I love blogging, I really do. I’m lucky enough to call it my day job and I’m really proud of what I’ve achieved over the last five years with my blogs. However, blogging isn’t always plain sailing and as with any job, there are definite ups and downs. In this post, I am going to look at some of the disadvantages of blogging that are sometimes glossed over.
Disadvantages of Blogging
1. It’s A Lot Of Work
One of the disadvantages of blogging is a heck of a lot of work.
While it may look easy from the outside, consistently driving traffic, learning SEO, posting on social media, answering emails, writing engaging posts, creating graphics and taking photographs are just a few of the daily tasks boggers do.
That’s before the things that make money such as liaising with brands and working with advertisers or affiliates.
Bloggers often start blogging as a hobby or side hustle alongside their full-time job, so fitting all of the above in as well as working can be a huge challenge.
It takes a lot of determination and self-belief to keep going and there are times it’s easy to believe it’s not worth the effort. Remember, lots of the things bloggers do or are learning to do, are jobs in their own right such as photography and SEO.
2. It Can Take A Long Time To Make Money
There are lots of bloggers out there telling your how much they make from their blog, and charging you for their courses and eBooks.
While I have no issue with bloggers making money, it can seem like everyone around you is making a fortune while you’re not making much at all.
Making money from blogging can take a long time and even when you start to make money it can be the odd bit here and there, rather than enough to live on. Consistently making money from your blog will definitely take time and isn’t something that’s going to happen overnight.
3. You’ll Spend More Than You Make To Begin With
At first, one of the disadvantages of blogging is that it can seem like you’re spending more money than you make. Even if you’re just paying out for a domain name and hosting.
The best way to look at blogging is as a hobby. I’m always surprised when people won’t spend say £5 a month to go self-hosted with their blog but will happily spend a fortune on other hobbies.
Not that I’m here to tell anyone how to spend their money of course, but I’ve definitely noticed this as a trend in some of the blogging groups In.
4. There Will Be Trolls
Trolls are the worst. They hide behind their keyboards spewing hate and vitriol, often about people who they’ve never met in real life.
When you take up blogging, you’ll be putting yourself out there and you’ll need to develop a thick skin. I feel I’ve been lucky in that I’ve had very few nasty comments while online, however, I know plenty of bloggers that receive hate on daily basis, just for sharing their lives online.
Even if you choose to blog anonymously, that doesn’t always stop mean comments.
5. People Will Try To Scam You
I recently wrote a post about the Scam Image Email that does the round among bloggers. It’s basically a dodgy link builder saying you’ve a copyrighted image, even when you haven’t.
While it is a well-known scam, it can still be scary the first time you get the email.
6. Not Everyone Is Telling The Truth
When I first started blogging, I really wanted to make it my full-time job and was inspired by lots of other bloggers sharing their monthly income reports at the time.
While I’m not saying anyone was out and out lying about their figures, there are lots of things some of them weren’t sharing, such as earning from more than one website.
I also feel lots of bloggers share courses and resources just because they get a huge affiliate commission from and not because the course is actually any good.
I’ve bought several courses in the last few months which were recommended by other bloggers and to be honest, none of them were very good or had any information that I didn’t already know, despite being aimed at more established bloggers.
7. It Can Feel All Consuming
Blogging can feel all-consuming. It can be hard to switch, especially from social media. Several of my regular clients are in the USA so I’ll often be replying to their emails in bed at 10pm or wake in the morning to lots of emails that need my attention at 6am.
Sometimes I have blog ideas in the middle of the night. I photograph everything from tonight’s dinner to special offers in the supermarket. It’s non stop. I love it, but sometimes I need to switch off and take a proper break, and that can be really hard.
8. There Will Be Technical Issues
One of the things that stresses me out the most about blogging is the technical side. While I love writing, dealing with the tech aspect is not my strong point and I’ve various issues over the years.
While I have learned how to do some things myself, there are some things I’m just never going to be able to tackle, which is one of the reasons I use Lyrical Host. Their blog hosting services are fully managed meaning they’ll help if anything goes wrong and I can’t fix it myself.
9. Your Friends, Family and Colleagues Can See It
While you can blog anonymously, brands often like to see your face associated with your blog. One thing you need to be prepared for is friends and family being able to read it and see it. It’s one thing for strangers to read what you’ve written, but people you know is an entirely different thing and something you need to be prepared for.
Your blog may also be read by work colleagues and or your boss. I know this has caused an issue for some bloggers, who were accused of being on Twitter while they were at work, even though tweets were scheduled through a scheduling programme such as buffer.
10. You Will Have Regrets
As you grow and change, so will your blog. And you might start to have some regrets. Whether that’s the rubbish blog posts you wrote in your early days, oversharing or simply wishing you’d started sooner. Here are some of the things I regret from my blogging journey.
- Not starting more blogs sooner. I was scared. No idea why.
- Not coming up with consistent branding from day one on my main blog. Going back and changing everything when you have 300 odd posts is not fun.
- Not doing keyword research from the start. If there are two things I would recommend doing from day one it’s keywords and Pinterest images.
Final Thoughts on the Disadvantages of Blogging
While I have focused on the disadvantages of blogging in this post, there are lots of upsides too! I’ve made some amazing friends through blogging as well as being part of some fantastic blogging communities and being able to share some of the things I’m most passionate about with a wider audience.
Wherever you are on your blogging journey there are always going to be good days and bad days. Just don’t give up!
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