{"id":9240,"date":"2022-12-25T05:21:34","date_gmt":"2022-12-25T13:21:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ryrob.com\/?p=9240"},"modified":"2026-02-28T00:22:30","modified_gmt":"2026-02-28T08:22:30","slug":"blogging-mistakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ryrob.com\/blogging-mistakes\/","title":{"rendered":"21 Common Blogging Mistakes to Avoid in 2026 (and How to Fix Them)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Beyond just those early days though, there are still things most successful bloggers (myself included) would change if we could go back in time and reverse the blogging mistakes<\/strong> we’ve made throughout the process of growing a blog\u2014from writing bad content to failing at driving traffic, not monetizing our blogs and more.<\/p>\n

There are always things you wish you’d known at the beginning… or decisions you’d make differently, now that you know better.<\/p>\n

Starting a blog<\/a> on the right foot will save you a lot of time, money, hassle and even help you avoid missed opportunities. That said, there are plenty of blogging mistakes that both new and seasoned bloggers still make, and I\u2019ve made some of them myself as I\u2019ve grown this blog to over 500,000 monthly readers.<\/p>\n

I want to help you avoid making these blogging mistakes<\/strong> whether you’re just getting started<\/a> or you’re trying to grow your blog\u2014so I created this guide.<\/p>\n

In this breakdown of the most common blogging mistakes (and how to fix them if you’ve already made them), I\u2019ve included some of the most common mistakes bloggers tend to make along the entire path to building a profitable blog\u2014from starting out, to getting the right traffic, monetizing your site and beyond.<\/p>\n

My hope is that you’ll avoid making these blogging mistakes as you progress through your own journey, too.<\/p>\n

21 Common Blogging Mistakes to Avoid in 2026 (and How to Fix Them)<\/strong><\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. Using Wix, Squarespace, or Weebly Instead of WordPress<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  2. Choosing the Wrong WordPress Theme<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  3. Selecting a Bad Hosting Company<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  4. Picking a Difficult to Read (or Understand) Domain Name<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  5. Using the Wrong Name for Your Blog<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  6. Picking the Wrong Niche to Blog About<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  7. Choosing Topics That Readers Aren\u2019t Interested In<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  8. Writing Without an Outline<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  9. Writing and Publishing Inconsistently (Create Smart Habits)<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  10. Forgetting to Research Topics<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  11. Missing Best SEO Practices<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  12. Forgetting About Social Media Promotion<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  13. Neglecting to Network Early<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  14. Forgetting to Track Your Progress<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  15. Taking Too Long to Start List Building<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  16. Not Taking the Time to Respond to Your Readers<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  17. Not Thinking About How to Monetize Your Blog Early<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  18. Creating Content That Doesn\u2019t Convert<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  19. Not Learning the More Technical Aspects of Blogging<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  20. Not Establishing Your Priorities<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
  21. Getting Discouraged Easily (and Giving Up Early)<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    21 Blogging Mistakes to Avoid in 2026 (and How to Fix Them) When Trying to Grow Your Blog<\/a><\/div>Click To Post on <\/i><\/a>
    <\/div><\/div>\n

    Disclosure:<\/strong>\u00a0Please note that some of the links below are affiliate links and at no additional cost to you, I\u2019ll earn a commission. Know that I only recommend products and services I\u2019ve personally used and stand behind. When you use one of my affiliate links, the company compensates me, which helps me run this blog and keep all of my in-depth content free of charge for readers (like you).<\/p>\n

    Now, let’s dive into my guide of the biggest blogging mistakes you need to avoid this year.<\/p>\n

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    Launch Phase: Blogging Mistakes to Avoid When Setting Up Your Blog<\/strong><\/h2>\n

    Before you start your blog<\/a>, there are a few key blogging mistakes to be hyper-aware of as you begin making big decisions that come with potentially long-lasting consequences.<\/p>\n

    I\u2019ll go through each of these early blogging mistakes, and show you how to avoid them up front and what to do to fix them if you’ve already made one of these mistakes.<\/p>\n

    Real quick though, if you haven’t yet gotten your blog started\u2014then follow along with my step-by-step guide to launching the right way today.<\/p>\n

    Want to Start Your Blog (the Right Way)?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

    Check out my ultimate guide How to Start a Blog (on the Side)<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    Read Now<\/a><\/div>\n
    \n

    <\/a>1. Using Wix, Squarespace or Weebly Instead of WordPress<\/strong><\/h3>\n

    \"Mistakes<\/p>\n

    I get it, starting with a blogging platform like Wix<\/a>, Squarespace<\/a> or Weebly<\/a> might sound easy (and you’ve probably heard of them before). These blogging sites have strong marketing campaigns and there\u2019s a good chance that you\u2019ve seen their ads on YouTube, through fellow bloggers or on your favorite podcasts.<\/p>\n

    And to be fair, sites like Wix and Weebly do offer free plans<\/a> that make them enticing to new bloggers. On the flip side though, how much it costs to blog<\/a> these days is getting more and more affordable\u2014about $65\/year for your basic costs.<\/p>\n

    While these kinds of platforms do have their perks\u2014namely that they\u2019re free and easy to use\u2014they also have a lot of limitations and drawbacks<\/strong>. If you\u2019re using the free hosting plans<\/a> from sites like Wix and Weebly, you\u2019re also dealing with their ads and branding on your site. It doesn\u2019t create a very professional feel, and the free plans don\u2019t give you much room to grow your blog<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    As you grow your blog, you will undoubtedly outgrow Wix\u2019s capabilities (even with a paid plan). Squarespace and Weebly share the same issues. These platforms are fun to play with and even develop your writing style<\/a>, but they\u2019re not a good long-term choice. To complicate matters, it\u2019s not easy to migrate your blog from one of these platforms over to WordPress<\/a> if you want to get serious about turning your blog into a business the future.<\/p>\n

    Instead of using these website builders<\/a>, I always advise new bloggers to start their sites using self-hosted WordPress<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Self-hosted WordPress is completely free-to-use content management system (CMS) that more than 43% of websites<\/a> in the world run on. Your only costs for maintaining a WordPress blog are the purchase of a domain name and web hosting plan<\/a>. Even if you’re on a tight budget that requires going with cheap hosting plans<\/a> or low cost shared hosting plans<\/a>\u2014you’ll still own your own blog. You can also buy great plugins<\/a> and themes<\/a> to extend the functionality and features of your WordPress-powered blog, but your upfront starting cost is extremely low with this route.<\/p>\n

    Most importantly, choosing WordPress will give you so<\/em> much freedom with controlling the future of your blog\u2014hence why not using<\/em> WordPress is the #1 blogging mistake here on this list.<\/p>\n

    When using WordPress, you can monetize your blog with no restrictions, customize it endlessly, promote your blog<\/a> content and do anything else you want with it. It includes HTML coding capabilities for even more customization, and you can bulk up your site with plugins that keep it running smoothly and looking sharp. I’ve used WordPress to manage my blog since I got started.<\/p>\n

    Start Your WordPress Blog Out Right<\/strong><\/h4>\n

    Check out my ultimate guide How to Start a Blog (on the Side)<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    Read Now<\/a><\/div>\n
    \n

    <\/a>2. Choosing the Wrong WordPress Theme<\/strong><\/h3>\n

    Let\u2019s say you do choose WordPress to start your blog<\/a>. I\u2019m 100% for it! But there are still some blogging mistakes that many new bloggers fall into at this stage when launching their WordPress blogs.<\/p>\n

    The first one is choosing the wrong theme.<\/strong> There are a lot of free and paid themes available, but they\u2019re not all equal.<\/p>\n

    Some WordPress themes are very limited and make it difficult to customize your blog\u2014and others will make your new site load incredibly slow with unnecessary features and code snippets. While you can always change your theme<\/a> when using WordPress, it does take some planning and work on your part.<\/p>\n

    And while it\u2019s technically easy to change your theme by pressing a few buttons, you’ll have to go back through your site and make sure everything is looking the way you want it. Theme-specific settings will have to be manually dealt with when you switch to a new theme, meaning your blog layout<\/a> will look a little funky until it gets fixed. It may take some time and energy to make your site look the way you want it again.<\/p>\n

    That’s why it pays dividends to avoid this blogging mistake entirely\u2014and start with a great WordPress theme right off the bat.<\/p>\n

    \"Blogging<\/a><\/p>\n

    The combination I recommend to all new bloggers is Elementor\u2019s Page Builder<\/a>\u00a0paired with their Hello Theme<\/a>. Both start completely free, are highly customizable, and<\/em> will give you a really fast blog. New bloggers who don\u2019t know anything about coding can also work with this theme because Elementor allows you to use an easy drag-and-drop feature to create the pages of your blog.<\/p>\n

    If you want more options, check out my other recommendations here: 26 best WordPress themes<\/a> for bloggers.<\/p>\n

    <\/a>3. Selecting a Bad Hosting Company<\/strong><\/h3>\n

    Another mistake that new bloggers often make is choosing a bad hosting company. Hosting companies allow you to get your blog live, on the Internet and typically start their pricing at anywhere from $3.00\/mo to $15.00\/mo for entry level plans. Without a hosting company, your blog won’t be public and your content won’t be readable to the world.<\/p>\n

    There are quite a few hosting great companies on the market today\u2014the best of which are Bluehost<\/a> and Dreamhost<\/a>\u2014but be careful in who you choose, because not all hosting companies offer the same features, reliability or affordable hosting plans<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    \"The<\/p>\n

    When searching for the right hosting company to power your blog, here are the factors you should consider:<\/p>\n