Building a blog for your business is a great way to build search engine rankings and develop a following online. All leading online marketing experts agree that providing consistent, relevant and interesting information about your niche through a blog goes a long way to building trust with prospective customers.
But at one time, we were new at something and probably made mistakes along the way. Blogging is no different on that score.
So if you’re just beginning or interested in starting a blog for your small business, here are 7 common mistakes you must avoid if your goal is to turn your blog into a traffic generator and revenue source.
1. Never launching it
Perhaps the most common mistake people make. You write your first post or two while killing some time. They’re great, informative and focused…but they never make it online. You have to get started to finish, and it’s not a blog until you actually publish something online.
2. Using a sub-domain (ex. myblog.wordpress.com)
Another common mistake is simply going to a blogging platform like WordPress and TypePad and opening an account. These are great utilities for posting and managing your blog but if you’re going to the trouble of starting a blog in the first place, it’s worth your time and money to invest in your own domain that you control from the beginning. It’s very difficult to change later on.
3. Spending too much time on design
Many blogs never get launched because the owner spends the majority of their blogging time worrying about design. Looks are great, but the core purpose of a blog is relevant content. Besides, you can easily change the design later on so focus on creating great content instead.
4. Not telling anyone about it
In a blog’s infancy, no one knows about it. There are no links to it and search engines are not ranking you, perhaps not even indexing it. Therefore, the only way to get traffic to it is through direct contact. Tell your friends online and in the flesh of your new blog and utilize social networks to spread the word.
5. Getting discouraged too early
Blogging is no different than most things in one regard – it takes time to build up to success. Give yourself at least six months and maybe even a year before suspending the blog for lack of traffic. It’s hard to get some momentum but once you do, good things start to happen.
6. Too many plugins and “blidgets”
Many bloggers make the mistake of loading their blog up with a bunch of bells and whistles without paying much attention to their content. Resist the temptation to do this and invest your time in content, comments and categories instead.
7. Monetizing too early
Search engines like Google make it pretty easy to throw some ads on your blog. If you’re serious, you need to focus on building an audience first and worry about monetization later. Posting ads for revenue too early will discourage people from looking at your blog long before you have built the critical mass needed to make any real money with it.
Blogging can be fun and rewarding but it takes time, as any real success does. Don’t be discouraged, keep working at it and your efforts will pay off in the long run.
*Subject for this post courtesy of HubSpot’s Blogging Team. Subscribe to their email listserv at http://www.hubspot.com/.