I started on my blogging journey over 10 years ago on WordPress.com. I did migrate to WordPress.org pretty fast, but I didn’t know how to monetize a blog. It never occurred to me to take blogging courses; Were there blogging courses back then? I did read a bunch of books on blogging, but that was it. I gave up my blog after a few months.
Fast forward to 2 years ago, when I started another blog on WordPress.com. Again, it was not really to make money, but mostly to build a community and document my health journey.
I quickly realized that my blog was living in the depths of the Internet, and very few people were reading my posts.
When I started my network marketing business a few months later, I figured blogging could help me promote my network marketing business.
My first blogging course – Wealthy Affiliate
As I was researching network marketing, blogging, and making money online, I found something online about Wealthy Affiliate. I joined the program and paid for a yearly membership after giving it a trial for free. The teaching and the community aspect of this membership site were excellent. I do feel it has two pretty important drawbacks:
- It requires you to host your Website on the Wealthy Affiliate platform. I highly recommend that you make sure you are in control of your Website by self-hosting it on Wordpess.org.
- There was no teaching on building a mailing list and increasing your traffic. To be fair, things might be different now. When I was on the platform, I learned to pick blog post titles based on what keywords didn’t have as much competition on Google. I learned nothing about blog traffic and email marketing.
The blog I created on this platform was all about my network marketing products (horrible idea!). I wrote blog posts that explained how the different supplements worked. I dropped this blog as well. Read my full-length review of Wealthy Affiliate.
Second blogging course – Tanya Aliza’s Branding Blueprint
Tanya’s Branding Blueprint is the second course I took. In this course, you learn to set up your blog step-by-step using one of three themes: Hayes, Birch, or OptimizePress. Tanya even shows you how to set-up your hosting using different hosting providers. She over-delivers as always!
My main complaint about the Branding Blueprint is the themes are somewhat outdated (read more about my experience with OptimizePress). I purchased all three, so I speak from experience. Some of the tutorials on setting up your blog should be updated as well.
If you would like a full review of The Ultimate Branding Blueprint, read Tanya Aliza’s Ultimate Branding Blueprint: Full Review From a Non-Affiliate.
Third blogging course – Rebecca Spooner
I was growing my network marketing business the traditional way (messaging friends and making more friends on social media), but I was still interested in monetizing a blog. Furthermore, I wanted to use it to build my influence.
My passion had been health and wellness for over 10 years. As a result, I decided I wanted to use Rebecca’s course to start a Paleo blog. I had been on the Paleo diet for about 3 years, and I felt this niche would merge well with my network marketing products.
If you have a social media presence (and even if you don’t because the training will show you how to build it), it might be a good idea to use Instagram to start defining your niche before you create a blog. I didn’t go through this exercise, and I ended up starting many blogs. Likewise, the blog you are reading right now was born because of what I teach in the training below:
Start a Blog with Me! by Rebecca Spooner is an excellent course. I love her no-nonsense approach, and the content is top-notch for the price. She has a lot of experience, and she shares it with you as a friend. Moreover, she updated almost half of her course since I purchased it in November 2018. You can tell she makes sure that all the tutorials stay up-to-date.
Lastly, I truly felt that her course was the best I had taken until I came upon my two all-time favorite blogging courses coming up next.
More Blogging Courses
After having created two self-hosted blogs, I took two more blogging courses. These two courses would be better suited for the blogger who’s business has plateaued and is looking for help.
Elite Blog Academy
The Elite Blog Academy course includes 4 modules, 12 units, and 36 assignments.
- Module 1: Refine Your Message (understand your niche)
- Module 2: Content Is King (know what to write about_
- Module 3: Presentation Is Everything (improve the design of your Website)
- Module 4: Grow Your Platform (work on your mailing list, your social media presence and learn to network with other bloggers)
Although I am sure this course could help many bloggers who are stagnant in their business, I didn’t find the information particularly useful.
The Blog Millionaire
If you haven’t heard about Brandon Gaille and his podcast, you need to check it out now. He shares tons of useful content for free on his podcast. So many things I didn’t know even though I had taken all these courses. I binged listened to his podcast episodes for weeks! The next logical step was to take the course. I have to say that although his course is more useful than the vast majority of courses out there, I don’t necessarily think you should buy it. Most of the information is available for free on this podcast. Purchasing the Blog Millionaire course might be a good idea for you if:
- You need a strong community and personalized support: Access to the Facebook group is one of the most important advantages of the Blog Millionnaire course. Brandon Gaille is very active and devoted to helping his members.
- You want to learn SEO: Brandon Gaille has a very in-depth approach to SEO. He spends hours upon hours researching keywords to know what to write about. If you would like to learn what he does, then you need to buy the course.
My Two All-Time Favorite Courses
Create and Go Launch Your Blog Biz Course
I found the Launch Your Blog Biz course (affiliate link: I only get affiliate links for my very favorite courses and products) as I was searching online for tips to narrow my niche and decide on my blog name.
It’s the first course that I took that made me aware that there was a theme like Divi on the market. Divi is a page builder that makes it possible to customize your site endlessly with the click of a button.
When I created my Website following Rebecca’s instructions, I used Genesis. After months of thinking I didn’t like the look of my Website, I finally broke down and bought Divi. Here you can see the difference for yourself:
Genesis is the best theme around for professional bloggers, but customizing it requires coding. Without coding, it doesn’t look so good as you can see in my video.
If you purchase Divi using my affiliate link, you will get free access to my Mini-Course on setting up your blog with Divi. To learn more about the Create and Go Launch Your Blog Biz course, ready my full review in my post Create and Go Launch Your Blog Biz Course Review.
Why I love the course Launch Your Blog Biz by Create and Go
The course will help you install your theme, and design your blog step-by-step. I did struggle with Divi first, despite the tutorial. That’s why I decided to create my own. Then, you will discover how to strategize your blog posts to succeed in your niche. You will learn about email marketing and how to get people to sign up for your mailing list. You will learn about helpful blogging resources and productivity hacks. And on top of all that, you will get an introduction to Pinterest to grow your blog traffic. This blogging course will help you truly understand the basics of blogging and how to succeed online.
Natalie Bacon’s Blog with a Full-Time Job
Natalie Bacon was a Create and Go student. She was able to earn six-figures 2 years after taking the course. She also created her own blogging course for newbies, called Blog With a Full-Time Job, which she has since replaced with Online Business for Her (affiliate link).
Why I love Natalie’s blogging course
Natalie has a teaching style that I haven’t seen anywhere else. I have become a fan! She makes everything seem so simple and interesting. She is upbeat, clear, and concise. Her blogging course talks about mindset quite a bit. It takes you through all the technical basics, but the first half is about mindset.
I love how she makes the distinction between a technician and an entrepreneur. The technician is concerned about the images and the layout. The entrepreneur wants to figure out how to make money. A technician’s income is limited by how much time she has. An entrepreneur’s profit is defined by the market.
Natalie drives home that blogs don’t make money, businesses do. If you want to make money, you have to work as an entrepreneur. In the beginning, you will be the technician and the entrepreneur. Eventually, you can outsource the technician side.
You make money by producing value. It doesn’t matter how much time you spend doing something. What matters is the result that you produce.
Blogging for Network Marketers
Network marketing and blogging can work hand in hand. The most successful network marketers have influence. Blogging helps gain that influence. Since blogs don’t make money, businesses do, network marketing can become your main way to earn an income through your blog. Learn how you can set up your own self-hosted blog for free in my 5-Day Email Course Blogging for Network Marketers.
