Are you getting results from your book blog? Is it getting harder for you to spend time on your blog because you’re just not seeing how it is going to pay off? If so, you’re not alone. Hundreds of blogs are started each day and many of them are abandoned after several months because it takes time and energy to keep a good book blog going.

Make no mistake, blogs are a great tool for building community, interacting with readers, and marketing your book. And, it’s not enough to set one up and post occasionally. You have to use it effectively to drive traffic and attract readers.

I’ve discovered several common mistakes authors make with their blogs. Most aren’t using features available with blogging software. Eyes glaze over with the mention of RSS, pinging, trackbacks and permalinks. Does this describe how you feel? You may be ignoring these things, hoping you don’t really need to know. But you do if you want great results from you book blog.

Here’s a list of what I found on a recent trip around the author blogosphere:

Content:

1. Not posting frequently enough.

2. Content is not focused or optimized for the search engines.

3. Articles are too long.

4. Not linking profusely to sources. Links are the currency of the blogosphere.

Design

5. No name of author on the blog home page.

6. No author photo.

7. No subscription form; no way to get blog updates through RSS or email.

8. Readers can’t leave comments or have too many hoops to jump through.

9. Too many categories or none at all.

Marketing

10. Blog isn’t listed in the 200+ blog directories.

11. Blog posts are not being syndicated to social networking sites.

12. There’s no call to action to buy the author’s book.

13. No contact information.

If you’re using a blog to build your online visibility, optimize it by taking time to learn how to leverage your content to get the widest reach. A blog is like any other marketing tool – you’ve got to use it effectively to get positive results.

And now I would like to invite you to claim your free instant access to my 5-part video course to learn more about how to get the best out of your blog. Visit http://masterbusinessblogging.com

From Denise Wakeman, Founder of The Blog Squad and Online Marketing Advisor.

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