The aspiring freelance writer might have heard of other bloggers making a living from writing a blog. Some claim blogging can earn you thousands. This might cause the rookie blogger discontentment when income proves paltry. What are the top ten mistakes a blogger can make when trying to make money online?
Blogging Mistakes to Avoid
The reality is, blogging is like maturing wine – it takes time and patience. Money does not come in straightaway, but the wait could be made shorter. Here are my top ten mistakes to avoid when blogging for money:
1 Using the Blog as a Weblog
If you want your blog to earn cash, offer useful information that will draw readers the world over. If you are simply keeping a weblog about a personal journey or diary entries, the blog is unlikely to draw visitors beyond family and friends. On the other hand, if you utilize the blog for writing articles people will find useful or interesting, you are likely to attract traffic beyond this inner circle. This means choosing a niche subject matter. Choosing the
best subject matter for blogging requires careful thought and is covered in a separate article.
2 Writing about Something Everyone Else is Writing About
Writing about something everyone else is writing about will increase competition with other websites. Why write about ‘getting out of debt’ if there are a multitude of authoritative websites offering the same information? Other such subject matter might be ‘how to lose weight’ or ‘make money fast.’ Go for a less competitive niche subject matter with lower overall competition on the Net and you will attract more traffic to your blog.
3 Not Using Keywords Effectively.
Not using Google’s Adwords Keyword Tool will leave you in the dark. Keywords will get your blog found, and getting found means increasing traffic. I have written a separate article on
beginner’s guide to using keywords for articles. In a nutshell, title your article accurately and without puns. Google bots will not understand irony or play-on-words, so don’t title your article ‘Woow, Wicked ways to Bargain Hunt! Pepper the rest of your article with keywords people are actually using. Keyword research via the Keyword research is crucial.
4 Lack of Content on Each Blog Page
Short articles or pages that simply contain graphics or affiliate links will not get your blog found. Make sure each page contains a body of text of at least 400 words, and that the quality of the article is good: no typos, no grammos. Keep it interesting and informative.
5 Not Enough Articles on the Blog
A blog with mere ten or so posts will not do much for your pocket. The secret is to keep adding more. Google likes big blogs, those with at least twenty articles or more will fare better. The more you add, the more visible your blog will become. Don’t give up easily.
6 Google Has Penalized your Blog
A blog with poor content will plummet in the SEO rankings. This might not be necessarily because of poor writing, but poor website practices. The following are to be avoided if you want your blog to prosper:
- Keyword stuffing. Going mad with overuse of keywords in the belief it will make your blog more searchable is a no-no. Six or seven keywords phrases in each 800 word article will suffice.
- Content farming. Do not be tempted to copy and paste someone else’s work or this will show up when the Bots come passing by.
- Link farming. The more (good quality) inward-bound links your blog gets, the higher in the rankings it will become, but beware of services that entice you to ‘buy’ hundreds of links for a few dollars. Too many inward-bound links looks suspicious and Google will penalize a site that has hundreds of inward-bound links from unscrupulous websites.
7 You Blog is Not People Friendly
The bounce rate of your blog (the rate at which a person clicks into your blog and clicks right out) is likely to be high if your blog simply isn’t people-friendly. This might be due to nasty popup adverts (a personal gripe of mine) or ghastly colours that make reading the blog a strain on the eyes. Look out also for:
- Stilted writing style that is obviously an attempt to accommodate keywords. Write for people, not Googlebots.
- Fonts are too small to read onscreen.
- The blog, on first appearances appears to offer little – too many affiliate links, disjointed page layout or amateurish-looking graphics with little text.
- Not easy to navigate. Perhaps the link list bears no logic, or information is difficult to find.
8 Bad Placement of Google Adverts on your Blog
Research has shown that the placement of ads on a blog page can determine whether someone clicks on it or not. The left-hand margin and the header of the webpage are two popular locations webmasters use for Google ads. But every webpage layout is different. The secret is to experiment and try out different ad placements and see how it performs. Stick to blue for your link colour and prefer a blend-in colour for the background of your ads. Avoid garish colours and of putting too many ads on your blog page.
9 Your Blog is not Evergreen
Writing about a product or event that will be outdated or yesterday’s new is a mistake to be avoided if you want your blog to keep reaping rewards. This includes software, the news, bestselling books and fashion. Yes, it might bring a surge of revenue, but how long will it last? Think about long term goal. Will the subject matter still be searched for in years to come?
10 Your Blog Lacks a Clearly Defined Audience
Who are you writing for? Getting traffic to your blog means writing for a defined audience. How can you market your products or offer information if you do not have a clear picture of what the intended audience is? An article giving advice to students on how to stretch their budget will have a different approach to writing a similar article for families. The tone and language used on your blog will influence whether visitors stick around and keep returning. Keep the audience in mind when writing your blog, and keep the style consistent.
Dos and Don’ts of Blogging for Money
The success of your blog heavily depends upon understanding how your blog can make money. Write for an audience beyond family and friends. Avoid saturated subject matter and keep your articles well-written and interesting. Take heed of keyword use, ad placements and tone of voice. Keep adding articles and your blog will get traffic in years to come. Getting traffic to your blog will earn you ad clicks.
Top Tips for Earning Cash from your Blog
Top ten tips for niche blogging for profit
Using keywords for beginners
SEO tips for dummies
Writers' guide to avoiding procrastination
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