogs. There are tons of platform such as,

1. WordPress.com
2. WordPress.org
3. Blogger
4. Tumblr
5. Wix
6. Weebly
7. Typepad micro Posterous spaces
8. Jux and many more.

Considering the level of professional look and goodwill of Google I highly recommend starting a self-hosted WordPress blog. It’s better than free sites like bloggers who will restrict your creativity with your blog posts. There You can’t decide how it looks, what ads will appear in your blogs and the visibility in SERP is also poor. [SERP= search engine result page].

So most bloggers start with WordPress as their platform as it provides standard customization and templates (both free & paid) to make your blog look presentable and appealing. How can you talk about beauty if your website itself doesn’t look good? Common sense .right?

I prefer wordpress.org over wordpress.com as it provides room for extra customization and chances of high ranking is also possible. So it’s the best place to start a blog.

Step-2 Domain Name

A domain name is the virtual identity of your blog website. It’s like registering a name for your business and having the loyalty that this name would be used only by you and no one else. So take it seriously but not so seriously also as you have the option to change your domain name afterward. Things to consider before having a domain name–

1. Simplicity: Sensuousgreasepaint.com or skinsecrets.com which sounds appealing to you? If you pick the second one then you will understand my point easily. Your visitors are not going to check the richness of your vocabulary so just provide them a name that they can easily understand and remember. That will serve you to build your brand image and loyalty.
2. Two to three options: Always have two to three (even five) options of domain name ready in your hand. As the domain names have to be exclusive if your desired domain name is taken by someone before then you have to try for another. When you find your domain name available don’t waste any time grab it right then.
3. Authenticity: Your domain name should be relevant and authentic. The name should shortly represent your blog’s objective and genre. Wouldn’t it be odd if some domain named ghosthunter.org posts beauty blogs? Though ghosthunter sounds cool to me it’s not appropriate for the authenticity of your objective.

You can add .com, .org, and many more. Though .com is standard. Make a list of your ideas of domain names then type them into the domain search bar to check if the domain is available. I’ll talk about two ways of purchasing a domain.

1. Domain selling site
2. A web hosting solution

Both are great options from my perspective but as a beginner, I would suggest you buy it from a web hosting solution as it becomes easier and sort of a one-stop solution for managing your blog website. There are web hosting companies like Bluehost, DreamHost, HostGator, A2 hosting. You can choose any provider to purchase a domain name for your blog. Most hosting companies give you a free domain at the start if you purchase their web hosting plan.

There you can simply type your desired domain name and click the “ availability button” to check if the name is available or not.

Every day dozens of domain names are being handed over to one entity or another. People even buy them beforehand to sell them to others. If you ask for my advice I would suggest that you grab your desired domain if it’s available before someone else takes it away.

Domain name ideas

Here are some domain name ideas to start a beauty blog. Have a look and happy brainstorming. Obviously, you can mix and match and come up with your ideas.

1. Beauty secrets
2. Skin makeup
3. Chic makeup
4. glamor grace
5. Gleam cream
6. Makeup collection
7. Palette swatches
8. Blush and rush
9. Face beauty
10. Allure Adora
11. Elegant beauty
12. Savage beauty

Step-3 Purchase Domain & Hosting

The web host server is the virtual home for your website. If a domain name is considered to be registering your website’s name then purchasing a host is similar to buying working space for your website. It will allow you a one-stop platform where you can easily create and control your content, engage with the audience, access WordPress, and better your SEO results.

There are many web hosting service providers available right now with different products, plans, and services. I personally enjoy using Bluehost, DreamHost, A2 hosting. As this article addresses the newbies, I’ll illustrate how you can start web hosting with HostGator ( one of the cheapest providers).

As you are a newbie it would be perfect for the start. So let’s purchase a web host plan and start web hosting, shall we?

1. Visit HostGator: first of all visit HostGator then there you will find their services named shared web hosting, VPS web hosting, dedicated web hosting, and many more. As your intention is blog posting you should start with a minimalistic shared hosting plan.I recommend choosing this option because it is cheap yet provides you all the resources that you need to run a blog post.
2. Select a plan: in the HostGator shared category, there are 3 plans named hatchling, baby, and business. I would recommend hatchling as it is cheap and great to start with.

1. Enter a domain name: after choosing a plan you have to provide a domain name. You can enter an existing one or buy a new one from HostGator.

1. Create a HostGator account: when you scroll down after entering a domain name you will find a panel asking you to create a HostGator account. It’s nothing but simply providing them your email address and setting a password.

1. Billing information: here you have to enter all the billing information such as how you want to make the payment. Provide your identity and address, zip code.

1. Check out: when you are done with providing your card information scroll down and check if there are any services added as extra by default. Uncheck them if you don’t want them then simply hit the “check out” button.

Then the HostGator team will contact you through email and guide you through formalities to start the web hosting. Isn’t that simple? Most web host providers follow more or less the same procedure so no worry if you don’t want to go with HostGator. The process remains the above mentioned for any other provider.

As we have decided that we will use WordPress as our blog platform the next thing you need to do is install WordPress in your HostGator (or any other web host that you’ve selected). Make sure you use the best web hosting for wordpress. You will find the option in the dashboard. To Install WordPress follow the three easy steps mentioned below.

1. Choose the domain where you want to install WordPress
2. Enter name, admin username, and password
3. Click on ‘install now’

And your WordPress panel is ready to roll.

Step-4 Theme Selection

Now that you have a unique domain and stunning WordPress panel all set with web hosting it’s time to fix the appearances. Though I think at the first exclusive theme selection is not necessary. Yet a pleasant theme can boost your productivity and chances of getting noticed by the visitors.

To select a theme follow the following procedures from the dashboard.

1. Find “appearance”
2. Click “themes”
3. Then “add new”

It’s that simple. With a theme, you will get a layout that will make your content look good. You can alternate the theme with your photos and fonts. That will make your blog post and writing look more appealing.

Theme recommendations

There are many free and paid themes ready to be installed from WordPress. Here are some of my favorite themes that I would like to recommend for beauty blogging.

Free themes

1. Blossom Feminine
2. Blossom spa
3. Vilva
4. Chic lite
5. Elegant pink

Paid themes

1. Look ($69)
2. Applique ($49)
3. Untold stories ($49)
4. Allure ($75)
5. Stockholm ($69)

Step-5 Installing Plugins

Plugins are software and application add-ons which help you optimize your website and perform better. It enhances the capability of a website. There are tons of plug-in like,

• WordPress SEO (Yoast)
• W3 Total Cache
• WPML Plugin
• Scroll Triggered Box
• Public Preview

It’s not a static rule that you have to get all these plugins before starting. You can have them from starting or add later on.

Step-6 Logo and Page Set Up

What’s the logo of the iPhone? Did it take you even a second to imagine that bit ate an apple? No, right? That’s the image of a logo. It builds and symbolizes your brand. If you have long-term dreams and aspirations with your beauty blog then you must get yourself a relevant and catchy logo. Starting with a logo you will hammer the first nail of your brand.

Your logo should be presented at the top of your new blog theme. After the placement of the logo, you can now pay attention to your important page setup. So that visitors can know that you want them to know. The important pages that need a step up before getting started,

• About page: It’s the best place to introduce yourself and talk about your mission and vision. From here the visitors can get to know the person behind the blog. Think of it as an introductory speech and write about yourself and your blog.
• Contact page: How can someone contact you for collaboration? Won’t you be missing the chances of paid promotion? That’s why guide your visitors clearly on how to contact you. So that they can contact you about collaborations and PR packages.
• Shop page: If you intend to sell products from your blog then this page is a must. It will give your visitors the idea of products that you have and their prices or discount offer if any. This page generally comes with a big product widget for ease of navigation. With this, you can display all the products that you love and recommend.

Macro step-2: Creativity in content

Find your Target Audience

You are writing for whom? Always have a set target audience. How you will talk with a beginner level makeup user will not be the same tone while addressing an expert make up artist. So segment your audience and address the majority. Analyze whether your audience is a teenager or adult. They want to buy luxury make up items or budget friendly ones.

You should keep that in mind before thinking about how to start a blog and make money. Because money will come from the selected segment of audience.

Purpose of Blogging

Hold for a moment, close your eyes and think about why you want to start this blog? Is it your passion? Do you want to gain popularity? Or you want both and make money to turn it into a full-time job that you can enjoy. You can actually do it. Beauty blogging is one of the biggest cash cows of the blogging industry. If you want to earn money through your blogs you can do it by the following means.

• Affiliate programs: affiliate programs are a list of products that are ready to be promoted by bloggers and other types of content makers. You can visit these sites and get a customized link to promote those products from your content. Whenever a visitor clicks on those links and buys a product you end up getting a commission for that. Some of the best affiliate platforms are Shop style collective, Amazon affiliate, Rewardstyle. After collecting affiliate links from here you can insert them in your content and earn money every time someone purchases what you have linked to. Or you can arrange sidebars mentioning the products.
• Ads: ads in blogging are another good source of money. You can give a clear call of action to your visitors to subscribe, follow or buy products of someone whom you are promoting.
• sell products: direct sell is another money generator of the beauty blogging industry. Wouldn’t it be nice if I can find the products that you have recommended in your blog within your website? It gives a sense of satisfaction to the visitor and revenue to you. Both are winners.

Choose a Niche

Now that you know your purpose of blogging let’s find a niche for you. Niche is a topic that is appropriate for you. Any topic that serves your purpose and interest. There are macro niches ( covering broad categories) and micro-niches ( focusing subcategories). For instance, beauty is a macro niche. It covers so many things and the micro-niche of beauty could be,

• Makeup tips and tricks
• Beauty product review
• Beauty hacks
• Nails
• Makeup swatches
• Hairstyling
• Skincare
• DIY
• Product launches

Now the difference between working with the macro niche and a micro-niche is the complexity of work. As the macro niche is way broader and covers a lot of topics it could be overwhelming for a beginner to start with. As they will target a larger audience range they might end up getting nothing.

On the contrary micro niches are easy to catch up with. You will have your own set of audiences. Mastering a micro-niche will show you as an expert in the eyes of search engine results. Ultimately better SEO performance as well.

Create Engaging Blog

After selecting a niche now the next work is to develop engaging blog posts. Editing blog posts in WordPress is super easy. You can enter from your web host dashboard as well. Many people create their blogs right from WordPress itself but I would suggest you compose it in some other writing platform first then shift it to WordPress.

That allows you to scan through all the errors before hitting the “publish” button. Here, have a look at what to expect in this process.

1. Enter WordPress dashboard: from the web host dashboard, you will find a WordPress icon. Click on that and the WordPress dashboard will appear.

1. Click on “post”: scroll a little down and you will find the posts option. Click here to add a new post.

1. Block to add content will appear: when you click on to add new a block of content will appear where you can edit your post. Something like this.

1. Arrange the content: In this page, you can now arrange your content. Do the necessary editing, add table, accordion, chart, graphs everything that will convey your message to the audience.
2. Add media: Adding media to your content makes your blog look more attractive. So feel free to add relevant pictures, videos, graphics, animation, and infographics.
3. Add links: Linking affects the final performance of SEO. you should attach inbound links and outbound links as required.
4. Preview and publish: Finally have a look at your edited post and if you are satisfied with your work hit the publish button. Remember to write as you speak. Your audience is not techies, right? So talk to them as if you are talking to a friend. Help new readers with your reviews, makeup swatches, how to use them, and other details. Blogging can sometimes seem overwhelming but you can stay grounded by expressing your true opinion. Here are some post ideas that would go lovely to start a beauty blog.

Beauty blog post ideas

1. Makeup tutorial
2. How to get a winged eyeliner
3. Makeup collection
4. How to store makeup
5. My top 10 favorite Products
6. Makeup on a budget
7. Makeup: what beginners Need to have
8. ______ review
9. New lipstick Swatches
10. My foundation Collection
11. Makeup Routine: step by step
12. Everyday Skincare Routine
13. Makeup haul
14. Products I Won’t Buy Again
15. How to arrange a travel beauty kit
16. Daily Hair Care routine

Work on SEO for Better Monetization

SEO stands for search engine optimization.that means optimizing your website, content and blogs to appear on the search engine result page. Search engines like google have some strict criteria to sort their result page. If your blog matches all the criterions it will surely have high ranking for targeted keywords.

For better SEO you should provide engaging and authentic content. Including incoming and outgoing links is a good SEO practice. Try to keep the keyword density decent.dont over use keywords. WordPress yoast suggests you changes that would better your SEO performance. You can follow that as well.

Tips and Tricks

As you are a beginner all this might look “toughy”.right? I intended to make this article as easy as possible as a tutorial. Adding on to that I’ll be sharing now a few tips and tricks which I follow for good blog posts.

Content calendar: Content calendar is where you can schedule your potential contents to be posted in a week, month or year. You can break it down and arrange it however you like. It helps you to have batches of content ready to keep the flow of your blog posts. Doing it on a notepad or gadget doesn’t matter, just do it with sincerity.

Keep the audience in mind: Before even writing the content think about your audience. Whom do you want to address for this particular blog post? Then arrange the blog post like you are talking to them in person in simple language. Beauty blogs have to be casual and catchy. So bring out all of your sassiness on the table.

Do research: Keep an eye on what sort of information you are providing to your visitors. Is it authentic and backed up with evidence? Will it benefit your audience? Another research you have to do is Keyword research but it’s for your benefit.

It will suggest to you key phrases that are being searched globally on search engines. With this information, you can write with the correct keywords to drag organic traffic to your website.

Outline the post: Before actually writing a post outline it. Make a layout and note all the topics that your blog post will address this time. With this trick, you can bring out stunning-looking sophisticated content every time.

Read it out loud: Now this is a basic proofreading tip. After finishing the writing of your content, read it out loud. Check the tone of your content. Does it sound friendly? Are there any changes that you want to make? Think about it.

Break down paragraphs: No one likes chunks of black fonts on their screen. It stresses the readability of the visitor. Go on, help them out by breaking down your paragraphs into 3-4 easy-to-read sentences.

Skim the content: Skimming the content refers to highlighting the key aspects of your blog. Give your audience a quick look at what topics you have brought to light for this blog.

Visual break: As mentioned earlier visual breaks like image, video, ads, infographic break the monotony of the article. Feel free to add each of these after finishing each subheading or paragraph. Keep the visual breaks relevant to your blogs.

Macro step-3: Spread the Word through Social Media

In the virtual world blow your own trumped. As generation Z we ourselves are brands. Each of us at least has 100 plus followers on social media. It is the correct time to cash on them. Spread the word of your blog through social media. Instagram and Youtube are great platforms for beauty niches. 

Use appropriate hashtags like #beauty_blogger #makeup #skincare on your Instagram post and YouTube videos. Add the links to your blog in the description box and captions. The blogs can be the basic script for your youtube videos. Just convert the idea and information into a video. The psychology of these two audiences searches for better appearance and lifestyle. 

On the other hand, Pinterest is commendable to make your blog post go viral with some catchy infographics. To enter the community of beauty blogging you can engage in conversations on Twitter and join Facebook groups.

Top Inspiring Beauty Blogs 

Now that you know how to start a beauty blog let’s discuss what you are getting yourself into. There are countless beauty blogs out there but not every blog gets the name and fame. To provide the top quality to your visitors, learn from the industry giants, and take inspiration. Here are the top beauty blogs which are loved by their visitors. 

Have a look, who knows in a few years you might become one of  their competitors! (wink)

1. A Model Recommends  [ https://www.amodelrecommends.com/ ]
2. Front Row Beauty  [ https://www.frontrowbeauty.com/ ]
3. Into The Gloss [ https://intothegloss.com/ ]

Final Words

Beauty blogging is a very good chance to make money. So don’t waste time wondering and trying meaningless things with your makeup techniques. Get a website and domain name, brush up on your contents and start a beauty blog. Who knows your passion might end up becoming your full-time job! Good luck sunshine!

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