Comments on: Keeping Visitors on Your Blog – Give them Something else to Read

By: Mattheous

Mattheous — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 03:07:25 +0000

Is there a plugin that I can put on my Blogspot blog to do this for me? I know you can manually add them in, but I’d like to do it with a plugin.

By: eSearing

eSearing — Thu, 22 Jun 2006 23:18:01 +0000

I remembered reading this article a while back and decided to create my own random article generator which sits at the top of my blog. I figure it will give visitors more to read and recycle some old articles. Each link also opens a single page so I get more ad revenue potential too.

I did it with a simple sql query and output the results in a ul.
I also added some site links to let users know what else they can do on my site.

By: LaVon Rutledge Jr

LaVon Rutledge Jr — Thu, 23 Feb 2006 23:15:51 +0000

Hey, I stumbled upon this blog month ago. I tip my hat to you – its not like other blogs – its like a one-stop shop and go site with practically every topic that interests most people.

I have a question. I am on blogger.com – using blogspot as a web host. I am considering changing web host providers and paying out the cash for a more reliable, powerful, and all around better service – like squarespace.com or hooverwebdesign?. However, this can get really expensive. Any advice? The purposes of my blog is just to inform, dicuss, and is virtually for non-profit. I do have a donation buttom but no adsense or other forms of ads

By: Mike

Mike — Fri, 17 Feb 2006 15:05:28 +0000

Anyone know a good plug-in for Top Posts for WordPress. I found a few but there were lots of comments of people having trouble with them. Anyone use one that they can vouch for?

By: Leon

Leon — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 16:59:21 +0000

Sorry if I offended Genevive, but you have to admit, there is a resemblance.

By: Jim Logan

Jim Logan — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 15:27:25 +0000

Darren, thanks for passing along my experience! The more I think about the entire thing, the more it resembles brick-n-mortar display advertising. You enter a store for one thing and while in the checkout line or walking towards the exit you discover another. Having related and most recent posts serve as displays to present to visitors that otherwise came to your site for something else.

As every business can make money three ways – get more new customers, increase the value of the average sale, and increase the frequency and volume of repeat business…recent and related posts increase the value of the average visit.

Thanks again!

By: Elle

Elle — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 06:19:05 +0000

Oh, I didn’t even think of telling you that. But I always wonder at the amazing thing that is the own spider web trap I fall into on just your blog! (A whole web on one site!) I go in circles, on and on, and all it takes is one new article to speak to me, and I’m off.

By: Marco

Marco — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 04:23:33 +0000

Well, Darren, you may not have seen the increases in page views with the 5 related posts plugin , but most of the times, when I read your posts, I visit one of the related posts included in the list, generally the one with the most attractive title.

I think this happens with most of the people that visit Problogger. Well, that’s what I think.

By: Elle

Elle — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 03:24:48 +0000

Do you think that there is a better option between 5 most recent and 5 related? I like related. It seems that prominent placing really does help (and would, and should*), but I’d like to know of any drawbacks before I change my template. Any thoughts?

*One thought is a two-way argument… Someone finishes reading a post, likes it, goes to the bottom and clicks on related. The other scenario is the person didn’t find what he or she was looking for and didn’t look much into it, but sees other options that might suit the needs (and maybe clicks on an ad somewhere in the process, but I also care about snagging readership).

Hmmm. I think this deserves further study.

By: Leon

Leon — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 01:29:47 +0000

Thanks for the tips Darren. I’ve been using the related posts plugin and it does help. I’m looking into implementing recent posts as well. :D

By: Genevieve

Genevieve — Wed, 15 Feb 2006 23:45:20 +0000

I was wondering what was going on when I was looking through my tracker and found a flood of visits from one URL and it looks like my blog is being pulled into something. I'm sure the people who have checked my blog have already seen the validity of the layout and the fact that I coded everything myself (in exception for using the default wordpress template to help me figure out some of the coding). For those curious, by all means you may pull it inside out with a fine tooth comb. As an artist myself I have nothing to hide, but than again I'm sure only the blogs with the box layouts are the only ones being picked on within this subject. I'd kindly ask Leon, that you not jump into any conclusions and you might want to check my post on copyrights because I am very aware of them as well. To Darren I'm sorry to have to post about this type of matter on your blog.

By: Leon

Leon — Wed, 15 Feb 2006 22:11:21 +0000

Thanks for the tip, but I use Blogger, so that's done automatically. During my travles through the blogosphere, I came across a blog that resembled Problogger. Another Amblogger perhaps?

By: raising4boys.com

raising4boys.com — Wed, 15 Feb 2006 21:38:09 +0000

I use the related posts plugin after each post (on the single page) but can see the value of putting recent posts somewhere prominent — although it’s silly in my opinion to include it on the front page (that’s where the new posts are, so there’s no real need to list them). I may try this out for single post pages. Thanks.

–dad