Last week, we explored some common business blogging mistakes as outlined in this ebook from Hubspot… 15 Business Blogging Mistakes – And Easy Fixes. There simply was too much information for just one post.
So we’re here to deliver the remaining 15 business blogging mistakes and things you can do to address them. Continue reading for more, and download the ebook for more detailed information.
Common Blogging Mistake #9 – Rushing Blog Titles
It’s quite common in fact – you’re rushing to get content created for your blog and forget to develop a strong title. Headlines though are perhaps the most important part of any piece of content. It briefly, often times in only 2-3 words, describes what your page is about. Many, if not most visitors, scan this headline to determine if they want to read any further.
To spur interest and ensure the reader stays on the page, try and develop blog titles that are actionable, clear and definitive. Try and integrate an important keyword and keep it brief…you only have a few short seconds to capture someone’s attention.
Common Blogging Mistake #10 – Not Sourcing Content
Another common mistake business blogs make is not finding additional sources for content. While its great you’re showing your expertise through completely original content, it’s also easy to run out of ideas. Besides, your readers would welcome additional insights from other writers.
To help you diversify your blog’s content, you can consider guest posts for example. You could also serve as a content curator – meaning you aggregate relevant stories and videos into one place, which helps visitors find all relevant info in one easy to refer place. You can also encourage employee contributions. In fact, it’s better for a blog to have multiple authors.
Common Blogging Mistake #11 – Not Optimizing for Leads
It’s incredible the number of blog posts we come across that have no call-to-action whatsoever. If you’re not optimizing your blog with offers and a clear call-to-action, you’re missing out on a tremendously powerful lead generation tool. Therefore, be sure you include a clear CTA in all of your posts and consider permanent CTAs to the top or sidebar of your content.
Types of call-to-action can include: content-focused offers (i.e. free e-book, webinar) or product-focused offers (i.e. free 30-day trial). Review the e-book for more information on placement.
Common Blogging Mistake #12 – Not Sharing your Posts on Social Media
It’s easy to just write a post, put it online and then forget about it. Not sharing your content on social media channels like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn means you’re leaving a large pool of readers out of the loop. To address this, share new content on your company’s social media profiles. Also, make it easy for your readers to share your posts with their online friends by including a social “share” button on each post.
Common Blogging Mistake #13 – Ignoring your Blog’s Analytics
While you’re just blazing away with new content, it’s easy to forget how to check to see how successful your blog actually is and whether your efforts are paying off. Not doing so means you could be doing something that turns your audience off for example. Carefully reviewing your blog’s visitor data can help you determine what kind of posts are the most popular, or the least popular.
Look at data like number of site visits, source of visits, bounce rates, inbound links, page views and keywords that brought in the most traffic to get an inside look at how your blog is working.
Common Blogging Mistake #14 – Not Testing Blog Elements
Meaning, you use the same methodology for every post you write – same design, same call-to-action, everything. Simply assuming what you do works isn’t the best way to approach your business blog. If you haven’t tested anything, how can you know what works and what doesn’t? Neglecting to test elements like your headline, call-to-action, design and subscription signup means you’re missing out on valuable data that can really help you improve your blog.
To combat this, simply use different types of titles – is it better to pose a question or do actionable titles work better? Does including a number (i.e. 15 Common Blogging Mistakes) generate more interest. You can also try a different call-to-action in each post – try different sizes, colors, placement, formatting and language to see what garners the most conversions.
Common Blogging Mistake #15 – Expecting Overnight Success
This is perhaps the most common, and persistent mistake in blogging. As the old saying goes, Rome wasn’t built in a night. Success takes time and requires a lot of effort. Unfortunately, many businesses start blogging and don’t see any significant results quickly…soon, the blog is abandoned altogether. The opportunity to build a new source of web traffic and leads is gone.
The important thing to remember is this – don’t give up. Realize it will take a good bit of time before you really start seeing a lot of new prospects and conversions from your blog. We don’t like to estimate a time frame since, but it will take up to a year to develop a resource that’s getting good, consistent traffic.
We certainly recommend checking out HubSpot’s e-book for more information. This post is mainly an overview of the common mistakes and what you can do to correct them. For more details on correcting these mistakes, we urge you to download the e-book.
From looking at this list, are there any of these 15 mistakes that grabbed your attention?
If you’ve taken any corrective measures, did you see additional traffic and engagement?
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