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As someone who is passionate about food and cooking, you may have considered starting a food blog. After all, creating a blog with a blog maker is a great way to express your creativity and share your ideas with the rest of the world. Fortunately, it’s easier than you may think. And with the right tools and strategy, you can make your dream a reality.
In this step-by-step guide, you’ll learn how to start a food blog, from choosing the right food blog name to monetizing your website and starting a business, potentially.
Read Also: Best blogging tools
Ready to create your food blog? Get started with Wix today.
What is a food blog?
Actually, it depends. But essentially a food blog is a type of website where bloggers bring together food, blogs about and photography featuring food under the wider umbrella of food journalism. If a foodie is someone who loves learning about, tasting and sharing food - so a food blog takes this love one step further and puts it into print to be shared.
A food blog might share the history and culture of dishes from around the world, including recipes and the best places to try them. It might use different types of media - articles, photos and video - to capture the writer's favorite foods and recipes. A food blog might be dedicated to the food of a specific region or culture, or a certain diet - veganism, being one example. From the Mom who documents her kids favorite recipes, to the semi-pro chef sharing their tricks of the trade - a food blog aims to bring people together in the name of good food.
How to start a food blog in 10 steps
01. Pick a name for your food blog
Now that you’ve officially decided to start a food blog, you’ll need to decide what to name it. While this may seem simple, your blog name is also going to define your brand and distinguish your website from others, so you’ll want to choose wisely. Therefore, be sure to select a name that describes the core of what your blog is all about.
Don’t expect to narrow down your choice right away. To start, come up with a list of blog name ideas and select your winner from there. You can start this process by thinking about the types of content you plan to post. Are you going to post recipes? If so, what kind? Or do you want to publish content about healthy, plant-based living and restaurant recommendations? Be sure to define your direction and your blog niche before settling on a name.
Consider various word combinations that describe the content you plan to post. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box and incorporate puns or even slang that might be fitting. If you’re feeling stuck, you can even try a blog name generator to get the ball rolling.
Learn more:
02. Choose a blogging platform
The next step in starting a blog is to choose your blogging platform and a reliable web host. The good news is you don’t have to be a technology wiz to do so. With many professional features at your disposal, getting started with making a website for your blog can often be just a matter of identifying the right online blogging tools.
When making your decision, take into consideration certain factors, such as uptime, bandwidth and customer support. With Wix you can buy a domain and create a free blog all in one place to bring your site to life. It’s an incredibly simple and efficient way to get your food blog up and running.
03. Opt for free and reliable web hosting
If you choose the right blogging platform (see best blogging platforms), your web hosting shouldn't need to be anything more than an after though, if that. In a nutshell web hosting is what makes your site, and blog visible online. With some blogging platforms, like Wix, this web hosting is free.
Your number one priority should be reliability. To ensure a good reader experience on your blog, your site's uptime matters. Anything less than 99.8% just won't cut it. Not if you want to ensure your readers return time and time again to your content.
04. Don't neglect your blog performance
When we say blog performance - we mean website performance. How fast your page loads can have a huge impact on the user experience on your blog. We live in an age where readers expect their content fast, no one wants to wait for text to load and if it takes too long they'll bounce.
A blogging platform like Wix is driven by a performance-first culture which means built in features to help your blog load and run faster. From the automatic compression of images, to industry best practices in website creation, to built in page speed testing tools - make sure your blog runs fast.
05. Consider your blog security
So when it comes to starting a food blog, we know that security may not be top of mind. Not like it would be if you were starting an online store, for example. But that doesn't mean it isn't important. Especially if you plan to collect subscriber information. Cyber attacks can also threaten your site's uptime.
Ideally the blogging platform you choose should have enterprise-standard security at its core. It works day and night to protect your site, and pre-empt attacks, so you don't have to. You can focus on your food blog.
06. Design your food website
The design of your food blog needs to match your needs and brand. You can either choose from ready-made blog templates, or when planning how to make your website, create your own design from scratch. Let every element of your blog work to enhance your unique brand identity using a defined visual language. Take advantage of different fonts and website color schemes to set the right tone and message.
If you’re looking for design inspiration, take a look at these blog examples to figure out which visuals are best suited to your brand. A healthy foods blog, for instance, might be better represented by leafy illustrations and neutral colors over the neon bright hues more commonly seen in processed food ads. Alternatively, a blog about retro desserts could be nicely paired with a vintage website font. You’ll also want to grab your readers’ attention with mouth watering images. After all, appetite is palpable through the lens.
Another crucial step is creating your own logo. Your logo should positively represent your brand, making it instantly recognizable. You can use a Food Logo Maker to give you inspiration and to create your own. Make sure to feature it on your blog as well as across other branding assets, such as your social media channels or your site’s favicon.
Lastly, don’t forget to make your site mobile-friendly. With so many internet users turning to their mobile phones, this has become an essential step of starting a blog. Consider how your website images and text will appear on a smaller screen and how the blog’s navigation experience will accommodate people on-the-go. The transition may sound complicated at first, but all Wix sites are automatically converted into a fully optimized mobile site, making the process incredibly simple.
Draw inspiration from these food truck website designs.
07. Create amazing blog content
The heart and soul of a blog is its content. One of the most important things to remember when writing a blog post is to make the content personal and relatable. People turn to blogs to learn new information and to see the world through another lens. If you are posting a new recipe, share with your readers how and why you created this particular recipe. Was it inspired by a specific person or event? Tell a story describing your experience.
At the core of creating amazing content, you’ll also want to consider these other important points:
Develop a content strategy. Determine your core objectives - from driving more traffic to monetizing your blog. In addition, identify who your target market is and what interests them most. Once you establish these two points, you'll be much better equipped to produce articles and recipes that meet your audience's needs.
Make an editorial calendar. An editorial calendar is a very handy management tool for scheduling your blog posts and tracking and measuring progress, especially if you have different authors or contributors involved.
Write original and engaging content. Enhance your blog posts with catchy blog titles, as well as a captivating introduction to hook readers’ attention followed by body text where you’ll showcase the bulk of your knowledge. Blog format matters so make sure to focus on it. If you're hitting writer's block, consider how you can use AI to write your blog posts but doing so responsibly.
Add high-quality images. Pictures and videos are one of the most important facets of a food blog and make a greater impact on your readers’ overall engagement. It’s worthwhile to invest some time learning the basics of food photography to maximize the quality and impact of your images. After all, people eat with their eyes first, so the more enticing your pictures, the more successful your blog will be.
08. Optimize for SEO
If you want to drive traffic to your food blog, you’ll need to start thinking about how to make it easy to find on search engines like Google. SEO, or search engine optimization, is the process of optimizing websites to help boost their rankings in search results.
To start, you’ll want to do a bit of keyword research with a reliable SEO tool, like Ahrefs or Semrush. Keywords are ideas, topics or phrases that people search for on Google. Try to think of what potential readers might search for when looking for a food blog like yours or a specific recipe on your site. It could be anything from “homemade sourdough bread” to “best restaurant reviews in Chicago,” depending on your content.
Then, you can insert these terms naturally into your writing, especially into headers and subheaders, which is helpful for optimizing your website. You can even try a free tool like Wix SEO, which will create a customized SEO plan for you.
Other SEO blog tips and strategies that can improve your site’s organic performance include:
Writing SEO-friendly alt text for images
Optimizing the metadata with relevant keywords and the correct format, including page title, description and URL
Implementing internal and external linking strategies. This includes linking internally from one article to another and including external links to prominent websites in your niche.
Getting backlinks to your website. This refers to when other websites link to yours. If you are just starting out, try partnering with other bloggers or foodies and asking them to link to your site to build your credibility. As your blog continues to grow, this will happen more naturally.
09. Promote your food blog
As a blogger, one of your goals is to increase your readership and exposure. Once you’ve established the right direction, you’ll want to get inspiration from others in your field to elevate your own brand. Take some time to research your competitors and browse their social media channels. Pay attention to detail, and learn what they're doing or not doing enough of in order to improve your own blog strategy.
Additionally, there are a few several low-cost and effective ways of promoting your blog. These include:
Social media: With over 3.8 billion social media users around the world, maintaining your presence on various platforms is key to expanding your reach and obtaining readers. Post on social media to announce new blog posts, launch promotional campaigns, and offer a sneak peak into behind-the-scenes activities. Learn more about blogging vs instagram in our guide.
Email newsletters: Email marketing is an effective method for reaching your target market and improving overall reader engagement. Use a weekly newsletter to stay in touch with your audience and keep them up-to-date with relevant happenings. In order to get subscribers, promote your email newsletter using strong CTAs in strategic areas of your blog or social media posts.
Networking: Collaborating with other experts in your field is a great way to position yourself as an authority and expand your reach. One of the most common forms of collaboration is guest posting. This involves writing a post on another person's blog, or vice versa. To build connections with these bloggers, share their posts on social media, leave meaningful comments on their sites, and reach out to them directly.
10. Monetize your blog
There are several ways to monetize your blog and make money as a chef or other food professional. Here are some of he most popular strategies:
Affiliate marketing: If you’ve got a substantial following, then you might want to look into affiliate marketing as a way to make money as a food blogger. This consists of a partnership between you and another business in which you agree to recommend their products or services in exchange for a commission. When your readers click on the affiliate link to buy, you’ll earn a percentage of the sale. Amazon Associates, ShareASale and the Wix Affiliate Program are just a few options out there. You can also reach out to brands you love, such as your favorite cookware company, to see if they're interested in a collaboration.
Display ads: One of the easiest ways to make money blogging is to display advertisements on your site. You’ll need to connect your site to an ads platform, such as Google AdSense. This will tailor ads so they’re relevant to your niche.
Start an online store: Consider selling recipes, e-books or branded merchandise on your blog by opening an online store. Write that cookbook you’ve been longing to publish and sell it to your readers to turn your blog into a business of its own. Just be sure to include recipes that aren’t found on your blog so that it has true value.
Sell online courses: Further monetize your expertise by creating and selling an online course. This will not only complement your blog and delight your fans, but it will also reaffirm your authority in your field.
How much does it cost to start a food blog?
You can build a blog for free with Wix. This includes reliable hosting, enterprise-grade security features and monitoring as well as free blog templates. You can opt for a paid plan and register a domain name as well. When calculating the cost of starting a good blog you'll want to factor in:
Domain name: costs vary from around $10 a year depending on your domain registrar. With Wix a domain name is free with a paid website plan (starts from $17 a month). When it comes to building a brand for your food blog, a unique domain name of your own is highly recommended.
Web hosting: free with Wix but generally hosting plans start from $3 a month up.
CMS (content management system): free with Wix. Other options can start from several hundred dollars a month or year.
Apps and plugins: costs vary a lot - check out the Wix app market for some options. But if you start a blog with Wix, you won't need SEO add-ons as the features are built-in.
Marketing: anywhere from nothing to hundreds of dollars a month, depending if you opt for organic or paid strategies.
Food blog examples
This food blog from Matt Erickson follows his journey as he discovers and tries out new recipes for his readership. From ratatouille to rye bread, his recipes are exciting to follow along with.
Explore LA's Asian food scene, both established and growing, with these great eatery and restaurant reviews.
Food blogger Kanh's blog shares low carb and keto recipes for fans of either eating choice. His blogs are more often than not in a video format, making them easy to follow for cooking at home.
Looking for athlete eats and healthy treats? Then this is the food blog for you to follow. Recipes shared on this blog include vegan and gluten free options, as well as recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert.
Best practices for successful food blogging
Here are eight best practices for successful food blogging:
Choose a niche. What kind of food are you passionate about? What kind of recipes do you love to create? Choose a niche that you're knowledgeable about and that you'll enjoy blogging about. Blogging should be a labor of love even if your goal is always to monetize it.
Promote your blog. Share your blog posts on social media, submit them to food directories and reach out to other food bloggers to collaborate. No blog is successful without an audience, even a niche one.
Be consistent. Post new content on a regular schedule. This could be once a week, several times a week or even daily. Create and stick to your blog posting schedule - whether it's the same days of the week every week or just x number of posts a week.
Interact with your audience. Respond to comments on your blog and social media posts by answering questions and providing helpful tips. You'll also need to monitor your comments for spam that will need to be deleted, so stay on top of it.
Use a good camera and learn basic photography skills. Food photography is essential for food blogging. Invest in a good camera and learn the basics of photography so that you can take beautiful photos of your food. Alternatively you can pay a pro for these photos or maybe you have a friend or relative with the skills to help you out initially.
Write engaging stories. People love to read stories about food. When you write your blog posts, try to tell a story about the recipe you're sharing. What inspired you to create it? What are your favorite memories associated with it? Sharing personal stories will help your blog posts stand out and connect with your audience on a deeper level.
Be creative. There are millions of food blogs out there, so it's important to find a way to stand out from the crowd. Get creative with your recipes, your photography and your writing.
Be yourself. People can spot a fake from a mile away. Be genuine and authentic in your blogging and your audience will appreciate it.
Is blogging still worth it? Read more with our take on blogging's current and future relevance.
Other blog types to consider starting
How to start a food blog FAQ
Do food bloggers get paid?
Yes, food bloggers can get paid in a variety of ways. Some common ways for food bloggers to make money include:
Advertising: Food bloggers can sign up for advertising networks, such as Google AdSense, and place ads on their blogs. When a visitor clicks on an ad, the food blogger earns a commission.
Affiliate marketing: Food bloggers can promote products or services on their blogs and earn a commission for each sale that they generate.
Product sales: Food bloggers can sell their own products, such as cookbooks, e-books or meal kits.
Brand partnerships: Food bloggers can partner with brands to create sponsored content, such as blog posts, recipes or videos.