There's been a lot more producers coming up lately, with plenty dropping beat tapes, and I see that as a good thing. However, I still feel like there's a lot to be done for them to improve a lot more on the site, so I'm going to list a few things to do and NOT to do when you're making beats.
DO: Research a variety of famous producers
A good idea is to listen to a lot of instrumentals or songs that are produced by a particular person, such as Pharrell, Timbaland, Dr. Dre, DJ Mustard, Metro Boomin, Kanye West, DJ Premier, and a long line of others. Doing this can inspire you to make a beat dedicated to their style (DJ Khaled Type Beat, or Boi-1da Type Beat, etc.). This can also help you shape your own style of producing, by noticing small details that big producers do and adding it into your own projects. This can work with artists, too: Drake, J. Cole, Kendrick Lamar, Nas, Jay-Z, Biggie, Tupac, etc. have a certain vibe to them. Study those!
DON'T: Take credit for something that isn't yours
Too many people sample songs without giving proper credit. It's one thing to sample a song and not expecting any money from it; this is completely legal. BUT, if you are claiming it to be yours and attempting to make money from it; if you are selling it in any way to anyone without clearing the sample properly, that is ILLEGAL and you will eventually face legal troubles.
DO: Experiment!
Messing around with various tools, sounds, and VSTs in your DAW can help you familiarize yourself in your enviorment and understand more information about producing. It's also good to experiment when it comes to actually making your beats - by adding instruments and drums you usually don't use or pay attention to. This can help give your music a more professional and different taste to it.
DON'T: Sound repetitive
There are occasional exceptions, but for the majority of time you make beats, do NOT keep the exact same pattern for 5 minutes straight. This can cause the listeners to get bored after the first minute and press the skip button on your beat. Switch up the patterns and do something different with the beat instead of hearing the exact same structure that's been playing for the past minute and a half. The occasional exceptions would be: cypher beats (which even have switch-ups every now and then), freestyle beats (also have changes in them throughout), and old school beats.
DO: Get feedback from others
It's difficult to get better at making beats when you're the only person listening to them - so let others give their two cents about it as well. Their opinions and criticism will help you improve in certain areas, so try to be open-minded about it. This is also a good way for people to engage with you, and make connections with others in your community.
