six reasons your blog is not getting results

Is your blog not generating traffic?
This may be why

Your blog is up and running, you’ve been publishing new posts … but you’re not seeing an uptick in site visits, or new leads pouring in. So what are you doing wrong? And how can you change that? If your blog is not getting the results you had hoped for, the following reasons may be why.

There are six common mistakes or oversights people make when it comes to blogs – but they all are straightforward to correct and get you back on track. 






1. You’re not promoting your blog





You’ve written an article, you’ve hit publish, now you sit back and watch the customers queue up. Oh, if only it were that simple. But with blogging it’s not a case of ‘build it and they will come’. It’s more a case of ‘build it and be sure to tell them about it.’ 





Even the most amazing content won’t get you far if nobody knows it is there. You need to let people know. You need to promote it. 





Fix it:





How do you promote your blog? You share it. On social media, in newsletters, and in groups. 





  • Your social media followers are interested in what you do – that’s why they follow you. So share blog posts on your social media business page or profile, with a short and snappy introduction that will intrigue them to read more. 





Because of the ‘there one minute, gone the next’ nature of social media posts, don’t stop after one promotion. Do it 3 or 4 times (using a different introduction/post each time) and schedule them one or two weeks apart. 





If you use more than one social media platform, write separate posts for each. 





  • Another great way to get more eyeballs on your blog is to share articles in your newsletters: depending on the type and frequency of newsletter, you may repurpose the blog as the newsletter, or you may you may include a snippet with a link (much as you do on social media) to the full article.





  • If you belong to professional groups on Linked In or Facebook, share relevant blogs there too. 





So after you publish, promote. And take the three-pronged approach. Share on social media, in newsletters and to groups. 











To make this painless for clients, I offer blog bundles (blog article + 2 -4 social media posts + newsletter snippet). Contact me to find out more





















2. You’re not making it easy for search engines to find your blog





Do you regularly visit business blogs to read their articles? I don’t. And I suspect most people don’t. More often than not, I stumble upon blogs when they pop up on Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) in response to a query I typed in. ➡So make sure your blog is optimised for search engines. That’s not to say you should write for search engines. I believe in writing for humans – but making sure that search engines can find it.





Fix it:





➡ Make sure each blog post’s URL includes your blog title or keywords separated by hyphens, rather than a string of numbers and letters.

Example: If this blog post’s URL were www.sage-content.com/blog/7kq4pgcr8yvd6771v0law4qtw34m2a-x8ada-grtwz

it wouldn’t help Google determine what the page was about.

But if i make the URL www.sage-content.com/blog/six-reasons-your-blog-is-not-delivering-results/ the search engine has a far better chance of determining when its a good match for a search.





  • Use your keywords in your title tag (the blue text that shows up in search results)





  • Add metadata (the grey text below the title in search results) for each post that describes the content of that page and entices browsers to click through to read it










  • Include internal links to other pages and posts on your site to help search engines see the connections





  • Add external links to sites with good authority




















3. Your content is not addressing your target customers





Too often businesses use blogs as another channel to promote what they are selling. And while sharing company news is not a bad thing, the blogs your readers will enjoy most are those that are helpful and informative. 





Think of your main website as your sales agent, and your blog as your customer service department: there to help, educate and inform. If you’re not publishing useful content on your blog, why would people spend time reading it? 





Fix it:





Take a look at your current content. Is it informative? Does it help your target audience? Does it use the words and language your customers use?





Your blog is where you can provide comprehensive answers to the questions your customers ask. So make a list of those questions and answer each one in a separate post. (This post, for instance, is answering the question ‘why is my blog not getting results?’) 










4. You’re not making it easy for humans to read





Nobody likes the sight of huge blocks of unbroken text – particularly on a screen. Nor do they like squinting to make out tiny font sizes, or struggling to decipher fussy, ‘quirky’ typefaces. 





Internet browsers are an impatient bunch, so don’t put them off with poor formatting. 





Fix it:





  • Format your blog posts for easy reading. 





  • Go for minimum 11pt font size for body text, and choose a sans serif font for readability. 





  • Break the post into sub-sections, with sub-headings that describe the contents of each section. 





  • Leave plenty of white space 





  • Use short paragraphs and make liberal use of paragraph breaks 





  • Use bullet points for lists, rather than long sentences separated by commas





  • Include images – photos, infographics, videos, even gifs – to make it more appealing to read 





six reasons your blog is not getting results





5. Your blog is not visible





How easy is your blog to find ? It’s surprising how often I find the link to company blog buried way down in the page footer. Anyone who doesn’t scroll to the bottom misses it completely. 





How easy is it to find articles of interest on the blog? Some blogs simply show the most recent post first and require scrolling through every post ever written to see what is available. 





Others are arranged like a mini-website, with posts grouped into categories and snippets with titles and images visible to give you an idea of the content. Much easier to navigate!





Fix it: 





Make it easy for your customer to find your blog and once they do, to find their way around it. Ensure your blog is accessible from the menu bar, and consider having a section of your home page featuring snippets from blog posts. 





Categorise and tag posts, so that customers can easily navigate between related posts, and suggest next articles to read. 















6. You’re not being consistent. 





How often do you post to your blog? Is it when inspiration strikes? Or when you have a slow afternoon and find yourself with a few hours to spare?





Imagine if newspapers or magazines published at random. What if you simply couldn’t predict if it would be a few days or months until the next issue? That would be frustrating and ultimately drive you to find a more reliable source of news. 





Fix it: 





Publish new blogs regularly, whether that’s once a week or once a month. 





Search engines favour sites that regularly add new content (this indicates the site is active and up to date).  I know that when I see a blog that was last updated two years ago, I can’t help but wonder if that company is still in business. 





No time to write regular blogs? You’re not alone. That’s why so many business owners outsource their blog writing to a freelance writer. 





So there it is. Six reasons your blog may not be delivering the results you expected, and easy ways to fix that. 





But remember: even the best blog in the world won’t see overnight success, so as well as being consistent, be patient. It will pay off in the long run.