I’ve been blogging since 2008 and boy have I learned quite a few lessons in the process!
I thought it might be cool to share with you 5 things that I think are complete “No No’s” when it comes to blogging.
1) Calling People Out By Name: I can’t even begin to tell to you how many times I’ve seen this one in the blogosphere. I watched two very high profile bloggers have it out via their blogs. It disgusted me so I promptly unsubscribed to both of them. I watched another blogger call out someone who he thought was preaching antiquated techniques and others who didn’t call out by name, but dropped very strong hints as to who they were referring to. Don’t ever kid yourself into thinking that you are justified in being less than professional because someone chose to “go there” first.
2) Cool Kid Kiss Ass Syndrome: This is when you see bloggers go out of their way to continually name drop and link to high profile bloggers. I want to be clear about this one. There’s nothing wrong with mentioning high profile bloggers if your intent is to help you readers. My issue is when every other post becomes a new lesson in tail kissing . . . all because you want the cool kids to notice you.
3) Too Much Venting and Complaining: I want to put this one in the proper context. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with complaining and venting on your blog if that’s what you do on your blog. It would be like getting mad at Jerry Seinfeld for always complaining. My issue is when your “main thing” (the thing you want to be known for) gets hijacked because you continually have bad experiences that you want to cry on your blog about. I see zero value in that. Please remember that repetition is the key to one’s subconscious so whatever you experience with regard to me, continually becomes associated with me.
4) Neglecting Your Comments: This one bothers me to no end because I fell into this one myself a few months back. I could offer two very good excuses but at the end of the day, they are just that . . . excuses. When we produce content of any type, we should live for the comments and yet, I visit blogs where the author continually fails to respond. Note: When I say “fail to respond” I mean no response at all. I think that sends an awful message to their readers and also has this weird way of shooing people away.
5) Over Posting: There was a time (last summer) where I started posting twice a day based on what I was seeing with some top bloggers. The results were rather misleading because on one hand, my traffic increased dramatically on the other I was losing subscribers. It wasn’t until I stopped and thought about how annoying I find it when I continually get 2 and 3 alerts a day about a blog that it hit me. Quite frankly, I don’t have the time to read that many posts in addition to all the other things I read. At the very least, I don’t think people have the same appreciation of the content if they know you’re always spewing it. I’m also thinking that we need to give a post a chance to breath and give it a life span long enough for a discussion to take place. Hard to do when a new blog post hits your inbox before you had a chance to read the last one.
This list is far from complete and that’s where I’d like for you to chime in . . . How can a blogger screw up their blog?
To check out how you can hire Paul as your coach click here!
The general layout of the blog posts are also very important to think about. Writing for the web isn’t the same as writing in print. People aren’t willing to read as much and would rather see lists, pictures, videos, etc. Interaction is key with blog posts.
Great list Paul!
This is awesome advice.
You should see how long my posts used to be. Even this post at 500+ words was lengthy!
Thank you!
I am in early stages-just pondering really – writing a blog so this was very timely for me. i always get a lot out of yours.
Thank you Elizabeth.
Please let me know once you launch so I can have yet another place to continue to build our relationship!
Thanks again for the kind words!
I agree with your five points Paul. #3 is especially bothersome: too much venting and complaining. Some people find it much easier to be a critic than an original content creator. No problem with people adding to a discussion or even disagreeing, but the harshness and vehemence have no place in rational discussions. We should all keep in mind that our words live far longer than the passion of the moment.
Not getting personal, it’s fine to relate others stories and quotations, but your personal experiences leaves a stronger message and keeps us wanting to read more.
Agree!
I think the “getting personal” thing requires balance and finesse but ultimately it adds such a human element to the blog.
Thanks Shawn!
Posting without PROOFREADING! Maybe it won’t “screw up” your blog if you don’t, but in my opinion, nothing reduces credibility faster than typos, poor grammar and usage of the wrong version of a word (e.g. there, their, they’re).
Mistakes happen – that’s normal – and human. And it doesn’t link to intelligence or writing ability. I know some amazing writers who are terrible spellers and can never remember which place to use “their” vs. “they’re” or “its” vs. “it’s.” However, they are aware of it and it’s why they have people like me!
Oh, and please don’t count on spell/grammar check to be the saving grace. It’s helpful, yes, but it also misses a lot of errors.
So take a moment before you hit “publish,” and read it again – or better yet – have someone else read it. To your brain, the post may look correct. For some reason, our brains have the ability to automatically see the words as they are meant to be, which can lead to missing things. And besides, a fresh pair of eyes never hurts.
Here’s a proofreading trick if you don’t have someone to help you proofread: read the post backwards (and no, it will not summon Satan). Doing this forces you to look at each word individually and not in the order they’re meant to appear. This will reduce the likelihood that your brain will tell you the post has no errors, when it may in fact have them.
Thanks, as always, for the great tips Paul!
Virtually Yours, Anne-Marie
Paul I have read it many times but I think it warrants repeating, poor headlines! I would also mention lack of humour (some people may disagree). I feel humour (as much as spell check hates it, I’m spelling H-u-m-o-u-r the Canadian way) keeps things interesting, however it must be tactful and in proper doses as to not detract from the message or value being shared.
Point #4 really hits home with me, I really look forward to the discussion aspect of blogs, LinkedIn groups, etc. It is always a welcome sight to see a comment replied to.
I agree Adam with your points Adam. Humor can certainly be a breath of fresh air when balanced or a complete detour from the point and one’s “main thing”.
Its my goal to respond to every comment and so far, I’m getting much better with some work that still needs to be done in that department. I see blogs out there with not one response and quite frankly that’s inexcusable!
Thank you for weighing in on this Adam!
I am going to try to be very diligent with commenting when I re-launch my blog as well. The challenge I have is the amount of SPAM posts I get. I’m not really sure how to fix the problem either, any suggestions?
I’ll gladly raise my hand and say “help” when it comes to the things you mentioned Anne-Marie.
So glad that reading posts backwards doesn’t summon Satan . . . unless of course he’s a great proofreader 🙂
Thanks Anne-Marie!
Boy am I with you on this one Christopher.
I don’t mind if there is something where something really and truly needs to be said but overall, I don’t read blogs to get negative or worked up.
Thank you Christopher!
Great post Paul,
Great advice and I totally agree with the over posting and ignoring the comments section.
I also think that not posting enough is deadly! I see website and blogs with news from last November and post from February and I think “NEXT”
I don’t want to waste my time with getting to know a blog/website that can’t follow up with their main voice to the world.
You know what they say “How you do anything is how you do everything”
Keep up the great Jedi Mastery 🙂
Great point about not posting enough Peter and there’s even one worse than that . . .
When you check out a Linkedin profile and click on a link for their blog and you see what you mentioned.
If we are going to link to this stuff, it needs to be up to date.
I couldn’t agree more with you brochocho!
I use the disqus plug in (free) and I find it fantastic to work with.
If I have spammers, I can block their IP address eliminating the problem from them in the future.
I can also approve, delete and flag as spam from my I-phone so I can move quickly.
Hope that helps Adam!
Tremendous help Paul, thank you so much!
Let me know how this works out Adam!
Great post Paul. I especially like your thoughts on ‘over’ posting. When I get bombarded with new blog alerts from one person I tune out and then drop out. Less really is more!
So true Kelly . . . thank you for stopping by!
Paul,
Thanks a lot for this post. I think that I suffer slightly from some of these in my own blog. I don’t think I do them intentionally but, thinking back on things I’ve written, I can see how it could be perceived that I do. Namely, I namedrop rather frequently. Sometimes, I use a negative comment about an author or public figure to springboard a discussion. I’ll also do he same thing if I read something unusually insightful in another blog. Again, I don’t think I’m trying to elevate my own status by insinuating association with these people but, sometimes, maybe I am. Regardless, it’s good to keep in mind as I develop my skills as I writer and a professional. Thanks a lot!
Sounds like some good reasons to me. Ultimately, if you are not interested in the engagement or connection; I’m probably gone.
I’ve also seen some who purport to be genuine, supportive, etc but found out they were only furthering there own cause. Essentially gaming the system to make them look better.
Oh well, live and learn and we can always choose to unsubscribe, huh?
I’m with you Bill and we certainly can unsubscribe.
Thank you for taking the time to weigh in on this. I really appreciate it!
Too much cookie-cutter”ness” to a lot of the blogs out there. Too many immediate experts, self-help gurus and a large portion of them are mimicking the “cool kids”. Too many people posting for posting-sake and not giving the last one the time to breathe. Tell your own story and use your own style. I think I might have learned this one from you, Paul, but stick with your main message. When we get lazy we turn everything into a potpourri and it deviates from the uniqueness.
此致，
Jacob
They are not only trying to mimic the “cool kids” they are losing their unique voice in the process.
Thanks Jacob!