Becoming a blogger seems like something every other person is either doing, has tried (and given up), or is planning on. To be honest, it’s not as easy as it seems. Or let’s say becoming a successful blogger
is not as easy as it may seem.
Simply putting together a website doesn’t suffice. Okay, I’m not saying that, that is easy either! However, in order to be a successful blogger, you need to pay attention to a lot of things that really matter.
So, all of you bloggers, out there,who are planning on (or have already tried and failed at) becoming a successful blogger, you need to know these critical mistakes that newbie bloggers make and go downhill with their blog. Understanding these mistakes will allow you to avoid them in future, or at least know exactly where you went wrong.
Throw in the water before it goes up in smoke!
1) The Domain-Less Blog:
Have a professional domain that serves as an identity for your blog. Owning your domain means it is a serious business and it’s not any random blog that you (the blogger) decided to create just because it’s free. You can also do this by buying a premium domain name for your free WordPress or Blogger blog.
2) The Overly-Complex:
Try not use sentences like, “ the protector about this time gave a commendable earnest of his resolution to assertrigorous justice against offenders ” (or other similar sentences you’ll find on www.yourdictionary.com. Blah!).
The blog audience is usually a sizeable one and using such complex vocabulary will only reduce the audience. The best bloggers try to make complex concepts sound as easy as possible. Sounding complex is not parallel to “intelligent” or “sophisticated” unlike what many people mistakenly assume.
3) The Daily Diary:
Your blog should be all about you. It can be, but only if the “ you ” in your posts somehow benefit your audience. It may be tempting to create a new, free blog and pour in all about your thoughts, feelings, stories, and personal experiences.
However, your blog won’t be a hit if it doesn’t assist your audience in some way. In short: your blog is not your personal diary. Bloggers should learn to ask themselves: What’s in it for my readers?
Talking about yourself and your personal experiences is acceptable if it adds some spice and personality to your posts. Keep in mind though, that it must be useful and helpful to your audience as well.
4) Overly-Optimized SEO:
Nobody likes reading a paragraph similar to this one,
“ We will sell the best kitchen appliances you can find inNew Hampshire. For all you who live in New Hampshire and need kitchen appliances, contact the NH Kitchen Appliances, LLC. You are sure to find a great variety in kitchen appliances here ”.
Great, but try not to sound like a tape stuck in one place. Over optimization never works, but always end up in a penalty. So, basically you stuff the same keyword again and again and again (okay, I’ll stop).
If the purpose of your blog is to focus on SEO and not “helping your readers” you might make it to the top of Google results; however it won’t be very popular among the audience and it won’t stuck on the first page of the SERP for very long. Eventually, it is likely to get penalized and get thrown into the bin.
5) The Generous All-Embracer:
This one shouldn’t come to you as a surprise. Your blog should have a specific purpose to it. You might be feeling a little “big-hearted” and trying to come up with something that is for anybody and everybody. However, that tactic won’t work for long. Your blog will end up becoming meaningless, and infact, shrink the audience.
First try to understand your audience once you have decided on a purpose (a niche). What are the problems they will be facing? What are their needs and wants? What kind of information will they be looking for? Direct your information and language to them. A blog that ends up being generic will certainly be a wasted effort.
All in all, it is best to make your blog as helpful and useful as possible. Don’t forget the tidbits (length, quality, search ability, structure, etc). If you win your audience, you’ll also win it with Google. You win both, you’ll have traffic rolling in and making your blog a big hit.
What’s your take on this?
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