So what? A long time ago I was told that if you wrote something and readers said ’so what?’ then you had failed. I think the same is true of blogging. Your blog may have bells and whistles, but what do readers really think?

Shiny Intro Page, So What?

Sometimes it’s tempting to go for the latest web design craze or to include all the elements we like to play with ourselves. We have all visited websites where there’s a fancy introductory page that takes ages to load. When that happens, we generally go elsewhere within a few seconds. Since most web readers give 30 seconds or less to a page, wasting most of that time on a ‘loading’ page will soon turn them off.

It’s far better to have a home page that takes readers straight to something interesting, as they just might spend a bit longer on your site.

Does Your Blog Pass The ‘So What’ Test?

Fancy Navigation, So What?

Once readers reach your home page, they may find lots of drop down navigation bars, post teasers, and widgets for everything you can imagine. Sorry, but their overall impression will be one of clutter and then they will be out the virtual door.

Too much information on the page can actually be overwhelming so there’s a balance to strike between giving readers access to content and providing a deluge. Navigation should be useful and should help readers to find what they want - otherwise it’s worthless and they’ll say ’so what’ and move on.

Great Typography, So What?

There’s no denying that having attractive typography makes for a better visual experience for the blog reader, but that reader will say ’so what?’ unless the content is also great. Write useful information that provides value to the reader, laid out in a web-friendly format and that reader will keep coming back for more.

If the content isn’t great, then you could lose that reader forever, no matter how wonderful the site looks.

So What Do You Do About It?

Always think about your blog from the perspective of the reader - the average reader, if that person exists. Get some honest feedback from site users about how it works:

• Do they find it easy to find the information they want?
• Is the interface/design clear?
• Does the content meet their needs

Look at other sites and see what you like and dislike about your experience as a user, then see how you can apply those lessons to your own blog. Chances are that it will pass the ’so what?’ test for the next visitor.

This post has been submitted by Sharon Hurley Hall from Get Paid To Write Online.com.

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