Feb 12 2008
Help Me Search For…
On the Aussie Blogger’s Forum, there is a discussion regarding 15 Design Decisions that Annoy Readers. I shared my imput in the discussion, and an interesting point emerged on the topic of search boxes. I have a search box on my blog - it’s the default WordPress search. I put it there because I think it might help people, but I’ve never used a search box on a blog before, and never heard of anyone else using one until I saw the responses. My own typical experience using search boxes is on an actual search engine, on large sites such as Wikipedia, or on an actual website instead of a blog. On blogs, I’ve been content to just surf around, and if there’s something I know I’ll want to refer to frequently (like Sephy’s post on how to FTP, because I forget every single time I go to do it), then I bookmark it.
Lani pointed out some downsides to using categories, and Snoskred mentioned that she uses the search box all the time, even on her own blog. Snos mentioned that having some links to favorites in the sidebar is a great feature for that very reason.
So with that objective in mind, how does one determine favorite posts? I could go by the ones that have the most comments, but are those necessarily the posts that people will want to refer back to? Because I see the whole search function as a reference, so I would want a link list feature to serve the same purpose. So, getting away from comment count, do I then choose MY favorite posts? Is that helpful for you? And since I don’t often (or ever) post the über-useful how-to posts like Snoskred, Sephy and others, then what exactly do I post that you want to keep going back to?
Since “Posts People Want To Read Over and Over Again” is not something I can really track with stats, I’d like some input from you, my dear readers. What are your favorite posts on my blog?
It’s a difficult one.. For me I know when I’ve written something that sits above the other posts as far as excellence. It’s fairly rare, and usually those posts took a long time to put together.
I also know when I’ve written something that isn’t great - things don’t click, and I find myself wanting to stop writing the post about halfway through. If I can push through that, sometimes those posts tend to turn out as excellent posts, and sometimes that doesn’t happen but at least I get the post written.
Are there posts that stand out in your mind? Ones you think of more often than others?
I can’t say that there are certain ones that stick out in my mind more than others. And a lot of times what I consider to be a great post is more of an issue of timing - as time goes on it becomes less and less relevant. I’m starting to think, though, that since I don’t do any reference type posts, that a “best of” feature isn’t really necessary at this point.
Hi Kirsten,
I understand your dilemma. The posts that have been most popular on my blog have surprised me. The ones I thought would get the most reaction, lukewarm.
This is my first visit, so I don’t have an favourites yet, but I tell you one post I wont be reading….. No Coffee Zone….. *shudder*
Hi Kelley,
Thanks for visiting! I think that having a feature of “favorite posts” serves 2 purposes - one is to drive people further in and keep them reading, and the other is as a useful reference because of the kind of posts you are writing. Since I don’t think I’m writing any truly useful posts, that only leaves the purpose of keeping people on my site, and I think the Similar Posts plugin, along with the “Other posts viewed” plugin, accomplish this.
With the similar posts plugin , I tend only to use those links when the site has already drawn me in and I’m leaving a comment. If I’m brand new and trying to get a feel for the blog, I go to their “popular” posts and their About page if they have them. And I think selecting the posts personally rather than using a plugin like Popularity Contest is a good idea. It’s unlikely that you’ll need to change them regularly.
I would suggest you pick the big ones - posts where you talk about pivotal points in your life, or about an event or idea very important to you. Pick the ones that in real life you would only share with someone you trust a lot. And if you have any that were really hard to write, it’s pretty likely that they will be the ones. Those posts will have the emotional intensity (happy or sad) which people are drawn in by.
I think readers of personal blogs are all a little voyeuristic, and we connect most quickly with the things people don’t say in real life. We’re each other’s mirrors.
CerebralMum, I like your idea for the “popular posts” links in the sidebar. It’s really a great way to get to know a blogger, much better than anecdotes about something mundane or what I had for lunch. I’ll have think about putting that together.