10 Mistakes New Bloggers Make

If you are a new blogger or thinking about starting a blog, you probably have done some research and discovered there are a lot of blogging tips out there. Many people write about blogging but have you noticed few write about what not do when starting a blog?

I’m not sure why people are afraid to talk about these things. In order to be a successful blogger, you need to be aware of the mistake’s bloggers have made so you can avoid them. So, I decided to put together a list of 10 mistakes new bloggers make.

Everyone makes mistakes, especially when you start something new. After all, we are human. As a new blogger, you are bound to make some mistakes.

I started blogging 8 months ago and I have made a few mistakes along the way. I’ve learned to accept them, work on them, and ultimately fix them. I’ve also talked to other bloggers and learned some of the mistakes they made when they were first starting out. So, I decided to put this post together so you can do yourself a favor and avoid 10 mistakes new bloggers make.

10 Mistakes New Bloggers Make

MISTAKE #1: CHOOSING A NICHE THAT YOU ARE NOT PASSIONATE ABOUT

Your blog should be about something you are interested in and passionate about. If your blog is about something you are not passionate about, your readers will be able to see right through your writing. Even worse, you’ll have a hard time writing for your blog.

So pick a niche that you truly enjoy talking about. It will be much easier to write about a subject you enjoy. Remember, blogging is fun and you don’t want to make it feel like a job, even if your goal is to become a full-time blogger. Don’t pick a niche just because it seems popular or it appears to be an easy subject to monetize. You can monetize any niche. Not sure how to monetize? Check out my post how to make money blogging.

MISTAKE #2: STARTING A FREE BLOG

If you want to be a serious blogger, you should get your own host and use WordPress.Org. And don’t confuse WordPress.org with WordPress.com.

WordPress.com is where you can start a blog for free. If you do go down this path, just know you will never truly own your writing as WordPress.com can do what it wants with it, when it wants. You will also have a hard time monetizing your website and getting your posts to show up in search results.

So do yourself a favor and go with a reputable hosting company so you can use WordPress.org. Many new bloggers start with either Siteground or Bluehost. I personally have my hosting through Siteground and I am very happy with them. I am able to have full control over my blog so I can customize it the way I want and monetize it. It does require an initial investment but you can find plans starting at $3 to $4 a month.

MISTAKE #3: COMPARING YOURSELF TO OTHER BLOGGERS

Don’t compare yourself to other bloggers. Everyone’s journey is different and everyone starts somewhere. It can be very discouraging if you try to compare yourself to another blogger. Some bloggers are extremely successful so if you are constantly comparing yourself to them, you’ll start thinking negatively about yourself and your blog.

If you want to be a successful blogger, then you should learn about other bloggers in your niche. You want to learn what they are doing to be successful. It’s good to know who your competition is but don’t try to be like them and don’t worry if you don’t have the same results as them. Give it time and effort and you too will achieve success.

MISTAKE #4: NOT HAVING A SCHEDULE

If you don’t have a blogging schedule then you are making a common blogging mistake. I was guilty of this and it’s something I’m still working on.

Having a blogging schedule will help you to be consistent and your audience will appreciate it. Your audience will want to rely on you to post fresh content consistently. Set a posting schedule that is appealing to your audience. Make sure you can maintain the schedule. A good posting schedule is 1 or 2 blog posts per week. Anything more than that can be overkill.

Don’t forget to create a blogging schedule that includes other aspects of your blog such as research, customizing your blog, creating pins, etc. Having a schedule will help you to stay focused on your blog and achieve your goals as well as balance blogging and life.

MISTAKE #5: NOT USING SHARE BUTTONS

When I am on a blog and it has great content, I love to share it. The easiest way to share it is by using the share buttons on the blog post. I’ll share it to my social platforms such as Pinterest and Facebook.

If I come across an amazing blog post and it doesn’t have share buttons then I won’t be able to share it. If a blogger doesn’t want to take the time to add a share button then I won’t take the time to share it.

Bloggers should want their content shared. They should want to make it easy for their readers to share their blog posts. This is just another way to gain more traffic and get your content out there. It’s so easy to enable the sharing feature on your website through plugins.

Make it convenient for your readers and enable social sharing buttons to every post. Display the share button in a prominent place such as on the left of your blog post or on the top or bottom of the page.

MISTAKE #6: NOT OPTIMIZING PINTEREST

Now this is a BIG mistake bloggers make!

I’ve met so many bloggers and it’s pretty common to hear that many bloggers don’t use Pinterest. I’m always shocked when I hear this. I really don’t understand why some bloggers don’t use Pinterest. Pinterest is not a social platform, it is a search engine. Millions of people use Pinterest every month.

Every blogger SHOULD be using Pinterest. Pinterest can drive tons of traffic to your blog. In fact, Pinterest drives over 90% of my traffic every month. Of course, the best way to drive traffic to your blog is through SEO but when you are a new blogger, it can take 6 to 12 months to start seeing results from SEO and ranking on google.

So while you are working on your SEO, you can use Pinterest to drive traffic to your blog. Pinterest is a great way to share your content and get it out there for others to find.

Check out these resources if you need help with Pinterest

• How to Grow Your Pinterest Account
• How To Find Keywords To Use With Pinterest
• How to Increase Your Pinterest Followers

MISTAKE 7: NOT INVESTING IN YOUR BLOG

Knowledge is so powerful. It is so important to do research and invest in your blog. You can purchase books and/or courses to help speed up some of the pain points of a new blog. When you purchase a course, all blogging tips are being presented together so you don’t have to go hunting for information.

If you are tight on cash, there are thousands of people (including me) providing blogging tips and tricks for free. So you don’t have to purchase a course. If you head on over to Pinterest and do a search on Pinterest, you will find tons of pins that link back to blog talking about blogging. You can also poke around my blog and find some valuable tips.

If you want to grow your blog and become successful, you need to do your research. Don’t forget to action on the items you read. It’s completely okay to jump right into blogging and learn as you go. Figure out what works for you and your blog. Just remember: Some things that work for others may not work for you. And other things that work for you may not work for others and this is completely okay. Everyone’s blogging journey is different.

MISTAKE #8 NO EMAIL LIST

You should absolutely be trying to build your email list from the start. Even if you don’t intend on sending anything out to your followers at first, you still want to try to collect their emails. This way when you are ready to send emails, you already started an email list.

Email lists are a great way to connect with you readers and send them a direct note so you can build a relationship with them. They can also stay in touch and be notified when you post new content.

All you need to do is create an opt in form on your blog so if your reader likes what you are posting, they will have a chance to sign up if they want to stay in touch.

MISTAKE #9: NOT USING IMAGES

If I come to a blog and it has no images, I cringe. Everyone should include images in their blog post. Presentation is so important. If your blog doesn’t look good, you won’t have people on your site long enough to actually read your content.

Even if your writing is amazing, people will immediately X out of your blog if it’s just an endless post of words. You need to present your post so your readers can engage in your content. Break up your paragraphs by using headings and images. If you can’t take your own pictures, there are a few websites out there where you can find free images that is legal to use with your blog.

When adding images to your blog, make sure the images are high quality and clear. No one wants to see bury pictures. The images should be eye-catching so people will want to share them. You will want to promote your blog on Pinterest so you need to make sure you include an image that is Pinterest worthy.

What is Pinterest worth? A vertical image that is eye-catching, easy to read and understand, stands out, and something people want to share around. Remember, a picture is worth a thousands words.

MISTAKE #10: PRODUCING LOW-QUALITY CONTENT

It’s so important to focus on quality instead of quantity. It’s much better to write 1-2 posts a week than 5 a week. If you try to pump out 5 posts a week, you could get stressed out and your content could slack. If you produce low quality content, your readers will leave your blog quickly.

You want your readers engaged in your content. You want them interested in what they are reading. If you are posting high quality, engaging content, your readers are going to want more from you. They’ll stick around on your blog and even check out other posts, possibly subscribe to your blog, and even share it with others.

So make sure your blog is clear, concise, and easy to understand. Don’t forget to use keywords and have catchy blog titles. You should be proud of the work you are producing.

FINAL THOUGHTS

No blogger is perfect. Everyone started somewhere and everyone has made mistakes. We are human after all. So if you are a blogger who has made some of these mistakes, don’t worry. Just focus on learning and keep growing your blog. If you are new blogger and want to save some time and aggravation, you should avoid these 10 mistakes new bloggers make so you can start out right and have a higher chance at being successful.

If you have yet to start your blog, read my post how to start a blog. You can have your blog up and running in no time.

Don’t forget to pin this post so you can read it again later.