Oct 10, 2016 / Community Pool

Community Pool

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

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

The Community Pool is for peer feedback and advice. Looking for more specific information? Check out some of these resources:

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).

Looking for free, self-guided courses to help you get started with your blog (or revive a dormant one)? Check out our current offerings at Blogging U.

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

  • 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, as well as for not starting numerous threads in a single Pool.
  • 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. Also note that including multiple links in your comment might automatically put it in the moderation queue, which will delay its publication.
  • Please keep all comments civil and constructive. The idea is to have fun — it’s a pool, after all!
  • 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.
  • If you haven’t looked at our Commenting Guidelines in a while, now might be a good time.
  • No running on the deck.

Are you a new blogger looking to share your very first post? We have a special forum for bloggers just like you in our weekly First Friday posts.

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    3. Perhaps work on your post titles. “Untitled#1” is not going to draw someone in very well.
      Also, I don’t know who you’re aiming your posts to, but if you’re hoping for English readers, perhaps consider adding translations for when you write in a different language?
      Happy Blogging!

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Thank you for checking my posts out, and you are quite right about that 😀. Actually, a friend of mine suggested that when I was struggling with thought #1,so it’s become kind of a habit.

        Liked by 1 person

  3. Hello Community Pool swimmers!

    My blog regularly features recipes and DIY craft instructions, and I’m struggling to break into Pinterest. I’ve tried researching how to get my blog posts more easily accessible on Pinterest, but any advice is greatly appreciated!

    Here’s my latest Pin-worthy post:
    https://girlygeekgirl.com/2016/10/03/toast-of-tuesday-10-diy-kitchen-sign/

    Thanks in advance for Pinterest advice!

    xoxo Charlotte

    Liked by 6 people

    1. This is a really fun and practical blog, which is succinct and easy to follow. I also like the ‘before-and-after” images featured on your most recent posting. I would encourage you to think about your audience outside the USA and (perhaps) consider giving a comparative total cost in GBP or Euros alongside the estimated USD figure.

      Liked by 3 people

    2. Hola! As always, I love your posts 🙂 I’m slowly trying to break into Pinterest myself, but from what I’ve seen, group boards are the way to get yourself out there on Pinterest. (I couldn’t tell you how to find these boards, I’m currently searching myself….) What is your Pinterest account?? I would love to follow you there!

      Like

    3. Hi Charlotte, I’m not very good with Pinterest myself but I was talking to my friend about it the other day. She recommended writing long descriptions on each pin with as many keywords as possible to improve the pin’s impact and potential exposure!
      Not sure if that helps, have a great day 😀

      Like

    4. Read your review of DuckTales: Remastered. You are detailed-oriented in your review and I think that some of the issues with the game you mentioned should be fixed especially with the technology that is out there nowadays. Cool post!

      Like

  4. Good Evening friends, I am a photographer (by night, by day a mild mannered office worker) and I run a blog dedicated to my craft. I shoot both film and digital and a mixture of styles, a lot of street and landscape but some nice projects that don’t quite fit that mould also.

    If you’d like to check me out here’s a couple of recent links to get your teeth into, let me know what you think and hey if you like it enough maybe check me out more often.

    Swans At The Lake

    Project 52: Week 41; Landscape – Get High

    Liked by 7 people

    1. Just commented. Nice content, good use of images. My suggestion: maybe use a few more tags. You can use up to 15 tags and categories total, and they help new readers find your post. Maybe “friends” or “friendships” would be good additions!

      Would you look at one of my posts? Click my name and choose whichever one appeals to you most🙂

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Thank you so much for your suggestions, I’ll surely look into it!
        I’ve been following your posts since a while…. Shall go through the newer ones! Thanks for going through mine : )

        Liked by 1 person

  8. Hi everyone. Would you guys pretty please check out my blog and drop a comment? I barely get comments💔. And a follow will be nice too❤

    Liked by 7 people

    1. Just commented. Nice content, nice image! My suggestion: consider adding a few more tags. You can use up to15 tags/categories total, and they help new readers find you. On the quote, for example, “Jonathon Safran Foer” and “overthinking” might be good additions.

      Would you look at one of my posts? Click my name and choose whichever one appeals to you most🙂

      Liked by 2 people

  9. When you look at a photograph you have taken, does a song ever pop up in your head? Something that fits the mood, season, or even weather of the photo. That’s what I do with my blog-finding a ‘soundtrack’ to my own photographs. I’ve been too busy lately to write a new post, so for now I’ll have to share my most recent. Thoughts and comments appreciated-https://robpatdoy.wordpress.com/2016/09/19/water-is-life/

    Liked by 5 people

    1. Just commented — lovely post. Good use of tags. My suggestion: maybe add another image or two? The race post is a bit long for so few images. Just be careful not to let additional images overwhelm your lovely writing!

      From what I saw, your new title seems most appropriate.

      Would you look at one of my posts? Click my name and choose whichever one appeals to you most🙂

      Like

    3. Nice blog and I enjoyed the post “Having Skin in the Game”. It was thought-provoking and nice of you to help that young man out.

      Like

    1. Just commented. Nice content! Good use of images. My suggestion: use fewer tags. When you use more than 15 tags/categories, WordPress blocks your post from Reader, which makes it harder for new followers to find you 😦 Try deleting a few tags!

      Would you look at one of my posts? Click my name and choose whichever one appeals to you most🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  14. A most very happy Monday, all of you bloggers and blog followers out there! First and foremost of all, I would very much like to thank you all for bearing with me during my time of illness; I had been recovering from the worst migraine that I ever had, but it has since disappeared; Now, I would very much like to announce that I have given my blog a themed look that is in celebration of the season called Autumn, and I would very much like for you to check it out at http://www.j2w7.WordPress.com! I have also written a brand-new post about fire safety and prevention, and I very well suggest that you check that out at http://www.j2w7.WordPress.com/2016/10/10/octoberthe-month-of-fire-safety/! As always, I always have great new things to share with all of you nice fans out there, so once again feel free to visit KALEIDOSCOPE anytime, anyplace, anyday at http://www.j2w7.WordPress.com! Take care, with ♡-JW

    Liked by 1 person

    1. You don’t have to write a lot, but you should definitely write about your goals for the blog. A little bit of background information on you personally would also go a long way.

      Really liked the Sumac/Superior photo, by the way!

      Liked by 2 people

    3. Less is more, in this case. Introduce yourself briefly, give a sentence or two about why you like photography or how you started with it, and another sentence or two about your goals for the blog. If you overwhelm people with every detail of your life story, they’ll be less likely to read the whole thing.

      For example, here’s mine: https://natalieschriefer.wordpress.com/about/

      I’m thinking about shortening it a little bit. Look at the bloggers that you like and see what sort of things they’ve written, too!

      Would you look at one of my posts? Click my name and choose whichever one appeals to you most🙂

      Liked by 1 person

    4. A good ‘about me’ page should be fun and quirky and mostly unique. But an ‘About Me’ page is also your biggest opportunity to bag new followers!

      Talk about the benefits of blogging, what’s in it for your reader? Include some links to your top posts (Don’t go overboard!), make it a promotional page as well as something YOU!

      Include photos, links, jokes. Don’t make it too long but informative! Hope this helped!

      P.S You can find loads more blogging tips on my blog!

      Liked by 3 people

      4. Great, I’ll check that out. I think I know the problem here. Your ‘Primary Site’ is different to your actual blog. To change this you’ll need to acsess My Sites on wordpress and click on Settings in the options. Then change the Primary address to your current URL by copying and pasting. I hope I was’t too vague. Don’t hesitate to ask or query.

        Like

  16. Hi all;
    I’m an aspiring author and use my WordPress blog page to write on daily prompts, sometimes to write a draft of an idea for a story or a scene from a story i might be working on. I’m also a member of Romance & Erotica book club with indie authors, search for the Romance and Erotica Fraternity on Facebook if you want to check them out. The group is very interactive, and does a lot of live feeds. Sometimes, I’ll review a book I’ve read here on my blog. Check it out! I’d love some feedback on my writing too. Thanks!
    logicneverwins.wordpress.com

    Liked by 6 people

    1. Just commented. I like how short your posts are — it makes it easy to read a bunch of them! Good use of tags, good use of images. Just watch your grammar — THEY’RE taking the hobbits to Isengard 😉

      Would you look at one of my posts? Click my name and choose whichever one appeals to you most🙂

      Liked by 1 person

    1. Nice content! I enjoyed reading your 30 before 30 list 🙂 If I made a list, some would be similar! My suggestion: blog-wise, consider getting rid of that massive list of tags at the bottom. It’s a bit distracting (to me, anyway). I think the list of categories will suffice 🙂

      Would you look at one of my posts? Click my name and choose whichever one appeals to you most🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  27. I’ve just posted an art review about emerging new artists and installationists who displayed recently completed paintings, photography and mixed-media assemblages at the London 1:54 Contemporary African Art Fair over the past weekend.

    https://museumgeographies.wordpress.com/2016/10/10/zak-oves-triumph-at-the-154-contemporary-african-art-fair-in-london-2016/

    Despite the fact that it is a highly visual blog post – with 13 high-res images of beautiful and innovative artwork, I seldom attract general readers to view these types of illustrated articles beyond my existing list of followers. I’d welcome feedback on how to improve the overall ‘look and feel’ of my artistic reviews. Thank you!

    Liked by 7 people

    1. What tags are you using? You might want to try some general tags such as art, photography, culture, museums or travel (if you are traveling to different locations). I think your blog is quite interesting.

      Liked by 3 people

      1. Thank you, Laura. I appreciate this feedback. Sometimes I tend to use very specific tags and forget the very generic ones, so this feedback is a useful reminder to do that. Best wishes, Carol

        Like

    2. I just checked out your site and really loved it (now following!). The minimalist design of the site definitely appeals to me. Regarding your question, I agree with Laura that adding tags should help. Unrelated to your question, one minor suggestion I have is to include “read more” tags for posts that are longer than a couple of paragraphs. This prevents excessive scrolling for your reader if they want to jump to an older post.

      Keep up the good work!

      Best, Charlotte
      https://girlygeekgirl.com

      Liked by 2 people

    3. I actually think you’re using too many tags (sorry, Laura). Though I like Laura’s suggestion of adding more general tags to draw in more general readers, WordPress actually blocks your post from Reader if it has more than 15 tags and categories total. So, that means that new readers can’t find you that way! That may be part of the issue.

      Would you look at one of my posts? Click my name and choose whichever one appeals to you most🙂

      Like

      1. Thank you Natalie. I think you and Laura are both right and I will try to use less tags, but more general ones in the future so that my posts are picted up by a wider readership, as well as not being blocked in the way you have outlined. This is very helpful. Best wishes, Carol

        Liked by 1 person

    1. This is a very good post. However, the use of the word “C**P” in your title is quite off-putting at the outset and might deter some people from continuing to read what is a very interesting and practical narrative. Try to keep your titles and headings succinct, courteous and neutral at all times – avoiding slang or potentially offensive terms – to minimise alienting some readers. Good luck with your future posts about travel tips.

      Like

    4. Just commented. Are you using tags? If no, consider it! Tags help readers find your posts and you can have up to 15 tags/categories 🙂

      Would you look at one of my posts? Click my name and choose whichever one appeals to you most🙂

      Liked by 2 people