I’m a very prolific blogger and read a lot in my blog community and in other blog communities. I can’t stand some of the things I see and if I have a problem, I can guarantee other readers of your blog do too. Here are four things bloggers are doing wrong:
1. Contests.
So I’m noticing while reading my google reader bundle that 90% of the blogs that I read require the winners of contests to make first contact! Can you imagine? What are they thinking?
I follow 90+ blogs. There’s no way (without google reader of course) that I could remember where I was and when I entered a contest, let alone remember to check back, find the winner post and see if I won.
Bloggers would be far better off contacting the winners first. Afraid of getting caught by the spam filter? Then keep your contact info readily available in the winner announcement. Also make a page that lists current contests and their links as well as recently finished contests with a link to the original post and the winner announcement.
I’d remember and trust a blog for making it easier on me than for themselves. I regularly follow the blogs that did this with me when I won from them. Think about that.
2. Bad Visual Decisions.
For instance a smorgasbord of images that feature on both the left and right side of the article! Now alternating images is not necessarily bad, but we’re talking well over half a dozen just randomly inserted pictures of all shapes and sizes. Talk about a visual assault! To avoid retina damage I quickly skip over the post and move on to the next in my reader.
3a. Titles that have nothing to do with the post.
Yuck. I’ve come across that many times. Most of the time I wonder if the blogger forgot the topic or used a sensational title to lure me in under false pretenses. This is called bait and switch and nobody likes it. Don’t do it. If you’re lucky, I just think you can’t stay on topic and leave… hopefully to come back for your next post.
3b. Boring titles.
I won’t even bother with a boring title. How hard is it to come up with something fun that fits your article? Consider these five romance novel related articles that I wrote:
- 10 Reasons Zombies Make Bad Romance Heroes
- Get into Bed with Judith James (Author Interview)
- The #1 Reason Women Love Triangles in Romance
- Review: Summer of Two Wishes by Julia London
- Should Authors Own a Blog?
I use lists, questions, and creativity to come up with to the point, fun, and informative titles. Wouldn’t you want to check those articles out?
4. Terribly long winded posts.
This gets me every time. I can’t keep focused for super long posts. It needs to be broken up if you’ve got a lot of information. Consider making it a series or post it with big bold headers. Break up long paragraphs. Do something, anything to keep a post easy to read and the text visually stimulating.
Now that I’ve shared my pet peeves it’s time to confess; do you commit any of these crimes?
Keira runs a book review blog for readers by readers on romance novels entitled Love Romance Passion. She’s been reading romance since she was a teenager and began blogging about romance so she could share her passion for her favorite genre.
Photo Credits: Marty.FM
Originally posted 2009-09-02 03:44:57. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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