How to Start and Run a Blog in Kenya

Access to the internet has made it easier for almost everyone to become a blogger. A good example is me. The process is so simple that it got me by surprise. Guess what, you can do it. This article will focus on how to start and run a blog in Kenya.

Who doesn’t want to be part of the future? The future where online content is king. Well, I do understand not everybody has the passion and patience of writing a 2500-word article such as this one every day without any tangible returns in the short term.

However, this is all that blogging is about. Spending the first year of your blogging creating content that no one cares to read. Let me give you a secret, this is very frustrating. Naturally, we all want to see a reward whenever we put in some work.

Don’t get me wrong. Blogging is rewarding. Sometimes very handsomely. However, it requires you to put in work and more work. I have not even mentioned the need for patience and persistence. These traits as well are very critical if you want to become a successful blogger.

Secrets to start a successful blog in Kenya

The secret to success in blogging is creating relevant and quality content. There is no shortcut to this. Your readers will only consume the content if they believe it has value. This way, you get more consumers and this is what makes your blog grow.

Google will only rank those blogs that have relevant and quality content. Naturally, almost 90% of all blogs do not succeed. Most don’t even last for more than a year. This just shows attrition levels are high.

However, we can also interpret it as most bloggers don’t understand the requirements to get it done. This article will try to make it easy for you to understand the requirements to become a good and successful blogger step by step.

Let’s look at some of the benefits and challenges of how to start and run a blog in Kenya.

Benefits of starting and running a blog in Kenya

1. It is a hobby if you have a passion for writing – There is no greater satisfaction than doing what you love. For people with a passion for writing, blogging is one of the best things you can do. This not only allows you to do what you like but also gives you a chance to educate others as well. Just as am doing.

2. It offers an opportunity to make income – Blogging has become a source of income for thousands of writers globally. This happens when your content attracts a good number of readers. In return, marketers and advertisers could pay you to market your blog.

The more readers you have, the higher the chances of making more money through blogging.

3. An opportunity to promote your brand– Most individuals and businesses use blogs as a platform to promote their brands. This happens by creating content that in return attracts traffic to the site.

Through this, you are to expose this traffic of readers to your brand. It is a cheaper and more effective way of marketing.

Challenges of starting and running a blog in Kenya

1. Inconsistent earnings– This is a major concern for new bloggers who are in a rush to make from blogging. As per my introduction statement, blogging takes time before you can make a consistent and sizeable income. This could be months or years. Hence, if you don’t an alternative source of income, it could become hard to wait all this time to make some income.

2. Competition– The growing interest in blogging has made the industry very competitive. This had made it harder to generate income in comparison to the past. Hence, it now requires you to do more research before settling on a niche.

How to start and run a successful blog in Kenya

1. Getting a blogging niche

Perhaps this is one of the most critical steps if you want to succeed in blogging. A niche is an industry or area you want your blog to cover. You could have a blog in a niche such as food, finance, technology, sports, or fashion.

The choice of a blogging niche is determined by factors such as the area of interest, market gap, or target market. It is advisable to settle on a niche that you are good at. This makes it easier to create content.

However, getting a niche alone is not adequate. You need to factor in factors such as the ability to produce constant content in that field, potential needs in the market, and competitiveness. The more competitive a niche, the harder the chances of success.

The other key aspect to understand when choosing a niche is an area such as sports is a broad niche. Choosing to write about all the sports could make it impossible and challenging making your blog noncompetitive.

Hence you can narrow it down to a sub-niche and only concentrate on one sport such as football or rugby. This enables you to have authority and competitiveness in a specific area. The majority of bloggers fail because they get it wrong at this step.

A niche will also be critical in settling for some key elements such as the blog name. This ensures the blog name correlates with the content in it. The blog name is also known as the domain name.

2. Choosing the domain name

This is the name that identifies your blog. As an example, Kenya Invest is the domain name for this blog. Due to the importance of the domain name, you should ensure there is utmost consideration when choosing it.

Below are some of the key characteristics of a domain name;

• Memorable
• Short
• Related to the blog’s content
• Should not have a hyphen for SEO purposes.

A memorable blog name helps your readers remember it easily. The goal is to make your reader’s experience as best as you can.

Through this, you will always get customers for your content. I believe you don’t want to write content that nobody wants to read because they can’t remember your blog name.

The domain names are also not always available. Hence, you should get a few options in case some of them are unavailable.

3. Purchasing the domain name

After getting a list of potential domain names, the next step is to purchase it before someone gets it.

Domains are purchased from companies that offer domain registration services. However, there is one more step you need to confirm before making the payment. This is choosing the type of domain extension.

With this I mean do you want it to be a (. co. ke) or a (.com) or even a (.org). let us check what these domains mean.

.com

This is one of the most common types of domain extension. It is global and in ranking your blog globally.  More often than not, it is usually the best option for most blogs. On the flip side, it subjects your blog to international competition, making it harder for your blog to rank.

.co.ke

It is the best option for a blog targeting the Kenyan audience. This will make it easier to rank the blog in the country. However, it is limited if you are targeting a global audience.

.org

This domain extension is mainly used by non-governmental organizations although you can still use it for your blog.

.net

It is a very wee fit for use by bloggers in the tech industry. Due to this specification, you should avoid using it if you are not into tech blogging.

From the above details, the most common blog extensions to use in Kenya are both the .co.ke and the .com depending on whether your content is either global or local targeting.

You can choose to get the domain either from a local or international domain registration company.

Some of the available domain registration companies in Kenya include:

• TrueHost
• Kenya website experts
• HostPinnacle
• Safaricom
• Web host Kenya

Different companies offer domain names at different prices. The domain extension also cost differently. Hence, you should do adequate research before settling on the best domain registration company.

Some also package the domain purchase with Webhosting. However, it will cost you an average of 500-3000 shillings to purchase a domain name. Another key point to note is that they require annual renewal for validity.

4. Getting a Webhosting company

A web hosting company provides housing for the blog. This comes in form of support, storage space, and security of your blog. You can either choose self-hosting or using a free web hosting service depending on your budget.

Free Webhosting

There are several free Webhosting companies in the market today such as Blogger, WordPress, and Tumblr.

They normally register your blog as a subdomain such as www.example.blogspot.com.

However, some limitations come with using free web hosting services such as a limitation on the number of media files to upload and lack of room for blog customization.

However, this is the right level to start for a beginner or if you lack the resources to pay for commercial web hosting services.

Self-web hosting

This requires you to pay for Webhosting services from a commercial company offering these services. Most companies offer various web hosting packages depending on the nature and size of the blog.

The difference comes in items such as storage space, email addresses, and domain. A bigger blog would need more hosting storage than a smaller blog. Hence, you need to ensure you take a package that is the best fit for the blog.

You will realize that most companies that offer domain purchases also offer Webhosting services. Normally, they usually package it together. In most cases, it is cheaper to purchase both the domain and Webhosting from the same company than when you split them.

However, there is no limitation if you want to do it differently. Some of the factors you need to consider when settling on a Webhosting service provider include;

• Hosting costs
• Uptime
• Customer support
• Market experience and reputation

When starting to blog, you should go for the cheaper option and upgrade once the blog grows and starts generating a decent income.

Below are some of the web hosting companies in Kenya.

• Host Pinnacle Kenya
• Safaricom
• True Host Kenya
• Kenya web experts
• Webhost Kenya

Once you have paid for your web-hosting services, it is time to build your website.

5. Building and designing the website

The next step after getting both the domain and Webhosting services is to build the website. There are thousands of website styles that you can use. It all depends on your blog and preference.

The website should be attractive and organized. This is key in attracting and retaining website visitors.

44% of the global websites are created using WordPress. WordPress is user-friendly and free to install. Due to the popularity of WordPress, most web hosting companies have a one-click installation process for WordPress on the account control panel.

This blog is currently running on WordPress. The installation process is simple to execute. However, you can choose to do it yourself or engage the services of a professional at a fee to do it for you.

Below are some of the other website providers that you can use

• Wix
• Squarespace
• Drupal
• Joomla

6. Installing relevant plugins

Plugins are tools or extensions that assist in the management of the website. They are easy to install with most of them being plug and play.

However, they are into two categories. Free plugins and paid plugins. For a beginner, you can use the free ones and upgrade as the blog expands.

Below are some of the most common plugins that bloggers use.

• Akismet– It helps in dealing with spam. Spam could be detrimental to the health of the blog and affect the overall customer experience.
• Grammarly– This is one of the most common plugins as it helps with the grammar aspect of writing. With writing being the key element in blogging, a plugin that makes writing easier is very useful.
• Yoast SEO– Blog optimization is key in helping your content rank in google. Ranking helps to attract more readers and, in the process, makes the blog grow. SEO is the abbreviation for Search Engine Optimization.
• ThirstyAffiliates– It helps with the management of affiliate links present in the blog. This is important if you are doing affiliate marketing through your blog. Top 10 affiliate marketing programs in Kenya.
• Google analytics– this is an important tool that helps to provide statistics on the blog performance. Google Analytics is used in giving insights such as blogs getting more attention. Such data helps to identify opportunities and areas to focus on more.

7. Keyword research

For a blog to rank on google and other search engines, it requires search engine optimization. This is done through the SEO plugin. As a blogger, your goal is to ensure your blog ranks in the search engine.

Ranking ensures the blog is on the top when someone searches on the search engines such as Google. This way, you get more vlog visitors in comparison to your competitors.

It needs some research and learning to fully understand how SEO works. However, you can also engage an expert in SEO to help you ensure the blog is optimized as you continue to learn. It is key to note that this make comes at a cost.

The best strategy for keywords is to use the ones that are not competitive. This helps accelerate the ranking process. The keyword should also be unique to rank faster.

8. Writing and publishing your first blog post

After checking all the boxes of becoming a blogger, the next step is to write and publish your blog posts. By doing this, your content is available across the internet and readers can consume it.

As a blogger, your role is to create high-value content regularly. This will ensure readers are constantly consuming your material enabling you to monetize in the long term.

It takes time and practice to become a good blogger. Hence, don’t worry if you are making a few mistakes when starting. It is part of the process. Just like every other trade, you get better at blogging with time.

Posting your first blog is an indicator you have already made it over 50% of the journey. Normally it is advisable to post at least one blog per week. However, if you can do more, the better.

Another important factor to consider is the length of your blogs. Longer blogs rank faster especially when you are a beginner. On average, blogs with at least 1500 words rank faster. However, you can still do smaller articles but it could take you longer to rank.

Most bloggers usually create content before the blog is ready. Hence, at the time of launch, you should ensure you have at least 5 articles to post. This gives you some leverage for the weeks you will be unable to create content.

Finally, remember the secret is in the creation of quality and relevant content.

9. Marketing your blog

Marketing is the process of making your potential readers aware of the content you are creating. Just like most businesses, you need to have a marketing plan. This ensures there is traffic on your website making it attractive for advertisers.

One of the best ways to market your blog is through social media platforms. Start by creating a social media page for your blog. This is the platform you will be using to push awareness of your content to potential readers.

Social media marketing is suitable due to the potential of reaching many people. It is also free to create and manage a page. However, you can also choose to sponsor blog adverts on social media platforms at a cost.

The choice of social media platform to use depends on the nature of your blog content. As an example; fashion, beauty, and travel blogs do better on Instagram than on other social platforms.

Another approach to marketing your blog is through joining groups such as Facebook groups or Reddit communities. This enables you to reach an audience with an interest in your blog niche.  

Another viable option for a beginner r is to join an association such as The Bloggers’ Association of Kenya (BAKE). This offers an opportunity to get reviews and blog visitors.

10. Monetizing the blog

The ultimate goal for most bloggers is to make income through their blogging efforts. This is only possible if you have sizeable traffic and you can market it effectively to potential advertisers. Below are some ways to monetize your blog in Kenya.

· Running ads on your blog

This happens through getting advertisers to run advertisements on your blog. Among the top and most common advertisers is Google AdSense.

To get acceptance on the platform, you need to make an application to Google. Google them checks some factors such as the quality of the blog, the number of visitors, and the number of articles.

If successful, google starts to run ads on your blog. Google then starts to pay you monthly based on the revenue made from adverts.

· Affiliate marketing

As an affiliate marketer, you will earn a commission every time someone purchases products using your affiliate link. The best approach for affiliate marketing on your blog is to promote goods related to your niche.

· Freelancing

Once you have adequate writing skills, you can market them on freelancing sites such as Upwork and Fiverr. This way, using your blog as evidence, you can get writing jobs where you are paid upon task completion.

· Selling e-books and online courses

As you gain expertise in your field, you can create a guide or a course to sell to your readers. Since your blog will be in a specific niche, your readers will see you as an authority figure in the specific niche and be willing to purchase your course.

· Sponsored blog posts

Once your blog becomes popular, you can allow writers to make guest posts at a fee. Companies and organizations could also pay you to write a post about their product or services.

Conclusion on How to Start and Run a Blog in Kenya

Access to the internet and computers has made it possible for writers to make a living through blogging. The number of bloggers is continuously rising in Kenya as demand for quality content expands.

The above steps are the process of becoming a blogger. A journey that I have personally been and still going through.

If you have read this article to this level, I would believe you are interested in blogging. My advice to you is, to start writing today. Don’t worry if you are not yet perfect, it takes time and effort to get there.