How many posts should there be in a page? There’s no hard and fast rule. If you’re using themes some of them have a default number to show per page, but with a little fiddling here and there you can set it to your taste. Why does it matter? Well, it’s all about making your blog readable to the visitors.
Do you prefer to make your posts short and sweet? If you’re fond of linking to things that interests you and your posts tend to be newsy rather than rambling, having ten or more of these on a page is acceptable. Anyone who reads the blog can scan through it quickly. One problem is the sidebar can get crowded if it lists all of the recent entries, so try to keep that as neat and clear as possible.
I love checking one particular blog for reviews on television episodes and movies I missed, but sometimes I just can’t stand how cluttered the blog looks. There were just too many posts in every page. Don’t frustrate readers with the amount of scrolling needed just to read a particular entry. Some blogging services offer a “read more” option that hides the rest of the post behind a link. If the reader wants to read on they simply click on the link and the whole entry loads. One example of this is Movable Type’s extended entry feature – add an EntryMore tag to the point where you want the entry to cut off and it’ll do the rest.
A slideshow might be the best choice for a photoblog or video blog. It highlights one post at a time, letting visitor appreciate the visual impact even more. Make browsing a treat by giving thumbnails to other entries. In the end it’s all up to you, so decide with what you feel is best.
[tags]blog tips, posts[/tags]
Originally posted on November 24, 2006 @ 4:08 am
