Help Me Help My Blog! (January's Thread)

Many of us would love a place to ask specific questions about our blogs and get your input! So, I think this is how it will work and if you have any ideas, let me know. If we can discuss 1-2 blogs a week or about 4-8 blogs a month that would be great. There are a lot of us and I don't want anybody to have to wait if they are anxious. I will start a new thread in February to start fresh again.

So if you would like your blog critiqued, then feel free to post here your url, your goals, and what type of input you are looking for. The more specific you are the more we can help. I'm sure we'll all be nice! And remember, it's your blog. Just because somebody mentions something doesn't mean it will be right for you.

So, if there are a couple of you that would like help, then go right ahead!

EDITED TO ADD: Let's try to keep the comments threaded underneath each blog that is getting reviewed, that way it's easy to figure out the conversation. Thanks!

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Anastasia on January 31, 2009 at 11:45pm

Screencapping an image would work, yeah! Good idea. :D

And that's true about the numbers, but having "Rating (0)" was annoying me so I decided to just do without for now. I have fixed what you're talking about with the Review category, though! So all the reviews should be in their proper place now.

Thanks! I wasn't sure if I should highlight certain parts of the book info; on the one hand it's probably easier to pick out the different parts, but on the other hand not highlighting anything but the title makes it look a little neater (to me, anyway). Still not entirely sure. Maybe I could make them a different color instead of italics/bold/underlining. Hm.

Permalink Reply by Beth Fish on January 31, 2009 at 11:08am

I know I'm way too late for this, so if you don't want to take the time, I totally understand. I went through every comment in this thread, examined all the blogs, and implemented some of the advice. I'm generally happy with my blog, but I'm always happy for advice. This week has more fluff than usual because I was able to get only one book review up.

My goals are really to review books, interact with the book blogging community, and post my weekly photograph.

Permalink Reply by Maw Books on January 31, 2009 at 3:13pm

Your blog name and tag line are awfully close to the edges of your border. Could you put some padding in there so it doesn't look like it's crowding the edges?

I would put a few of those buttons further down the page. Particularly, the blog catalog and blogged button. You already have a subscribe button under your profile so I don't think you need to have them again at the bottom of your sidebar.

Consider putting your thanks in your footer instead of the sidebar and putting the buttons in your footer into your sidebar.

Generally, my impression is that you have a bit too much in your sidebar. Consider what is really necessary and what is just clutter. Or what can you put into a post and just link from your sidebar.

I'm also not sure that some of that blue font works well with your subdued color scheme.

Anyways, that's my impressions.

Permalink Reply by Beth Fish on January 31, 2009 at 4:20pm

Natasha: thanks for the feedback. I can't seem to get my blog name and tag line to move off the edge. That has always bothered me; I'll keep working on it. I don't want to cover my photo too much, I get compliments all the time on it.

I moved some buttons, created a three-col. footer, and moved sidebar items there.

I know the challenge bars take up room, but I'm leaving them for now. Challenge participants seem to to like them, I like to watch my progress.

I changed the bluish font to a deeper color. It looks better but I wonder if the text stands out as much now. I'll need someone else's opinion on that because I'm so used to seeing the blue. The point of the blue was to make the colored text pop out. I changed the color in the sidebar and one post; will change elsewhere when I get feedback.

I left the second subscription link near the bottom for now; I likely remove it later.

I still have to add back in my ning buttons, which will likely stay in the footer because no matter what I do to them, they look too wide for the sidebarr.

Permalink Reply by Beth Fish on January 31, 2009 at 5:21pm

Ok. I decided the deep maroon didn't quite do it. Now I'm using navy. It makes the text jump out -- I hope it's not too overpowering.

Permalink Reply by Maw Books on January 31, 2009 at 11:48pm

I wouldn't want to cover your header photo either. It just looks like your text isn't having much fun up there.

I was able to get my ning button to fit into my sidebar by adding width="x" and heighth="x" to the code. I don't know why they are so big.

Is there a reason that you want the text to pop out more than just bolding the information? I'm just not sure what I'm supposed to look at. The title? The headers? The links? The blue text?

Permalink Reply by Beth Fish on February 1, 2009 at 6:56am

I just can't figure out how to move the title and tag lines. Adding spaces doesn't work. I'll continue to research.

Text popping out: The idea was to have book titles pop out so someone linking through to my blog could see the titles immediately. Perhaps it is just too much. I'll reconsider.

I'll try to add height and width info to my ning buttons.

I truly appreciate your help with this.

BloggerPermalink Reply by Flora Bateman on June 24, 2012 at 8:58pm

I am always trying to find ways to make my blog better. I've finally gotten over 100 followers but my blog traffic is still low. I've tried many suggestions and just recently I've shortened my posts with the Read more link. I don't know if thats better or should I have left it the way it was with the entire post on the page? All help and suggestions appreciated.

From the Bootheel Cotton Patch

AuthorPermalink Reply by J H GAINES on June 26, 2012 at 6:46pm

hi everybody

I am completely brand new to social networking! in fact I have had to get my thirteen year old daughter to open most of my accounts for me.

I self-published two books on Amazon at the start of the month and ever since then I have been opening various accounts (FB-twitter-Blogspot ect) my friend list is gradually growing but i seem to have a problem with my blog.

I cannot for love nor money get a comment on my page, I have been posting material every day now for two weeks offering competitions and little writing tests yet still cannot get a reply.

I have started to wonder if there is anything wrong with my web etiquette or the actual function of the site, I am sure I am not that uninteresting!

two days ago I followed a blog on Google which asked its readers to post a short poem about an object, I spent the next fifteen minutes replying with the following;

What a great invention they are, my knife and fork
beef, chicken, vegetables, slicing onions or my pork
They come in wood,plastic or the finest Sheffield steel
every day I use them for every single meal
Just think of life without them, and how it would bring strife
how would I eat my dinner, without my trusted knife
I use them in the morning, I use them in the night
cutting fillet steak or spreading my Marmite
I place them on the table before the Sunday roast
and use them nearly every day when I'm buttering my toast
I used to think of them as a chore when I washed them in the sink
But now I have realised how essential they are I will smile at them and wink!

I know its silly but I only did it out of courtesy but I have not received a reply or a like, nothing, so it is making me wonder if I am doing something wrong?

My blog is

http://www.jhgaines.blogspot.co.uk

Any help or advice you could give me would be very much appreciated

Best wishes