I haven’t shared blogging tips in a while, but here’s a quick, practical one I use every day.
It may not be new to everyone, but it’s a real lifesaver for me. We all have our own ways of staying on top of the blogs we follow — this is mine. A reader mentioned recently that they had “lost” me for a bit, and using this method makes it easy to make sure you don’t lose track of your favorite sites.
Do you use an iGoogle-style home page?
If you don’t, consider setting one up. Once configured, I keep my most-read blogs right on that home page, which is what you can see in the image above.
Using a personalized home page makes following blogs so much easier. My Google Reader currently shows thousands of unread posts and just looking at that number makes me anxious — the home page approach feels far less overwhelming. I still use a reader, but it’s not my daily go-to because seeing so many unread posts at once can be stressful.
With the home page, the blogs I visit most are prominent, so when they publish something new I notice it. It only lists the latest posts from each blog, so if I fall behind I don’t feel guilty about missing older entries. From the home page I can click through to read the full post on the blogger’s site and leave a comment, or I can read within the reader view.
I discover and read blogs from many places — through comments you leave (I love those links), and via social networks. The home page is simply where I store the main blogs I want to check every day.
Give it a try!
After you set up your personalized home page, start adding blogs you follow. When you click an RSS subscribe button or a feed link on a blog, choose the option for Google (or the feed reader tied to your home page).
Clicking an RSS or feed link typically opens a simple subscription page. Select the option that integrates with your home page or preferred reader.
Choose the subscribe option for your reader. That will add the blog’s latest posts to your feed list.
From there you can add the feed to your home page so new posts appear where you can easily see them and access the full blog posts whenever you want.
These steps should be straightforward — take some time to explore and see if this reading method suits you. It has made keeping up with blogs less stressful and more enjoyable for me.
How do you read blogs?
This post shared with Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family.
For bloggers looking to improve, there are many helpful resources and e-books available that offer guidance on growing and refining a blog. Invest in materials that come from trusted sources and that fit your goals — helpful instruction can make a real difference in your confidence and success as a blogger.