5 Mistakes I Made Blogging

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I really hate admitting when I’m wrong.  And I hate that after five years of blogging, I am forced to admit that there are some HUGE things I did wrong.  It’s been hard for me to watch other bloggers who started at the same time as I did soar above and beyond me with their success.  I’m definitely not the most successful blogger.  But this last year I have been making resolutions, coming to terms with some things, and most importantly, embracing my mistakes I made blogging and fixing them.

What are those mistakes?

Mistake #1:  Not getting into affiliate marketing right away

Affiliate marketing is such an amazing way to make money as a blogger, even if you have very few page views.  Of course, the more your site is seen, the more likely you will make money from those affiliate links, but even bloggers with an average of 25,000 page views a month can still make thousands a month.

Affiliate marketing was a word like SEO that made my brain shut down.  I am very right brained and so things that seem technical can easily overwhelm me.  But it’s not hard at all!  It’s just a few extra steps that can yield huge results.  I recently completed this awesome course on Affiliate Marketing from a blogger who literally makes over $50,000 a MONTH through affiliate links.  In her course she shares all her knowledge on how you can start adding the right links and start making money through affiliates.

Mistake #2:  Not posting about everything I know

I have learned TONS about blogging in my years of doing it, and I didn’t even realize how much I knew until recently my dad, who wants to start his own website, started asking me questions.  I sat down with him and just started talking and I thought his eyeballs would pop out of his head.  He was just amazed at the amount of information I had on blogging and making money on the internet!  So that is why I am now sharing all my knowledge with you, my lovely readers.  Because I love reading this stuff and hopefully you do too!

The other part of posting everything you know–it establishes trust in your readers.  And trust is the #1 thing you need as an author to make money.  If your readers trust you, they will feel confident that any product that you recommend is going to give them the results they desire.  So when I post a DIY tutorial with an affiliate link to a Kreg Jig, they will be way more likely to purchase the Kreg Jig through my link because I’ve been sharing DIY tutorials for years.  And when they trust you, they will turn to YOU when they have questions.

Mistake #3:  Not following through with eBooks

I have literally started and not finished at least 10 eBooks, if not more.  I LOVE to write and share, but something always stopped me.  And I finally figured out what was stopping me…it was FEAR.  I was afraid that if I published an eBook, people wouldn’t buy it or they would say things like, “Why is SHE writing about that?  She’s not an expert.”  And it’s true, I wouldn’t consider myself a foremost expert on anything really, but there are certain topics that I definitely know more about than the average person.  But my fearful thoughts would creep in my head and tell me “Don’t waste your time on this when this person and this blogger and this other guy know WAY more than you do.”  So my goal for 2017 is to publish at least ONE eBook, if not more.

And guess how I’m doing this?  I bought Abby Lawson’s course called Book Boss.  I am still making my way through this completely comprehensive and valuable course on writing and publishing eBooks.  There is way more to it than I thought, and by following her process of launching an eBook, I will be able to set myself up to be much more successful than I ever would have on my own.

Mistake #4:  Not Building my Email List

Why would I want to send more email to people who already get inundated with dozens of emails a day?  Because email is STILL the best way to reach my most loyal readers directly.  Social media is madness these days, with thousands of posts cycling through every day…how on earth am I supposed to get through all that noise with my message?  It’s like someone coming directly to your front door to tell you about something awesome versus someone going to the mall and approaching shoppers one by one.  How likely is it that you’ll hear what the person at the mall has to say?

I’m using this fabulous email provider called ConvertKit.  It has all the power of Infusion Soft but WAAAYYY cheaper.  It’s super easy to use too, and so far it’s been amazing.  I’m so excited to keep learning this program.  And if you want to learn exactly how easy it is to use, tomorrow they are having a free webinar to teach you how to get your first 100 subscribers, an easy way to get 1,000 subscribers in 7 days, and other valuable information.  I made it easy for you to sign up, just click the link below:

Sign up for the Webinar!

Mistake #5:  Worrying too much about what everyone else was doing.

This is bar none, the biggest reason I haven’t been more successful.  And it ends now.  All my fears come into my head by way of comparison, by worrying that I’m not good enough or that I need to be more like such-and-such bloggers.  But it’s easy to take your eyes off the goal and get distracted because of one Instagram post or Pinterest pin that makes you think you need to stop what you’re doing and go emulate that person because they’ve been successful with something.

A good friend of mine has made a great living in her life by doing guest vocals with many different successful musical artists.  But she told me that if she compared herself to someone like Beyonce, it would be so easy to get depressed.  And when she put it like that, my own comparisons sounded ridiculous.  Don’t compare yourself to anyone else and above all, don’t let it distract you from your own goals.

Other blogging posts you might like:

• How to Start a Blog in 3 easy steps
• How to Increase your Pageviews
• 6 Ways to Make Money from your Blog