Every bookish blog I visit has their own form of discussion feature while I’m sitting here alone, thinking, hmm, what can I do to make my blog more exciting and unique? So I decided, why not start my own feature where I can talk about random bookish topics? And so, Let’s Speculate was created.
The topic I chose for this week is What Makes You Follow A Blog? Admit it, we each have our own factors on what makes you follow a certain blog. These are the reasons why I follow a blog (or in some cases, don’t.)
1. The blog has posts besides memes or cover reveals (things like book reviews, thought-provoking discussions, etc.)
I don’t know how many times I see a book blog that only has memes and nothing else, including book reviews. Or fine, memes and one or two book reviews per month. When I follow a blog, I want a blog that posts reviews on books I’ve read or didn’t read yet. I want recommendations and opinions, notes I can compare to, not just a blog filled with memes.
2. The blog has a nice readable blog design.
I once happened to land on a blog using a black background with dark pink font. Imagine how hard it was to read things off it. I had to highlight (ctrl + a) the whole text in order to read the title alone.
It’s also a huge plus if the blog has a cute design. Makes me make up reasons why I should follow you.
3. The blog reviews the genre(s) of a book I usually read.
I think this is pretty much self-explanatory.
4. The blog does not take too long to load.
I am not a patient person. I don’t think other people are either. If I have to spend more than one minute waiting for your blog to load while I could be doing something else, sorry, you just lost a viewer.
5. The blog is not filled with banners, blogs I like badges/buttons, teams, and book release widgets.
I don’t like going on a blog and seeing them filled with banners, teams, etc. I just don’t. I don’t mind if they have a few of them because even I can’t help but want some of them, but for there to be columns and columns of banners just astonishes me.
6. They post often.
I don’t like to follow blogs who post two or three times a week. Four times a week, maybe. I don’t mind if bloggers will be away from their computer for awhile, but at the very least, let your viewers know please.
7. The book reviews in the blog are not short & has quality to them.
Yes, I’m picky. In my opinion, one to three paragraphs in a review is not okay, especially if one of those paragraphs is a single sentence. I also don’t want the review to be a summary of the book; I want the reader’s thoughts about the book.
So here are my reasons why I choose to follow a blog. What are yours?
Pretty much what you said is what I look for in a blog. I don’t mind if the blog posts only short reviews, if they are a lot of them in a week. If a reviewer only post a review once a week and its short, then I get annoyed.
While I see what you mean with a blog not being filled with banners and coutdown widgets, I really like them, exspecially the countdown widgets. I don’t know why, but I am obsessed with them.
Happy reading :)
Great post! :)
These are spot on, especially the one about nice blog design. I like simple, easy to navigate. If a blog is nothing but cover reveals and widgets, I can’t click out fast enough!
I definitely agree about the short reviews. I can’t stand when someone just summarizes the book and essentially gives away the whole plot. I want the reader’s thoughts, not a play-by-play!
Waiting for things to load is a pet hate of mine… I find I have to do that a lot when it comes to some of the different commenting systems (namely Disqus). And I like reviews to be quite detailed too, though there are a few people I trust who can write short reviews and still make them very helpful. Great post!
Interesting post! I agree on the blog design part. I like things that are simple to read yet have some color into it. I also really enjoy reading quality reviews (though I’m pretty sure everyone does).(:
Niki @ Umbrella Dreams