Blogging can help expand a business or generate income through ads. Unfortunately, there's room for error when starting a new hobby or venture. That's because you can only learn some bits and pieces of the equation for success from experience, making it likely you'll make a few mistakes at first. Rather than taking a chance or walking into something you'll knowingly err at, it helps to have some knowledge of common mistakes to avoid them.
Not Having a Brand Voice
At one point, you could write generic information about an already online topic, merely blandly regurgitating the same facts. You'd get views if you infused keywords in the proper places and at a high frequency.
Long gone are those days, thankfully. With so much competition and people wanting to make the most of their time, though, you need to put some effort into capturing your audience's attention.
And, even the search engines agree with this; a lackluster piece will rank poorly in the search results because it's written for search algorithms rather than humans.
You also won't keep your audience interested long enough to get your point across if you don't get them on the hook and reel them in.
To successfully develop a brand voice and have them, hook, line, and sinker, you must first get inside the heads of your target audience, figuratively speaking. Once you understand these individuals, their age bracket, their desires, their usual lifestyle, etc., keep that in mind as you write. Include language these people would use and provide the most relevant information for them.
Keyword Stuffing
Remember the days when you'd read a piece and the main keyword was in the content every 100 words? That wasn't counting the number of short-tail keywords. The result was a piece that read choppily, was redundant, and provided little substance, but boy did it rank!
These pieces are no longer going to reach the top spot or even the first, second, or third page because the algorithm demotes these pieces instantly.
Instead, any blog you write should use the keyword weaved into the content seamlessly, without aiming for a certain number of times you repeat a word or phrase. Moreover, anytime you use a keyword, it should blend naturally and only be used when it makes sense.
Excessive Use of Ads
While it would be nice to interject an ad blocker into your blog, that defeats the point if you're monetizing your writing. When clients can't see the ads in your blog, you won't get any cash for pay-per-click.
However, you don't have to place ad after ad on your blog because incorporating too many makes the article appear spammy — a huge turn-off for readers. Instead, limit the number, so your readers can enjoy the piece. And spread out the ads, so the blog has a more professional-looking, visually appealing layout rather than appearing cluttered.
Using Boilerplate Content or Plagiarizing
Original content grabs attention and ranks highly. Therefore, when you take a piece from another site and either post it on your site directly or use bits and pieces from it, this could send a red flag to the algorithms, possibly harming your ranking.
Creating boilerplate content — when you use generic phrases to create unoriginal pieces of text — is another no-no for two reasons. Firstly, you could harm yourself when it comes to the rankings. Not to mention, if your readers have heard it before or are uninspired, they'll never stay to read the entire blog, which could cause you to miss out on a sale, not educate as you thought you would, or not earn a profit from the advertising.
Bottom line: make sure every piece you create is original in some way, shape, or form. It helps to research before you begin writing to dig up interesting facts and information to ensure originality. You should also personalize your content by gearing it toward your target audience. Plus, before you publish anything, always run it through a plagiarism checker and edit as necessary to ensure every line is authentic.
Not Understanding When a Contract Is Necessary
If you're blogging for yourself, you may feel a contract will never be necessary. However, this could put you in legal hot water in some cases. For instance, you'll want a contract if you're interviewing somebody who'll share exclusive information or sensitive information that you shouldn't share beyond the two of you or in the blog anonymously.
Rather than drafting, printing, signing, and sending a contract to the client for them to do the same, use an online program. You can then sign it quickly, and send it to the other party within minutes of drafting it. You'll then remain compliant with the law, and protect yourself in the future without much hassle.
Not Having a Schedule
When blogging is only a side gig or just one avenue you advertise through, you may feel writing when you have some free time is adequate. This may mean publishing three times this week, once next week, twice the following, and no times the next.
Your audience won't know when to expect content and may find another blogger to maintain their interest or just give up on yours in general. Ultimately, you lose your audience's trust and engagement when you're not providing them with regular content. Furthermore, with inadequate content, your blog may not rank well in the beginning.
The opposite is true as well; too much of a good thing isn't beneficial. If you're blogging too frequently, you may overwhelm your readers and cause them to lose interest. You may also sacrifice quality when you publish too many articles or ones too often. Your ideas may not be unique, or you may be more likely to publish content with errors. Both scenarios are off-putting to readers.
You may need to experiment a bit to discover the ideal frequency. With that said, most bloggers find two to four blogs per week is the sweet spot.
Knowing some tips from the start can help you avoid common mistakes that affect your blog's rank and how it resonates with an audience. You'll be more likely to achieve success and convey your desired points when you know what other people have done in the past that worked and what didn't.
Megan Isola
Megan Isola holds a Bachelor of Science in Hospitality and a minor in Business Marketing from Cal State University Chico. She enjoys going to concerts, trying new restaurants, and hanging out with friends.
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