7 Blogging Mistakes for Small Businesses

In fact, they’re one of the most reliable ways to grow. Study after study has documented this idea, and recent statistics suggest that companies that initiate a blogging or content strategy receive upwards of 67% the number of additional leads than companies that chose not to blog.

While it seems simple—and in many ways it can be—there are also many potential pitfalls that result in wasted time and resources. Avoid the following seven mistakes and your small business blog should be in great shape!

One of the most important aspects of a successful blog is scheduling. Users want to read the blog of a company that stays current. Companies who take the time to update their blog are likely to put care into all aspects of their business. Customers and potential customers understand this and want to see a focus on providing helpful information. Not only does a regular blog communicate efficiency to potential clients, it also helps with search engine rankings, raising the odds that random internet searchers could stumble across your blog and become long term customers. Blogs that are not publishing at least 2-3 times per week, run the risk of never being seen.

A popular misconception about blogs is that they will take off and go viral with just a few posts. This is an extreme exaggeration.

Business blogs should be viewed as a long term project that will grow steadily over time. In many cases it’s best to ignore statistics, analytics, and other forms of measurement altogether, especially when getting started. A numbers-oriented perspective will only catalyze your reluctance to blog.

Instead, focus on outreach, responding to comments, and networking with relevant industry bloggers. And most importantly, don’t give up.

Small businesses have super-niche markets. When we have something so specific, it can be extremely difficult to create fresh content consistently. It’s easier to broaden the market scope and write about larger industry topics. The problem is that focus is lost, which is ultimately a funnel path to your business.

Consider this example. Maxwell Systems construction software is the core product of their business. So you might guess their target market is construction companies and contractors. You’d be right.

Navigate to their blog and you’ll immediately notice they have identified their market right in the tagline, “Wisdom and Resources for construction Business Professionals.” That’s perfect.

If they were targeting something like agriculture, they’re no longer reaching their primary market.

Content creation is one of the most difficult blogging processes. We know that our content should focus on issues relevant to our industry. We know it should be fresh and not obvious, overly general statements.

Readers have expectations of your content based on their referral or search. As readers on SmallBizClub, we expect articles that cover the fundamental elements of operating a small business. If we saw articles that gave tips for large businesses, the relevance is disconnected and we’ll navigate to a different site.

Blogs connect us with people we’d never have been able to reach twenty years ago. This allows us to build engagement and relationships with clients, and potential clients.

Spewing information without asking readers to share their stories or failing to respond to comments is like resembling a virtual wall. It’s bland and readers may get tired of being fed information without being able to contribute to the conversation.

At the same time, don’t be discouraged if subscribers are only in the double digits. Utilize your subscriber base, regardless of the size, asking them about their content preferences, introducing a new product with an exclusive discount for them, or simply providing an insightful and useful industry tip or finding.

Just like failing to interact with customers is a recipe for failure, not allowing readers to subscribe can be equally harmful.  Not having a subscribe button in this modern digital realm is like admitting your content is not worth a readers time.

Here’s an example:

The organization Oil Scams aims to educate readers on oil and gas investing. Their goal is clear: to educate and offer expert advice. However, there’s no way to subscribe to receive a monthly newsletter, which would only help spread awareness and encourage more readers to take advantage of their consultation.

It’s imperative to implement a subscribe button and promote it to similar niche blog readers.

Lazy blogging is the number one blogging disease with side effects including:

• Boring content
• Fluff
• Robot mindset

As a small business’s other operations may take precedence, remember that using outside content to make up the majority of your blog posts will do more harm than good.

Your readers want to be able to find information on your blog that cannot be found elsewhere. Use outside content to your advantage, but do so sparingly. If another site creates an infographic, don’t simply regurgitate the infographic—create a unique perspective around the thesis of the infographic and include it. This way your content is more substantial and unique.

What are your biggest blogging mistakes to avoid?