I’m going to really help you today. Why?

It’s time to bust through some more myths!

I’ve already written a post about what social myths to ignore, and today we’re talking about all the rubbish that’s made up about digital marketing.

So often I see blog posts and articles online all giving advice that I just want to write the word ‘ignore’ across. I think to myself, how many people are going to actually listen to this rubbish? Some people could actually not do things they love based on these lies!

I know that the people who will have written these articles will just be speaking from experience and that’s fine.

But what’s not fine is the fact that some people take this (bad advice very seriously). Like, ‘I’ve never written anything in my life before so I can’t start a blog.”

Or, “well lots of people say you need to spend thousands of pounds on a kick-ass blog design if you’ve got any chance of getting noticed.

And on, and on.

But what gets to me more than anything is that this advice stops people - stops YOU - from doing what you want to do.

That’s why I’m writing this post.

So we’re going to clear up 11 of these biggest myths today. I’m even going to give you some real examples so you can see how rubbish they really are.

Let’s get into it.

Myth #1 - You need to be a tech-nerd to understand digital marketing

Am I a tech-nerd? No. Do I know code? Not even a little bit. I get by with Squarespace, Google Analytics and so on, because they’re easy to pick up and there are plenty of tutorials out there to help you.

People think you need to be a tech-nerd to know about digital marketing. And sure, for things like coding and data analysis and the like, you need to be slightly more tech-savvy than the average person. But to understand it? It’s not true. I was at a conference about a year and a half ago and I got told that if I wasn’t good at Maths, I wouldn’t be able to do SEO.

Organic search as a source of traffic for me has increased by almost 50% over the past three months.

I won’t lie - getting to grips with digital marketing is no walk in the park, but it’s not rocket science either. There are plenty of tools out there that are simple, but still full of what you need to become successful. I’m rubbish at Maths and I’m getting on just fine!

Myth #2 - Video will never hit the big time

What?!

That’s the reaction I had when a speaker said it wasn’t worth adding video into your content marketing plan.

Lots of people in our industry think social media is the be all and end all of everything, and that you should spend most of your money on that. But when you find out that 64% of users are more likely to buy a product online after watching a video, you’re right to have some questions.

But don’t worry - I’m not saying you have to go and start a YouTube channel right now, even though you hate being on video. Just start small. Snapchat and Periscope are great ways to start out, and you don’t have to show your face if you don’t want to. Create slideshows and use voiceovers, or go through a tutorial but film it instead. The possibilities are endless!

Basically, if you’re not using some sort of video as part of your online presence right now, you need to.

Myth #3 - No one will find about my website because there’s so much out there already

This one I’ve heard too many times to count and really, it can just act as an excuse.

It’s true - there’s a lot of information out there. And yeah, it gets harder to show up everyday and be found. But there’s only one thing that makes people find out who you are, and that’s YOU. You are the one that has to promote, promote and promote until you’ve got a community of loyal readers flocking to your content. Build it and they will come is an outdated myth. You want people to find you? You’ve got to MAKE them find you.

Myth #4 - I have to spend loads of money on building my online presence

Ok. If you think you need to spend loads of money on advertising to build your blog, you need to go read this post right now.

Here’s the thing…

You do not need to spend loads of money to have a successful online presence.

The way you grow your online presence has nothing to do with money. It has to do with you and the plan that you come up with to market yourself. You’ve got to think of the best ways possible and they include creating valuable content, getting yourself out there and interacting with your audience.

Those things can include money if you want them to - I’d definitely recommend social advertising as a starting point - but a lot of money isn’t necessary.

Myth #5 - I can’t do anything with a small audience

Let me tell you something - I used to think this. I used to let it define everything. I had less than 100 people on my email list when I launched Blogging Breakthrough. Now I’m halfway to 1,000.

I’ve had some of the biggest people in the industry share my content.
I’ve got a waiting list of people wanting to feature in my monthly career series interview.
I had more people willing to write guest posts for me than I actually needed.

It is possible to do big things with a small audience. You just need to be brave enough to put your thing out there into the world.

Myth #6 - You need to be an expert in order to be taken seriously

People think about this in the completely wrong way.

You don’t need to start out as an expert. Who starts out as an expert about anything?

You tell your story, share what you’re learning along the way, document your results and that’s how you become the expert. See how it works? It’s so great, because once you show you know what you’re talking about (by providing evidence too), you’ll start to see more interaction, your numbers will increase and you’ll start to be asked for your opinion on things a lot more. That’s how you get yourself out there.

Myth #7 - There are too many people doing the same things as me

Do you have any idea how many blogs out there will write about the same topics as you? A lot.

There are over 152 million blogs out there so you do the math 😉

Yet somehow, despite all the noise and all the other blogs out there blogging about my topics, I manage to generate 10,000 pageviews a month and have a loyal community of over 500+ people.

It’s so easy to say, I can’t do that idea because it’s already been done before. There have been so many times that I haven’t wanted to write a blog post because someone else has already written about the same topic.

But there’s a massive difference. Sure I can write about the way I grew my Instagram following. And so can you - because the way we both did it is going to be completely different. Your voice and your story is going to be different from everyone else’s out there. If people come to you to learn something, it’s because they want to learn it from YOU.

Myth #8 - Ads and SEO are the two most important factors to focus on

Oh, I hate this one. Mostly because I’ve never used ads on my site and don’t feel they generate the best results.

Yep, I’ve managed to grow a successful blog without spending money on ads and without dedicating my time to doing a load of SEO work. So when I see digital marketing agencies going on about how you need to hire someone to “SEO” your site, or how ads are the best way to make money from your blog - I seriously want to tell them to shut up.

SEO is important. But telling people it’s the most important thing to focus on over everything, like content and your mailing list is just full on rubbish.

- You DO NOT need to spend money advertising your blog on other people’s sites
- You DO NOT need to read every guidebook out there to get your head around SEO
- You DO NOT need to dedicate a chunk of time each month to doing SEO work for your blog

Do you have to do some SEO work in order to be successful? Of course. It’s a great way to generate traffic. But they’re simple things that will just become a part of your blogging process.

Myth #9 - You can’t make money if you rely on social media

Here we go again.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard the phrase, “you’ll never make money through social media.”

Of course you can! Why do you think social media is so successful? It’s a great promotional tool, which also means it’s a great selling tool. If I can get someone to sign up to my mailing list through a tweet, that means you can sell a product too.

It annoys me when people say that social media isn’t worth it and that your platforms aren’t good enough to support your brand. That’s an excuse. The people that say that probably really struggle with social media. It’s been one of the most important things that’s helped me get to where I am today.

Myth #10 - If you publish content everyday your audience will grow faster

You know what’s funny? I used to publish content every day and now I’ve gone back to three days a week, my audience is growing faster than when it did when I published content every day.

I truly have seen the value of a seven day posting schedule. It really boosted my traffic and I think that was the driving factor in my numbers increasing so much over the past few months.

Think about it - if you’re giving people something new to read every day, they’re going to visit your site every day. You’re going to have more content to share and promote, which means everything will be on the increase.

But that as a full-time scheduling plan isn’t feasible for most people. When I went back to three days of posting per week, plus a newsletter and free content upgrades I saw an even bigger increase in traffic. So by all means, try it out for a month. But don’t feel like you have to do it long term to become successful.

Myth #11 - Everything about my online presence needs to be perfect first time

Nope! The beauty of this industry is that things are always changing, so your online presence will always be evolving.

The fact is, nothing about what you do online has to be perfect. You will think of things to change, add, improve - you’ll get better at writing, at imagery, at promotion, EVERYTHING.

Nothing needs to be perfect the first time - it’s more like a trial run, where you put things out there into the world, see what people think and then refine them to make them even better. You’ll figure out how to help people better and how you can improve yourself. I’m always reviewing my strategies and processes. Nothing needs to be perfect in order to get results!

BONUS MYTH - I CAN’T DO THIS

Here’s some truth for you: I grew this blog to 10,000+ pageviews alongside a full-time job, my freelancing business and having a life.

Has it been easy? Absolutely not. But I’m proof that it’s possible.

And even though I’ve got a brilliant support network of people around me who help me, I still do EVERYTHING myself.

I’m pulling it off. And so can you.

Now it's your turn - did you used to believe in any of these myths? Have you heard any others that you think are total rubbish? Let me know in the comments!