If you are going to start a blog there are some things that you need to consider before you take the plunge.

1.) Make sure your blog is set up on the right hosting service. – By this I mean, should you be using a free blogging services like WordPress.com and Blogger.com or should you be setting up a blog on your own domain.

The simple rule of thumb that I use is if your blog is for your business or for profit have it set up on its own domain name. If it isn’t for either of these purposes then you should be fine on a free blogging service.

If you are running your blog as a business having your own domain name and site will make your blog appear much more professional. Plus it is much easier to optimize your site for the search engines and drive traffic to your site.

2.) Make sure you use the right blogging software – software like Joomla, TypePad and Concrete will all make blogs but I recommend that you use WordPress. The main reason for this is because WordPress has the most available plugins, themes and support.

3.) Keep your blog in one niche – I do a lot of blog research and I constantly find blogs that have numerous niches covered. They will cover items such as custom cigars and acne on the same blog. Most of these are using some type of auto-posting system and throwing in Adsense and other advertising programs. These are the type of sites that make the search engines and PPC advertising systems change their rules and end up hurting everybody.

Staying on topic for your specific niche will make you the obvious expert and will help on conversions whether you are selling your own product or are referring your readers to affiliate products. You will become known for your niche.

You should also make sure that your niche is a topic you like. You don’t have to know everything there is to know about it but you must be interested in it enough that you will put in the time that it takes to make your site popular.

4.) Know your keywords – every blog relies on keywords to get search engine traffic. The keywords you choose to use should be researched and you should know that people are actually searching for these keywords.

Google’s keyword tool is a free service where you can see exactly how many people are searching for your keywords on Google every month. This is a great place to start your keyword research.

5.) Make your blog personal – most people don’t like to listen to the anonymous stranger that is trying to give them advice. The much prefer to be able to build a relationship with the person (even if only in their own minds) and feel that they know the person giving the advice. You can do this by writing the articles in your own voice or even just putting a picture of yourself on your blog.

These steps will get you started with blogging, review them before you start your blog or if you already have a blog going see if they apply to your blog. They are the backbone of almost all successful blogs.