Hello there!!!

In today's post, I explain to you how I created and what platforms I have used to run my blog.

DOMAIN

I started with my domain, by domain I mean that link at the top  that starts with "www".

There are several places where you can get a domain from, for example, you can create your domain with Shopify, for an extra price.  Or you can buy a domain from "Godaddy" and then link your domain to the platform you are using, if you are using WooCommerce or Wix or WordPress, etc. 

My domain "www.mexi-cangirl.com" comes from Google Domains, I paid less than $20 USD per year. 

HOST

I do not run my blog with WordPress and BlueHost as many out there, this bundle asks you for a monthly fee. Instead, what I have is Blogger, this is for me the cheapest way to run my blog! So you can start the same way I did. Of course, Blogger has some limitations, as for example, you cannot have a "Store" therefore you cannot sell anything on your blog. But to be honest that is not my main intention, as the help and assistance I provide are usually free. 

SYSTEM SUPPORT ASSISTANCE

For any system assistance, I have contacted Google Support, and because the domain is from them, they are really good at helping me with any issues, and they are really fast, do not have to wait a lot of time to hear back from them. I have also used "Fiverr" sparely if I need help with some coding for my page and I believe I have spent around $10 CAD with them so far, so again, not a lot of money.

THEME

When I got my theme I used a Free Template I found online, my template is from "Beauty Templates".

I do not believe they have any more "Free" templates, but the cost of the templates they have is not bad, only $40 USD, or you can also use the Free templates that Blogger has, and of course, do not have to spend money on it. Beauty Templates offer support in how to install their themes, they make it look super easy. 

TRAFFIC

Know I did not know I needed to work on this, apparently, we have to, because people will not know you exist until you promote your website.... pretty straight-forward. What I have tried to do is sharing my posts in Facebook groups that I know will be of interest to the community. I also pin every post to Pinterest, because I heard it is a great place to put yourself out there. Therefore, you better have a Pinterest account linked to your website.  I am still debating if I should pay for some ads, maybe in the future.

LANDING PAGE 

Instead of the Gadget " Follow, Subscribe" from blogger, I use a Landing Page to maintain control of my followers. 

This is new to me, but once again everything is pretty much new to me. But along the way, I have heard from several companies handling landing pages, the ones I have heard the most are Converkit and Mailchimp. Both of them offer free plans.

But what is a Landing Page? Basically, these companies help you create a form to get your followers' email in an easy way, this form has its own website link. You can modify this form so when someone subscribes to your blog they receive a free pdf document, and it is kind of like the way to get their emails. S-M-A-R-T. Super Smart !!

I personally use Converkit, check mine out. I created a new "Gadget" in blogger, using the "image" option, and linked that image to my Landing Page. 

CONTACT ME FORM

Blogger also has a Gadget under "Contact Form" but it is also not very great looking.... 

So I added instead another "image" gadget, and instead of linking this to my landing page, I linked it to my email, simply add :  mailto:(your-email-here)" and it is done !!

Btw, I am sure this also works for any website, at the end of the day all of the internet is full of HTML code. So if you can link any text or images to your email, just add "mailto:(email)" on the link page and have fun !!!  Contact me here!

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask me anything! I am more than happy to help!

I will keep updating my blog with anything new I learn along the way, do not miss out and follow me here!

OTHER RESOURCES

I also use Canva for free desings and Unplash.,both website have free products.

Sincerely,

Little Mexi-Can Girl

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