Blog Stereotyping : How to Help it Before it Hinders You.

Have you been a victim of blog stereotyping? If you don't know what it is, Blog Stereotyping is when you come upon a blog and decide if you want to follow that blog or not depending on its looks rather than its content. Blog stereotyping is something that cannot be stopped and will not go away. We all do it, and we will all continue to do it. We take one look at a blog and decide if we like it or not depending on its looks, not what it is truly about.

I chose to do a post about Blog Stereotyping so I could share a few ways in which it can be turned into something good rather than a bad thing. Knowing about it is the first step and can help bloggers to use it to their advantage. Here are a few ways in which you can keep blog stereotyping in mind while blogging and help to turn it from something that hinders your blog into something that helps it.

1. The Header: This is the first thing we see when we come upon a new blog, and possibly the most important part of the blog when it comes to blog stereotyping. We take one look at it and sometimes exit the blog immediately due to the look of it. If the header does not clearly tell us what the blog is about, or does not interest us we will not read further into the blog.

To fix this problem you need to make sure your header clearly demonstrates your blog aesthetic. If your blog is crafty, your header should be crafty, if your blog is punk, your header should be punk. The header needs to catch the attention of the reader and let them know a little about what you like and a little about your blog style. This will ensure that you get readers that will be involved with your blog.

2. Blog Postings: This is the second thing we come upon on a blog. A post is the main aspect of your blog. If someone scrolls down to see your post you will want it to be something interesting to engage the reader.

I try and keep all of this in mind with all my blog posts. When I am blogging I always think.. "if someone new comes to my blog will they be engaged or bored by this post"?... You should always try and do something new and exciting that will intrigue the reader. Look back at your previous posts and see which ones got the most comments, this will help you know what your readers like, and hopefully what your new ones will like.

3. Side Bars: This allows people to see what you like and what you have going on. It is always good if you have had a good post (DIY, giveaway etc) you can use your sidebar to your advantage. Post these things in the side bar so that your readers can easily get to it and see that it is there. This lets you flaunt your best content easily.

The side bar is also used to show how many followers you have. I think it is important to let people know how many followers you have and to make it easy for them to follow you. I like it when this is close to the top of the blog rather than at the bottom so it is easy to find.

This side bar is also a place for you to share the blog buttons of others. I like to keep the buttons of my friends there rather then those of all the big name bloggers. I also like to keep buttons there that allow me to get to other blogs quickly and easily. This lets people know who you support and also lets them know that you are helping you fellow bloggers.

This is all based on my opinion. Let me know your thoughts about Blog Stereotyping and how you think it can be helped or prevented. Have you been a victim of blog stereotyping?