10 bad habits bloggers should avoid
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1. Choosing a niche you don't know or like
Lots of people write about how to make money online, and they seem to do quite well... how hard can it be?
What you don't see is how much work really goes into those blogs. You don't do well just by writing one post every now and again. Plus, it helps to know what you're talking about - otherwise, will anyone view you as an authority?
It's also important to write about something you like, otherwise it's going to become a chore to update your blog. The best blogs are the ones where the author is passionate about the topic in hand.
2. Ignoring questions
Replying to comments is a good idea, although you don't have to reply to every single one in great detail. You can reply to a few at once.
If someone asks you a question, whether it's in a comment or sent via email, answer it! Well, unless it's an obvious attempt to knock you down a peg or two - in which case you should answer it very well!
3. Pushing good posts off the front page
OK, you just posted something that's doing quite well, and has had a few comments. Do you really want to push it down the page with a new, not quite so great post? What about if you write a great post that's only been up for a day, and could get more comments if you leave it at the top?
Sometimes, bloggers are far too quick to post the next item. I went for a few months where I blogged every day, and it was tough on me, and tough on my readers. Here's a novel idea: post less often, and make it easier on everyone!
Of course, the "why not leave the post online for another day?" argument could run and run, and some posts may not do very well at all and you WANT to push them down a bit. So, use a bit of common sense with this one. Watch the comments you do get, see if the discussion could continue, and decide if you want it to. Don't just post again the next day because you feel like you should.
4. Posting for the sake of it
This follows on from point 3, but it's more of an obvious one. Some posts are pretty pointless. The writing makes it seem as though the author is simply treading water, not writing about much in particular, and just posting to up their quota - especially if every other post is sponsored.
Apparently, you can write paid posts without writing worthless posts in between. I wouldn't know because I don't do paid posts. Worthless posts though, I've done a few of those... not anymore though. All of my posts are now "worthful".
5. Failing to make your blog load quickly
Never mind how much clutter there is on the page - how long does it take to load? I say never mind the AMOUNT of clutter because it only takes one widget to kill your load time.
The trick? Don't put anything on your page! An empty site loads so much faster. It's not much fun to read though. So, instead of jumping on every widget bandwagon there is and adding everything to your site that everyone else adds to their site, add things one by one. See how well they load (or don't load). Decide if they are actually worth having on your blog.
If you add 20 widgets to your blog in one go and suddenly your blog slows down, who you gonna call? Widget Busters?
6. Not proof-reading your posts
Proof-reading may sound dull, but it is a very good idea. You may be able to get away with an error here and there, but if you have loads of mistakes in every post, it can be distracting. Some of the errors I've seen are so bad that I honestly don't know what the person was trying to say.
If English isn't your first language and you're writing for an English audience, you still have to get your point across. Blogging is all about WRITING - to publish a good blog post, you have to be able to write. If you're not good at writing, you may want to (a) get better - practice makes perfect, or (b) think about whether blogging is for you.
Find me an error in this post and I'll give you 100 Entrecard credits. Well, I might if you're the first, if it's a genuine error, and if you have an Entrecard account. Otherwise the credits won't be much good.
7. Using full-size images
You just bought a digital camera and can't get enough of it. It's so easy to point and shoot, then transfer the photos to your computer. Trouble is, the photos are taken at a high resolution - i.e. BIG, both in terms of height and width, and file size.
Upload that image straight to the web and link it from your blog. You may be happy to sit and wait for the image to fully display, but many people won't want to.
Do everyone a favour - RESIZE YOUR IMAGES prior to uploading them to the web. At least make them a respectable size.
8. Mixing English and non-English in the same post
Maybe you have an audience who likes this. The key is to know your audience. Are they predominantly English-speaking readers? If so - keep the posts entirely in English.
I've seen blogs where the posts seem to chop and change between English and ... well, I don't know the language, but it wasn't English! The author goes in and out of a couple of languages. As I said, if your readers are used to this, it's one thing ... but it can be quite misleading to potential new readers.
Some blogs have posts that are entirely written in English but the comments are in multiple languages - why is this? Am I missing something? Was I supposed to learn to read two or three languages in the same sentence when I was still in school? Sometimes I feel like I missed a year of school. (Maybe because I did! Although it was one of two "higher education" years, so it wasn't compulsory.)
9. Writing the same posts as everyone else
One of my tips for getting links from other blogs was to "report, not review". This is one way to stand out. The thing with "reporting" is that while some of your readers may be interested to read your post, you may have a lot of people who drop in to find the same post that's on another site they just came from.
With some posts it's a case of quoting a section of the original and commenting on it, which can be done to good effect. But some posts just lift the content from another blog and don't add anything else to it.
Do we really need to know about WordPress version whatever? From every blog on the Internet? OK, maybe you do. I'll just skip those posts.
10. Spamming anyone and everyone with your link
Hi, how are you today? "Visit my blog!"
Hey, can I ask you something? "Visit my blog!"
Is anyone free for a chat? "Visit my blog!"
And that concludes my post. What do you think? "Visit my blog!"
Not very encouraging is it? If someone can't even engage in conversation with you, are you going to visit their blog? If they only comment to leave their link or they email you the link thinking it's a nice way of networking with you... does that make you want to read their blog?
Nope!
So that's the list - what bad habits do you think that bloggers should avoid?
Comments on 10 bad habits bloggers should avoid
2
well said. Logical, some are good reminders and other points made me say, hmmm.
Thanks!
3
Your mention of pushing good posts off the front page has got me thinking. This is something I have been guilty of in the past. The new 'sticky' feature on WP 2.7 will help a bit with this problem. You will be able to add a new post but still leave that 'great' one at the top of the pile.
And that concludes my comment. What do you think? “Visit my blog!” :-)
4
I agree with #6 so much. My high school English teacher used to say, "All good writing is re-writing." I have a rather impulsive nature, so I really have to force myself to re-read everything I write, but I invariably find something to change: a word left out, a sentence that doesn't fit, a poor word choice. You can edit it from your blog later, but you can't change the feed.
Also, "Visit my blog!" ;-)
5
I looked very closely but could not find any errors in your post, so you did and EXCELLENT job of proofreading. That's something I do with every post of mine, but still manage to have the occasional oops get by me. That's why I continue to re-read my posts sometimes weeks afterwards.
I'm hoping WP will eventually include the ability to edit comments as I like to go back and tweak those as well if allowed :P
On your point #8, I don't think you can dictate that your commenters also write in English especially if you and they are from a non-English speaking country. BUT (and you knew there had to be one, didn't you?) the really good blogger will take those comments and in their answer to it paraphrase what the commenter said so those of us who don't read Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Hindi, Arabic, Russian or whatever can figure out what they said especially if it was something substantive (i.e. NOT "good job. visit my site") :roll:
I wrote a piece about images and making them optimal for your website last week. Some of your readers may want to check that post out as it goes more in depth than you have here -- it's titled "It's Not Enough To Attract Visitors" which is probably yet another failure of mine in titling a post poorly.
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6
Having e-n-o-r-m-o-u-s header images, with or without various announcements following. Sometimes it's hard to find the first post.
7
Regarding #9. I like to post my own comments and link back to the original post. That way I'm not reposting anything from the other blog. But my comment gives enough information to show what the original post was about. If not I add a little blab at the top along with the link back.
8
Ben, since you asked a question at the end of your post I feel I should answer it (unlike some of the other comments)! I actually do not like lists on blogs, but of course I have just read your post and not assigned it to the bin.
Well it is a list, but it is structured and presents a balanced argument.
So perhaps I should say I do not like meaningless lists on blogs which probably fits under number 4.
Incidentally I am English and speak and write in that language, along with speaking a little German and Thai.
Occasionally I will use Thai words in my posts where I think it is appropriate for context.
I know I have a lot of readers from countries where English is not the first language but they always comment in English and usually make their point very well.
9
Thanks for the comments everyone. :)
Lyndi, I'm not sure about sticky posts on blogs. They can be used to good effect on forums, but they are usually quite clearly highlighted as "sticky" (besides the fact they stay at the top). The problem with blogs is that most blogs display at least a small portion of the content on the home page, and when you combine this with a header image and advertisements, the content that's above the fold may not change for weeks at a time. If I visit a site and it looks like they haven't updated for a while, when in fact it's a sticky post that's giving the illusion of a LACK of updates. In my view, that could be turning away a lot of potential visitors. Just a thought. Actually... you know what, I'm going to take this one to the forum... :)
Margaret, you're right, I can't dictate. Usually though, I'd recommend that the post and the comments are in the same language - but it does seem to be the commenters who break the rule, rather than the blogger. Still, I'm not sure if the blogger considers the confusion for people who stop by their blog and wonder why it's in two or more languages.
A - argh! Yes!
Mike - I'll take that as a good thing, if you don't usually like lists. :) Thanks!
10
It's an interesting idea - to leave a post up a little longer if it's attracting comments. Hmmmm, food for thought...
11
This list is simply great. I could respond in great length to all of these, but that would take far too long.
It is getting increasingly easier for me to spot the blogs which are there for the sole purpose of trying to turn a buck. That is why I got into the game at first. Luckily, I realized what I was doing and about four months ago scrapped the old blog and turned it in for a new one that I actually enjoyed writing for.
I also must completely agree with point #2. At times I wish there was a "sticky" feature so that I could share other content, yet still have that one be on top. However, I have since learned that a gem of a post is better left to chill for a few days, and that other content can wait - even if it is good. I let one great post of mine sit for a good few days without posting again - and sure enough my blog traffic was actually higher a few days after the day that I posted it. It is always a good idea to let the post sink in with readers, and let them share it before throwing new stuff at them!
I think I have written enough for now...
12
Thanks guys. :D Ethan, welcome.
13
@ ethan Re: 'sticky'.
I've found that backdating posts will prevent them from pushing content from the main section off the page. By setting the publish date prior the post I want to stay on feature I can post new content and drop it behind the latest content. This is not an ideal solution, but it works for now and it can be a handy way to fill in blog archive holes. :-)
@ Ben
LOVE this post! You've hit on many points I haven't come across before but completely agree with. I found I had to broaden my niche because sticking with just one topic was causing me to feel pressured. I didn't WANT to write about just that multiple times a week. When you love writing the post you work on it comes across to your readers in an incredible way. We know which posts you're passionate about!
In September last year I wrote about Seven Surefire Ways To Commit Blog Suicide. There are certain pet hates that will lose readers and these are mine.
14
Thanks Becca. :)
15
[...] easy to resort to pointless, useless, boring, throwaway posts. At that point, blogging becomes a bad habit rather than a productive [...]
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One of my biggest pet peeves is going to a blog, reading a good article, then finding out the next 3 articles are crappy paid posts for laser eye surgery, over-the-counter products, etc.
I quickly remove these blogs from my radar.