Don’t Fall for These 5 Blogging Mistakes

 

I have been blogging, for myself and others, since 2010. In the last decade, what works and what doesn’t work for a blog has changed dramatically and frequently. But there are some common mistakes bloggers and businesses make when writing online. By avoiding these pitfalls, you’ll increase your reader engagement and reach your target audience a little easier. Here are the top 5 blogging mistakes you should avoid.

 

Not Showing Your Personality

When I was working in staffing, we often heard about our clients asking off the wall questions during interviews. You know them: Describe yourself as a tree. What’s your favorite animal?

The one that stuck with me the most was a client who asked. “If you were a car, what kind of car would you be?” When I heard it the first time, I thought it was a stupid question. Then I thought about it for a while. Sure, it might have been an excuse to procrastinate, but the question wasn’t stupid.

I decided I was a Honda Element. I’m quirky and fun but also extremely useful and reliable. I was biased as an Element owner at the time. Even though the car is long gone, I still think about that question and I still think it fits.

When writing your blog, don’t be afraid to show what kind of car you are. Maybe not explicitly, but add that bit of personality to your page. At the very least, it’ll be a point of interest. At best, it will be the one thing that makes someone relate to you.

 

Not Posting Consistently

Boy am I ever guilty of this. Before I challenged myself to write weekly blog posts just a month ago, I think it had been over a year since my last post. I write for a living so I constantly put off my website. That also bled over into other things. I write fiction and I would find myself sitting on top of the biggest writer’s block.

Well, part of the reason is I didn’t force myself to do it. I have to write to be a writer, so I need to continuously hone that skill.

You may have a different motivation. You might not be a writer, and that’s okay. But to encourage people to return to your website, you need to have a reason for them to click. A blog consistently updates your page, which is good for the behind the scenes algorithms and encourages readers to come back. The more readers come back, the more likely they are to connect with you and convert to customers. 

 

No Call to Action

One of the hardest things to write is an ending. This is especially true for a blog post. Whether the post is a personal narrative or an educational topic, when you’re done, you’re done. Sometimes they just sort of peter out and feel unfinished.

How do you solve that? For your business blog, the best answer is a call to action. This is a short phrase at the end of your blog post that directly communicates what you want the reader to do next.

• Click here for more details.
• Call us today.
• Tell us what you think in the comments below.

All of these, and more, can get your audience to engaged and interact with you. That’s the ultimate goal.

 

Choosing the Wrong Topics

Okay, I’m going to get a little technical here. But don’t worry, I’ll bring it back around. You’ve probably heard of Search Engine Optimization. It’s the way the internet finds and indexes websites to popular searches. When you search for a subject, like “hairless cats” for example, Google knows what top websites to show you based on how that website uses the phrase “hairless cats.”

When you pick subjects for your blog, you need to keep this in mind. Primarily writing about your general business model will be one way of ensuring that you’re continuously adding the right SEO to index your page properly.

But here’s the thing. I don’t believe in keyword stuffing. That means you can’t just write your keywords over and over again creating what amounts to gibberish just to make sure you have enough of them for Google to notice. Even Google doesn’t like that.

Your topics, including these keywords, should also be well thought out and engaging to keep people coming back. That’s why I believe in the power of storytelling. Regardless of your specific topic, if you tell a story about it, you’ll have more eyes on your page.

 

Not Knowing Your Audience

Lastly, you need to know who will be reading your page. If you’re selling ski resort packages, you don’t need to target everyone. You need to focus your stories on the kinds of people most likely to buy ski resort packages.

Write what will attract the audience you believe is the best target for your business. This can get tricky. For instance, if you sell t-shirts at conventions you may want to write a blog post about your favorite HBO series. They seem unrelated, but you’re likely to tap into some of the same people who like that show, go to conventions, and buy t-shirts.

I’ve struggled with this one myself for a very long time. I write content for small businesses, so my target feels pretty broad. I decided to create a plan to focus some of my content on the things I seem to do the most: real estate and employment. If I can show my expertise in these two fields while still providing value, I will see the return on the work I’m doing. That can be you, too.

Do you want to know how you can create a blog for your site that will attract views and convert customers? Email me today.