1. Always Add Post Images
The easiest way to improve the quality of your blog is to add post images. Headlines and images are the first thing a visitor will see when they land, and if either falls short, you can gaurantee they won’t stick around for very long. Copyblogger has a great post on headlines at http://www.copyblogger.com/writing-headlines-that-get-results/ and “The Copywriter’s Handbook” by Robert W. Bly is a good read if you want a more comprehensive look into copywriting.
As for images, check out Magic Headline Images for Thesis. It’s a new plugin I released recently which automates the image creation process.
2. Showcase Old Posts in the Multimedia Box
With Thesis, you can easily turn the multimedia box into a “favorite posts” rotator. Just add some images to the /custom/rotator folder then link each image to a post you want to showcase via the options panel.
To get more out of this, visit your Google Analytics account and make a list of posts which are generating good search engine traffic, and a list of posts which are falling short of what you’d like. Add the “falling short” posts to your media box to encourage visitors to check them out. Doing this is a good way to ensure all of your posts are getting the traffic they deserve. Reevaluate your traffic at the end of every month and adjust the features to align with your goals.
3. Minimize Your Widgets
Every Thesis skin, free or premium, has support for widgets, but that isn’t an open invitation to drown your content in them. Instead of linking to every page, post and sponsor in your sidebar, try cutting your widgets in half. At first, this seems counter-intuitive, but by removing clutter and distractions, readers will be less tempted to jump from page to page before they have to chance to find what they’re looking for.
When adding new widgets and links to your sidebar, keep the goal of the page in mind. What is it you want someone who sees that page to do? Once you know that, go through and trim every element that doesn’t reenforce that goal. Widgets especially are easy to remove, and, if you decide later on you want it back, it only takes a second.
4. Add Author Boxes to Posts
By default, most websites don’t showcase author information. By adding a post footer with an author bio and photo, users are more likely to make a connection to the website and will return later on, now that there’s a face to the website. This doesn’t work in all cases, but it’s something to try and with Thesis hooks, only takes a few minutes to build.
5. Encourage Commenting
By adding a encouraging reminder to leave a comment with questions or comments, you create an opportunity to interact with visitors. Once they comment, you can respond and open a dialogue. If you’re helpful (or foster a discussion worth following), you’ve made the first step towards developing a following.
