These are the six main mistakes we see people make when they're starting to throw a glide bait.
Mistake 1: Starting too small. New anglers often find a three-or-four-inch glide bait at a sporting goods store to "get into swim bait fishing," but that gives up all your drawing power. Glide baits work because they trigger territorial and defensive instincts, not because they look like a snack - and the bigger you go, the more you trigger that instinct. Don't start smaller than roughly a 6-inch class bait; ideally go bigger so you actually feel the drawing power and defensive response these baits are built around.
Mistake 2: Using the wrong line. These are expensive baits, and the instinct is to spool 65lb braid so you don't lose one. But braid has no stretch - cast a six, seven, eight ounce bait on it and you will snap it clean in mid-air. Start with 20lb mono instead: when you get a backlash mid-cast, the line stretches and rebounds instead of parting, so you're not chasing a lost bait down with the trolling motor on high.
Mistake 3: Overworking the bait. Glide baits love slack in the line - they function best when you're manipulating that slack, not keeping the line taut and chopping aggressively. Let the bait breathe: work the slack, get a nice bow in the line, pop it with the reel handle to kick it out wider. Don't fish it on a tight line.
Mistake 4: Fighting the fish like it's light tackle. When the bait weighs four to six ounces, letting a fish turn and use that leverage means it's gone - even with rotating hook hangers and good hardware, you'll lose fish this way. Once a fish bites, load up on the rod and crank it in immediately; don't let it jump, don't let the rod tip drop, get it in the boat or netted right away. Big fish know how to use a heavy bait's leverage against you - don't let them bully you.
Mistake 5: Not throwing it long enough. People give a new technique four or five casts, decide it doesn't work, and go back to a jig. Glide baits take real time to produce - it's common to go two or three hours without a bite (maybe a follower) and then get into a stretch where you're getting bit every few minutes. Bite windows are a real phenomenon with these baits. Commit a full day to it and you'll start learning what that specific bait likes and where the fish actually are.
Mistake 6: Not putting the bait in the right spot. These are expensive baits, and the instinct is to make the "safe" cast well away from cover. But if a big fish is tucked under the next float over, that safe cast won't produce. You have to be willing to throw it next to the laydown, risk hitting the dock, and put it where the fish actually live.
Those are the top six mistakes beginning glide bait fishermen make - fix these and the learning curve gets a lot shorter.