5 Common Reasons Blogs Fail

There is nothing like having something that you’ve created fail to reach the popularity you had in envisioned when you first started out. No one ever starts a project with the intent to fail, nor does anyone start out thinking that their presence will be ignored. Too often though our vision and actual reality are never aligned, which can be attributed to a variety of reasons.

As writers, our blogs our the extensions of who we are and what we think; encompassing our thoughts, ideas, fears, and hopes. We grant access into our minds every time we post an article for online communities to read. This is something not everyone is comfortable with, but we exist because we long to share and communicate our ideas. This is the vital crux where success and failure is determined, the motivations we have will either make us sink or swim, and today I will discuss the top five motivations that will sink not only your blog, but all of your efforts.

5 Reasons Why Blogs Fail

Here are motivations that bloggers should be wary of when starting their blog.

1. Focusing only on getting to the front page of Reddit, Digg, or StumbleUpon
   I can’t tell you how often people will write with this mission in mind. That’s putting the cart before the horse, as they say. While driving traffic to your site is important, quality content is what keeps readers on your site, people that come via promotions will just pass through if your content is not engaging.
   
2. Basing your success on initial metrics
   It happens too often, but people do not have patience to make their passions happen. A site may not gain popularity on the initial launch, but there is something to be said about perseverance. Sticking with your site, pushing forward with quality content, and finding ways to increase readership are all duties that one must undertake. Over time you will gain the popularity you seek, but initial analytics should not be considered indications of what your future holds.
   
3. Lack of quality content
   By providing the right people with the right information, you increase readership, readers stay on your site longer, and people are more willing to share your site with others. Understanding what your goals are and then understanding your readers can best help keep your posts on topic and interesting for your audience.
   
4. Your blog tries to be all things to all people
   If your blog is meant to be a journal of your life, a daily record of events, or purposely encompassing a variety of topics, then you'll want to stick to a specific topic that your readers can hold on to. Once you've selected a general topic try not to deviate from the plan. Occasionally you'll toss in a general post, perhaps off topic, but the overall flavor of your site is what your readers will expect when they visit.
   
5. Cluttered sites leaves readers lost
   Are you the type of person that likes spinning, flashing, dancing, and glowing buttons, banners, and icons on your site? STOP! The whole idea if you being a blogger is to share information. It does no one any good if they cannot find your content because they are busy investigating all the irrelevant distractions. Keep your site clean, easy to follow and manageable. If you need lots of content, consider links and tabs, believe me your readers will love you for it.
   

These are just a few of the obvious ones to me, what guidelines do you follow and share with others? Leave your thoughts in the comments below and let's help one another create better content, more engaging sites, and better online communities.

Photo Credit Thomas Hawk