Tweaking My Blog

This past week my EC&I 831 course had the great fortune of hearing Sue Waters present "An Introduction to Blogging."  As a novice blogger, I listened with great interest as Sue provided tip after tip aimed at making each of us better bloggers.  Over the course of this week I revisited the notes I had taken and began to implement  many of the suggestions Sue had recommended.  Here is a summary of what I have managed to accomplish:

1. Failure to Link
Sue's first suggestion of providing hyperlinks wherever possible is a key benefit for using blogs.  I had been attempting to provide some hyperlinks in my posts, but Sue's example demonstrated for me the types of links I should be including.  People reading my blog should be able to easily explore the topics I am writing about, and hyperlinks provide that ease of access.  I am now making an attempt to include more hyperlinks in my posts.

2. Failure to Connect
In describing the blogging cycle, Sue suggested that people may be good at publishing posts.  However, she noted that effective blogging is about more than just publishing posts. A slide she included summed it up well: "Blogging isn't publishing.  It's about social learning."
 As part of the cycle, I should be reading and reflecting on the posts of others, and then commenting on those posts.  Having connected and engaged in dialogue with others, I should then return to my blog to continue my publishing.  This week I have made an effort to read the posts of fellow colleagues, and to comment on a few.

Sue also mentioned the importance of including an "About Me" page on a blog.  As a result, I now have a dedicated "About Me" page which includes a brief summary about me and contact info for each of my social network profiles.  I also took the time to update my profile descriptions with Google+, LinkedIn, and Twitter.  I also made it easier to follow me on Twitter by including a "Recent Tweets" gadget on my blog.



Enjoying "the process" while  tweaking my blog

3. Reading Online
Sue provided a number of hints for improving the reading experience of visitors to the blog.  I have kept my theme pretty plain, so my blog did not require any radical changes.  However, I did agree with Sue's suggestions of using interesting titles and the incorporation of images as attention grabbing techniques.  These are two things I will continue to incorporate into future posts.


Sue also recommend that effective workflow should be about "working smarter, not harder."  She suggested the following workflow pattern:

•  Visit the EC&I Blog Hub
• Select a post of interest
• Comment on the post
• When leaving a comment ensure that the notification option for follow-up comments has been selected

Sue also recommended the use of Flipboard as a curation tool for EC&I 831 content.  I have been a big fan of Flipboard for the past couple of years, but I had never taken the time to set-up an account and create my own magazines.  After hearing Sue speak, I created an account and began curating my own magazine content this week.

4. Focusing Too Much on Readers
The final point Sue made is that bloggers sometimes focus too much on what they think readers want to see.  She recommends that blogging should be primarily about enjoying the process.  This is something that I am starting to embrace.

Sue ended presentation by providing us with a wealth of links for effective blogging practice, and directed us towards some exemplar blogs.

• Edublogger tips and tricks
• Photography Blogfolio Example
• English 10 Class Blog Example
• Cathy Cassidy's Blog

Accomplishments This Week

• Created About Me section for my blog
• Updated and expanded my profile for Twitter, Google+, and LinkedIn
• Increased my use of images and hyperlinks in my posts
• Continued reading, commenting, and sharing of resources
• Chose a final project and began work toward the presentation