Newbie Tuesday - BritMums

Brr! It’s a bit chilly outside isn’t it? Time to pull up your woolly socks, pop on your baggiest jumper and boil the kettle as its Newbie Tuesday and it commands a steaming hot cuppa and a biccy or four. This week has seen an influx of new bloggers this week which makes for some great reading in my…

Higlights of the week

Starting with two brand new bloggers, Adventures of a Middle-aged Matron has been writing of knitted breasts in the vestry and Red Rose Mummy of her concerns over her son’s nervous twitch.

Half term is upon us, as is Halloween, which has Cheetahsinmyshoes is wondering if it would just be possible to keep all her ‘balls’ in the air and This Is life showing us her adorable pumpkin who is turning into a dark fairy!

Emotional posts written this week that will resonate with some of you, come from Dorky Mum whose son has said he doesn’t love her and Boo and Me in a brave post about her experiences with anti-depressants.

Marital matters this week courtesy of BlueBirdSunshine, who has found inspiration to solve marital squabbles in the form of ‘The Love Potato‘ and Living It Little, who would like to know what you call you partner?

Sometimes you come across a post with a title that you just know is going to have you chuckling and letting out the odd snort, such posts I’ve read this week come from Single and Fabulous with “The 11 year old mentalist“, Alive and Blogging with Abort ship! There’s poo!” and SAHDandProud‘s “Palm to forehead moments.

Finally a short but sweet post that finds Mum of One realising that she’s turning into her mother and some things missed by Exptalogue since moving to Canada.

Tips of the week

This week’s tip is how to arrange your sidebar. Almost every blog has a sidebar and/or a footer area where you can add in such information as your recent posts, archives, your Twitter tag and how to subscribe to your blog amongst other things. Don’t be fooled by its size – it’s an important part of your blog!

Your content – posts- are there for all to read, it’s what people come to see and what makes you stand out but have you thought about what else happens when someone reads one? Maybe it’s a fellow blogger reading, a family member or an influential site that wants to see what else you have written. It’s a good idea to make it easy for them to do this.
The top of your sidebar is the perfect spot for your rss icons and ‘subscribe’ bar. If someone is reading and enjoying your latest post you want them to be able to see these and think ‘oh yes I’ll subscribe and read some more -this is good’! Of course if someone really, really wants to read your blog and subscribe then they will scroll down and hunt about for the subscribe section – but not everyone!

Your recent posts or archives are also important – If someone is reading your post and a catchy title of a recent post is just there to the right or left they’ll be tempted to take a look.

Badges for other sites and bloggers memes are a super idea, it’s great to show your support and readers can gauge what you like by seeing the badges that you display. However these badges really shouldn’t take pride of place above your own content information.

A little tip is to step back and imagine you are visiting your blog for the first time, can you easily find how to subscribe to it? Can you see the Archives and a list of recent posts? Can you tell how to connect with you on Twitter or Facebook? Why not take a second look at your sidebar, what lurks at the top and what could be booted to the bottom?

Until next week fellow newer bloggers – tally ho!

About

Annie Spratt is a mother of eight, wife of one and a newer blogger. Annie is a new video blogger and writes a weekly column ‘Newbie Tuesday’ in the BritMums Blog where she showcases new bloggers, gives support, advice and holds the hands of newbies while they find their feet. You can find her over at Mammasaurus bringing a mix of humour, topical waffling, gin-based love and video blog posts. Annie also runs a blog dedicated to newer bloggers, Love New Blogs and feels passionate about welcoming newer bloggers to the wonderful world of blogging. Tweet her @mammasaurusblog.