10 ways to improve your blog | Why I HATE your blog

10 ways to improve your blog

So first things first, I don’t hate anyone’s blog and this is not aimed at anyone in particular. But there are some things that I do dislike about some blogs I have visited and after talking with other bloggers, I’ve found that I am not the only one.

There are things on blogs that get quite frustrating when I’m trying to read a post or browse a blog, one of those happens to be a gazillion pop ups that mean I just give up straight away. I do know that my title is a bit of “click bait” but I liked the ring to it.

What sparked this post

I was browsing through some blogs the other night as I normally do when I’m bored. I like to find some posts that grip me and pull me in, a blog that I can fall in love with like I have done so many times before. A few of these examples are; I really enjoy reading these bloggers’ posts, I enjoy reading what they have to say on different subjects so I go back time after time. I have them bookmarked for easy access and it’s not just their content I like, it’s the fact that their blogs are easily accessible.

I can view them on my mobile, tablet and laptop with no problems and that’s what I need from a blog. I need to be able to find everything easily so that I can completely snoop on the About me page, contact, disclaimer etc…

But the other night I found some blogs that just didn’t sit right with me, they were messy, I was fumbling about trying to find content, so I just gave up after a few clicks. I don’t intend this post to come off as “all high and mighty”, that is never my intention but I do enjoy giving advice to help anyone who may need it. When I started blogging I could have really used posts like this to help me create a blog that is both accessible and nice to look at.

So, I have come up with 10 ways in which you can improve your blog or even use it as a guide in creating your own little space on the internet. 

Pop ups, pop ups everywhere!

This is one of the biggest things I hate when visiting other people’s blogs, POP UPS! Now, I don’t mind one or even two, I get that people want to collect information from their readers and have them sign up to email lists or newsletters, but does there have to be so many pop ups?

What I’m talking about is when I close one pop up, for another to appear before I’ve even seen what the website looks like! I counted a total of 5 pop ups on one blog before I saw the home page… 5!!!!! WHO NEEDS 5 POP UPS IN A ROW?! seriously. So multiple pop ups are a no from me.

A font that’s practically unreadable

Another annoyance for me when it comes to reading blogs is having a font that is basically unreadable. It’s always a good idea to have a nice clear font that is a good size so that everyone can read your brilliant blog posts. If I can’t read what you’re writing, I won’t be coming back to your blog which is a shame because I’m sure a lot of people out there have great blog posts but writing that isn’t readable.

Not Mobile Friendly

When it comes to browsing blogs, 9 out of 10 times I’ll be on my phone, in bed searching through twitter to find new posts I want to read. I’ll find one that totally appeals to me, I’ll be excited to read it, click the link and it will take me to a jumbled mess that can’t be accessed properly from my mobile and it will really make me sad as I loved the title of the post. But there’s no way I’m getting out of my bed, going across the room and starting up my laptop just to read one post because I can’t read it on my phone. It’s not going to happen.

One thing I will say is that I know I’m not the only one who finds this annoying as I’ve spoken to others who have thought this, and I’ve read a few posts that speak about it. So, if you can, I really, REALLY recommend that you make your blog mobile friendly as this will help to increase your readership and keep people coming back to your blog if they can enjoy it on all devices.

No sub links to different categories

If I’m coming to your blog to read your posts, I want to be able to filter them by categories. 

For instance, if I’m in the mood for a lifestyle post and you write lifestyle posts, I want to be able to click on a link that takes me to all your lifestyle posts. The same goes for beauty, fashion, parenting, etc.

I like to have all the information at the click of a button so to speak and if I can’t navigate around your blog with ease it drives me nuts, especially if I’ve read one of your posts and loved it. So, a good tip is to create categories for your posts as it will help readers easily navigate through your website.

No search bar

Again, this ties in with my point above, if I can’t find links to certain posts of yours or I know I’ve read a post of yours and I try to find it, but you have no search bar this drives me crazy. I just want to find that post that I loved so much so I can read it again but it’s nowhere to be found!

And I’ll be damned if I’m searching through all of your twitter (because I would probably have seen your promotional tweet for it) or blog just to find it. Having a search bar lets people navigate your site and it’s just good practice really.

Hardly any text in a post

Now, I totally appreciate the fact that some posts just don’t need a lot of text, sometimes it’s better to be minimalistic about your post rather than rambling on, but on the other hand, there are posts that should be more than a few sentences such as reviews. I read reviews to find out as much about the product as possible so I can make an informed decision on whether to buy it or not.

A lot of the time I do purchase things based on reviews and I’ll thank the blogger for posting such a great post that led me to buy the product but I really can’t do that if the post is two sentences long and there’s no actual review happening. In these cases, I’ll just leave and not read anything else because why would I?

I don’t want to get my hopes up about reading the post on some amazing miracle cream and it turns out to be a paragraph on how the product looks. Plus, from a SEO standpoint, having more than 500 words is better, so get creative, let your personality shine through.  

Adverts EVERYWHERE

Here’s the thing about adverts, they are a great thing to have in some ways but when you plaster them throughout your blog so that every time I scroll down I see a new one, it makes me want to scream. 

These sorts of ads are annoying and unnecessary, ESPECIALLY when I’m on my phone because I always end up clicking them when I’m trying to scroll so I just leave the blog to never return. It’s just unwanted and really there’s no need, you can still have ads and have a great looking blog that won’t repel readers.

There’s nothing about you

Okay, so if I’m visiting your blog and I really enjoy your content, love your layout, everything is going great, I will want to know more about you. I will want to see who you are, what things you like and a little bit more about you because I believe it makes the blog a little more personable when you can connect with the person behind the blog. Now this isn’t me being creepy, I promise! It’s me wanting to relate to the blogger on a deeper connection than just guessing who they are.

If I can’t see who the blogger is, I really won’t want to keep coming back to your blog unless your content is absolutely amazing! But please don’t confuse this with me wanting to SEE you, I get some people like to have anonymous blogs and such, what I mean is going on your about me page and finding out a little more about you, what do you enjoy? What can I expect to see on your blog?

No engagement with readers

I get that not everyone has the time to reply to every single comment on their blog or answer everyone on twitter etc… but I hate when I see NO engagement at all, like the blogger never talks to or acknowledges their readers. For me this is a big one because readers are taking time out of their day to read your posts. I totally appreciate that the blogger spent time writing, editing and so much more for their post but why else are they publishing it if not to engage others with their content? It just doesn’t make sense to me and if you never acknowledge people why would I want to spend more time on a blog and commenting on things to not hear anything back…. ever! 

It’s just nice to be nice. Don’t overexert yourself either though, know when to hold back and take care of yourself but even just touching bases with some people makes all the difference and can help you build a connection with your readers and make them want to come back to your blog. 

Automatically adding me to your mailing list

This really grinds my gears because if I wanted to be subscribed to your mailing list, I would sign up myself…. When I see those mail chimp emails in my inbox asking me to confirm my subscription to your blog after every time I leave a comment on your blog, I’ll just never comment as I can’t be bothered with the extra hassle.

It’s not good practice and definitely frowned upon in regard to GDPR, no one likes being added to something without their consent and it looks bad on you in the long run.

 And that’s that

And there you have it, 10 Things that annoy me about some blogs. I know that everyone has their own preferences to how they like things and I’ve probably stated a few things that others don’t really mind but these are the things I just can’t be bothered with.

It’s exhausting sometimes trying to navigate certain blogs just to read content. If I have to jump through hoops to read a post, I probably shouldn’t be reading it in the first place and that’s my view of it. 

What are some things you dislike about blogs?   

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