Over the last decade, blogging has taken the Internet by storm. People of all walks of life and in all industries have taken to blogging to share their experiences, promote their business or product, or to generate income via advertising and sponsored posts.
For some bloggers, it becomes a full-fledged career, while others prefer to keep their blogs personal and for when they have time. Regardless of how you choose to approach blogging there are a host of mistakes new bloggers make. Some of these are simple to correct, yet others require a more mindful approach to blogging and a plan to keep things running smoothly.
If you’re considering a blog for any reason these are a few of the biggest mistakes new bloggers make and how you can avoid them.
Pick a Proper Web Host
If you plan to blog more for fun that possible income, then a simple website creator like WordPress or BlogSpot might be all you need, but if you want to be serious, then you need to research Web hosting sites. You first want to look into a hosting service that offers tiered services. You need minimal bandwidth to start and probably some help designing your blog, but little else.
The tiered hosting sites help when you start to see growth and need to scale up to accommodate for all the visitors you’re now receiving. One thing to always look for in a good hosting service is the guaranteed uptime; accept no less than 99 percent. It does you no good if you have an article go viral and your site crashes, limiting the revenue you’ll actually earn.
Create a Library of Content Before You Launch
Another mistake that new bloggers make is launching and promoting their site before they have content in place to back it up. Simply writing an article or two is not enough. Many experts suggest that you have at least 12 to 14 pieces of content published before you invite the world to view your blog.
In addition, it’s very wise to set a publishing schedule and stick to it. While three posts per week is sometimes considered the rule, be sure that the schedule you set for yourself is one you can stick with. Not only will a regular publishing schedule keep the Google gods happy, it also gives readers a timeline they can trust when visiting your site.
Know the Ins and Outs of Plagiarism and Copyright
Few bloggers intend to plagiarize or break copyright laws, but if you’re new to the game it could happen without your realization. It’s best to start by assuming that everything you see on the Internet is protected by a copyright of some sort and know what type of content you can use and what you can’t.
Creative Commons is a great way to source photos for your blog posts, but pay attention to the requirements. Some content owners specify that you simply need to credit them, some specify that their work cannot be used for commercial purposes, and some require no attribution at all. Become familiar with the rules, use your own content whenever possible, and understand the legal ramifications of violating copyright.
Use Keywords to Your Advantage
In the old days many blog posts were laden with links and keywords that, in some cases, made reading them impossible. Google has changed their algorithms over the years so, thankfully, those awkward keyword days are over, but you should still pay attention to what you’re writing and how it’s placed.
Depending on the publishing platform you’re using you may be able to work with plug-ins that set up your keywords for you. The most popular of these is Yoast and it can help manage your posts so they’re easily indexed by Google, as well as to ensure that you’re using keywords appropriately.
Starting your own blog is an exciting venture, and is also one that could prove to be a good source of income. Just be sure to take it slow and avoid these common mistakes and you could be well on your way to blogging success.