
In my WIP (work-in-progress), a mad scientist named Dr. Gerhardt manipulates wasps for his own warped purposes. Presumably I don’t have a warped mind, but like Dr. Gerhardt, I’ve manipulated things. I’ve made changes to my blog to make it more user-friendly.
8 Bloggerly Manipulations
1. When I post an image, I describe the image in the alt text so seeing-impaired people know what’s going on. Wait, do blind people read blogs? Actually, yes, but it’s often via an audible text-reader. A text-reader can describe the image if you put descriptive words in the alt text. Hover over today’s feature image, and you’ll see “image of zombie horse about to bite” in a little text box.
2. Speaking of images, I shrink huge, 7797 kB photos to 178 kB photos so they’ll load faster on readers’ devices.
3. I don’t post animated GIF’s. Yes, they’re fun! But they’re also hard on people with neurological impairments. If I’m surfing the net when I’m tired, they’re hard on me, too. It feels like eye-strain or something, and I quickly scroll past them.
4. I keep the links in blog posts to a minimum when practical so readers won’t get interrupted in their reading experience (click here . . . read . . . click back . . . read some more). I usually put reference links at the bottom of a post, like the link for these user-friendly webpage ideas.:-)
5. I stopped truncating my posts when I send them out on email notifications. The idea is someone reading on a phone can read the whole thing without having to click and then wait for the phone to load the webpage. Nowadays, people use phones more than laptops or desk computers to read content on the web.
6. I use a WordPress theme that’s responsive so folks can read my blog on whatever device they choose.
7. I keep my blog minimalist-looking. Readers don’t have a lot to distract them from the post they’re reading. I don’t know the age of my blog readers, but the older you get, the more important it is to have distraction-free focus in order to absorb what you’re reading.
8. Along the lines of minimalist-looking, I am saving my pennies to go ad-free on WordPress. I’m excited to get rid of those scary images of bowel cleansers and toenail fungus cures and . . . well, sure, I’ll stick an image of an angry horse on my post (because, you know, zombie horses), but no one needs to see toenail fungus!
But this is not an ad. It’s a personal recommendation.:-) Last year I read a terrific psychological whodunit thriller, The Stranger Inside by Laura Benedict. (What do you do when you come home and the key to your front door won’t work, and worse yet, there’s a stranger living in your house?) The book just came out in paperback from Mulholland Books. If you’re looking for a fun read with a complex female protagonist, you’d like The Stranger Inside.
Ideas to make your website more user-friendly: https://elementor.com/blog/wordpress-accessibility/
Statistics about internet use, mobile devices vs computers: https://www.broadbandsearch.net/blog/mobile-desktop-internet-usage-statistics
Scott Young, author of Ultralearning, explains how older brains need an environment with fewer distractions in order to absorb what they are studying: https://www.scotthyoung.com/blog/
I’ve gone ad-free, too. I’m sure I’ve lost a million dollars in revenue. Oh, well.
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Yes, I noticed you have a nice-looking, ad-free blog, Crystal!
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Priscilla it seems like in everything you do you are super thoughtful. I really appreciate that and you sharing your thought process with us!
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Thanks, Lisa. Strange, I just noticed the alt-text for the image isn’t working. I wonder why, sigh. I’m glad you popped by!
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Ohhh, I see, the alt text works only when the blog post is open on a web page. I learn something new every day!
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Hey Priscilla, thanks for sharing. I just started using ads as more of a “let’s see what happens.” Though, I tend to agree with everything else. For some reason, lately, I don’t think there can be enough posts on how to improve your blog.
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Some people use blogs to make money, and ads totally make sense. But my blog is an account of my writing journey, so I don’t need ads. Thanks for commenting, Jody!
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I love this post! I’m not sure what you do to go ad free, just pay more? I’ve had a self hosted blog for years and there aren’t any ads for those, luckily. I do hate the way WP sticks ad after ad throughout posts, although I didn’t see any in this one.
I like the alt text idea! And I don’t like gifs either, might be a sign of our generation🤣
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Yeah, i just have to pay to go ad-free. Word on the street is it’ll cost me about 100 bucks per year. Not too shabby. Thanks for commenting, Tammy!
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Good suggestions. Love the zombie horse picture.
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Isn’t that the scariest picture? Our neighbors have the sweetest horses down the road from us. I’ve never seen them do anything like that! Thanks for stopping by.:-)
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Great post. Lots of great information here. I must use the alt text option. Thanks for the tips.
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Thank you for reading, Iseult.:-)
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Good moves! Hurray for no gifs!
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Audrey, your blog (a post? a comment? can’t specifically remember) is what tipped the scale for me in regards to going ad free, thanks!
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I did write a post about that recently. For a long time the ads didn’t bug me, but about a year ago the number, intrusiveness, and grossness went way up. I think it’s worth the cost. And even with the personal plan you get more storage space for media.
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This is brilliant post, Priscilla.
I was considering a more minimalist approach for my blog too. I already did some changes – your blog is so clean cut, I love it.
Adding alt text is a great idea – a little time consuming if you have more than one image per blog and it takes me close to 20min to get that “green” button to light on SEO each time I create a blog post… But you are correct, alt text is important and should not be disregarded…
I’ll have to learn how to stop truncating my post in email notifications as I , too, read some blogs as they arrive in my inbox.
Ditto for animated gifs… 😉
Thank you so much for sharing. Some great tips here.
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Thank you for your kind words, Patricia. I’m glad you commented.:-)
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Great suggestions here. I think I will steal some of them 🙂 I also have the book on my TBR now. Can’t wait to dive into it. Thanks for the suggestion!
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You’re so sweet, Emmy. Thanks for popping by!
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I’ve had a few sight-impaired readers thank me for using alt-text on my blog, which makes me feel really good.
Congrats on going ad-free. I think that’s crucial, especially as the ads are more frequent and so distracting. I believe our blogs are our “lobby” and first impression. They have to be as polished as can be, and blocks on toe nail fungus don’t work.
I’m torn on #5 because I’ve heard pros and cons going both ways. I’ve changed mine back and forth over the years and will probably change it yet again!
Great post, Priscilla!
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Ironically, number 5 isn’t important to me as a blog reader. I’m much more likely to read blog posts on a laptop than on my phone, so I always click through and read posts on the widest window possible. (I just like the way posts look on a bigger screen, I guess.)
Thanks for commenting, Mae!
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I’m with you on the GIFs. They irritate me. The first thing I do on any new system is figure out how to stop GIFs from auto-playing.
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Oh! I didn’t know you could stop GIF’s from auto-playing. I do think they’re cute now and then, but like I said, not when I’m tired! I’m glad you stopped by, Deby.:-)
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Maybe you can’t stop them. Could be why I can’t figure it out.
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Great ideas. Thank you!
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You’re welcome, JeanMarie. Thanks for popping by!
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Great tips, Priscilla! I shrink photos as well, and thank you for the reminder to fill in the alt-text in photos. I try to use a responsive theme, too, so it’s easier to read on smaller devices. Come to think of it, I should check that again.
Great post!
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Thank you, Julie.:-) I like your WP theme. It has a serene look, but I can still see your book cover prominently displayed when I load your home page.
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Thanks, Priscilla. I am a fan of the more is less approach, and I do find blogs with too many things floating, moving, etc., are slow to load and distract me from reading. Great advice!
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Thanks for reading and commenting, Olga!
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I’m ad-free and have a responsive WordPress theme, but some of these are over my head. Others, you’ve given me some ideas and I have work to do. Thanks, Priscilla!
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You’re welcome, Teri. Thanks for popping in.:-)
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You spend so much time on your blog posts, which we all appreciate. I just write, add a photo and post.
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Yeah, but you’re such an informative and entertaining writer, Julia!
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Nice post and lovely suggestions!
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Thank you, Luisa!
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💙❤💙❤💙
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Excellent points, Priscilla. I reduce my image size but based on your list, I could probably go even smaller. And I definitely recommend ad-free. As a blogger, I hated having those on my posts. Ugh. And as a reader of blogs, I find them terribly distracting. Thanks for sharing your lessons learned. Great info for fine-tuning. 🙂
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What I can’t figure out is why the ads are so GROSS sometimes. I guess some people click on photos of slimy things to buy, but not me. Thanks for commenting!
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Many are gross. I agree. Or they suddenly start talking and I have to click off my volume. I’ve been ads free all along and never regretted it.
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Hi, Priscilla. That’s a good idea, having a minimalist blog design for less distractions.
Keep smiling,
Yawatta
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Hi, Yawatta, glad to see your wrist is better and you’re back at the keyboard. Take care!
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I like your style, Priscilla! Great tips here… sharing. 🙂
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Thank you, Bette. I’m glad you popped in.:-)
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