Dec 14, 2015 / Community Pool

Community Pool

The place for feedback, advice, and friendly blogging chatter.

Have you just published a new post and are dying for some feedback? Did you recently start your blog and could use some layout or design advice from your more seasoned peers?

Did you just start blogging and you’re not sure how to get going? Has your blog been dormant for a while but you’d like to give it a jolt of life? Join our free Blogging 101 course (or any of our other offerings at Blogging U.).

Tap into the wisdom of The Daily Post blogging community and leave your question here in the comments. Others can then click through and offer input either on your site, or in the comments here (feel free to indicate which you’d prefer).

To help us make the Community Pool a productive space for discussion, here are some tips you might find useful:

TIP: To keep from losing your place in the comment thread while you visit others’ blogs, right-click on a link to open it in a new tab or window.

  • While you’re not required to, we encourage everyone who requests feedback to also reply to at least one or two other bloggers who need some help. Spread the love!
  • The Community Pool comments section can get quite big — and starting duplicate threads doesn’t help. Thanks for not posting the same question more than once!
  • If you’re looking for quality feedback, be as specific as you can. Questions about a particular post tend to draw more comments than ones about entire blogs. Questions about specific design elements are more likely to be answered than ones asking for general layout advice.
  • We discourage leaving links without a more substantive message or question. These are often overlooked by other bloggers, and we frequently remove them to make the comment reading experience smoother.
  • Please keep all comments civil and constructive. The idea is to have fun — it’s a pool, after all!
  • If you haven’t looked at our Commenting Guidelines in a while, now might be a good time.
  • No running on the deck.
Show Comments

716 Comments

Comments are closed.

Close Comments

Comments

      1. hello Jarrod Brown. Thank you for your interest. If you try going to my page again it should show both of my posts. I only have 2 so far lol. If you still can’t see any of them please let me know. I was trying something new and I think I broke it, but now I think I fixed it. Hopefully.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. I think your blog is wonderful! I definitely relate to bring a procrastinator. I need to do a whole lot better about that. Keep writing! You have a lot to share. 🙂

        Like

    2. hey there – i really liked your light post and am going to go back and check out the latest one [although i too am a procrastinator so may not get around to it]] – just reading your about page now and would recommend breaking it up a bit – add a photo of yourself if you’re brave or maybe even a photo of something you enjoy but then instead of one big thick paragraph a number of single or double lines perhaps or bullet points or different spacing – the About page is always the first place i head on a blog and a big paragraph can feel a little overwhelming [even though yours is not so long] – two shorter paragraphs or pictures or something will make it more enticing – but your blog is great so far and you definitely have a way with words so please keep on…

      love brett fish [also a Christ follower so check out my blog sometime if you get a chance – brettfish.wordpress.com]

      Like

      1. Thank you so much for checking it out and thank you also for the advice as well. I’m learning how to do all this stuff and trying to get better in the process. If I can figure out how to add a picture I will surely do so! I will absolutely check out your site as well. Thanks again.

        Liked by 1 person

  2. Hi,

    New to blogging just keen to share my thoughts as I enjoy reading others keen to blog on a more regular basis. Still cannot get the hang of creating different menus etc but i’m sure it will come in time. New visitors are very much welcome 🙂 Thanks.

    lightupthemoon.net

    Liked by 2 people

  3. Hey, thank you so much! This is very helpful. Thank you for all the great informative posts.

    Jazzy

    Like

      3. I agree with Michael. It’s hard to look at other posts without continuously scrolling down. A read more option would help make the posts more accessible.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. On the bottom of your page, you installed some widgets (search bar, recent comments, ect…) and there are doubles. If you pull up your blog you’ll see what I mean.

        Like

    5. In my opinion, if you maintained your YouTube account well.
      If you create a good following and dish out decent music selections in forms of nice Playlists and Shares, you could generate quite a following with no actual content of your own.
      Plus, there’s a lot more people there. And a lot more music lovers.

      Like

  6. Photos, poetry, personal thoughts, my son and much more !!
    These are the few highlights of my blog which is sort of like mix-plate. Like today, I posted about my son’s biggest step towards a great journey in this post:

    The Second Brick

    I’m open for feedback, comments, suggestions and queries too, if you have any.
    Thanks for your time and Happy Holidays!!

    Liked by 2 people

  7. OK, I am really intimidated by asking for feedback but here it goes. My sister and I started a DIY/home project blog 6 months ago and I would like to know what you think about it. Here is one of my recent posts.

    http://sawdustsisters.com/2015/11/29/diy-bench-with-storage-compartments-ikea-nornas-look-alike/

    I just got a new DSLR camera and I am playing with to hopefully have better quality pics. My sister chose to use a different watermark on her posts. Should the watermark be consistent on our posts? Does this matter? I am also interested to know if you think my tutorial is too wordy, too many pics, or anything else.

    Thank you so much!
    Janice

    Liked by 4 people

    2. Hi Janice!

      First of all, I LOVE your site. It’s clean, polished, and well-organized. I also adore your Sawdust Sisters logo. Too cute! I do DIY project tutorials on my site as well. I also enjoy the fact that you ladies make the site personal as well. Overall, I thoroughly enjoy your blog 🙂
      As for your questions with the watermarks. I put my own on for some photos (obviously ones that I’ve taken myself), and I like that others use them, too. It’s a great way to get the word out about your site through visual aids. I think that if you are looking to keep it consistent, maybe try using the standard “Sawdust Sisters” trademark, and each add your own personal flair, like your names or a symbol? That way, it still pertains to your mutual site while giving you ladies your own identity. I had a hard time finding the alternate watermark, so I can’s say for sure. But hopefully that helps!
      Also, as someone who frequently looks through Pinterest tutorials, I can say for sure that pictures are your best friend. I think you guys hit a good balance with words and images. I can’t tell you how frustrating it is to find a tutorial for a cool project, only to be disappointed with it’s lack of content. But you two do a great job of being super informative! Hopefully this helps!

      Like

    1. I read your overreaction blog. Great piece! You nailed it saying people think you’re overthinking when you just want to communicate. I’m positive I do that to my girlfriend. I probably should step back and see what she has to say a bit more. Consider me a follower 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

    2. Same here.
      It’s tough to be regular on your blog if you’re a student, especially in a tough stream like medicine.
      Despite that, you seem to be doing fairly well on the blogosphere.
      Happy blogging!

      Liked by 1 person

      2. I got it! I really enjoy your content. A lot of meta-writing on WordPress can come off as pretentious, but I really like the stuff you’ve got here. I look forward to seeing what else you put on there. Happy blogging! 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

    1. I love this write up! I am an aspiring psychologist. So, it was interesting to read how candidly you speak of your disorder. Especially in relation to your culture. What I could consider a simple task in cooking is difficult for you. It makes my eyes open just a little bit more. Great job!

      Liked by 1 person

  15. would really love some general feedback. I take constructive critism very well. Just got back from a hiatus. would like to know what I shoud/shouldn’t do to improve.
    Thanks in advance!!

    HeyShanese.Wordpress.com

    Liked by 1 person

  16. hey everybody

    If you’re in South Africa then you might have seen some of the fun that was had with out Switch the Finance Minister game in parliament over the weekend and i collected some of the best of those:

    https://brettfish.wordpress.com

    for the rest of it i took a bit of a glance back at 2015 and was blown away a little by seeing all of the stuff that i fit in there including Tattoos, giant Hello Kitty welcomes at airports, a book launch and the sad loss of my best friend, plus so much more.

    2015: A glance back

    Hope you have been blogging hard and fast and true
    Keep on
    love brett fish

    Liked by 1 person

  17. Hi there! I know nothing about blogging,but it caught my interest.I posted already four poems of my creation.Now,I’m trying to post for another one but always failed…..NO PEER CERTIFICATE. what does it mean?

    Liked by 1 person

  18. Hello Everyone! I am brand new to the world of blogging. My blog is about my travels around New England and the pictures that I have been lucky enough to take of these wonderful places. If anyone has any tips or insight to help me along in this blogging world it would be greatly apreciated. Also I would love to know your opinion about my first post “Welcome to my little world”. My page is https://theconstanttravelerblog.wordpress.com

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Your photos are very beautiful, and your first post is very inviting! It’s a short and sweet intro to your blog, and it really makes me want to follow and see where you go! Good start, and I’m looking forward to your future posts!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thank you! I hope you like my future posts. I have been road tripping all over the place and have gotten a ton of photos and stories to share.

        Like

  19. Hello to everyone, hope all are well and happy. I have two questions, or rather, a post I would be interested in hearing anyone’s feedback on, and then just a question as regards the layout of my blog. Is it inviting, do you want to look at it more upon first impressions? That sort of thing. Thanks for your time 🙂 Here’s a post I did today: https://ajshannonblog.wordpress.com/2015/12/14/knowing-through-senses-vs-knowing-rationally/

    Liked by 1 person

      1. Thanks! I’ve commissioned an artistic friend of mind to make a header image but I wanted to have something as a placeholder in the meantime – simple but attractive is exactly what I was going for.

        Like

    1. Hi Seb. I like your blog. Some excellent content there and you have a new follower. Given how frequently you blog I’m not sure how sustainable that would be in the long term, but if you’re full of ideas then respect to you! Adding social sharing buttons on posts and on homepage would also help to gain more traction online. Best of luck.

      Like

  22. Hi, my blog is Rendezvous En New York and it mainly focuses on my life in New York and my what I do with friends and family. It’s New York from a native New Yorker’s view. My latest post is here http://wp.me/p5DrX5-nT and all feedback is welcome. If you’d like me to check out your blog let me know!

    Liked by 1 person

  26. Hello everyone! I’ve recently started a new series called Spark The Kindling which showcases my streams of consciousness that I practice daily. It’s a great way for writers to get their words on paper. So if you’re interested, please take a look. I also do plenty other pieces including my own fiction, so please feel welcome! Also don’t hesitate to leave a comment or criticism, all feedback is invited. Thank you !
    https://mattydwo0d.wordpress.com/

    Liked by 1 person

  28. Hi all – I am wondering whether anyone can help me. I use the Lovecraft theme. Whenever I upload a post to this site it does not appear in the reader. I am thinking this is probably why I do not have any visitors. In the last 6 days I’ve not had a single visitor. I’ve checked and rechecked every aspect at WP admin and cannot find the cause. I use less than 15 tags, my site is set at visible and I’ve read relevant info at WP Help. I’m at my wits end. Does anyone have any wisdom they can pass on about this please?
    I do recall accidentally deleting something (I don’t recall what) whilst doing some admin and am wondering whether this might have anything to do with it.
    The site in question is https://apurposedrivenachiever.wordpress.com. Any constructive ideas/solutions would be gratefully received.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Hi Ladycee,
      I’m sorry you’re experiencing this issue with the Reader — I can confirm that your posts don’t appear there, though why that is I’ve yet to figure out. I’ll snoop around some more and if need be ask some of my more technically accomplished colleagues to look into this next week. Thank you for your patience!

      Liked by 1 person

  30. Every blog does a makeover but I have done a complete demolition of my blog and rebuilt the entire thing. From purpose to theme to style of Writing. Its all new and I would love you give me some feedback!

    Simply Said, Writing Above The Shadeis all about keeping track and overcoming the 🙅🙅Shade Epidemic powered by social media💻📱. Whether celebrity, Viral issues, or Social media controversies– Catch up on the latest 🍵Tea🍵 under the shade tree with Simply Said.

    Liked by 1 person