Blog Bits

Widgets For Your Blog

December 6, 2009 By Loren

Blogs bring a lot of pleasure to their owners for many reasons, and one of the things I like most is the fact that you can tweak your blog to your heart’s content. Widgets are one of the most useful tools that you can employ to make your blog look just like the way you want it to.

Widgets may sound cool, but do you have a clear idea of what they are and what they can do? Again, let’s go the most basic route: widgets are basically groups of code that can be used in various web sites (including your blog). They do not require any additional programming work on the par of the end user (you and I). All that you need to do is copy the code to your blog, and you’re good to go.

That’s the (slightly) technical part. Now let’s focus on the more practical aspects of widgets. Basically, you can find widgets of any kind that can add visual appeal to your blog. More than aesthetic value, widgets also offer a lot in terms of usability. Think clock widgets, calendar widgets, countdown widgets, map widgets, comment widgets, popular post widgets, and so on. In fact, there are countless widgets available online today, that it is probably impossible to count them!

As you start your blogging journey, you may be tempted to grab each and every widget that catches your fancy. Trust me, this is NOT a good idea. There is such a thing as having too many widgets in your blog, and if this is the case, you will probably end up with confused or irritated readers – both having negative implications for you.

So what are you to do then? Let’s begin with the most essential widgets that you are going to need. After a few weeks or months of blogging, you will have enough experience to pick out more widgets that will be beneficial to your blog.

Popular Posts Widgets
I think that this widget is one of the most important tools out there. Once you amass a lot of posts in your blog, it could be hard for readers to find older posts, even if they are your best posts. The solution is to use a popular post widget which will highlight these posts. Making it easy for your readers to find these excellent posts works in two ways: one, you give quality content to your readers, making them happy; two, you increase your chances of having readers subscribe to your blog.

Labels or Tags Widgets
Blog platforms usually have these widgets as a default, but you should always make sure that your widget is up and running properly. The reason is quite similar to the rationale behind the first widget I mentioned – you want readers to navigate your blog more easily and to find the posts most relevant to them. Just remember, though, that you have to label or tag your posts properly in order for these widgets to work the way they ought to.

Related Posts Widgets
Do you want to get more page views and promote posts that may not be as popular as the others? Then get a widget that provides links to posts with related content. Again, this will give your readers additional information and give you benefits as well.

These are only some of the most important widgets that you can use for your blog. As you go along, I am certain that you will find more.

Pictures In Your Blog

November 29, 2009 By Loren

If you’ve taken a look at other blogs – which I assume you have – you have probably noticed that many of them make use of pictures and photos within the posts. While this makes sense to me, I don’t want to assume that everyone else has the same idea, so let me ask you, why is it important to add pictures to your blog? I could go on and on about the reasons for adding pictures to blog posts, but let me just stick with the most important ones.

1. It adds to the whole visual experience. I am talking about color, texture, and the like. Many people are visual; that is, they have a better reading experience when they see illustrations and graphics. Using relevant pictures in your posts will make these people happier, and that is what you want.
2. Pictures help break up long chunks of text. Whether you like it or not, not everyone likes seeing long blocks of text without a break every now and then. This is where pictures come in. If you have 10 paragraphs of interesting text, use two or so pictures to provide breaks. As interesting as the topic may be, the pictures will make it even better!
3. Pictures add recall value. Again, a lot of people are visual, and they remember images better than text. If you want to make a greater impact on your readers, then adding eye catching pictures is the way to go.
4. Pictures say a thousand words. Cliché, I know, but true nonetheless. There are just some things that cannot be described by words in a single post. With a picture, you can achieve things that may not be easily done by merely using pure text.

So now that I have convinced you of the importance of pictures, what next? Let’s take a look at how you can find images for your blog. One thing to remember: make sure that you are not “stealing” photos off of someone. While everything can be had online, you have to be careful of copyright issues.

The good news is that there are many resources online which can help you find photos without worrying about ethical issues. Try iStockphoto, which provides excellent pictures for blogs. You would have to pay for their service, though. You can also take a look at PicApp, which allows you to link to photos for FREE. Other free sites include Stock.Xchng and Freepixels.

Another thing that I like to do is go to Flickr and search for relevant photos. The thing is, you have to click on the option that says Creative Commons License. This will give you results of images that you can use for your blog, as long as you give the proper credit to the owner.

The bottom line here is to find pictures that are related to the content of the post and that are “available” for use. Follow these two simple guidelines and you will have much better posts (visually) without the headache of copyright issues.

What Should You Place In Your Blogroll?

November 28, 2009 By Loren

If you have taken a look at our page on the most common blogging terms (if you haven’t, NOW is a good time to do so!), you should at least recognize the term “blogroll.” Just to make it easier on you, though, let me reiterate what a blogroll is. This is simply a list containing other blogs which you (the blogger) visits or reads regularly. Sometimes, blogs are listed in the blogroll even if they are not visited by the blogger often. The main point is that the blogger is recommending or plugging these blogs. The blogroll is oftentimes found on the right column of the blog. This does not mean, however, that you cannot place the blogroll in other locations.

More than the name or title of the blog, readers are also treated to links. That is, the names of the blogs in the blogroll are often hyperlinked to the blogs themselves. This makes it easier for the reader as she or he merely has to click on the blog name to see the content for herself/himself.

Another element of a blogroll, which is fairly new, is the link to the most recent post. That is, more than the main URL of the blog, readers can also click on the link to the latest post. This is a great way for you to monitor if a blog that you like to visit has new content. This eliminates the need to visit the blog just to check if there is something new that you have not read before.

Based on the information given above, it is easy to see the importance of a blogroll. On your part, you get to provide additional information to your readers. This is especially true if the blogs that you include in your blogroll have content related to yours. More so, getting YOUR blog on other blogs’ blogrolls will increase your exposure, which is always good.

So how do you decide on what to put in your blogroll?

Obviously, you will place links to the blogs of your friends who have their own blogs as well. This is the most common start for those maintaining personal blogs. Alternatively, you might get to meet other bloggers. Sooner or later, you will get a request to exchange links – you put their blog in your blogroll and they’ll do the same for you. While this is a great way to gain more exposure, you have to take into consideration the content and the quality of the other blog. The bottom line is to make sure that you are not associating yourself with a shady blog that has nothing but ads and copied content. Your best route is to follow the blog for a while and then make your decision.

For those whose blogs are of a more focused nature, the content of the blogs in your blogroll are even more important. Remember that more than recommending these blogs because you like them, you have to provide quality AND relevant content to your readers. So if your blog is all about food, it would be great to put your favorite food blogs in your blogroll.

All About Feeds

November 15, 2009 By Loren

No, I am not talking about stuff that you can buy and ingest to fortify your body. If you have been reading the other pages that we’ve created for you, you’ll realize that I am talking about feeds that are one of the most important tools in blogging. Feeds are basically an alternative way of accessing the content of a blog (or any other web site for that matter) without having to actually visit the blog in your web browser.

Try visiting various blogs and web sites, and you will see some buttons saying “Atom,” “RSS,” or “XML.” These are all types of feeds which you can also use in your blog. Let us say that over the course of time, you stumble upon many blogs that you would like to follow, or read regularly. Now this should not be so difficult if the number is a mere 10 or so. What if your list of blogs grows to reach 50 or a hundred? It would be such a hassle to regularly open each blog.

This is where feeds come into the picture. Blog platforms have a built in feature which come up with code – automatically – that allows readers to subscribe to a blog. This means that they can subscribe to as many blogs as they want, and use a feed reader or aggregator to read the contents of each blog as it is updated. The need to actually open a tab or window to visit a blog is done away with.

Now how do you add feeds to your blog? This, again, depends on the blogging platform that you are using. Let’s just say that you are using WordPress – perhaps the most versatile and feature-rich blogging platform today, and the one which this blog uses as well. Most WordPress themes have built-in feeds, meaning that you do not have to add a feed! Try scrolling down to the bottom of this page, and you will see two links saying “Entries (RSS)” and “Comments (RSS).” The first one is the feed URL for the blog posts while the second one is for the comments. It is that easy!

If you want to use a third party service for feeds, you can do so as well. Perhaps the most popular is Feedburner. This service is chosen by many bloggers because it makes it easy for readers to subscribe to the feed. It also provides additional features such as the ability to track statistics, which is quite important for a lot of people. Feedburner is compatible with various blogging platforms, and you can get step by step instructions on how to use it in their web site.

One last thing, remember that you want your readers to immediately see the subscribe button. As such, if you’re customizing your blog’s look, make sure to place the feed button somewhere on top where it can be spotted without the reader having to look hard for it. In this manner, you don’t lose out on subscribers simply because of inappropriate location.

All About Blog Comments

November 15, 2009 By Loren

The ability to comment on each post is one distinct feature of blogs. Comments provide an additional dimension: interaction. This interaction can be between blogger and reader as well as reader to reader. As such, blog comments play an essential role in the success of a blog.

Let’s look at this role – why are blog comments important? Try visiting some of the most popular blogs in the Web today. Whether you look at blogs with an international scope, or more localized blogs, you will see that the most popular ones have LOTS of comments linked to each post. This is because being able to start or join a “conversation” about a particular topic – that which is contained the blog post, usually – is what makes blogs interesting for people. Even if the comments are not so positive, the fact that your post has created a discussion is enough to make you make your mark.

Another thing that bloggers have to realize is that blog comments can have an impact that extends to beyond the blog itself. Those readers (who are probably bloggers as well) who leave comments in a blog will probably link back to that post in their own blogs. It is easy to see that this can attract new readers to the blog in question.

Now let’s look at some technical issues that you may have to consider when it comes to comments. Blog comments may be presented either chronologically or in a “threaded” manner. The former view simply shows comments based on the time that they were posted while the latter shows comments which are related to each other – just like a thread in a forum. The chronological view is simple – all the reader has to do is to scroll down to see all the comments. However, the threaded view provides the additional advantage of clumping replies together, making the conversation more coherent.

The layout of blog comments may also be tweaked, and the options will depend on the blogging platform that is being used. Comments may be shown in the most straightforward manner – a line by line presentation of information (Commenter’s name, time and date, comment, etc.). Alternatively, comments may be shown in two columns, with the commenter’s details in the left and the main comment in the right. Sometimes, it is possible to use three columns.

The blogger has the option to set restrictions regarding comments. The “loosest” setting is to allow comments from anyone and everyone without any restrictions at all. This may prove to be problematic if spammers start messing with the blog, though. The strictest setting is to have people register before they can leave comments. A happy medium is to allow people to leave comments without having to register but requiring certain information to be inputted. Usually, this is done using “captcha,” or code that is automatically generated, which the commenter has to manually input. Furthermore, the blogger can choose to view comments and approve them first before publishing. This provides more control over what is shown.

The bottom line is this: comments are an integral part of a blog, but the blogger can employ measures to make the most of comments while at the same time make it easy enough for the readers.

Widgets For Your Blog

Pictures In Your Blog

What Should You Place In Your Blogroll?

All About Feeds

All About Blog Comments

Recent Posts

Categories