By Darren Gilbert

However, at the same time, they do need to be aired so that you can know what to look out for. With that in mind, here are three blogging myths that are better left behind.

Articles must be short

The idea that your audience is rushed for time and thus won’t read a long article is somewhat true. However, at the same time, it’s also false. Blogger and writer, Julie DeNeen explains: “The truth is that blogs with helpful and evergreen content — these are the posts that will get indexed by Google search engines. That’s where and how the traffic comes pouring in.”

It’s a point which Ginny Soskey, section editor for HubSpot’s Marketing blog, agrees with. She writes, “Though most people flaunt that readers' attention span won't hold past 500 words, lots of publishers have actually seen an up-tick in interest in long-form content, even on mobile.”

If you are still unsure, then forget everything about and read what Soskey has to say - “Instead of worrying about your word count, focus on being valuable to your readers in whatever length you need to properly cover a blog post topic.”

Blogging is about writing

It is a common enough thought: blogging is about writing. However, in reality, this is far from the truth. As Soskey points out about, blogging involves providing your audience with something of value to them.

With that firmly in mind, you will begin to understand the reason for blogging. If you can grasp that, then you are well on your way to providing what people want and who knows, you could monetise your blog too.

She explains: “Blogging is actually about education and entertainment. Think of a blog/blogger like an owner of a museum or school. It’s your job to produce content that is relevant, helpful, and entertaining.”

If you haven’t started yet, don’t bother

There is a misperception that if you don’t start something soon enough, the ‘fad’ will pass and you no longer have the opportunity. Firstly, blogging is not a fad. Secondly, this myth has been circulating ever since blogging came about.

Blogger and consultant, Mack Collier believes this too. He writes, “It’s never too late to share your voice. I started blogging in 2005. There were already a lot of well-established bloggers by then. But every year since, a few new bloggers have come ‘out of no where’ and suddenly everyone loves them.”

The reason why it’s never too late to start is simply because as Collier adds, there is always room for “smart people with something valuable to say”. If you have something new to say and you believe people will benefit from it, don’t let a late start stop you.

What are your thoughts? Do you know of any other myths that should be debunked? Tell us below.