Are you making these five common blogging mistakes?

Here are some of the blunders you should avoid at all costs:

1. Inconsistent publishing

When you start a blog, your readers will want to have an idea of when new content will be published. Therefore, if your publishing pattern is inconsistent, they are likely to get frustrated. This is why it is important to have a publishing schedule that will keep you focused.

For instance, you could aim at publishing daily, twice a week or once every two weeks. Consistency will keep your readers coming back for more, and will also enhance the search engine ranking of your blog. However, make sure the publishing schedule is realistic and fits well with your other obligations.

2. Failing to express your personality

Regardless of your niche, there are probably hundreds of other bloggers writing about the same topics. Therefore, to stand out from the competition, you need to inject some personality into your content. Add some humour into your blog posts to entertain your audience. Share your own unconventional or controversial perspectives on common topics in your niche. Incorporate your own personal stories in your blog posts. Sharing your experiences and personality will help you build a stronger following.

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3. Not responding to comments

One of the greatest mistakes you can ever make as a blogger is to ignore comments left by your readers. Engaging via blog comments gives you the opportunity to build stronger relationships with your audience, thus enhancing loyalty. By responding to people’s questions and concerns, you also build credibility as an expert in your field. If you realise that many readers are asking the same question, you could consider responding in form of a blog post. However, be sure to keep all your responses professional and polite, even when the comment is not negative.

4. Not checking analytics

If you don’t check the analytics of your blog, you will not know if your efforts are bearing fruit or not. Analytics will help answer questions such as:

• What is your bounce rate?

• What are your major sources of traffic?
• How much time are visitors spending on your site?

• Which are the most popular posts?

The good news is that there are numerous analytic tools out there that you can use to keep track of your blog’s performance.

5. Not using images

The adage ‘an image is worth a thousand words’ is very true when it comes to blogging. Having images in your blog posts will grab the attention of your audience and enhance the chance of them reading the content. Therefore, be sure to break up your text with photos, graphics and charts. The good news is that there are thousands of royalty-free images available for download online. Alternatively, you could simply share all your information visually using infographics.