Fix These 10 B2C Coffee Blog Mistakes in 10 Minutes or Less

If you’re going to have a B2C coffee blog, you might as well have one that works! There are several common mistakes that could be hurting your blog’s ability to engage or clinch sales.

Did you know the most profitable blogging niche is in the food and beverage industry? People are (literally) hungry for everything from fresh new recipes to learning more about what makes a beverage brand so special.

However, if your blog is littered with clunky paragraphs or inconsistent linking, you’ll have a harder time keeping visitors reading…or attracting them at all.

I’ll help your cafe or roastery bring in new customers and keep old customers around. This list will give your blog some spitshine so it can work more effectively to attract people to your business – each improvement only takes about ten minutes each. In total, less than two hours.

In a hurry? Here are my 10 common B2C coffee blog mistakes and how to fix them in 10 minutes or less:

1. Break up your blocky paragraphs 

2. Sprinkle in more internal links 

3. Add more visuals to improve retention 

4. Mix in more original brand images to improve SEO and reader retention

5. Insert ALT text for visually-impaired visitors and the search engine

6. Improve your blog post’s meta tags

7. Make sure each post offers quality to coffee drinkers

8. Check your website for mobile-friendliness

9. Prioritize posts about customer-facing coffee issues

10. Repost your blog on social media more often

1. Break Up Your Coffee Blog’s Blocky Paragraphs

Big blocky paragraphs aren’t fun – in fact, they might just send visitors running. According to a Usabilla study, short lines signal to the reader your blog is a breeze to read.

Since web readers tend to scan text rather than meticulously read, make it easy for them – try to keep your paragraphs around 70 words or less.

Four lines or less per paragraph is also helpful to keep reading brisk. While you can occasionally break this rule, adhering to it will make for an easy-to-digest marketing tool.

Ten Minute Fix: 

You can increase the chances a reader will want to read more posts by hopping into your blog’s CMS and breaking up one of your blog post’s paragraphs.

Simply go into a recent post and start indenting with impunity! 

Now, don’t break up your paragraphs willy-nilly – the function of paragraph breaks is to also help a reader follow your train of thought. Good places to indent include:

• A subtopic change – for example, switching from talking about roasts to flavor profiles

• Expanding on a topic – talking about coffee origins, then discussing Ethiopia

• Transitioning to a quote – transition from a paragraph to a quoted sentence

2. Sprinkle in More Internal Links to Encourage Browsing

A few well-placed internal links does wonders for keeping readers browsing. They’re also vital for communicating to the search engine what your coffee blog is about and how to promote it.

Internal links located within your blog content – such as inside a guide or a product review – is called a contextual internal link.

When placed thoughtfully, these links create a more satisfying browsing experience for coffee drinkers.

When’s the last time you read an article, then clicked on a link halfway through that expanded on something else you wanted to learn about?

This step will be much easier to do if you have several blog posts. However, if you’ve only got a few, you can likely find a good spot in your newer posts to place a relevant internal link.

Best practices you should keep in mind when freshening up your coffee blog posts are:

1. Always be relevant – for example, linking to a web page about bean varieties on an educational blog post about origins.

   Linking to a page on, say, espresso machines would be a little less relevant.

2. Don’t use too many links – three to five internal links per post is a solid amount with the exception of very long posts, which can have more.

3. Don’t put too many links back-to-back – with rare exception, try to have just one link every few sentences. Too many can be distracting for the reader.

Ten Minute Fix:

Go into a blog post and skim it for a good internal link opportunity (or three!).

Below are a few more tips you can use to make your internal links work for your reader, not against them: 

• Highlight just a few sentences – linking the entire sentence looks awkward and clunky.

• Dedicate at least one internal link to a CTA – this could be to buy your coffee, download a free e-book, or check out your newest YouTube channel.

• Link from your higher ranking pages to your lower ranking pages.

  Internal links literally give more authority to whoever they’re linking to, so use this to boost your other content!

3. Add More Visual Aids to Improve Retention

Did you know at least 65% of people are more likely to remember something three days later with a visual aid? Adding visuals in your coffee blog posts will stick your brand in visitors’ minds.

There are tons of ways you can use visual aids for an informative post or fun list, but let’s keep things quick – you’ve only got ten minutes, after all!

Depending on the topic, a few quick image ideas you could sprinkle into your recent posts are:

1. A photo from a behind-the-scenes trip to a coffee farm

2. A photo from a behind-the-scenes peek into your roasting facility

3. A brief cellphone video where you’re participating in a cupping for a new blend

4. A little .gif to give someone a visual of one of your products in action

5. A photo of a happy customer enjoying your product (with their consent, of course!)

Ten Minute Fix:

Alongside photos, if you want to slap together a quick .gif from your camera roll, Giphymaker is a great addition to your content marketing roster.

You can even add filters or special effects to line up with your brand image. Just make sure to use original content here — you can’t use other people’s uploads for business purposes.

Rummage around in your phone reel for any photos or brief videos you’ve taken, then upload them to your CMS.

Pop your visual aid into a blog post or two to help your readers walk away with a firm memory of your brand.

4. Mix in More Original Images to Boost SEO

If you want to bump up your coffee blog posts in the SERPs, add more original images. Image search accounts for nearly half of all Internet search results, with stock photos deprioritized in Google’s quality filters.

In a short – too many stock photos that can easily be traced back to the same source makes your brand’s blog look less distinctive.

Does that mean you can never use them? Far from it. A few free stock photos here and there are a great way to save time and money – I even use some in this blog post! 

Just prioritize original photos most of the time so you can let both readers and the search engine know more about your business.

(No matter the photo, make sure they’re relevant and have ALT text, which I’ll discuss in the next section.)

Ten Minute Fix:

Got a coffee blog post with barely any images or only stock photos? Dig around in your marketing folders for some recent photos, resize them real quick, then add them in.

Use these images to not only break up the text, but give people a visual to associate your post with. A few image ideas you can try are:

• A photo of your roasting equipment

• A photo of your coffee bag, can, or box packaging design

• A photo series of a coffee recipe you’re putting together

• A photo of one of your employees pouring a latte 

• A photo of a coffee farm you recently visited

5. Don’t Forget to Add ALT Text

ALT text is essential for both accessibility purposes and communicating to the search engine what your post is about. If an image fails to load, your ALT text will at least keep your post properly indexed by search engines so your future customers can still find it. 

Good ALT text takes both needs into account. Here’s a tip: putting your post’s main keyword into the ALT text will also help you rank for Google Image search results.

Failing to apply ALT text can make your coffee blog more difficult to navigate for people who are visually impaired. The next long-term customer of your brand could be someone who appreciates the extra length you took to consider their needs.

The image above is an example I used to apply ALT text to this very blog post. Let’s take a look at a bad ALT text example for a fictional micro roastery.

“A coffee cup.”

It’s accurate, sure, but far too simple. It doesn’t paint a strong picture for visually-impaired readers or give a keyword for the search engine.

“A micro roaster coffee cup sitting on a pink table with a drop shadow.”

That’s better. Not only is it more descriptive for people with visual disabilities, it also incorporates a keyword – micro roaster coffee.

TeN Minute Fix:

This fix simply involves going into your CMS, pulling up the information of your blog post’s images, and punching in some improved ALT text. Below are some ideas to get the creative juices flowing:

• “An espresso machine” → “A barista operating a semiautomatic espresso machine.”

• “A coffee bag.” → “A purple and white bag of specialty coffee on a brown box.”

• “A green farm.” → “A large green farm with several coffee farmers in front of a table.”

I’ve been working in the coffee industry for nearly a decade helping coffee brands generate loyal customers. Check out the work I’ve done for blogs and publications like DrinkStack, New Ground Magazine, and more.

6. Improve Your Blog Post’s Meta Information

Meta information refers to the surrounding information of online content that communicates to the search engines and its users. No matter the CMS you use, there will be fields for you to enter in extra details that help coffee drinkers find your content.

While meta tags don’t directly impact your blog’s search results, they’re essential for grabbing people’s attention. No meta tags (or barebones meta tags) won’t give the search engine the information it needs to promote your blog post to potential readers. People can’t read what they can’t even find!

Different types of meta information you use when publishing or editing blog posts are:

Meta Descriptions (or Meta Tags)

These are the little descriptions that pop up when people type in a keyword in the search engine. Keep these no longer than 150 to 160 characters and make sure these include keywords you want to be found for. 

Meta Titles

This is the title a reader sees when pulling up their search results after typing in a question or a keyword. Since there’s limited space for your blog post’s titles, there should be no longer than 50 to 60 characters. Otherwise, your title will be cut off and people may glance away.

Ten Minute Fix

This is another easy fix. All you have to do is open up your CMS, view the meta page of any given blog post, and start making edits. These edits could look like:

• Shortening your meta tags

• Shortening your meta titles

• Adding a keyword into your meta tags

7. Make Sure Each Post Offers Quality to the Reader

Content velocity is a term that refers to the best of both worlds – a large amount of quality content released on a frequent basis. Google’s Search Advocate flat-out stated content velocity contributes to a site’s authoritativeness. 

However, another study found over 80% of marketers believing high quality content less often was more effective. Which one should you do for your blogging strategy?

The common denominator between these studies is quality – a word that’s starting to feel like a platitude these days, but is actually pretty simple when you break it down.

Each coffee blog post should have the reader walking away better off for it. 

This quality could look like the reader:

1. Learning something new, such as a new term or how to reduce bitterness in their brew

2. Finally getting an answer to a frustrating question

3. Appreciating learning more about the business they’re interested in buying from

4. Receiving awareness on a problem they didn’t know about before

5. Enjoying a good laugh (we could all use this one)

Whether you update once a week or once a month, quality is what keeps people coming back. A bunch of blog posts repeating the same generic platitudes of ‘passion’, ‘empowerment’, and ‘commitment’ isn’t exactly going to stand out.

Ten Minute Fix:

Is it possible to inject more quality into a blog post in just ten minutes? It’s more likely than you think. Pick up a coffee blog post and give it a quick lookover. 

Hone in on the function of the post – raising awareness, entertaining with a good story, etc – and ask what could make it even more valuable.

A few ideas you can try are:

• Changing the intro line of your interesting founder story to be more attention-grabbing

• Updating an outdated coffee industry awareness post with a recent study or statistic

• Breaking up some paragraphs or adding in some links – yes, these also create value for the reader since they make your post more helpful and easy to read!

8. Check Your Coffee Blog’s Mobile-Friendliness

Nearly 70% of mobile users said they’re more likely to buy products or services from mobile-friendly sites. Unsurprisingly, nearly the same amount said they’d leave if that wasn’t the case!

2021 saw over half of all Internet traffic generated from mobile devices. If your café blogging strategy or roaster blog is hampered by slow loading or broken images, you can kiss a chunk of your potential customers goodbye.

A website and coffee blog that isn’t mobile-friendly will also affect your ability to rank in Google. The good news? It’s very easy to check your blog’s mobile friendliness and improve it. 

A few of the features that determine whether a site will function well and load fast on mobile include (but aren’t limited to):

1. Smaller image sizes – large images require more memory and, thus, load slower.

2. Fewer animations – too many bells and whistles also require more loading time.

3. Fewer ads – since these are often animated, they also suck up memory.

4. A site optimized for mobile – sites like Squarespace and Weebly automatically scale to a phone so text isn’t randomly cut off halfway through the page.

5. Compatible plug-ins – your site could have a plug-in that’s outdated and doesn’t respond well to modern phones and tablets.

Ten Minute Fix:

Try this free mobile-friendliness checker from HubSpot – I’ve used it myself and enjoyed the in-depth breakdown they gave me on image sizes, page speed, page size, caching, and more. 

MobiReady is another free option that lets you see your site on several mobile devices, including very outdated phones (hey, some people still use them!).

9. Prioritize Posts That Talk About Customer-Facing Issues

Just because you’re not talking about an issue doesn’t mean customers don’t know about them. A tweak to your blog strategy means the difference between loyal customers and coffee drinkers who think you’re out-of-touch.

Did you know at least 75% of sustainable goods actually sell better online than in-store? Your coffee blog is a prime tool to get people learning more about what your cafe and/or roastery is doing to leave the world a better place.

You already know a label on a bag isn’t enough – customers today check user reviews, pore through blogs, and watch videos to triple-check they’re making the right purchasing decision.

Whether your coffee positively impacts their birdwatching hobby or their interest in sustainable farming communities, you have a chance to resonate with them on a personal level.

If your blog is a barren wasteland of dime-a-dozen platitudes and hard sells, you’re missing out on a prime opportunity to show all the ways your brand goes against the grain.

Ten Minute Fix:

Add a few notes into your content marketing calendar this year to talk more about customer-facing issues in your coffee niche.

Even better, make sure your blogging strategy positions you as a solution to their problem. 

• “I wish more roasters sold coffee with this organic farming method.” → A few blog posts about your recent organic certification, how it works, and who verifies its validity. 

• “I want to support cafes that pay fair wages.” → A few blog posts featuring happy employees or sharing a press release on how you increased employee wages.

• “I want to save a little money buying specialty coffee.” → A few blog posts about your coffee subscription discounts, flash sales, and product bundles.

10. Repost Your Coffee Blog Posts on Social Media 

Not everyone follows your social media and not everyone follows your blog. Save everyone some time falling in love with your beverage brand and do some reposting. 

You’ll have to format your coffee blog repost to suit the platform, but this honestly doesn’t take long.

For Instagram, you can use one of your original images to grab people’s attention or take a juicy blurb from your post.

Let’s look at an Instagram example I whipped up for a fictional roaster’s blog post about a refreshing cold brew recipe. 

Their detailed blog post provides a step-by-step brewing process for home brewers with one big secret to deliciousness…

Ten Minute Fix:

Pick a social media channel you’re active on and repost one of your coffee blog posts during a peak time. Check out the peak posting times for your channel, then schedule a quick post.

I highly recommend Canva if you need a free resource for generating stylish, high-quality posts.

Entice people to click on the link with these curiosity-generating tips. Resist the urge to clickbait: these should always relate to what the post is about so you don’t confuse readers:

• For interviews, try putting a juicy quote front and center.

• For recipes, you can put the tantalizing result first or offer a time-saving hack.

• For recent certifications, stress what this means for their future purchases.

• For new product drops, tease at the production process or inspiration.

• For a new discount; emphasize the limited-edition nature of the deal. 

Your B2C Coffee Blog is a Gold Mine of Untapped Potential 

Now is always the best time to update or polish your blog. It’s also a great time to start one if you haven’t already – I can help you with all of the above. 

A memorable coffee blogging strategy is built on several pillars. While brand messaging and mission statements are some of the best-known, little details are just as important.

Convenience, thoughtfulness, and a high attention to detail gives your brand a level of care that make readers want to come back.

At best, your coffee blog is a long-term marketing tool that keeps old customers around and brings new customers in.

At worst, it’s a dead end that could turn people away at a critical moment and cost you sales.

Don’t even have an hour to improve your coffee blogging strategy? Contact me today to save time updating, analyzing, or improving your blog.

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Free stock photos sourced and/or altered from:

https://unsplash.com/photos/brown-ceramic-teacup-XtUd5SiX464

https://unsplash.com/photos/pink-rose-in-close-up-photography-guyTcnpRkaw

https://unsplash.com/photos/space-gray-iphone-6-on-white-textile-8l9VxXI28tY

https://unsplash.com/photos/white-daisy-in-bloom-during-daytime-TIM2WIFyGa4

https://unsplash.com/photos/assorted-color-flowers-on-brown-wood-74QmIJDTD-c

https://unsplash.com/photos/glass-cup-of-beverage-yN7prWLW7xg

https://unsplash.com/photos/black-handle-on-brown-wooden-table-jaLaLQdkBOE 

https://unsplash.com/photos/person-holding-white-iphone-5-c-x9WGMWwp1NM 

https://unsplash.com/photos/assorted-petaled-flowers-centerpiece-inside-room-WBpr_yH0Frg

https://unsplash.com/photos/person-using-black-and-silver-laptop-computer-6_NXEMZbUq0