Amateur blogging mistakes and how to fix them

25 Amateur Blogger Mistakes and How to Fix Them

Hey there! Some links on this page may be affiliate links which means that, if you choose to make a purchase, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. we greatly appreciate your support!

Like this article? Spread the word!

Amateur blogger mistakes are something that nearly all bloggers make. 

Blogging is tough for anyone – I started this website a year ago and it’s only in recent weeks that I’m starting to see my traffic grow. 

33% of bloggers don’t earn any income from their websites. For many content creators, blogging is a challenging venture.

Trust me, I’ve made hundreds of blogging mistakes over the years and wasted so much time trying to figure out where I’m going wrong. 

The good news is that you’re consistently learning as you go, and you can fix any blog mistakes you make – some of which I’ll show you here!

I’ve been blogging on and off since 2010 so I’ve learned a LOT – what strategies work and what don’t. 

In this guide, you’ll discover:

  • Common mistakes amateur-blogs make when trying to grow their website
  • How to avoid blogging mistakes 
  • How to start a blog and how you can make money from it
  • The top reasons why blogs fail

Related Posts:

25 Amateur Blogger Mistakes and How to Fix Them

Here, I’ll reveal common amateur blogger mistakes and how you can resolve them quickly to start growing your blog in 2023. 

1. Poor writing and grammar

Poor writing and grammar can make or break a site. I’m not saying it has to be perfect because mine is far from it. But, if English isn’t your native language and you want to create a website aimed at English readers, try using Grammarly to help proofread your work. It’s free and it doesn’t take long to do a quick check. 

2. Not using SEO

If you want to get readers to visit your website, knowing how to optimize your content for Google is a MUST. 

Good SEO will increase your rankings in search engine result pages (SERPs), growing your blog traffic. 

SEO is quite a complex topic, but in general, these are some aspects to keep in mind:

  • Use a keyword tool to find competitive keywords with low competition related to your niche
  • Use your chosen keyword in the title, URL, meta description, and first paragraph of your article. Sprinkle that keyword organically throughout the rest of your blog post. 
  • A free tool like RankMath can help to guide you through the optimization process of an article.
  • Get backlinks from reputable sources to help improve your search rankings.
  • Use internal links wisely (more on this later on in the article). 
  • Create a good user experience by keeping your website speed as fast as possible. 
  • Think about user intent when creating content. 

These are just a few starting points to think about when creating your blog content. 

3. Keyword stuffing

Once you’ve found some good keywords for your blog content, it’s important not to stuff them into your blog posts. By that, I mean that you should only sprinkle them throughout your articles. 

While you need to consider keywords to get found in Google search results, you’re ultimately creating valuable resources for your readers. Always write for your audience first and then implement your SEO tactics. 

4. Not considering multiple keywords

The great thing about using keywords inside your articles is that your blog posts can rank for more than one keyword. 

So, let’s say you’re creating a blog post about the ‘best sightseeing cities in Europe’.

If I look at the SERPs for this keyword, I can use a tool like Keywords Everywhere to find related keywords. Here’s what that looks like:

I can then use these related keywords in my article – as headings and in the text, as well as consider the keywords that people also search for. 

This is just one method of finding extra keywords to rank for, and making sure that your blog posts rank for more than just one keyword. 

5. Not updating blog posts regularly

Another part of good SEO is to ensure you’re updating your blog posts regularly. 

Many bloggers assume that you write content, publish it, do a little bit of promotion, and then that’s it. 

Google loves fresh content – this includes updated content!

To keep your content fresh, update your blog posts regularly – I like to update every 6 months or so – more if I’m starting to lose rankings in Google. 

To update your posts, you can include new content, improve your blog post title, and add new or extra images. Just leave the URL alone to avoid any indexing issues. 

6. Infrequent blog posting

While you don’t need to be posting every day (or even every week), one of the main blogger mistakes I see often is people not publishing content for months on end. 

It is challenging to balance blogging with studying or work, but even if you can post at least once per month, you’ll be keeping your website fresh and showing Google that you haven’t completely abandoned it. 

Try coming up with blog content ideas in bulk and then outlining 4 or 5 articles at a time – this makes it much easier to create content and you can schedule posts to publish at certain times. 

7. Using copyrighted images

One of the most common amateur blog mistakes is using copyrighted images within your content. By ‘copyrighted images’, I mean simply finding images on Google and adding them to your blog posts. 

You need to ensure that any images you use are copyright-free so that you automatically have permission to use them. One way to do this is by using stock image sites. 

If you’re taking images from social media or a public website, credit the image so that you’re giving attribution to the original source. You can see how I do this in my laptop-friendly cafes in London article. 

8. Copying content

Copying content from other websites and publishing it as your own is plagiarism. I’m actually dealing with this right now as other sites are republishing my posts without my permission. 

Not only is this irritating for bloggers, but it also won’t gain you any success. Google can tell if content has been copied – and, it’s more than likely that the original owner will report you to Google, meaning your articles will be removed from Search. 

You also run the risk of your host taking your website down, especially if the owner reports you to them.

Yes, you can use blog posts as inspiration but avoid copying other people’s work – it honestly won’t get you very far.

9. Lack of clear niche

Having a lack of clear niche can confuse your audience and Google. One aspect that will help you to rank highly in Google search results is showing that you’re an authority on a particular topic. 

If you have content on all different kinds of niches, it’s going to be difficult to do this. Now, I’m not saying you need to solely stick to one topic – for example, I cover blogging, business-type articles, and remote working content on my website. However, these mostly interlink with each other. 

If I started writing about gardening or cars, it would be completely out of context and send signals that I have no expertise on any subject. 

When you start a blog, it’s best to concentrate on one subject and once you have a couple of articles, you can slowly start to branch further out to an associated topic. By doing this, you don’t confuse people as to what your website is about. 

10. Not having a professional-looking design

When it comes to amateur blogging mistakes, not having a professional-looking design is an easy thing to fix. 

Despite what you may assume, you don’t need to have a website design that looks like Forbes or CNN. When you’re first starting out, keeping it simple is the way to go. 

If you use WordPress, you can just use a free theme like Kadence or Astra to build out your site. You only need a few pages like an about page, contact, blog page, privacy policy, terms and conditions, and disclosure. 

You don’t even need a fancy homepage – you can use your blog page as this. Once you’re a little more established, you can then create a nice homepage with your blog categories, latest posts etc. 

Want an EXTRA EASY way to create a blog logo?

Get your 45 Blog Logo Branding Templates for Canva for only $9 now.

11. Not backing up your website

If you’re creating a blog, please back up your website, especially if you’re going to be making money from it. 

It’s super easy to do – I use a paid plugin called Updraft to back up my website but they also have a free version too. It gives you peace of mind if your website goes down or is compromised. 

12. Ignoring mobile optimization

Optimizing your website for mobile devices is essential for good SEO. Always check how your website looks on mobile. 

Not all blog designs are responsive (meaning they adapt to the size of the reader’s device), so it’s crucial that you check this.

In many cases, you should be able to alter your design from your blog dashboard. 

If you’re using a design like Kadence for WordPress, you can check how your blog looks by navigating to ‘appearance’ on your WordPress dashboard – Kadence – page layout. At the bottom of your screen on the left, you can switch between devices, allowing you to customize your pages for mobile and tablet. 

13. Using block walls of text

When you’re writing your blog posts, avoid writing huge walls of text. This makes it difficult to read – and, more than likely, your readers will click off your website. 

Try to break up your articles into small paragraphs, with several bullet points, numbered lists, and images throughout. 

This makes it more interesting and engaging for your audience. 

14. Not thinking about your target audience

When creating content, it’s important that you consider your audience – what is the user intent behind your chosen keyword? What are readers searching for? How can you provide them with the right solution?

Let’s say you’re writing an article with the keyword of ‘best dog beds for poodles’. For this, your audience is looking for suggestions on appropriate dog beds that their pet poodle can use. 

In this case, you should opt for a review-style article, giving the reader an overview of the best dog beds. 

You should also make it easier for them to make a decision – to do this, you would split your article into sections and use related keywords, such as ‘best budget dog bed for poodles’, ‘best luxe dog bed for poodles’ etc. 

Within these categories, state information about the product, benefits, price, pros, and cons. Make your content as valuable as possible – which leads me to my next point…

15. Not creating valuable content

One HUGE blogger mistake that many people make is simply regurgitating content that’s online. If you want your content to rank highly in Google results, you need to be providing as much value as possible for your readers. 

A good example of this is the article you’re reading now – I could have simply made a bullet point list of amateur blogger mistakes and added a paragraph to each of them. But, by telling you how to fix these mistakes, and giving you extra information at the end of this article, I’m enhancing the value of the blog post. 

You may be wondering how you can do this, especially if you’re writing about a topic you don’t know a lot about. Well, an easy trick I use is to scan all the articles on the first page of Google results. 

You want to see what sections these have in common, and what information they’re missing. By looking for content gaps (information that isn’t being addressed by these posts), you can create extra value for your audience. 

When writing a blog post on a topic, write down everything you can include on that subject, any extra knowledge you have, and think about what information the reader may need. An example of this is my untapped niches blog post – I added some keyword research as this is often the next step that people take after choosing their niche. 

As none of the articles on this topic included that information, this was extra value I could offer my audience. 

TOP TIP – remember, you can go back and add this after you’ve published your content. 

16. Not using internal linking 

Internal linking is another SEO strategy that can increase your blog post rankings in SERPs. 

If you’ve written a lot of blog post content, this can become an overwhelming chore. One hack I use to do this is a plugin called Link Whisper. 

I use the paid version of this tool as you can add links with one click. But, if you want to try it out, you can try the free version as this gives you suggestions for internal links that you can include in every blog post.  

17. Not using categories 

Having blog categories makes it easy for your readers to navigate your website. Even if you’ve only written a couple of blog posts, assigning them to a specific category keeps your blog well organized. 

You can easily assign categories on WordPress in your individual posts. Simply navigate to your right-hand side post tab and scroll down. You can tick a category to assign it or add a new one. 

18. Not having a disclosure/privacy policy

A disclosure and privacy policy are legal pages that every blog should have. A terms and conditions page is also a good idea. 

The good news is that you don’t need to create these pages from scratch. A generator like Termly can generate them for you – just add your details and with the click of a button, your pages are generated. You can also try it out for free too!

19. Not analyzing website traffic

If you want to grow your website, you should add your blog to Google Analytics and Search Console – these will help you to see how many views your blog is getting, where your traffic is coming from, and your most popular pages. 

Not only does viewing your web traffic keep you motivated with blogging, but you can also see the keywords that your blog posts are ranking for. 

A small hack I’ve learned is that your blog posts may not include all of these keywords – check your content and add any terms that are not included. I’ve found that this has helped to boost the rankings of some of my articles so it’s well worth doing. 

20. Not starting an email list 

Start an email list as soon as you can as this is a great way to promote your content and start making money. 

You don’t need to be getting lots of web traffic to start an email list either. 

All you need to do is create a lead magnet (something that your audience will want in exchange for giving you their email address) related to your niche and promote it on your blog. 

Sign up for an email marketing platform – I use Flodesk as it’s super easy to get started. You can then create a small landing page linked to your lead magnet so that when someone wants it, they input their email address and will receive it directly to their email inbox. 

You have their contact details and can send them regular emails.

21. Not considering ALL monetization opportunities

The great thing about blogging is that you don’t need to stick to only one monetization method. 

There are several ways to make money from your blog, including:

  • Affiliate marketing
  • Display ads 
  • Sponsored content
  • Selling your own products or services

I’ve written more about making money from your website in my guide How to Monetize Your Blog From Day One

22. Not using hosting

If you plan on monetizing your blog then web hosting is the way to go (if you’re only blogging as a hobby, you don’t need to spend money on a blog host). 

Web hosting means buying space via a provider like HostGator to house your blog on the internet. The pros of hosting include technical support, added security, enhanced website performance, and extra tools. 

If you want cheap hosting, check out my How to Start A Blog article. 

23. Focusing on other people’s blog incomes

It’s very easy to become distracted by what other bloggers are doing. 

I listen to several blogging podcasts that feature successful bloggers, and hearing other people’s stories can be intimidating, especially if they’re earning thousands of dollars after only a couple of months of blogging. 

I want you to know that these stories are not the norm. The majority of blogs don’t become successful until years down the line.

What you have to remember is that many people who become successful right out of the gate have SEO experience and/or they’re hiring writers to create content for them. 

That means they’re publishing a lot of blog posts. To put it into perspective, I know of some bloggers who are making thousands of dollars, but have over 500 blog posts on their website – that’s an insane amount of content that one person on their own would struggle to create in only a couple of months (or even a year or two).

Blogging takes time so keep going and avoid comparing your journey to someone who is more seasoned. 

24. Trying to do it all at once

When you’re a blogging solo, you’re effectively a content creator, editor, administrator, website support person etc – you wear a lot of different hats. 

It’s impossible to do everything that you need to do. 

If you’re completely new to blogging, start off by learning SEO first – this is what’s going to give you a big advantage. 

Once you’ve learned the basics, do keyword research and begin creating content in your niche. Once you’re getting around 1000 views per month, you can start to think about monetization and building an email list. 

Take one thing at a time to avoid overwhelming yourself – you’ll find it much easier in the long run. 

25. Quitting too early

Many bloggers quit too early since blogging can be a time-consuming and challenging process. 

It can be tempting to give up when results are slow. However, building a successful blog takes time and effort. 

If you’re consistent, persistent, and have patience, you’re more likely to succeed. Give your blog at least a year until you start seeing some kind of results – whether that’s from SEO or building an email list. 


Wait, what is amateur blogging?

An amateur blog is normally considered a starter blog by someone who is new to blogging. Amateur blogs can be made for personal or hobby reasons and cover a wide range of topics such as personal experiences, interests, and opinions. 

While the content may not be as polished as professional blogs, amateur bloggers can offer a unique and personal perspective.

How to start an amateur blog

How can you get started blogging as if you were a pro? Follow the steps below to begin your blog journey. 

  • Choose a blogging platform. I personally use WordPress, but you can also try Blogger, Wix, or Squarespace. If you know you want to make money from your blog, I suggest using WordPress. If you’re unsure as to whether you want to keep it as a hobby, a free option like Blogger may be best. 
  • Decide on a domain name. Your domain name is the address of your blog on the internet. In most cases, it’s the same as your blog name. 
  • Set up your blog. Once you’ve chosen a platform and domain name, you can set up your blog by following the platform’s instructions. If you’re opting for web hosting, I have a tutorial on how to start a blog
  • Create content. Start creating blog posts that are relevant to your niche. Make sure to write quality content that is interesting and engaging for your audience, but that also meets SEO. 
  • Promote your blog. Share your blog with your friends, family, and social media followers. You can also participate in online communities related to your blog’s niche and engage with other bloggers.
  • Keep your website updated. Keep your blog updated with fresh and relevant content regularly. This helps to maintain your audience’s interest and keep them coming back for more. 

How do beginners start blogging for free?

You can use the Blogger platform for free and start creating content immediately. If you want to start earning money, then consider buying a domain name and linking it to your Blogger site. 

Extra FAQ

What is the most common mistake for first-time bloggers?

Giving up too early is a common mistake for many first-time bloggers. It can take months to start getting traffic to your blog so you need to stay motivated and keep producing good content. 

What is the most difficult part of blogging?

The most difficult part of blogging is usually finding time to create content, especially if you’re working or studying alongside blogging. 

It can also be challenging to find topics to write about. I suggest using keyword tools like Keysearch to find competitive keywords with low competition. You can then start writing blog posts around these keywords. 

What to avoid in blogging?

The main things to avoid are plagiarism (copying other people’s content) and ignoring your audience. 

When you create new content, think about what your ideal reader is searching for, and how you can help them with that need. 

Why do people fail in blogging?

Some common reasons why people fail in blogging include:

Lack of focus or commitment
Blogging requires time and effort, and it’s important to put the hard work in before you start seeing some results. 

Not finding a niche
Failing to find a specific niche or target audience can make it difficult to build a readership.

No clear monetization strategy
Without a clear plan for making money, it can be difficult to sustain a blog over the long term.

Not keeping up with changes
Failing to stay current with new technologies and trends within your niche can make your blog seem outdated.

What are the risks of being a blogger?

Are there any risks of being a blogger? Here are some things to consider.

Cybersecurity threats
Blogging can increase your exposure to cyber threats, such as hacking, malware, and phishing attacks. Make sure you backup your blog regularly and be wary of any emails or messages that don’t seem legit. 

Mental health
Creating fresh content and maintaining a website can be time-consuming and stressful. While you do need to put in the work, take regular breaks to avoid burnout.

Financial risk
Blogging can be expensive, especially if you invest in paid tools, and there is no guarantee of financial success. Only spend what you can afford and weigh up the pros and cons of any big purchases. 

Privacy
Putting your personal information online can risk your privacy, especially if you share details about your life. Avoid using your address or phone number on your website. If you need to be contacted, you can use a virtual address instead. 

Avoid These Amateur Blogger Mistakes Today

I hope this list of amateur blogger mistakes is useful in improving your blog journey.

Blogging is a long game so don’t worry if you make mistakes – most are easily fixed and help you to learn the right steps to take in becoming successful.

Similar Posts