Some of you are probably wondering what the hell “Blogging Blinders” are and why someone would come up with a post title like this instead of something with a little more pizzaz or sex appeal (sorry being weird today), maybe it’s the blog post on steroids thing catching up to me.
Now before I even get started here I need to throw a disclaimer out there so there is no confusion, I am not a Pro Blogger or some super hero SEO Guru or even a blog guru for that matter, however I do like to look at things from a very basic standpoint and think that a few other should do the same from time to time.
The more blogs I find myself visiting throughout the course of the day or a week has grown tremendously since I converted Extreme John into a Blogging CEO blog, there have been all kinds of things like Thesis themes to come out (yeah I’m still behind) and the WordPress plugin selection is getting pretty awesome too. With all of the new hot plugins and hot blog themes out there I seem to be finding myself getting more and more annoyed with some of the blogs I read. Why you ask? Here’s why.
Newbie bloggers like myself often get tied up playign with all of the neat little plugins and add-ons that we can pop into our blog, often we have no idea what these plugins really do or often we don’t realize that once you use certain plugins your pretty much locked into using them for the foreseeable future.
In addition to being stuck using certain plugins for all of eternity we often fail to really look at what good these plugins or blog changes might do, are they cosmetic changes or a functionality change? If so, than you better take off your blogging blinders and look at things from the perspective of a blog reader, not a blog writer.
10 Tips for Removing Your Blogging Blinders
- Know exactly what a WordPress Plugin does BEFORE you install it
- Read reviews on the plugin your getting ready to install, lots of bad reviews should be a red flag
- After installing a plugin TEST IT from a readers stand point, not a writers stand point
- Install plugins and make cosmetic changes when your in a writing drought, doing so will force you to stick to looking at things from a readers point of view
- Always test important areas such as commenting, leave a comment on your own blog to ensure it is working properly. I HATE submitting a comment and getting the deadly white page in return. Here’s how to fix blank page after commenting.
- Avoid installing multiple WordPress plugins at one time, doing so can cause plugin clashing which can make finding and fixing the problem impossible at times.
- Ask yourself if you really NEED the plugin your getting ready to install.
- Cosmetic changes might be great for you but the functionality might be terrible from a readers point of view, it’s nice if you can figure things out, but if your readers can’t than why bother making the cosmetic change?
- Make sure that cosmetic changes will not increase your page load time severely, no one likes a slow blog.
- Some bloggers have a hard time putting themselves in a blog readers shoes, if that’s a problem that you have consider asking a friend for some feedback or to test out your blog and get their honest feedback. You can also hit me up on Twitter @extremejohn and I will be more than happy to take a look at tour blog from a readers perspective.
Now before I get out of here it’s important to realize that not everyone writes a blog because they want to have tons of comments or because they really care if anyone is reading their blog at all, it’s also important to keep in mind that this list can probably have another 20 blogging tips. This isn’t about making everyone a professional blogger, it’s about removing your blogging blinders so you can see things through the eyes of a surfer, not a blogger.
If you have any questions or need help with your blog feel free to follow me on Twitter @extremejohn and shoot me a tweet, if your not into networking all that much but don’t mind reading these types of posts than subscribe to my rss feed. It’s also important to share information like this with other newbie bloggers, don’t be shy hit the retweet button below to share it on Twitter or vote this up on Blog Engage .
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{ 38 comments… read them below or add one }
Twitter: BlazingMinds
Hey there John, wise words indeed and a list of 10 that all bloggers should follow, I know I do
.-= Karen @ Blazing Minds´s last blog ..Blazing Minds Weekly Round Up – EntreCard, Twitter =-.
Twitter: extremejohn
@Karen @ Blazing Minds, thank you Karen there’s no doubt that you do.
Twitter: jsinkeywest
AHH You woke me out of BED LOL
When my blog gets mentioned Google Alerts and a LOUD ALARM BELL rings throughout my whole apt complex.MY neighbors were all outside saying what the F*CK is going on !!! I said hey it’s all Good MY blog was mentioned.They slowly all went back inside but I felt good 
On a serious note I’m getting back on track
just in case anyone like myself runs into real plugin trouble I had to rename the plugin folder via FTP to shut the all off to be able to delete the offending plugin then rename it back
I may have to look into that blank page after comment in fact weird as it sounds I was actually just thinking about trying to send a comment with a fake or unused email to see what happens and what the person sees Probably not much.One guy got on me cause I apparently don’t have that Thanks for commenting or moderation thingy message.I can also remove about 30 plugins and shut off about 10 off so thanks for the TIPS and mention.
.-= John Sullivan´s last blog ..America needs some new scumbags to admire =-.
Twitter: extremejohn
@John Sullivan, any time man and Im glad I was able to work as an alarm clock for you and some of your peeps.
Anonymous commenting is a great idea John.
These reminders are excellent, and I gotta say making a user-friendly blog is a continual process and not a perfect one. Was very happy to second this on Stumbleupon – hope far more bloggers read this.
.-= ashok´s last blog ..On Robert Bly’s “Driving to Town Late to Mail a Letter” =-.
Twitter: extremejohn
@ashok, hey thank you for the Stumble luv I appreciate any time I get a Stumble hook-up.
Twitter: shaunjudy
These are some good ones John…I love to investigate a plugin before the install…
.-= ShaunJudy@Blogging Tips´s last blog ..KnockOut Thursday 10-08-09 =-.
Agree with you. I also like the number 1.
Recently I deleted many plugins from my site because after I investigate it, found out that it’s useless and just add more load time for the site.
Ed Kohn@Artikel Tipps´s last [type] ..Ist es wahr Nachfülltinte ist billiger
Twitter: websiteweekend
These are seriously good tips, and I think I might just grab the whole list and riff on them with specific examples, and full credit and link back of course.
So many articles to write! So little time!
Speaking of surfing, I really need to get more time in the water.
.-= Dave Doolin´s last blog ..Suck readers in from RSS and SERPs — Dig Deeper Into Subtitles =-.
Twitter: extremejohn
@Dave Doolin, I appreciate any mention Dave and I hear ya, there’s so many things I want to write about right now.
Twitter: ShotOfCoffee
Great, very useful tips. Some of them are also the same for when you’re updating plugins. I’ve learned that the hard way.
.-= Mike from Daily Shot Of Coffee´s last blog ..Poll: Have You Ever Tried Kopi Luwak? =-.
Twitter: extremejohn
@Mike from Daily Shot Of Coffee, yeah especially updating more than one plugin at a time. Thanks for another great blog post idea
Twitter: celebfickle
Direct to the point John.. I do like to test plugins but often I’m confused which one to keep.. but I’ll consider these tips next time
.-= Nehh´s last blog ..Patrick Dempsey and Danica Patrick race lovers =-.
Twitter: computelive
Real nice tips john many people gets confused which plugin to use as there are many plugins available to do the same task.. I always make sure to check everything from the reader point of view…well you don’t want to piss them off…
.-= Compute Live´s last blog ..How to Jailbreak iPhone OS 3.1.2 with blackra1n =-.
Twitter: extremejohn
@Compute Live, haha no you don’t want to piss off your readers or the people that leave comments on your blog.
Twitter: tycoonblogger
Great post and solid tips. I really like the point you make, when you say; “do you really need it.” Just because something seems cool does not mean it will add value to your blog. Just retweeted ya!
Twitter: extremejohn
@Tycoon Blogger@Make Money Blogging, thats one of the best ways to control Wordpress Plugin abuse, especially for someone like myself that is addicted to plugins.
Twitter: Boomerblogger
Good info as usual John, those pesky plug-ins, first it’s difficult to see which ones are “active” but yeah, I definitely agree keep them to a minimum, a blog that is slow to load is doomed. Good idea to ask a friend about reading your blog, if they are a good friend they will tell you the truth, which is the only thing that can help.
.-= Dick´s last blog ..This Halloween Trick Or Treat In Your RV =-.
Twitter: SoftwareCritics
It’s my first time here and I happen to come across your blog through John from Potpolitics who was a blogging friend from the dofollow blog community.
These tips are timeless. I normally set my plugins at minimum and make it a point to check if it works with the latest version otherwise I won’t bother installing it. Also, I try to narrow them down depending on the value it adds to my blog after some testing.
.-= Mathdelane @Software Critics´s last blog ..Windows 7: Laptop Battery Test =-.
Twitter: extremejohn
@Mathdelane @Software Critics, ahhh PP… John’s a good guy and Im glad you found my site from there. Hopefully you will hang around and keep commenting I always appreciate the feedback.
The tips are pretty basic but knowing what you really need is one of the key tips anyone should follow.
Twitter: SoftwareCritics
@Extreme John, Absolutely.
.-= Mathdelane @Software Critics´s last blog ..Free Album to Manage Your Photos =-.
Twitter: ducedo
More people should really have a blog where they just have fun adding plugin and other customizations. By doing so they will know if a specific plugin will work before adding it to a live site.
With that said I do agree with you that we all should think twice before adding extra plugin. Do we really need it or is it just a fun thing you will get bored by later on?
.-= Stefan´s last blog ..How to Automatically Back Up Your Computer =-.
Twitter: extremejohn
@Stefan, I am known for getting bored with my Plugins, but I also install a tremendous amount in order to test them and review them here so I have some kind of excuse. Haha.
Twitter: earningstep
amazing tips.. this will help me blog better. i feel my blog load slow , so this maybe the biggest problem of that
Twitter: musicjudge
it’s so true.. too many bloggers (and webmasters of all shapes) tend to build their site and its functionality around how they perceive it rather than how their visitors will be able to use it.. BIG mistake
.-= Hard Rocking South African@Music Judge´s last undefined ..If you register your site for free at =-.
Twitter: extremejohn
@Hard Rocking South African@Music Judge, thats probably one of the largest growing points for a new blogger is when they make the switch from blogging for themselves to blogging for others.
Twitter: jan_geronimo
Great tip on adding plugin one at a time to isolate possible conflict with previously installed ones. This tactic makes isolating the offending plugin a breeze. Slow load time because of too many plugins is something to always watch out for. Great list, John.
.-= jan geronimo´s last blog ..Speed Limit: 500 Words =-.
Twitter: extremejohn
@jan geronimo, thank you I appreciate that, let’s just say I learned the hard way.
Twitter: slightlymordant
I try to reduce the plugins but keep finding cool ones to try out, but I do try and see if it really adds anything to the blog that is really useful.
.-= Mik´s last blog ..The purple man cometh =-.
Really interesting tips, will surely implemented on my blog
Thanks for sharing
Twitter: denharsh
This is the major problem which I faced initially , I keep reading about Plugins and keep adding them. That time I was a newbie with wordpress and one secret, once I installed all in one sEO and platinum SEO together. That was a SEO suicide for me and I had no choice other than starting from scratch. That 2 month was scary for me, later on I learned my lesson and before adding any plugin, I make sure read the users review and most important search for existing bug with the plugin.
Same thing for those of us using Blogger. I used to have those cute little Garfields cartoons, but it slows down the loading.
.-= scheng1´s last blog ..Treat Google Adsense as a business to make money online =-.
i have ran into this wordpress clash plugin problem before which can lead o a big headache trying to find the problem . I am good with coding and it still can be hard to find the problem. the plugin can be real cool but dont over due it is my advice
.-= celebritynews´s last blog ..Twilight Actor tells why the movie is so popular =-.
Twitter: extremejohn
@celebritynews, thank you for taking the time to leave a comment. You offer some great advice, you def don’t want to over due it with plugins or that great looking Wordpress Blog can get ugly quick.
Twitter: onesuite
Not sure how I was able to missed this post. Excellent tips once again. My favorite is tip number 1. Some bloggers just install plug ins left and right without checking whats the plug in is all about.
.-= MichaelR´s last blog ..Travel with U.S., Canada Number Worldwide =-.
Twitter: extremejohn
@MichaelR, one of the biggest mistakes that Wordpress Plugin addicts make when they first start out.
Twitter: TechChunks
“After installing a plugin TEST IT from a readers stand point, not a writers stand point”, is something that most bloggers (including myself) usually forget to do. Thanks for the great post.
.-= TechChunks@Technolgy Tips and Tricks´s last blog ..Get the Free Preview of World of Warcraft Magazine Here =-.
I agree with most of the tips.
Have you use thesis theme hq ? It’s very cool theme & has lots of feature
News Buzz´s last [type] ..Dems turn on Obama
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