How To Become A Successful Blogger In Nigeria

One thing is to a start blog, another is to become a successful blogger. After reading this article, you’ll learn how to become a successful blogger in Nigeria

First, I will teach you what blogging is all about.  Next, I’ll walk you through how to become a successful blogging in Nigeria. Finally, I show you ways to make money blogging in Nigeria

Blogging in Nigeria is no longer a new thing.  Many Nigerians have quit their day to day job to become a full-time blogger as they make money blogging. The truth is that it takes hard work to become a successful blogger. That point at which you can rely solely on the money you make through blogging for your livelihood.

I started blogging in midyear 2010. Then, I started as a newbie without much knowledge of what blogging entails. I experiment on a lot of things. I work hard to understand the ART of blogging. Since then things have change and I have continued to adapt to these changes. Now, I can comfortably beat my chest as a professional….. Enough about me! This article is not all about me.

Jump to:

What is Blogging all about?

Blogging is simply means to express yourself, share ideas, information, and educate others. And ultimately, you make money online in Nigeria while doing all these. So, get it! You don’t blog to make money. The focus should be on adding value to people’s life. That’s all! Any other thing can follow.

Aha! You are now aware of what blogging entails. Let’s dive into the main business of the day, how to become a successful blogger in Nigeria.

Steps to Become a Successful Blogger in Nigeria

Follow these steps to become a successful blogger in Nigeria:

Choose a Blog Niche

Choosing a blog niche is the first step towards becoming a successful blogger in Nigeria. Think of anything you know how to do or something you can find information on how to do. That’s your blog niche. It should be something you are passionate about or willing to talk about always.

Take Action: Search the internet right now to find out those blogs that are in this niche area. Discover the gap missing in this niche area your blog can fill. Jot it down. This is where your success lies.

Done that, right? Should I proceed to the next step?

Okay, hold on! Let me help you on blogging ideas or untapped blog niches you can venture into. Some untapped blog niche areas you can go into include:

• Fashion and designing blog
• Sports & Betting blog
• Travel and Tourist blog
• Mentorship and Inspirational blog
• Education and Career blog

I hope these blog niche ideas helps!

Choose a Domain Name

The next thing is to choose your domain name. Your domain name is what people will enter into search engine when searching for your blog on the internet. It is very important  you pick the right domain name for better ranking of your blog on Google search. Most Nigerian bloggers get it wrong at this point. That’s why their blogs do not rank higher on Google Search.

If you want your blog to appear on Google #1 SERP for topics on your niche; you have to choose a domain name that covers your topics. For example, if your blog is on Fashion and designing; your domain name should be something like www.fashiondesign.com.  That gives your blog authority in your niche and better ranking on Google SERP.

Take Action:  jot down your own domain name (at least five domain names), right now. You can do permutation from your list later to pick the best. If you have taken action on step #1, this will be a lot easier. Done that, right? Let’s proceed.

Host your Blog

Next is hosting of your blog. Hosting of your blog will ensure your blog is live 24/7 and people can access it any time.

This is a critical step you need to take. If you get it right, you’re closer to success in your blogging career. If you fail to get right, you’re doom forever in your blogging career. No! No! That sounds too hard. You can migrate your blog to a new better host, if your hosting company is not performing well.

Using free hosting to start blogging is not an option, so do not think of that. Gone are those days you can consider that as an option. Free hosting blogging platform have an endless list of short-falls ranging from your domain name not looking professional, access to uploading image denied to not fully allow customizing your blog the way you want it. But with your self-hosted blog, you can achieve all these.

To host your blog, you need the services of a good web hosting company. A Good web hosting company is characterized by 99 % – 100 % uptime, responsive technical support, innovative team, good customer representative and affordable hosting plan. Such web hosting companies are hard to come by.

I’ll recommend the following web hosting companies for your next blog hosting. I have tested some of them, and the others reviewed. They prove trusted. Some of these web hosting companies include:

• Siteground
• Namecheap
• Hostgator

You can check them out. A trial will convince you. If you not comfortable with the above recommended web hosting companies, you can check out our list of top domain and host reseller companies in Nigeria.

Take Action: check out those recommended web hosting companies I have listed. Compare their hosting plans and pick a hosting plan you want to start with.

Done that, right? I know you’re course.

 Choose a Blogging Platform

Choosing of blogging platform is the next thing that follow. There are a number of blogging platform, you can choose from. Most hosting companies integrate blogging platforms into their hosting services as “One-Click-Install” for WordPress blogs. So, you don’t have to worry about how to go about installing the blogging platform. With few clicks away, you’ll install the blogging platform.

Some of these blogging platforms include:

• WordPress
• Blogger
• Joomla
• Tumblr
• Drupal
• sparespace

I take WordPress as my No.1 blogging platform. It’s by far the best blogging platform with lots of access to tweak, and customization. In addition to that, it’s also the most known blogging platform with over 80 million active users.

WordPress has the following features:

• Super easy to set up.
• Easy and free layouts and themes to choose from.
• huge support forum to help you out in difficult time
• Fast loading time and so on.

Take Action: log into the backend of your web hosting company and install wordpress as your blogging platform. You can add Domain privacy and other website essentials. Though they are optional but I recommend you add whois privacy (to keep you fully anonymous) and automated backups (for security purposes). Once you’ve installed WordPress, you can log in from “Yourblog.com/Wp-Admin” to get into your WordPress admin area.

Done that, right? Let’s proceed to the next stage.

Set up your Blog

Now that you have come up with an excellent domain name, found a good hosting company and install wordpress. It is time to set up your blog. Log in to your WordPress blog and look for unique themes under “Appearance” => “Themes” I usually pick something that looks professional and easy to customize, 2 or 3 layout theme are usually my best option. Create a child theme of your theme in case the theme is updated after your customization.

WordPress also has this awesome feature that allows you to change themes with a few clicks. So if you are tired of your current blog theme, you can just switch to another one without losing any content or images. Mess around with the available tool on your WordPress admin area to get the design of your blog it might be slightly confusing at first, but eventually you’ll get use to it.

Publish Blog Posts

Hit the ball rolling by publishing your first blog post. This is hardest step you can take to start a successful blogging. Use our ultimate bloggers’ guide to kick-off. I have that ultimate bloggers’ guide as a complete resource material in blogging to guide you through. The dos and don’ts of blogging are there.

Conclusion

If you follow the above steps diligently, you definitely start a successful blogging in Nigeria Remember; if you get sucked on the way, don’t forget I will be here to assist you. You can always come back to this page and use the comment box below to ask your questions. We got your back covered.

Ways to Make Money Blogging in Nigeria

The best blog offer a unique voice that informs, educates or entertains her readers. Interestingly, the best blog also have a way of generating revenue. So if you’re looking to make money blogging and you don’t know how to go about that, the following are ways to do that:

1. Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is one best rewarding way to make money blogging. If you’ve just started blogging and don’t have products or services to sell yet, developing content in sync with your affiliate deals can help you unlock the income stream once your content starts getting more views.

With affiliate marketing, you create a link on your blog that points to a product or service. When someone clicks your link and purchases the product or service, you earn a percentage of the sale. There are many ways to set up an affiliate marketing account, and most big blogs and software companies have their own affiliate marketing program.

2. Run Ads

Ads are the bread and butter of online monetization. They’re the easiest way to make money from a blog, and they require the least amount of time. You can place advertisements on your blog anywhere you have space, on your blog’s sidebar, in the content, or even on your blog’s logo. Most bloggers begin by advertising their blog on a pay-per-click ad network like Google AdSense or AdWords.

On the other hand, if you’re looking to create a long-term, sustainable source of income, displaying ads is probably not the best option. After all, they’re annoying. No one wants to see them on a regular basis. Most people close their browser tabs or click the X. This is why many bloggers choose to avoid them in the beginning. Some bloggers start with ads until they find more profitable means to make money blogging.

3. Email Marketing

Email is another great way to make money blogging. You don’t have to be an expert marketer to generate an email list. All it takes is a little patience and the willingness to give your readers something of value. If you can come up with a subject that interests your readers, you can write a series of emails that continue your blog’s content.

Readers will appreciate the value you’re providing, and they’ll want to stay on your list so that they don’t miss out on the next installment. You can include special offers in your emails, like a discount for subscribers or a freebie for signing up. You can also create email campaigns around blog posts, asking readers to share your content on social media or ask questions.

4. Sell eBooks

If you have a topic or subject area that your readers find interesting, you can write an eBook or a series of eBooks on that topic. EBooks are a great way to build a list, as readers who purchase your eBook will likely become long-term subscribers. Once you have a large subscriber list, you can continue sending out emails about the latest blog post or content, and use the emails to promote your eBook. You can sell your eBooks through your blog, or you can sell them on your own website. You can charge a one-time fee, or you can offer your eBooks for sale at a price that generates a recurring revenue stream.

4. Sell Courses

Selling courses is a great way to generate a long-term source of revenue for your blog. This is especially true if you have a strong product that can be sold online. The best way to sell courses is to create a course that is relevant to your content, and to have a strong email list. You can host your courses directly on WordPress with extensions like WP Courseware or even third-party platforms like Podia and Teachable. If you’re looking to sell courses and you don’t have a strong product, you can always write a resource guide.

5. Offer Paid Membership Plans

Paid membership plans are an excellent way to generate a recurring revenue stream. As long as you’re offering a value that your readers want, you have the potential to build a long-term, sustainable income from paid membership plans. You can offer monthly subscriptions, annual memberships, or anything in between. The best way to find out what type of membership plan works best is to test different options and see what generates the highest revenue.

If you’re looking to offer paid membership plans to your readers, you have a few options. You can create a membership site, where readers can subscribe to receive access to a series of tools, advice, or educational materials. Or you can offer a monthly membership site, where readers pay a one-time fee for access to a series of blog posts. You can also offer a membership site with a free trial.

6. Sell Digital Products

EBooks aren’t the only the digital products you can sell on your website. Digital products range from everything printable to downloadable podcasts. If you have a strong product that your readers are interested in, you can sell it as a digital product.

Digital products are a great way to build a list of email subscribers and to continue generating a revenue stream after you’ve built your email list. You can even offer a freebie with a purchase of a digital product, which can generate a high amount of initial sales but can also be a way to build a list if you offer other products as well.

7. Sell Coaching Services

If you have expertise that your readers are interested in learning more about, you can offer coaching services as a way to generate a recurring revenue stream. This is a great way to build a long-term revenue source, as you can work with a small group of clients and continue generating revenue long after you’ve built your email list.

You can offer one-on-one or group coaching sessions, and you can charge either per-session or by the hour. You can also sell a coaching package, where you provide ongoing support to a group of clients over the course of several months or years. This is a great for building a long-term, sustainable income source.

8. Sponsored Posts and Reviews

A sponsored post is a content piece that a company pays you to write. This can either be a simple post that contains a link to their product or service, or a more in-depth post that provides a review of their product. With sponsored posts, bloggers can charge companies money in exchange for writing posts about their products and providing their opinions. The product exposure will reach the blogger’s audience, and the company will gain more exposure and new customers.

If you have a well-written article that’s relevant to your audience, you can write a sponsored post in which you promote a product or service. You can pitch these posts to brands that your audience would be interested in, or you can reach out to companies that offer a similar product or service to what you offer. The best way to build a relationship with a brand is to offer to write a post for them.

Summary

The best ways to make money blogging  in Nigeria are:

1. Affiliate Marketing
2. Running Ads
3. Email Marketing
4. Sell eBooks
5. Sell Courses
6. Offer Paid Membership Plans
7. Sell Digital Products
8. Sell Coaching Services
9. Write Sponsored Posts and Reviews

Blog monetization doesn’t have to be a one-way thing. You can build multiple revenue streams from your blog by trying out different techniques.

Have any other great tips on how to make money from a blog? If so, share them below using the comment box.