Everyone is an expert at something, you just need to let the world know the subject matter of your expertise. Blogging has made the concept of being an expert, or authority in any industry, much easier.

Blogging isn’t just for people who want to have an online diary or write about what they had for dinner last night. Instead it’s actually changing the way content is being created across the Internet.

Take a look at these mind blowing WordPress stats from ManageWP, the free CMS platform that powers a majority of blogs in the world today.

• 48% of Technorati’s Top 100 Blogs Are Managed With WordPress
• 74.6 Million Sites Depend on WordPress
• WordPress-Related Keywords Score 37 Million Searches Per Month
• 40 Translations of WordPress
• 22% of New U.S. Registered Domains Run on WordPress
• WordPress.com Gets More Unique Visitors Than Amazon (Us)
• 6 New WordPress.com Posts Every Second
• 29,000 WordPress Plugins and Growing Daily
• 46 Million Downloads of WordPress.org

Just based off these stats alone, you can tell WordPress and blogging is pretty serious business!

Setup and Brand Your Blog, the Right Way

First things first … you need to create a blog.

If you are going to use your blog for personal branding, to serve as an online resume, try to secure your real name as your domain name (i.e., myname.com). This way it will be easier for you to rank at the top of the search results for your name.

If you already have an established business or brand that you would like to setup a blog for, this can easily be done by adding a fresh WordPress install to a sub-directory of your site. (i.e., brandname.com/blog).

For anyone who might be brand new to blogging and isn’t excited about the idea of downloading and install software to their web host, you can follow this super easy “how to start a blog” tutorial. This online guide walks you through the complete process of going live with a blog in less than ten minutes.

Best of all, setting up your blog is free. The only thing you will need is a domain name, web hosting and the latest free version of WordPress.

Build Brand Authority with a Blog

Once your blog is live, it’s time to put it’s powers to work! If you aren’t currently ranking for your name in search results, it may take some time to gain the necessary backlinks and authority to get your site to rank. The important thing is to be patient when tracking results — SEO takes times, but it’s well worth the investment.

With that being said… this method absolutely works and has helped me secure nearly the whole first page of rankings for my personal name “Zac Johnson” in Google. Follow these steps and integrate them into your personal branding or online business efforts to see maximum results.

1. Create a Blog that Provides Value

   The focus of this article is all about how to create a blog and use it as your main “hub” for your personal or business brand. When creating your blog, be sure to focus on high quality content that provides value to your audience, as this is what will matter most for your brand and reputation.