My Only Problem With The List of 48 Blogging Mistakes
Written by George Manty · April 5, 2007
My friend Daniel of Daily Blog Tips had his second group writing project last week. Daniel asked each of us to write about a blogging mistake we have made. My entry was this post about my point of view.
Here is a look at the other 47 entries (with my comments below the entry):
My Blogging Mistakes and Their Outcome by Thilak
Really nice post. I never tested the difference between having a link to your newsletter vs. having a subscription box, but Thilak’s results make sense to me.
A Star for a day. What I learned by Clever Dude
Very interesting story about copyright problems.
My Biggest Blogging Mistake: Posting Frequency by Chris
Excellent post about scheduling your posts. This was one of my favorites from the group.
Your Blog Will Perish for Lack of Vision by Shawn
Really nice post. Very similar to my entry.
My Biggest Blogging Mistake is not Updating Often Enough by Julian
Good article. Writing on your blog less than once a week is a good way to lose readers. Less than once month is a sure way to let your reaers know you are not interested in you blog, so why should they be?
DYH isn’t perfect? by Cory O’Brien
Cory is right. Picking a name for your blog is very important. When I picked a name for this blog, it took a long time. My wife Jill actually came up with the one I decided to go with, “Can I Make Big Money Online”. The name for this blog clearly explains it’s purpose and I like that.
Don’t Change the Name by Denise
It is definitely good to find a name and stick with it. If you want to change the name of your blog it might make more sense to start a brand new one and keep your other blog as well.
Why this Blog Looks this Way by Ben
It’s definitely important to plan ahead. Something I need to do a better job of when it comes to my online business.
My Blogging Mistake: Too Many Blogs by Green Llama
I was going to write about this mistake, but my friend Leroy beat me to it.
What is Wrong with my Blog. An Honest Self-Assessment by Bret
Bret had the same problem as I mentioned.
I Almost Ruined Everything by Annie
Interesting mistake. When blogging I think it’s very important not to do things that could get you in trouble at your 9-5 job and especially not into legal trouble.
Common Blogging Mistakes by Vijay
Vijay lists five common blogging mistakes in his post.
How to Not Run a Contest by Robert
I made a simialr mistake with a contest Jill and I ran on our homeschooling wiki. Didn’t have enough time to advertise it. It turned out ok though.
5 Things I Regret About March by Bill
A good list of five mistakes that Bill made.
Trying to Promote my Blog without enough Traffic by Nathan
Contests can be hit or misses, especially with new blogs.
Always Install Wordpress on the Root Diretory by Daniel
I agree with Daniel on this one.
I should have included media contents by Madhur
Images and video definitely help make your blog more interesting. I don’t do much with video or graphics on this blog, but we liberaly use video on some of our other blogs.
The Biggest Blogging Mistake I did was not Blogging by Francesco
I think most bloggers probably wish they started earlier. Better late than never…
Learning from Mistakes: Opening Links in New Windows by Nirmal
Interesting usability post. When I was starting out I found a site that would not trade links with any site that opened links in new windows. I guess they aren’t the only ones who are annoyed by that.
Mr. Frisky Retreats with his Tail Between his Legs by Rory
I actually have done this same thing. My first blog (If I were President) was an experiment to see if I liked blogging. It turned out that I loved blogging. The problem is that my first blog was hosted free by blogger. If I were to move it to it’s own domain, I would write on it a lot more. Even if you just want to “experiment” with blogging, it’s probably best to go ahead and purchase web hosting for your “experimental” blog. If you don’t like it, then don’t renew the hosting and let the domain name registration expire. Sure, you are out a little money, but it’s less frustrating.
Use a Smart Permalink Structure on your Blog by Leftblank
Nice SEO tip.
Internet Explorer vs. Firefox Issues by Mark Paddock
It is very important to remember to test your blog or website in both browsers. It’s also important to test it with large and small fonts turned on. I use large fonts on my system, and some blogs are a mess when you turn on large fonts in Windows.
Not Having Drafts Saved for Rainy Days by Inspirationbit
This doesn’t really work for news/current events blogs, but it is definitely good to do on “how to” blogs.
Don’t Underestimate the Commitment by Andrew
It is important to plan to dedicate time to blogging.
Get your Own Domain and Wordpress for your Blog by Andrew Flusche
Another good example of why it’s important to get your own domain name.
Delete Your First Blog Post by Mark Alves
Interesting mistake.
Don’t Forget to Use Blog Carnivals by Andrea
I have not entered blog carnivals, but have thought about it. My wife Jill has entered them and they do bring you extra traffic.
Why Blogs and Blogging Will Ruin your Self Discipline by Dave
I really like this tip. It is something I have been thinking about a lot lately.
Careful on How You Tag your Posts by Shankar
Good tip on tagging your blog posts.
Should’ve Gone WP Yesterday! by Jimbo
Good list of mistakes from Jimbo.
Don’t Make the Mistake of Monetizing your Blog Too Early by Maki
I actually saw a major SEO blog mention this as a mistake recently and meant to write about it then. I don’t believe that putting ads on your blog when you first start is really a mistake. I do agree that too many ads is a problem. However, I believe that bloggers should feel free to put ads on their blog from day one. The most successful blogging network in the world (Weblogs Inc.), had ads plastered all over their blogs when they started. They were so succesful that AOL paid a good amount of money to buy the company. I could certainly be wrong about this mistake, but Jason Calacanis’ millions seem to suggest otherwise.
PS. Maki’s blog is full of great information, I just don’t happen to agree with part of this tip.
Don’t Ignore the Basics of SEO by Simonne
Nice post on some SEO basics to keep in mind when posting.
Spending Too Much Time Link-Begging by David Paul
Good point. While I look for links, I don’t do it nearly as much as I try to create great content.
Lack of Predictability on Your Posts by Roberto
Very similar to my entry and a good read.
What to Do When You don’t Have Anything to Say by Philip Liu
I have done this before, and I agree with Philip.
Copying, Mimicking, Duplication by Paper Bull
I think most people would agree that it’s important to be unique.
Starting Too Many Blogs by Mohammed
Deja Vu… As I mentioned earlier, I almost wrote about this too.
Leaving the Amateur League of Blogging: the Hosting Lesson by Rene
I don’t agree with this one. It just doesn’t make sense for some people to move their blog to a dedicated server. It may not meet their budget either. I use a budget host (ipowerweb) and have had very few problems with them. However, once I get to a certain level of traffic/income then I will make the switch.
Be Careful how you Choose your Domain Name by Calvin
Good post on the importance of choosing a good domain name.
The Ad King by Jason
Good post on finding the right balance of advertising on your blog.
Move to your Own Domain Now by Gaurav
Another good read on buying a domain instead of going with a free blog host.
Lack of Persistence by Blake
Excellent post on the importance of persistence. I plan on talking about this more in the future, because of something I realized about myself a few weeks back.
Not Commenting Enough on other People’s Blogs by Somu
While it can take a lot of time, it’s definitely important to participate on other people’s blogs.
Failing to Realize the Importance of Relationships with Readers by Ronald
Another good post on building relationships.
Don’t Handle Important Matters Lightly by Amanda
Great post. I have made mistakes like this and it’s not fun cleaning up the mess.
Do not Underestimate the Important of RSS Feeds by Kevin
A lot of the top bloggers talk about this. That’s why I have recently moved my feed subscription button to the top right hand side of the navigation for this blog. I want to make it easy for people to subscribe to this blog’s feed.
Why you Should Own your Domain Name by Engtech
One more post about owning your own domain name. Since this was the most common mistake mentioned, it also may be one of the most important ones to remember.
That’s it for the blogging mistakes list.
Update: Ooops, I made a mistake when I posted this. I posted it with the wrong title. I meant to change the title when I decided to take this post a different direction. I guess that could be mistake number 49…
Very interesting. What I did was to comment on each post. I did it on 5~6 blogs but decided to quit soon. A very few “register to comment” blogs and the fact that all the comments were getting burried under trackback links kindda ticked me off. Of course, laziness did help too!
I thought about doing that too. I did comment on a few blogs, but I ran to the register first thing also, and that is an annoyance to me also. I have only done that on a few blogs as a temporary measure to reduce spam, but only temporary.
Great job adding your own comments to the list, George.. Appreciate the effort.
Maki,
Thanks. It was a lot more work than I expected.
I tried to read all of the entries in the project, but just couldn’t find the time – there were a lot! Nice writeup though – the little blurb helps time-strapped folks decide what to read.. it’s more thorough than just judging by the title.
Thanks Leroy. It was a lot of reading.
Thanks for the summary.