Four Things to Avoid When Rolling Out Your New Blog
To this point I have offered ideas on how to start your new blog and what steps you can take to make the start up process easier.
Time to branch out, however. Here are four suggestions about things to avoid as you roll out your new website. Needless to say, subjectivity plays a pretty big role regarding what’s good vs. what’s bad on a website, but I think that these tips are generally regarded as being things to avoid. Feel free to take my advice or to ignore it. The choice is yours.
1. Auto Loading Music
There is nothing I like less when visiting a website than to be forced to listen to some auto loading music. In fact, it’s very likely that I will immediately leave the website when music jumps into my headphones without me asking for it. The only thing worse than auto loading music is a pop up window, and I really don’t think I need to explain those.
Aside from being annoying, auto loading music is a bandwidth hog and makes your website load slowly. Nobody likes a slow loading website. Trash the auto loading music. Trust me.
2. Light Text on a Dark Background
OK, I admit that I am not a kid anymore. In fact, depending on the circumstances, I need reading glasses to see whatever it is I am looking at close up. That being said, however, why make life more difficult for most visitors by having a website with white or light text on a dark background. Maybe it’s cool for a photography website or a heavy metal band, but if you’re not Metallica or Mike Cherim I suggest you skip the dark background.
3. Too Much Clutter
Does your sidebar look like the side of a NASCAR race car on race day? Is it loaded with links, advertisements, Adsense ads and other junk. Tell the truth. It is, isn’t it?
It’s time to learn about using white space in your design. It’s time to learn how to frame content so the user can locate and read it easier. Websites that are clean and professional in appearance do a much better job presenting your content in a manner that is likely to get it recognized and read.
4. Don’t Use <Click Here> for Link Text
Do you want your website to look like an amateur put it together? One of the best ways to portray yourself as an amateur is to use <Click Here> or something similar for your links. Not only does it look bad, it offers no descriptive information to your visitors about where the link might take them. Big mistake. Clean up those links and see how more frequently they get clicked.
A Good Design Takes Time
Coming up with a good design for your new blog takes time. It’s easy enough to slap together a new website using the automated features that your computer and your web host put in place. But remember this: Anybody can start a website. But not everybody can do it correctly. If your new website is a business website this is particularly important. But even if your new blog is a personal site that you put together as a hobby, don’t you want it to portray you and your written or spoken word in the best possible light?
About the Author
The Amateur Blogger is just that - new to the blogging game, but interested and willing to learn more. In reality my name
is David Zemens. I own a small website development and web
consulting firm called 1955 Design.
If you are so inclinded you can follow the real me on Twitter. You can also follow 1955 Design on Twitter.
Some really good points in there. some that I would add are…
1.If you have a bit of money and are doing it for your business or personally invest in a little bit of professional design. It may seem crazy to spend $500 on a new design but it will be professionally done, look stunning and will leave you free to concentrate on what you do best…creating great content!
2.Don’t think about it too long. Some people think about their new blog for weeks or months! The best way is to learn on the job and you can do that very easily by just getting stuck in. Sure you will make a lot of mistakes but so does everybody along the way!
Thanks for stopping by and for comment Niall.
Both good points. I happen to think a custom theme is worth the cost, but on the other hand I design custom themes, too! I also agree that it’s best to just get started with your new blog. There’s no better way to learn than to just get started.