Is it expensive to become a hyperlocal blogger? I probably can’t afford it even if I want to start my own community site. The first answer is NO! You probably already have what you need to start hyperlocal blogging. Your biggest expense will be your time. Time is valuable and you success will somewhat depend upon the time you are willing to devote to your site.

Do you have a computer? Do you have internet access? If you are reading this article, the answer is yes. I’m happy to say that I was able to become a hyperlocal blogger with the tools and equipment I already owned.

I use an Apple MacBookPro with a 17″ monitor.

I made a decision almost 2 years ago to switch from PC to Mac. Personally, it was the best technical decision I’ve ever made. I would never go back. If you are going to work with graphics and video, you may want to consider the Mac.

I use the very popular Wordpress platform for all of my sites. I used a custom theme from Woo Themes.

Woo Themes offers highly customizable Wordpress themes for as low as $70. Their themes are awesome and so is their support. Someone just beginning would be well advised to use Woo Themes because of their support and forums.

I bought a $10 domain name from bluehost.com. In addition to my domain name, I purchased my web hosting package from bluehost also. They have several packages to choose from. The web hosting package I chose was around $107 for 12 months. You can add as many domain names that you want to the same hosting account and unlimited hosting storage. I’m extremely happy with Bluehost and I recommend to everyone. Read my article about how to get my free wordpress setup when you use bluehost.com.

I use bluehost.com to host all of my web sites, including this one.

An absolute must is a digital camera. I would expect that you already own one. If your digital camera shoots video, thats great too. I own a digital camera, a Kodak Zi6 flip camera and also a Canon XH A1 prosumer HD video camera. I’m almost tempted to say that a digital video camera is a must. It’s not really, but if you want to elevate your site with more features, you must add video. I recommend the Kodak Zi6 HD Flip Camera. I love using this little gadget and I never leave home without it. They can easily be purchased for $150 or less. I bought mine at Wal-Mart. The Zi6 takes awesome HD video and 2 megapixel still shots.

I use the Kodak Zi6 HD Flip Camera.

I would consider these tools as a minimum to start a hyperlocal community site. It’s not very expensive and as I said at the beginning of this article, you may already have everything you need to start your own site. I always use free stuff whenever possible, but if you have these tools above, you are ready to start. You are officially armed with the tools of a Hyperlocal Blogger.

Copyright 2009 bloggerlens.com Hyperlocal Blogging and Citizen Journalism