photo credit: Francis Storr via photopin cc
First off, I know I am a blogger and I do not hate blogs but some aspects of blogs/bloggers are super frustrating and annoying.
Blogs ending in .blogspot.com or similar. If you are blogging for fun or as a hobby then having a free blogging domain is fine (in fact I encourage it) BUT if you want to monetize your site buy a domain for $10 (At GoDaddy domains are only 2.99 right now). Not only will your blog look much more credible, but you can also start branding yourself.
Too much sponsored content. I am all for turning your blog into a business and making money, but the majority of your content should not be sponsored. There is nothing worse than trying to follow a blog and having to dig through 10 or more ads just to find something the blogger wrote.
No ‘about’ blurb. I check out new blogs ALL. THE. TIME. Your homepage should say something so a new reader knows what your blog is about. We have our tagline right in the header, others have an ‘about’ bio in the side bar. I do not care where it is as long as I can easily find it. It is so strange (not to mention a turn-off) to find a new blog only to have no idea what it was about. I may have found one post that looks neat through Pinterest but will not stay if I do not think there is anything else I will like.
Getting stuck in a post. Have you ever finished a post and find yourself stuck with no place to go. A basic necessity of a blog must be navigation bars or a related posts plugin. How am I supposed to discover more about your blog if I am abandoned at the end of a post?
Promoting every day but only posting on a weekly basis. I am part of a few blogger support groups on Facebook. A huge pet peeve of mine is when a blogger joins in on an Alexa group or similar but they only post once a week. If you want more views a day then create more content. I do not want to see the same post 2 weeks in a row.
What do you hate about blogs?
Read similar posts like this How to Leave a Podcast Review on Stitcher – The Business Side of Blogging and Should You Trust a Blog Review? Learn To Spot Quality Blog Reviews.
I feel the exact same way as you do! Those things drive me bonkers.
I am glad (it that weird). Now everytime I see ones of these ‘offenses’ at least I can go … At least Rebeckah feels the same way 🙂
No I don’t think it is weird. lol… Haha 🙂
Personally, I hate Captcha with a passion. When I’m trying to comment, the comment authentication boxes drive me up the wall.
Lol, I wondering if Im about to hit one now?
LOL, no way! We hate captcha too! You should never see one on tots!
Ugh. Totally agree. Especially the .blogspot, its just not THAT hard to set up!
Heres my list:
No contact info.
Annoying captcha.
Black back ground with light text.
Videos / music that automatically plays. UGH!!!
Im sure theres more…. lol
Great list! Totally agree!
I hate pop ups. Especially since I’m usually reading blogs mobile and that little tiny “close” or “x” is hard to find and click. Some blogs have them to encourage you to sign up for their newsletter and some have them as advertisements. I pretty much always leave those sites instantly. I’ll take Captcha over a pop up!
We agree. We had an advertising company approach us asking us to do pop ups and we said NO WAY!
Lack of share buttons.
I totally agree. And, interestingly enough, it seems to be blogs that run on a blogger platform (whether it’s blogspot or self-hosted) are the ones that are often missing the pin button.
I hate boring content. I think my blog might be guilty of some of your pet peeves, though, so you’ve given me a few things to look at. :]
I agree with all of these… I think you guys have it all my major annoyances covered.
i agree with you on this. i also monetize my blogs but i make sure i update frequently and post personal entries in between paid posts. visiting for the first time here.
These are some great points. I never really understood how some of the larger review blogs are blogspot.com blogs!! It’s like spend the extra to buy a domain 🙂
What I hate is the captcha too. Lol.
I just started my blog on Sunday!! So these are great tips. Thanks Dionne.
Echoing Ondri’a sentiments above, it’s always disheartening to see a review that really isn’t a review. It’s just text copied from the sponsor’s website and little to no personal experience shared about the product. I always feel so bad for the business that sent the free product….like they didn’t even come close to getting their money’s worth.
As far as blog designs go, I dislike the 3-column format with ads and banners on every side. When I first started blogging I thought “I should do that so I can make more money with ads and affiliate links!” But it didn’t take long for me to realize how cluttered and commercial it can make a blog look, so I decided NOT to go that route for my own blog.
I hate seeing blogs that tlook so disorganized, huge coupon ads at the top, and captcha to name a few things. Another HUGE pet peeve is bloggers who claim to be writers/reviewers and do nothing more than include a stock photo of a product, copy/paste from a sponsor’s website and add 2-3 short blips of their own. Gives folks the wrong impression of what the blogging community is all about.
Yes! That is a great point Heather.
When we redesigned TOTS we entertained the idea of a 3 column blog. Good thing we didn’t go for it 🙂
Great tips! I’m new to blogging and your tips will help me out.
I hate blogs with too much sponsored content too. It kills the value of the blog.
I hate it when musics starts playing! That’ll make me leave the blog right away!