15 Incredibly Common Mistakes New Bloggers Make + How To Avoid Them

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Blogging can seem so overwhelming in the beginning. There are a thousand small and big tasks that you must perform to get everything set up. This includes blog set up, writing, promotion and so much more. Sometimes, when you have so much to do, you can easily make these seemingly small mistakes that can affect your blog from the start or delay your 

Today, I’m sharing 15 very common mistakes new bloggers make and how you can avoid them and get ahead of the curve.

Here are 15 common ones to be aware of and try to avoid:

Lack of Focus

When bloggers try to cover too many topics, it confuses their potential audience. Readers typically visit blogs for specific information or a particular niche. Focusing on a single niche allows you to build a loyal readership interested in your expertise.

This is not to say that blogs with multiple topics/focuses cannot work. Indeed, many of them do work and work well.

However, when you’re starting out, it is best to focus on one or two topics and cover those as comprehensively as possible so your blog becomes a go-to for solid information surrounding a topic.

Poor Planning

Without a content strategy or editorial calendar, you may struggle to generate consistent and relevant content especially if you’re planning to take advantage of seasonal trends.

Planning ahead enables you to align your content with your goals and maintain a clear direction for your blog.

It also allows you to create and publish content ahead of the various seasons so they have time to rank (both on Pinterest and via Google searches) so you can maximize your traffic potential for upcoming trends.

Ignoring SEO

Neglecting SEO means your blog may not rank well in search engines, resulting in low organic traffic.

Proper keyword research and on-page optimization are essential for increasing your blog’s visibility.

It is important to start optimizing for SEO from the start (even though it may take 6 to 12  months before you start to see worthy results from SEO). That  way, you don’t have to come back and redo your first hundred or so posts later on. 

Neglecting Social Media

Social media platforms are effective for promoting your content and engaging with your audience. Ignoring social media means you’re missing out on opportunities to expand your blog’s reach.

Social media platforms like Pinterest, Facebook, Tik Tok and Twitter can help you increase your reach exponentially. 

Once you’ve started your blog, go ahead and create social accounts on each of these platforms. This ensures you’re preserving your brands social media handles on each platform before it’s scooped up.

Note, since you’re only one person, you do not have to start promoting on every social media platform all at once. But, you should start promoting your new blog on at least one of these.

Indeed, when you first start blogging, it is highly unlikely that you’ll get any views from Search Engines like google until month 6 and beyond. Sometimes, the only traffic to your blog will be from social media platforms. So don’t neglect social promotion in the beginning.

I personally like Pinterest so I always try to start there. If you want to learn about how to promote your new blog on Pinterest, you can check out this easy Pinterest starter guide. 

Inconsistent Posting

When you’re starting out, it is best to stick to a consistent posting schedule. For one, if you don’t post constantly, you won’t have enough content to share across the social platform you’ve chosen to promote your blog on.

As such, you may keep posting the same handful of posts over and over…and over. This is considered spamming on social platforms like Pinterest. 

Many social platforms prefer fresh content. Posting regularly, (at least 2 -3 times per week) can help you avoid spamming.

It also helps you to grow your blog faster than the average new blogger. Imagine posting 3 times per week, while your competition only posts 1 or twice every 2 weeks. 

You have a much better chance of reaching more people and thus you’ve increased your chances of growing your blog ahead of your competitors.

Low-Quality Content

High-quality content is the backbone of a successful blog. Readers expect valuable, well-researched, and engaging content.

Many people recommend that you prioritize quality over quantity to build trust with your audience. This advice has the potential to have a new blogger stuck and progressing at a snails pace.

Imagine the difference between someone who ends their first year with only 30 blog posts versus someone else who ends the years with 96 to 144 blog posts.

The persons who has 96 to 144 published blog posts is more likely to have more social and search traffic than the bloggers with only 30 posts.

Why? Well, the blogger with 96 to 144 articles likely has more topical authority on google simply by having more content that covers topics their niche. This blogger also has more opportunity to share their post on social media without spamming the same posts over and over.

Having said this, having only 30 posts after a year does not mean that you’re blog is a failure or will fail. Indeed it could very well be more successful than a blog with more content. But, the better odds will generally be in favor of the person who has more content.

Therefore, I say do both. Focus on quality, but do not neglect how often you’re publishing.

Ignoring Mobile Optimization

Most readers access content on smartphones and tablets. Neglecting mobile optimization can result in a poor user experience and deter mobile visitors.

Most bloggers, update, design or set up new blog features on desktop and tend to forget that fact.

Therefore, when you’re setting up or designing your new blog, it is important to make sure that the changes you’re making look good on mobile too.

Also, make sure that your theme is mobile friendly. Most themes nowadays are, but there are still a few that aren’t so beware.

Overlooking Proofreading

Even though I’ve been blogging for a while, I still make way too many spelling and grammatical errors in my writing. 

Spelling and grammatical errors make your content appear unprofessional. It’s essential to proofread and edit your posts before publishing to maintain your blog’s credibility.

If you find it hard, use tools like grammarly to help you out.

Ignoring Analytics

Without analyzing your blog’s performance, you won’t know what’s working and what needs improvement.

Tools like Google Analytics provide valuable insights into your audience and the effectiveness of your content.

Also, check out your social media analytics. For example Pinterest analytics is a goldmine of information. It gives you insights about which of your pin styles are doing well and which ones are underperforming.

I spend lots of time pouring over my analytics so I can double down on what’s working and stop putting effort and resources into the things that are not working. Doing this will get you way ahead many other bloggers who aren’t doing this and who are posting and creating content aimlessly.

Use your analytics to see what your audience likes i.e the posts with the most views, the pins with the most clicks, saves and impressions, the posts with the most likes and make more of these types of content.

Copying Content

Plagiarism is unethical and can damage your blog’s reputation. Always create original content and give proper credit when referencing others.

Neglecting Email Marketing

Building an email list is crucial for staying connected with your audience and promoting your blog.

Email marketing allows you to share updates, newsletters, and special offers directly with your subscribers.

I’ve personally gone back and forth with email marketing. I do not like it. In fact, I feel like I’m terrible at it, but I understand that it is very valuable to a blog. Don’t neglect your email collection when you start out.

Not Engaging with Readers

Engaging with your audience in the comments section fosters a sense of community and encourages repeat visits.

Inconsistent Branding

Brand consistency helps readers recognize your blog and remember your content. This includes having a clear logo, color scheme, and maintaining a consistent writing style.

Ignoring Monetization

If you intend to make money from your blog, don’t overlook monetization strategies.

This may include ads, affiliate marketing, sponsored content, or selling your products or services.

Making money from your blog is one of the biggest motivations to keep going.

In fact, I’ve heard many bloggers say that making their first dollar lit a fire under them that gave them the motivation to work harder on their blog to take it the the next level.

Therefore, I recommend monetizing your blog early on, by adding affiliate links throughout your content so you can make your first dollar too! Ads may not make sense in the very beginning, but if you want to get started with ads ezoic or Google AdSense are good networks to try out.

You can read more about monetizing a blog here.

Not contenting without other bloggers

Blogging can be lonely, but you can make it a little less lonely by connecting with other like-minded people. Not only does this also you the chance to network, but you can learn a lot of free tips and information from other bloggers too.

I like to hang out in Facebook related blogging groups, on niche site twitter and on YouTube when I need some motivation or inspiration. These spaces are a goldmine for new bloggers looking to devour information!

Impatience

Building a successful blog takes time and effort. Many new bloggers expect immediate results and can become discouraged when they don’t see quick success.

Patience is key, as it may take months to establish a substantial audience and income from your blog.

For me personally, most of the blogs I’ve started haven taken between 1 to 6 months to get a some of traffic (about 3 monthly views)and are few dollars.

There are a few exceptions that get massive amount of traffic very quickly, but these aren’t the rule.

When you just start out, do not be discouraged that your numbers are low, they will improve as time goes on and you keep creating and publishing good content that you share often.

Remember that blogging is a learning process, and most successful bloggers have made some of these mistakes along the way. The key is to learn from them and continually improve your blogging skills and strategies.