Image Source: wetwebwork

Since my previous post 33 Reasons to Start a Blog generated a lot of interest, I thought this post might be a good follow-up. Also to clarify, By blogger I’m referring to any kind of online content contributer or publisher.

I’m guilty of all these mistakes myself and thought I’d come clean

1. Spending too much time on SEO – Search Engine Optimization. In certain weeks I have made the mistake of spending more time on learning and implementing SEO techniques for this blog than I spent on writing original quality blog posts. While SEO is important, I’m realizing now that original unique interesting posts is what creates loyal blog reader. SEO will bring new visitors, however only the quality blog posts will turn them into regular readers. I like how Steve Pavlina sums it up “write for people first and search engines second”.

2. Spending too much time on social news networks like digg, reddit etc. Submitting my blog posts to social news sites is a great way to generate traffic, however I try to make sure it’s not a priority. Using digg, reddit and other social bookmarking sites has been a very big destraction for me at times. I realize now that putting more of that time into writing quality posts will generate a lot more traffic in the long run.

3. Trying to write perfect blog posts. I have fallen into this trap myself whether I’m trying to find the perfect words, worrying about capitalization or constantly going back into each post of my posts and editing it and making it prettier. I now try to think of a blog post as food for thought not a piece of art

4. Not being personal in your blog posts. I think what makes a great blogger is the unique combination of their past circumstances and experiences. Sharing those circumstances and experiences allows readers to relate to a blogger’s writing on a deeper level.

5. Sharing the good and leaving out the bad. I notice that when sharing a personal problem that I’ve dealt with, I’m tempted to not talk too much about my shortcomings and focus a lot more on how the “powerful strong immortal me” overcame it . This ends up creating this image of a super-star blogger who no one can relate to.

6. Writing about subjects of little interest. There can be various motives for this, whether it’s to generate more buzz about a new blog, or just feeling the need to regularly publish content. This takes away all the fun of blogging. The most successful bloggers tend to be very passionate and genuinely interested in their topics of choice.

7. Constantly Checking Blog Stats. I’ve noticed that this is a big time waster for me. When I first started blogging I would even check my blog’s number of visitors multiple times in a single day. I now realize that this is just a waste of time. I now try to only check my blog’s traffic and performance statistics once or twice a week.