7 Reasons why your readers hate your blog

1. You talk down to your readersNobody likes to feel stupid. Phrases like "unless you've been living under a rock" and "if you didn't already know" make readers feel insulted or guilty for not knowing something. Instead of assuming that everyone has already heard about something, just assume that you're the only one.2. You don't spellcheckNothing says "crazy, ranting blogger" more than glaring spelling errors. Readers will only come back to your blog if they believe it is credible and poor spelling makes you look sloppy and unprofessional. It only takes a few minutes to reread your post and save yourself from looking like a crazy person with a computer.3. You go off topicMost blogs have an established topic for a reason — often readers are visiting your blog because they share a common interest. So if you usually blog about technology and suddenly have a group of posts on your fluffy kitty Sam, you will frustrate your regular readers and give the casual visitor less of an incentive to return.4. You don't post very oftenIf your posts are months apart and your last few posts apologize for not blogging enough, do your readers and yourself a favor and just close up shop. The best blogs are those that are frequently updated and posting infrequently is no way to build an engaged audience.5. You don't linkThere is no quicker way to drive your readers crazy than to write about some hot new website, product or event and leave them scrambling over to Google because you didn't provide a link to more information. Make your readers lives easier by including links in your posts where they should obviously appear.6. You turn off commentsA blog isn't just about writing...it's about stimulating conversation and discussion. If your readers have no way of responding to a post then you look like a jerk. Even worse: turning off comments on a particular post because someone disagrees with you.7. You don't offer RSSThere are many valid reasons why bloggers don't enable RSS — most often its because they want readers to visit the actual blog and drive up page views. Many internet users, however expect an RSS feed and may not read your content at all if they have to keep visiting your site for updates. Enable some form of RSS, even if its just headlines or summaries. After all, a person reading your content is better than having them ignore you completely.Also on 10,000 Words:• 10 Reasons why online news sites suck• The top 7 mistakes new Twitter users make• Editors: 10 ways you annoy your staff• 10 Ways to make your editor love you• 10 Ugly truths about modern journalism

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7 Reasons why your readers hate your blog

1. You talk down to your readers

2. You don’t spellcheck

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1. You talk down to your readers

2. You don’t spellcheck

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