Top Five New Blogger Mistakes
Blogging August 19th, 2007
1. Not commenting on other blogs. This is one way to attract readers to your blog that you may not have considered. It’s not exactly what I would call a “great” way to conjure up a load of traffic but it has the possibility to give you targeted visits that you may never have seen otherwise. This being said, if you don’t already comment on blogs that are related to yours then you should give it a try.
2. Not joining blog communities. Blog communities are good for bloggers. Even if your blog is related to an off the wall topic, getting active in the major blog communities can provide you a way to reach potential readers. On top of this, blog communities can lead to relationship building as well as generate branding exposure.
3. Not getting your RSS feed out there. Your RSS feed on your blog is perhaps one of the best tools you have as a blogger. There are plenty of ways to promote your RSS feed along with plenty of blog readers that love a good feed. I love a good feed and I like to be able to scan tons of blogs at the same time, saving me some time in the process. If your title catches a readers eye your bound to get a visit.
4. Not using your own domain name. This is possibly one of the worst things a blogger can do. The fact is, blogs are hard work, especially if you’re not a writer by nature. If you’re going to put that much time and effort into something you should be full owner with rights to do whatever you feel necessary with your blog, including advertising, if you so choose.
5. Not keeping a posting consistency. This is something that can get the best of us. Keeping a posting schedule of at least two to three times a week even gets tough with a tight schedule. Updating frequently is important, so be sure to keep a tight schedule and make time for blog.










August 25th, 2007 at 7:07 am
I just felt I had to comment after reading the first point and realising no one else had took your advice :-)
nice blog
August 26th, 2007 at 1:09 pm
Posting consistency is key. I have a list of blogs I visit. If you’re not posting, I’m outta there!
Remember, kids: I’m the audience you want. I’m not building traffic for my own blog, I’m here to be educated and entertained. Fail to do at least one of these, and I’ll find someone else to read.
August 28th, 2007 at 12:11 pm
Excellent article. I agree with all points. Now, with that said I must comment on number one.
Yes, we should comment on other blogs. This is a great way to get traffic and build readership, however, it is good to know who has nofollow enabled on their blog comments and who doesn’t.
WordPress includes nofollow tags on comment links by default as a means of comment spam filtering. But, that sort of sticks for all us real live people who comment.
Personally I implemented a math question plugin on my comments and enable comment link following with another plugin. That protects my comments area and rewards people who leave legitimate comments. It just seems better that way and everyone wins.
Love the blog. The Corporate America post was classic.
Charles McKeever
OpenSourceMarketer.com
August 29th, 2007 at 10:59 pm
Flooding the blog with too many ads before there is enough traffic to convert the ads into money. This also makes, what might be a legit blog, look like a splog or spam blog.
Also, too many off site javascripts or widgets or plugins from other sites. This hurts loading time, and search engine indexing.
I could prob, rant on and on…
August 31st, 2007 at 8:26 pm
I agree NY SEO. Too many times people make the mistake of loading their blog with ads before they gain an audience. It’s a common mistake by many new bloggers. You’re right we could go on for days.
September 8th, 2007 at 3:18 am
I love commenting on other blogs and feel it is vital to building awareness of your own blog. I have had a tough time keeping up with commenting this summer though, what with my overseas travel and keeping up with my own blog and websites!
Hopefully come the autumn, normal service will resume! Damn that travel bug!
- Martin Reed
September 9th, 2007 at 2:50 pm
That’s my position right now as other sites and areas are much more profitable and take time away from commenting.
September 16th, 2007 at 9:12 am
Thanks for the tips, especially the first 3. I am new to blogging and have had my blog(www.ouelletblog.com) for about one month now. On my blog I am currently posting about the progress of a brand new apparel company I have just started. I also post about what ever I find that helps me out and might help others.
September 16th, 2007 at 1:05 pm
Good luck on your new apparel company, Jonathan. A blog is a great way to get the word out. Let your blog pave its path and your viewers will find you.
September 16th, 2007 at 1:14 pm
Thanks,
Although I’m new to blog ownership I am finding that sites like your are really helping me fine tune my blog. I’m looking for original content to post in relation to entrepreneurship. So if you ever feel you have an article you think would be a good fit feel free to email it to me and I’ll post it with a link to your site. I’m always looking for quality content and as my traffic grows you’ll hopefully get your fair share.
Cheers,
Jonathan Ouellet
ouelletblog.com
September 16th, 2007 at 5:11 pm
Yeah, I see a lot of people start a blog planning to get rich, and then after 2-3 days of 2 posts each, they either lose interest, or don’t know what to write about.
September 17th, 2007 at 8:18 am
Your right, Word Hugger. I don’t recommend blogging to get rich unless you really like to write, a lot.
September 17th, 2007 at 11:24 am
Yup…great post and sharing. Like the idea of commenting other blogs. This is the method not only to gain traffic but also to learn too.
October 1st, 2007 at 10:24 pm
I agree with you on people not commenting a lot on other blogs, I comment at least 20 times a day :) on different blogs like yours. I was wondering if there is any business bloggers so I type that in google and got your blog.
October 13th, 2007 at 12:51 am
You have absolute right I didn’t anything to help others so how can I expect to help me.
Also I know even if you had the best blog all over the world if no one knew it than it’s useless.
Thanx for the tips.
October 16th, 2007 at 6:22 am
Great tips, a must read blog post you’ve got!