How to Start Blogging in Kenya with WordPress
WordPress is the most popular blogging platform globally and is also widely used by bloggers in Kenya. With over 60% market share, WordPress offers a user-friendly content management system to create professional blogs without needing extensive technical skills. This step-by-step guide covers launching a blog in Kenya with WordPress.
Choose Your Niche and Blogging Goals
As an aspiring Kenyan blogger, start by determining what topics interest you and more importantly, subjects you can create valuable commentary around for local audiences. Kenyan internet users have growing interests in news, technology, business, lifestyle, health, politics, sports, entertainment, and more.
Outline the objectives you hope to achieve through blogging. This self-reflection helps guide topic selections aligned to personal passions and knowledge strengths worth dedicating long-term publishing efforts towards. Do you aim to build an audience around insights that inform or entertain? Hopes to achieve advertiser sponsorships or product affiliate earnings in the future? Desires to improve writing and digital media skills? Establishing blogging goals shapes early content planning.
Register Your Blog Domain and Hosting
Every blog needs its own distinct web address or domain name that’s easy to remember and share. Some suitable examples could be yourname.co.ke, blogtopic.ke, or branded blogname.com. Use our domain search tool to identify availability.
Select shared starter or mid-tier hosting plans sufficient for new blogs. Tara’s WordPress-optimized hosting and one-click auto installer makes launching blog sites simple. For advanced bloggers, our cloud VPS and dedicated server options enable seamlessly scaling resource capacity to match audience growth. Furthermore, our knowledgeable local support teams can guide you in optimizing hosting capabilities over time as your blog matures.
Install WordPress and Select a Theme
With domain and hosting ready, install WordPress – either using Tara Host’s one-click platform or manual open-source downloads. The intuitive WordPress dashboard enables customizing site design and features without coding. Mobile responsiveness is key for Kenyan audiences. Choose an uncluttered theme aligned to your blogging niche from WordPress.org or premium marketplaces like Elegant Themes. More advanced bloggers may consider Genesis or Divi frameworks.
Add essential pages like About, Contact, archives, and site terms. Enable user accounts to allow contributor permissions and potential coauthors access later. Install security plugins like WordFence along with sitemap generators and SEO optimizers like Yoast SEO. Configure key settings under the Reading, Discussions, and Permalinks submenus.
Create Content Optimization Strategies
With WordPress foundation activated, dedicate efforts towards high-quality content creation aligned to your Kenyan audience’s interests and search habits. Study competitor sites and trending news in your niche for inspiration. Long-form posts over 1,000 words optimized for local SEO gain more traction. Include imagery, multimedia, and visual callouts (without overloading pages) for skimmable experiences on mobiles.
Use compelling headings and introductions that demonstrate expertise. Share personal perspectives and local use cases versus merely compiling facts. Promote new posts across leading Kenyan social media channels using relevant hashtags and mentions. Analyze built-in Google Analytics data like top-performing pieces and traffic sources to continuously improve content.
Explore Blog Monetization Opportunities
Once establishing an engaged local readership through valuable publishing efforts, bloggers can explore income opportunities to sustain passions while retaining editorial independence. Display advertising managed through Google Ad Manager, direct sponsorships and discreet product affiliate partnerships respectfully balance revenues without detracting site experience.
For qualified commentary on news, politics and specialized industries, paid syndication partners amplify reach. Consulting, market research gigs, digital services, and physical events also monetize loyal niche audiences. While chasing profits early risks quality, organically monetizing blog traffic later unlocks site longevity.
Through selecting meaningful topics tailored for Kenyan readers and then crafting optimized multimedia content that informs, inspires, and entertains – supported by Tara Host’s optimized local hosting resources – passion-fueled WordPress blogging unlocks impactful opportunities for vital societal commentary plus potential income streams without relying on institutional media positions.
Build an Email List
Email marketing remains one of the most effective channels for bloggers to build deeper ties with readers separate from volatile social media algorithms. Offer an opt-in mailing list sign-up form or popup using a trusted tool like Mailchimp on your blog. Integrate across relevant posts footers as well for promotion.
Provide exclusive ‘insider’ commentary, personalized recommendations, access to early previews, special discounts, and discussion forums via email updates to incentivize sign-ups. Respect privacy by only sending useful emails aligned to opt-in preferences. Segment groups based on interests to personalize messaging and encourage sharing. Email list-building takes consistency but enables more intimate blogger-audience relations and retention.
Explore Paid Collaboration Opportunities
Once establish a respectable audience and email list around your niche, paid partnerships, sponsorships, and subtle affiliate promotions can provide monetization without sacrificing editorial independence. Ensure all paid collaborations meet relevant regulatory requirements and are visibly disclosed on associated posts.
Direct text-based sponsorships that thoughtfully match blog topics can fund content costs. Affiliate links for relevant tools or items referenced in posts provide transaction-based earnings. Sponsored campaign spotlights aligned to readership interests deliver multimedia integration options. Brand partnerships, contests, and giveaways also connect bloggers with emerging labels. While chasing profits risks editorial quality, pursued judiciously, collaborations sustain operations.
Diversify Content Formats
While long-form blogging may kickstart your site, adding other short-form written pieces, imagery, infographics, audio casts, videos, animations, presentations, webinars, etc enrich engagement. Enable user-generated content submissions to tap readers. Vary multimedia content types tailored for varied contexts – like brief Tweets vs hourly radio vs visual-first Facebook.
Diversified content channels also allow the repurposing of popular archived blog posts for new audiences. Testing different formats uncovers more viral options the core blog can link to as well. Documenting your publishing experiments across an array of digital media illuminates the most engaging pathways matched to topics and platforms.
Network Locally and Globally
While focusing efforts on serving Kenyan readership, connect with both national and international blogger communities to exchange best practices, trends, and opportunities. Attend local events from blogger guilds like BAKE to stay atop the latest monetization options and platform algorithm updates.
Participate in regional blogger forums for inspiration and collaborations across Africa’s digital media landscape. Over time, syndicate work with global channels seeking authentic African commentary to expand reach. Pitch international panels and conferences like BlogHer to share localization insights. View blogging efforts through both hyperlocal and worldwide lenses to maximize impact potential.
Conclusion
A passion for a niche topic and consistent high-quality publishing that informs or entertains drives successful blogging more than platform technicalities. However, a professional WordPress foundation optimized for Kenya’s mobile-first audience backed by Tara Host’s local hosting and support capabilities allows you to focus efforts on content.
our affordable packages deliver the speed, security, and capabilities to scale blogging operations without infrastructure limitations as readership grows. Tara’s optimization for local infrastructure conditions helps you expand audiences across Kenya’s 47 counties and beyond without disruptions.
While social channels drive discovery, email newsletters build deeper reader relationships. Judicious affiliate partnerships, advertising, and sponsorships offset costs to enable sustainable blogging as a cherished pastime or self-funded career. By intertwining personalized perspectives with thoughtful digital media entrepreneurship, WordPress empowers Kenyans to launch distinct voices reflecting their communities.
