5 Small Business blogging mistakes to Avoid!

Having a blog as part of your small business online marketing can be very powerful. But so many business owners get it wrong and don’t achieve the results they want. So, this is very important to know what are the mistakes that you are doing while promoting your small business online.Sometimes you think that you are doing the right thing but from the customers point of view this is not right at all.Here are 5 common mistakes to avoid.

1. Forgetting why you are blogging:

Too many small businesses get carried away and forget that a small business blog is meant to support the business – it’s not meant to become the business. Nor is it a place to tell your life story.
The main purpose of a small business blog is generally to increase website visitors and sales. Either as part of search engine optimization or by showcasing skills and engaging with customers. So keep your objectives in mind when choosing your topics and writing your articles.
Yes, it’s great if you can post weekly, but don’t let it become a burden and remember it’s only part of your marketing.

2. Making it boring and impersonal:

If all you write are endless promotions for your latest products, then readers are going to get turned off very quickly. Use a mix of article types, for example:
• case studies
• how to…..
• top tips
• comments on news relevant to your industry
• a behind the scenes look at how you work
and make them interesting and relevant for your audience.
Use a friendly, personal writing style and let people get to know the people behind the business.
And don’t be afraid to add the occasional opinion piece – these can often attract more comments, social shares and links.

3. Making it too personal:

Of course people buy from people, but it’s still a business blog, so show your personality without revealing all the intimate details of your private life. Rambling articles on domestic trivia are a big turn off and we don’t want to know the details of your impending divorce.
And unless you have a parent and child type business, keep your (or your partner’s) pre-natal scan photo to yourself.

4. Not posting regularly:

Set yourself a posting schedule which is manageable – and stick to it. Weekly is great if you can, but monthly is OK. It will just take longer to get results.
It’s more important to post regularly than frequently. There is nothing worse than a blog with 3 posts on the same day and then nothing for months. People may even think you have stopped trading.
Plan and write your articles in advance and then publish according to your schedule.

5. Keeping it to yourself:

Make sure you promote your blog through other social media – Twitter, Facebook, Google+, etc, so that people know about it. It’s OK to tweet your blog post multiple times (at varying times of the day/week) but don’t bore your followers by tweeting on the hour, every hour, for a week.
Add sharing buttons so readers can also Tweet, Like and otherwise share very easily.
Always respond to comments too – it’s great to encourage interaction (but do use a good spam filter to get rid of those annoying spammy link comments).