Monday, August 8, 2011

Testing the 'After the Jump' Function on Blogger

This is a test post. I've noticed that some of my blogger friends write their entire post on one 'page' while others write an intro and add a 'read more' link. Considering which way I should organize my blogs, I posed the question to the blogging community. 



As always, I got immediate and helpful responses from other bloggers. Not only did I get informed answers, I also got links to tutorials on how to make it happen. This post is my first test of these instructions: Creating 'After the Jump' Summaries

And if you're still following along, here are a few of the responses I received from seasoned bloggers: 

I was taught that using read more is good for SEO - it encourages visitors to go deeper into your site. How much it helps, I don't really know...

It prevents the home page from being too cluttered, and allows the reader to see snippets of more posts than just the latest one.

I always assumed it was to be able to have a bunch of teasers on the first page...?  
There are a few reasons for read more. If you post several items each day, your visitors can visit the page and see the list of which ones are up for that day and read what they want. Next some of my post would be too long so I cut it off to direct people to go read more. Lastly I use it for linking to other content like my online articles or other people's articles.
It's so the blog 'viewee' doesn't have to look at a wall of text as they read. I tend to write in huge chunks so I have to try to remember when I blog to break my thoughts down into smaller paragraphs, but I think for some, they like more to fit on one 'page' of their blog; makes their blog more "user and reader friendly."

Some people think it looks cleaner than just a big 'ol wall of text. The reader can skim the 'teaser' portion and then move on to more if they decide to keep reading. Also, there can be many more posts on the main page.  
I'd like to hear your opinion.
  • As a blogger, do you write your entire post on one page or use the 'read more' option?
  • As a reader, do you think the 'read more' option is a good thing or a bad thing? Do you always click to keep reading or do you jump off?
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Posted by Langley Cornwell at 5:30 PM
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7 comments:

  1. Beverly DiehlAugust 9, 2011 at 12:56 AM

    I've been thinking about it, and... I don't know. Haven't tried using it yet, and I already break up my posts with pictures, video clips, and white space. Sometimes as a reader, I like it, and sometimes I feel annoyed, like it's gimmicky. I should probably try it and ask for reader input, but that seems WAY down the past couple of weeks, (maybe it's just me. *sniffs armpit*)

    Thanks for sharing, you've now planted some ideas in my head that I will have to think about.

    ReplyDelete
  2. mooderinoAugust 9, 2011 at 4:17 AM

    I tend to use read more unless it's a very short post (which it usually isn't). I want the front page to be less clutttered and for it to be easier to roll the page down and look at a number of posts to see if any catch your fancy. I also think it helps to learn how to catch attentions in a short paragraph that makes readers want to know more (when I figure out how to do it I'll let you know).

    mood
    Moody Writing

    ReplyDelete
  3. Eliza WynnAugust 9, 2011 at 6:05 AM

    Now that you mention it, I think I started out doing the "Read more" option. Or maybe not. I'll have to look.

    In any case, I don't do it now. I tend to do things the way I would want them if I were reading, so when I started blogging again, it didn't even occur to me to split the post.

    I just asked my husband, and he said he also prefers blog posts on one page.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Amy McMunn August 10, 2011 at 11:22 AM

    Life is rushed for me. Chances are, if I'm reading anyone's blog, it is because I've gotten sucked in when I shouldn't have--I'm taking a break when I should be doing something else. If I were to see the "read more" that would just shake me into reality. I'd probably think there was too much on the other page or maybe a quiz or something bothersome, and I shouldn't be here anyway...no, this is a hassle. Step away from the computer, Amy, and move on!

    :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Kristin AquariannAugust 10, 2011 at 11:29 PM

    I've been seeing it more and more, but am still on the fence on adding it to my own. I really like my widget that shows the most recent posts so small and cute on the left sidebar. Thanks for pointing out the positives.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Steven PageAugust 11, 2011 at 7:30 AM

    They both have befits. Personal choice, I guess. People in the world are remapping their brains by using the net. Their attention spans are shorter. Most people like short articles and don't have the patience to read something long, especially on a computer screen--so that's a good argument for the "read more." They can just skim over the intros, kind of like reading the headlines in a newspaper, decide which post they want to read fully, and maybe go back later to your blog to read the other entire posts that peaked their interests with the intros.

    ReplyDelete
  7. ❁Velma ~Down Our Country Road❁August 24, 2011 at 9:41 PM

    Hi Langley,
    I found your blog while doing a Google search on how to do the Read More link. I am trying to implement it in my new blog as I have a tendency to have long posts, too. :) I followed the same tutorial as you did but I must have done something wrong as I can't get it to work...the "Read More" red box doesn't show up on my post. Just wanting to know if you had any glitches in following the tutorial?

    Oh, I think the "read more" option is good as the reader doesn't have to scroll thru a lot of text to get to the next post.
    Thanks!
    Velma

    ReplyDelete

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