Building Your First Blog with No Experience? Get It Done in 30 Minutes + 5 Common Mistakes to Avoid

Have you ever thought about creating an Official Account but never started?

I totally get this feeling. A year ago at this time, I was the same—every time I opened the WeChat Official Accounts Platform website and looked at that “Register Now” button, I’d start hesitating: What’s a Subscription Account? What’s a Service Account? What if I choose wrong?

Then I’d close the page, thinking “I’ll do it another day.”

This “another day” dragged on for half a year.

When I actually registered, I realized it wasn’t that hard. But the pitfalls I should’ve stepped in—I didn’t miss a single one. The name was too casual, later when I wanted to change it I found you can only change it twice a year; the email I used was my regular one, then it said it was already bound to another product, had to fuss with it again…

So today, I’m organizing all the pitfalls I stepped in, detours I took, and experience I figured out later to share with you. After reading this, you can complete the basic setup of your Official Account in 30 minutes and avoid 90% of beginner pitfalls.

Ready? Let’s begin.

Before Starting, Think Through These 3 Questions

Before clicking that “Register Now,” there are a few things you need to think through. Don’t ask how I know—all learned through blood and tears.

Subscription Account or Service Account—Which to Choose?

Honestly, I was also confused by these two names at the time. Simply put:

Subscription Accounts are the Official Accounts we usually follow, can send one push per day, suitable for creating content, writing articles, sharing insights.

Service Accounts lean more toward enterprise services, can only send 4 pushes per month, but have more functional interfaces, like payment, membership, etc.

Here’s the key: Individuals without business licenses can only choose Subscription Accounts. Service Accounts must use enterprise credentials to register.

Also, these two can’t convert to each other. What you choose at the start is what you’ll have. So this step really needs thought.

My suggestion is: Want to do self-media, share content, build personal brand—choose Subscription Account. 99% of beginners should pick this.

Can Official Accounts Make Money?

I’ve been asked this countless times.

Honestly, yes, but don’t expect it to support you from the start.

Official Account monetization paths mainly include: Traffic Master ads (those little ads at article bottoms), commercial promotions, knowledge payment, driving traffic to your other businesses. But these all need a follower base—it’s not like you register and start counting money.

My thinking is: Treat it as a side business first. Do the content well, build followers, and revenue will naturally come. Being too eager to monetize can easily take you down the wrong path.

Seriously, beyond immediate earnings, the Official Account’s greater value is personal brand building. Every article you write is building your professional image—this has long-term value, can’t be rushed.

What to Prepare Before Registering?

Write down this checklist first so you won’t be flustered later:

Must prepare:

• An email not bound to any WeChat products (key point!)
• ID card
• Phone number
• WeChat (for QR code verification)

Think ahead:

• Official Account general positioning (what topics to write)
• Name (2-16 characters, can only change twice a year!)
• Avatar (can change maximum 5 times per month)

Time-wise, registration takes about 20 minutes, and those basic settings afterward might take another hour or so. Not much—find a quiet time and knock it out in one go.

Step-by-Step Registration Guide (2025 Latest Process)

Okay, prep work done, now officially starting.

Regular Registration Process

Step 1: Open Official Website

Visit mp.weixin.qq.com in computer browser, click “Register Now” in upper right.

Step 2: Select Account Type

Several options will pop up. What you want is “Official Account,” then select “Subscription Account.” Don’t click wrong!

Step 3: Fill in Email

This step is quite key—the email you fill in must be never bound to any WeChat product. Including WeChat, Mini Programs, Enterprise WeChat, etc.—if it’s been used, it won’t work.

If your commonly-used email says already occupied, either unbind it (honestly pretty troublesome), or just register a new email. I ended up applying for a new QQ email.

Step 4: Identity Verification

Fill in ID information, then use WeChat to scan QR for facial recognition. This step is quick, basically one minute.

Step 5: Set Account Information

Here you fill in Official Account name, description, avatar. I’ll discuss naming separately later—for now just remember: Think it through before filling, don’t write randomly.

Step 6: Bind Administrator WeChat

Scan to bind your WeChat—later you can scan to log into backend without typing password every time.

Done! You now have an Official Account.

2025 New Feature: Can Register Directly on Phone

By the way, 2025 has a pretty convenient new feature—can register Official Account directly in WeChat, no need to open computer.

Path: Discover → Official Accounts → Upper right avatar → My Official Accounts

If you just want to test the waters first without too much fuss, this method takes 1 minute. But functions are relatively simple—if you want to formally operate later, still recommend using computer.

Do These 3 Things Immediately After Registration

Don’t rush to close the page! After registering, do these things first:

1. Save important info: Official Account ID (that mp-starting string), login email, password—save with memo or password manager
2. Confirm admin WeChat is bound: Convenient for scanning to login later
3. Complete basic profile while still hot: Description, avatar—while you still have time, knock it out at once

5 Major Pitfall Guides (Blood and Tears Experience Summary)

Next is what I think is the most important part—the 5 pitfalls beginners most easily step in. I stepped in 3 myself, the other 2 were stepped in by my friends—all true stories.

Pitfall 1: Confused Between Subscription and Service Accounts

Mentioned before, but need to emphasize again. I had a friend who thought “Service Account sounds more advanced,” clicked in only to find it needed enterprise credentials, wasted all that effort.

Remember: Individuals can only choose Subscription Account, look carefully when clicking.

Pitfall 2: Email Occupied, Can’t Register

I stepped in this pitfall myself. Used my Gmail main email, result said “This email is already bound to other WeChat products.” Thought for ages before remembering I’d used it to register a Mini Program before.

How to solve:

• Registering a new email is easiest
• QQ Email has an “English Email” function that can quickly generate a new email address
• Or unbind from the originally-bound product (but honestly pretty troublesome)

Pitfall 3: Name Chosen Too Casually

This is the easiest pitfall to step in, and the costliest.

Official Account names can only change twice per year!

When I named my first account, I hadn’t thought it through at all, just used a random username. Later when I wanted to do it seriously, found the name completely didn’t match positioning. Changed once, still wasn’t satisfied, second chance used up—had to tough it out for a whole year. That was rough.

Naming suggestions:

• Best to include your field keywords, like “reading,” “workplace,” “growth”
• Simple and memorable, don’t use obscure characters
• Leave some expansion room, don’t define too narrowly (like “One Book Daily” boxes you in, not as flexible as “Reading Notes”)
• Search before registering to see if there are duplicate or similar accounts

Let me give you some examples:

• Decent names: Xiao Wang’s Reading Notes, Workplace Growth Journal, New Mom Diary
• Not great names: Buddha-like Youth 2333, Someone’s Little World (too casual)

Pitfall 4: Forgot Login Info, Can’t Recover Account

Long time without using after registering, forgot email and password completely—this really happens.

Prevention methods:

• Use password manager (I use 1Password, works well)
• Make sure admin WeChat is bound properly—can log in by scanning
• Write down the Official Account ID, can use it for appeals if really can’t recover

Pitfall 5: Frequent Avatar Changes

Official Account avatars can change maximum 5 times per month, and each change needs review—quick takes 1 day, slow takes a week.

I didn’t notice this limit at first, thought the avatar wasn’t good and kept changing. Changed a few times then suddenly found I couldn’t change anymore… had to make do for a month.

Design suggestions:

• Size 300x300 pixels
• Simple and clear, viewable on phone
• Three approaches: simple text logo, personal real photo, theme image related to positioning

Avatar thing—good enough is fine, don’t pursue perfection. Wait until you have more followers and positioning is clear, then design properly—not too late.

Backend Functions: What Beginners Actually Use

Official Account backend has quite a lot of functions. First time in might be a bit overwhelming. But actually what you need at the start is just a few—ignore the rest for now.

Main Functions Used

Quick intro to commonly-used backend areas:

• Content Management: Where to write articles, manage materials
• Fan Management: See how many followers you have, what their demographics are
• Interaction Management: Reply to comments and private messages
• Function Settings: Configure auto-replies, menu bar
• Data Statistics: See reading volume, shares, follower trends
• Traffic Master: Enable ad revenue (need to meet conditions)

3 Settings Beginners Must Do

1. Configure Auto-Reply

When people follow you, automatically send a welcome message. Definitely set this!

Content can be simple: introduce who you are, what this account mainly writes, how often you update. Let new followers have a basic understanding of you.

2. Set Custom Menu

That’s the menu bar at bottom of Official Account. Suggest making 3 menus:

• About Me (personal intro or homepage)
• Featured Articles (your best-written pieces)
• Contact Info (if needed)

3. Complete Account Profile

Use about 50 words in description to clearly explain what you do, what value you can bring readers. This shows in search results—written well can increase follow rate.

Other functions like Original Declaration, Appreciation—these naturally unlock after you publish enough articles, no rush.

Publishing Your First Article

Backend set up, next step is publishing first article.

What to Write First?

My suggestion: Write a self-introduction.

Content framework:

• Who am I (brief background)
• Why create this account (motivation and purpose)
• What this account will write (content direction)
• Update plan (if you have one)

800-1500 words is enough, don’t pressure yourself too much. This article mainly lets people who stumble in know what you do, also gives yourself a formal start.

Check Before Publishing

• Is title attractive? (10-20 words best)
• Is cover image clear? (Suggest 900x383 pixels)
• Any obvious typos?
• Should comments be enabled?

For publish time, generally 8am, 12pm, 8pm work relatively well, but varies by account—can slowly test later.

Initial Operations: No Followers, What to Do?

This is probably beginners’ most anxious question: Went through all that effort to register, published articles, but nobody’s reading.

First I want to say: This is totally normal.

A Harsh Reality

In 2025, Official Account traffic is 99% from platform recommendations—sharing to Moments brings almost negligible traffic.

So don’t pin all hopes on “share to Moments and have friends help click.” Honestly, this mutual reading not only has poor effects but might affect account tag positioning.

Real follower growth logic is: Write good content → Platform pushes to precise users → Users find it valuable → Follow

5 Practical Tips for Beginner Growth

1. Focus on One Field

Platform recommendation mechanism is now quite intelligent, tags you based on content you publish. If you write workplace today, food tomorrow, parenting the day after, platform doesn’t know who to recommend to.

Choose one vertical field you can continuously produce in, keep writing.

2. Video Account Linkage

In 2025, Video Account and Official Account linkage is getting tighter. Can make article core viewpoints into short videos and post to Video Account, guiding follows to Official Account in video or description.

Video Accounts still have traffic dividends now—worth trying.

3. Multi-Platform Distribution

Same content can sync to Zhihu, Toutiao, Xiaohongshu and other platforms, guide follows to Official Account at end. Different platforms have different user groups—one more channel means one more exposure.

4. Seriously Reply to Every Comment

Initially might not have many comments, but each one deserves good replies. Interaction data affects article recommendation weight, and more importantly, it’s a chance to build connection with readers.

5. Submit to Big Accounts (Advanced Play)

If you write well, can try submitting to big accounts in same field. One successful submission might bring hundreds or even thousands of precise followers.

Mindset Suggestions

Finally, let’s talk mindset.

Going from 0 to 100 followers is the hardest stage, might take 2-4 weeks or even longer. This period is a bit torturous—publishing articles nobody reads, really quite discouraging.

But don’t frequently change direction because of poor data. Persist in one field for 3 months before saying anything—many accounts give up at this stage, actually just need to persist a bit more to see hope.

Believe me, everyone doing Official Accounts went through this stage. Me too.

Final Words

Okay, said everything that needs saying. Quick review:

1. Think it through: Individuals choose Subscription Account, prepare email and ID
2. Register: Follow the process, 20 minutes done
3. Avoid pitfalls: Think through name before choosing, use new email, save info
4. Settings: Auto-reply, menu bar, account profile
5. Publish: First write self-intro, take the first step
6. Operate: Content is king, persist in vertical output

Official Accounts—not hard to say it’s hard, not simple to say it’s simple. But the most important step is always: Start.

Don’t need perfection—first make it happen.

If you still have questions after reading, or encounter problems during registration, feel free to leave comments. I’ll reply to what I see.

By the way, next piece I plan to write about Official Account content creation techniques—how to choose topics, how to write articles, what’s particular about layout. If interested, remember to follow so you don’t miss it.

See you next time!

Published on: Nov 23, 2025 · Modified on: Dec 4, 2025

Easton

Digital Media