Media Monday ~ Gadgets & Widgets and Link Lists. Oh My!

Okay, so you've been paying attention. You have a nice look to your blog and it feels like home. You looked at your sidebar and realized it was a bit messy so you started to clean it up, but . . . how do you know what's too much? And what's just right? Or even, how do you know what to include there? And even more importantly, HOW do you add content to your sidebar?

Well, let's get to work!

As stated last week, your sidebar should answer the question, "Who's blog am I reading?". That's its number one job. So the first thing you want to do is tell your readers who you are. There a couple ways you can do this.

1. Include your Blogger or Google+ profile. To do this, Go to your Dashboard, click Layout, go to your sidebar section, and click Add a Gadget.

From the list of Gadgets, choose PROFILE (may be on the second page of gadgets). Your new gadget, your profile, will now be listed in the top slot on your sidebar. This is where it should remain.

2. Sometimes you don't want the bio or description you've used for your Blogger or Google+ profile to show up on your blog. In this case, you'll use a picture with a caption or text.

From your gadget list, choose IMAGE. You can even have your image link up with a webpage--your About Me page, maybe, if you've added one to your blog. You can either include your text (your bio or welcome note) in the caption text box while setting up the widget, or you can add your picture then immediately below it add a TEXT gadget and write whatever you'd like. *note* Your profile text or welcome note should be short and sweet.

3. Or, you might choose to highlight your books as opposed to you, the author. In this case, you'll use the steps from #2 above, using your book cover and blurb.

Right after a reader identifies you as the author of the blog, you want to make it easy for them to connect with you right away. Again, there are a few ways they can do this and I recommend including almost all of them on your blog.

1. Google Friends Connect. From your Add a Gadget link, choose FOLLOWERS. Not Google+Followers, that's something totally different.

This Followers option is the one that looks like this:

Google Friends Connect is a popular and fun option for your Blogger blog. It makes your blog look friendly and makes you look popular. People like to see themselves there, too--it makes them feel like they belong. 

Don't feel bad when you start out with one follower. I promise you that as you continue to provide great content and employ some of the other techniques we'll discuss later, you'll see your numbers grow. Also, it's hard for any of us to get to 100, 200 or 300--but the higher you go, the faster new readers join. So just be patient and give yourself time to grow the reach of your blog.

2. Add an RSS Feed. You can choose the gadget FOLLOW BY EMAIL, or you can add a third-party feed widget, like FeedBurner. We'll get into the pros and cons of using Google's RSS Feed vs. other feeds in a future post.

Including an RSS Feed sign-up is a nice thing to do because you want to make it easy for everyone to follow--not just those with a Google account. Also, not everyone likes to deal with a giant Google Reader list, so they might like to get their favorite blogs delivered right to their email.

Besides, you don't care how people read your blog, just that they do!

3. Invite social media stalking! Make it easy for people to find you everywhere you live online; Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, etc. When you're starting out, a good option would be to choose LINK LIST from your gadget list.

You would add "Follow me on Facebook" and then link to your Facebook page or profile, then add "Follow me on Twitter", etc.

In a future post we'll talk about adding those fun follow widgets, like mine.

4. Now you can include any extras you think will benefit your readers and your blog. Don't just put stuff there just because Awesome Blogger has it on their blog, but DO include anything you think would be of value. Remember this is your chance to strut your stuff!

That's it for the sidebar! There are a lot of options and possibilities out there. The best way to discover what works for you is to visit a lot of blogs, see what you like and don't like, then experiment with the Add a Gadget list and figure out what works for you!

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask in the comments!

Ali Cross is the sensei of the writer's dojo where she holds a black belt in awesome. She lives in Utah with her kickin' husband, two sparring sons, one ninja cat, two sumo dogs and four zen turtles.

She's the author the young adult paranormal romance series Desolation, and a member of the Author's Incognito Executive Committee.
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Media Monday ~ The Blog Sidebar

Ah, the sidebar. It's like the kitchen junk drawer, or that curio cabinet packed full of all the little trinkets you've collected over the years. Now, those trinkets could be sterling silver heirlooms ~ or McDonald's Happy Meal toys.

There might be nice pieces in this cabinet, but who can tell with it so jam-packed?

So which are you? Tasteful decorator or junk-hoarder?

I don't have any "Don't" pictures for you today, because, well, I wouldn't want to offend anyone. I'm pretty sure you know who you are. But just in case you're not sure, I have a little quiz for you:

• Is your sidebar so full of stuff you could keep scrolling long past your recent posts?
• Do you have content from a month ago? Two months? SIX?? (Please don't say six!)
• Is your sidebar content doing more work for others than for yourself?

And as a bonus . . .

• What does your sidebar say about you?

What? Your sidebar doesn't say anything about you? It says more about other people? You didn't know your sidebar was supposed to be about you? Thank goodness you're here!

So now that you know if your sidebar is working for you, or not, you can figure out how to fix it ~ if you need to (because maybe you've already got it right!).

Your sidebar is the one constant on your blog. It's where a reader goes to find the answer to the question, "Who's blog is this?"

Picture your reader, deeply engrossed in your latest, brilliant, post. They're thinking, "Who is this amazing writer?" and they start looking around. Sure, maybe you have a tab with all your awesome bio stuff, but right at that moment, the moment when they first start looking for more info, they're going to look on the sidebar. 

Your sidebar should answer all the pertinent questions a visitor might ask. It should tell . . .

• Who you are.
• What you're about. (Are you into punk rock? Do you write sweet love stories? Are into classic cars?)
• Where they can learn more about you.

And addressing the terrible "no's" from above, keep these rule-of-thumbs (rules-of-thumb?) in mind:

• Your sidebar should be neat and orderly and should not extend beyond a week's worth of posts.
• You should frequently monitor your sidebar material, depending on what you put there. For instance, if you tend to participate in a lot of bloghops that have their own badges, make sure you take the badge down as soon as the hop is over. However, if your information is fairly static (like your follow information, your book covers, etc.) then you only need to monitor it once every couple weeks or every month or so. Check for broken links, images no longer hosted properly ~ you get the picture.
• It's fabulous to support other bloggers, but remember this is YOUR space, so guard it faithfully. If you're going to include links or badges or what have you in promotion of other bloggers, consider keeping it to a minimum. Or think about other options, like having a page for friends, or a specific, and limited, sidebar section for them.

And as a bonus . . .

• Your blog should unequivocally answer the question, "Who are you?"

Check out these blogs for ideas on your own sidebar: mine (of course, ha!), Elana Johnson, Beth Revis and Stacy Henrie. 

Oh, wondering about the Google Friends Connect follower widget or Facebook/Twitter buttons and such? My answer is: YES! These are all excellent items to include. Anything that helps your readers connect with YOU, is YES!

Ali Cross is the sensei of the writer's dojo where she holds a black belt in awesome. She lives in Utah with her kickin' husband, two sparring sons, one ninja cat, two sumo dogs and four zen turtles.

She's the author the young adult paranormal romance series Desolation, and a member of the Author's Incognito Executive Committee.
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Media Monday ~ HOW to Make Your Blog Look Great

Last week I talked about how inviting, or off-putting, a reader finds your blog to be can make the difference in whether they decide to stay awhile and read your content. But that left a lot of you scratching your heads because as well and good as that advice might be, if you don't know how to improve your blog's appearance you're kind of stuck.

So while I said that this week we'd talk about how to build great content into your blog, we're going to slow down and look at some nitty-gritty stuff for a couple weeks instead. This might be rudimentary for some of you, so enjoy a couple weeks off from Media Monday! But for those of you who would like a step-by-step tutorial, or to just skim through in case there's something you missed on your own, pull up a chair and let's get started!

*Note* These instructions are for Blogger only.

Improving Your Blog's Appearance:

Click on your blog’s name and it will take you to your OVERVIEW page on your DASHBOARD.

Click VIEW BLOG . . .

and this is what you get . . .

Pretty boring, eh?

So let's fix this up. Choose TEMPLATE from the side of your dashboard:

Scroll down, and choose SIMPLE (doesn’t matter what color you pick).

Then choose CUSTOMIZE:

Choose LAYOUT and pick which configuration of columns you want to use. 

Which layout you choose depends entirely on the look and feel you'd like for your blog. The Authors Incognito blog has a left sidebar layout. I have a right sidebar layout. You can also do a column on either side of your posting window, or a combination like Elana's done:

After you choose your layout, choose APPLY TO BLOG.

Choose BACKGROUND

You can select one of their suggested themes or click on Background Image for some other ideas. 

You can see a preview of your blog beneath the editor window: 

Choose ADJUST WIDTHS: 

You can tweak the measurements until you get it to look right.

*Note* Your content is more important than the background, so maximize your content space (posting window) as much as you can. ALSO remember to keep your window size respectful of readers with smaller monitors.

Now click on ADVANCED. This is where you can have fun and change your fonts and colors, etc.  

*Note* It's easier for people to read dark text on a light background. Choosing white background with black text is easiest because you can copy and paste info from other sites and documents and not have to worry about reformatting them.

Choose a simple font for your main page text. And consider increasing the point size to 14 for easier reading.

But feel free to fancy up the heading texts or tab texts etc. to whatever you want.

Visit some blogs, see what others are doing. Figure out what you think works and what doesn’t. Then go with that.

Click on BACK TO BLOGGER 

Create your own header via Gimp (free download for PC) or Photoshop or ask someone you know for help. Take your time with your header. It can make or break a blog. 

Choose LAYOUT.

·         Look for the Header box, and click on EDIT

Don’t worry about the title or description, because your header is going to do that for you.

Choose UPLOAD file from your computer.

Then choose INSTEAD OF TITLE AND DESCRIPTION.

SAVE. 

Click on PREVIEW.

You can see my first attempt is a little too small. I can go back and change the size of the image I created and keep fussing with it until I get it right. You just have to be patient and be willing to try a few times.

Click SAVE ARRANGEMENT and you're done for now! Congratulations!

Next week we'll talk about the gadgets and extras that can be added to the sidebar that help make a blog fun. If you have any questions, be sure to ask! Happy Blogging!

++

Ali Cross is the sensei of the writer's dojo where she holds a black belt in awesome. She lives in Utah with her kickin' husband, two sparring sons, one ninja cat, two sumo dogs and four zen turtles.

She's the author the young adult paranormal romance series Desolation, and a member of the Author's Incognito Executive Committee.
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Media Monday ~ Making the Best (Blog) Impression

See how much power the front door has? How much it tells about what you can expect inside? The importance of its beauty and charm?

Think of your blog as your online home. That first impression might make the difference between whether a person stays to "visit", or whether they keep on surfing past.

Your blog's appearance is as vital as its content and needs to accomplish the following things:

• Be visually appealing and "comfortable" ~ your colors shouldn't offend, there shouldn't be too many visually stimulating elements.
• Tell your visitor who you are ~ don't be afraid to show your face! Let your blog reflect who you are so your reader feels "invited in"
• Give your visitor a reason to stay. Like you'd offer your guest a seat, something to drink or eat, so you should offer something of yourself to your blog visitor.

Check out these few examples from our AI members:

Jordan's "house" is cool and contemporary. I think I'll find intelligent conversation there, but her smile and pose suggest the conversation's going to be easy, enjoyable. I think I'll "go on in" and stay a while.

I think Lani's house is probably fun and a little whimsical. And look at her cute smile! Her's is probably that yellow door with the warm tea and laughter. 

Tristi's house is warm and comfortable and suits her so well. It's simple and cozy and I can tell right away that she cares about her readers and helping them.

What impression does your blog give to visitors? What does its appearance say about you?

Here are some points to keep in mind as you consider your blog:

• Look at your blog objectively and try to see it as a first-time visitor sees it.
• Is it clean? Tidy? Be very judicious about what gadgets or information you put on your sidebar(s) as they can very easily get overwhelming and might imply you're a hoarder. 
• Don't be shy, post a picture of yourself!
• Don't take yourself too seriously ~ have fun!
• Keep your decorations simple and appealing.
• Then invite your visitors to pull up a chair and stay awhile by giving your blog posts appealing titles.

Next week we'll talk about engaging your readers so they enjoy their time visiting with you and come back to visit another day!

Remember I'm here to help ~ if you'd like me to visit you at your online home and offer some interior decorating advice, invite me over! 

Ali Cross is the sensei of the writer's dojo where she holds a black belt in awesome. She lives in Utah with her kickin' husband, two sparring sons, one ninja cat, two sumo dogs and four zen turtles.

She's the author the young adult paranormal romance series Desolation, and a member of the Author's Incognito Executive Committee.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter