Blogspot Blogger Guide

Change Blog Post and Sidebar Width of a Blogger Theme

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Wed, 06 Apr 2022 01:49:00 +0000

In today's Blogger tutorial I discuss how to change column width of both the sidebar and the blog post area of a Blogger Theme to either increase or decrease the size of the template displayed on the screen. I show you two methods of adjusting the width of the template: firstly through the Blogger Template Designer and secondly by making a small change to the template itself. These modifications are easy to achieve, only take a few minutes and will help you achieve the look you are after on your Blogspot Blog.

Older Default Blogger Themes

By default older Blogger templates eg Simple Blogger Theme were not full width but there was always the facility to increase or decrease the width of the columns of template according to user requirements. In the past it was recommended to keep the width of a Blogger blog under 1000px to ensure that visitors viewing on smaller screens did not have to keep scrolling to see the whole blog. Those days are gone now with responsive templates and the use of small devices like tablets and smartphones so it is fine to increase the entire width of your blog to 100% if you wish to.

Third Party Blogger Themes

If you are using a third party theme you may not be able to use the Blogger theme designer to adjust widths depending on how it was coded. You will still be able to use Method 2 as discussed below to make adjustments to the column width of the entire blog and / or the sidebar.

Newer Responsive Blogger Themes (Contempo, Soho, Emporio)

Newer responsive Blogger templates eg Notable Blogger template are already set at 100% width minus the sidebar so there is generally no need for tweaking the width.

How to Adjust the Column Width of Blogger Blogs

There are two basic ways to adjust the width of a Blogger template / Blogger Theme:

Adjusting the width in Theme Designer of Blogger (or if this is not available)

Changing the code within the Blogger template to the desired width

Method 1: Steps to Change the Width of a Blogger Template in the Theme Designer

At the Dashboard choose Theme

Click on the orange Customize button which will take you to the Blogger Theme Designer

On the left-hand menu click Adjust Widths

Adjust the width using the slider to increase or decrease the width of the entire blog. Any changes you make can be viewed in the large window on the right-hand side.
For example: To make your blog full width push the slider all the way across to 1500px.

You can also change the width of the sidebar. By sliding the bar to the right you can increase the column size of the sidebar dimensions to a maximum width of 500px.

Click on the Save button in the bottom right-hand corner of your screen.

Method 2: Steps to Change the Width of a Blogger Template in Blogger Edit HTML

If you are not able to edit the width of your Blogger template in Theme Designer then you will need to adjust the widths manually in the template itself.

At the Dashboard choose Theme

Click on the down facing arrow next to the orange Customize button

Choose Backup to make copy of your existing template in case you need to reinstae it

Now choose Edit HTML

Click anywhere inside the template and then CTRL + F (Command + F on a Mac) to bring up the search function

Enter the following search term into the search window and press enter:

b:template-skin

Look for the following code:

<b:template-skin>
<b:variable default='960px' name='content.width' type='length' value='960px'/>
<b:variable default='0' name='main.column.left.width' type='length'/>
<b:variable default='310px' name='main.column.right.width' type='length'/>

Change the value of the content width of the template to whatever width you would like eg for an entire blog width of 1200px the code would look as follows:

<b:template-skin>
<b:variable default='960px' name='content.width' type='length' value='1200px'/>
<b:variable default='0' name='main.column.left.width' type='length'/>
<b:variable default='310px' name='main.column.right.width' type='length'/>

To change the sidebar width (assuming you have a right sidebar) change the main.column.right.width to a new width by changing its value or adding a value if not already there as in this example. eg For a sidebar of 500px the code would look like this:

<b:template-skin>
<b:variable default='960px' name='content.width' type='length' value='960px'/>
<b:variable default='0' name='main.column.left.width' type='length'/>
<b:variable default='310px' name='main.column.right.width' type='length' value='500px'/>

Click on the Save icon in the top right-hand corner to save your changes.

From the Dashboard click on View Blog to see your Blogger template with the widths you have input.

In this Blogger tutorial you have learned how to change the column width size of your Blogger template to increase or decrease the width of the entire blog and the sidebar. Changes to the width of the columns is best achieved by using the Blogger Template Designer but if this not available for some reason I have also shown you how to adjust the width manually by making small changes to the HTML of your Blogger template.

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How to Add a Welcome Message to the Blogger Homepage
How to Add a Blog Description to the Blogger Header of a Blogspot Blog

How to Delete a Blogspot Blog from Blogger 2022 (Step-by-Step Guide to Remove a Blog)

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Sun, 03 Apr 2022 14:35:00 +0000

In this Blogger tutorial I discuss how to delete a Blogspot blog from the Google Blogger platform. This is not a difficult task but I suggest that unless you are absolutely sure you will never use the content of your blog for any other purpose and you definitely want to remove your blog that you at least backup before deletion. It is possible to restore a deleted Blogger blog if you change your mind within a 90 day period but thereafter a deleted Blogspot blog is gone forever.

How to Delete a Blogspot Website Permanently from the Blogger Platform (Easy Steps)

When a blog is deleted from the Blogger platform the blog owner has a 90 day period in which the blog can be recovered before it is permanently deleted. To delete a Blogspot website from Blogger follow these simple steps:

Sing in to Blogger and select blog to delete
Click on Settings from the Dashboard
Then click Manage Settings
Choose Remove Your Blog
Download a copy of the content of your blog in xml format (optional)
Select Delete

See my step-by-step guide to deleting a Blogger blog below for a detailed walkthrough.

How to Delete a Multiple Blogspot Websites Permanently from Blogger

Unfortunately there is no tool to manage deleting multiple blogs from Blogger. If you have several blogs that you want to delete at the same time you will need to delete each one individually using the methods shown.

How to Delete a Blogger Account

If you want to delete a Blogger blog follow the steps outlined above and in the step-by-step walkthrough below. If however you want to delete your Google account which includes your gmail this is a different process.

Reasons to Remove or Delete a Blogger Blog

There are a lot of reasons to choose to remove or delete a blog from the Blogger platform some of which are:

Your blog is not viable
The content of your blog is too old and you can't be bothered to refresh it
The blog takes too much work
You blog is not making enough money to make it worth the effort
You want to transfer your blog to Wordpress or another website platform like Wix or Squarespace

These are good reasons to consider deletion of a Blogspot blog. However, if your are deleting Blogger not because you have lost interest but because you have struck a problem, technical or otherwise, then deletion may not be the best solution.

If you are still keen to maintain your blog but it has just not succeeded as you would have liked or you are unsure about deleting it and looking for advice then I suggest you first take a look at my upcoming article in which I discuss a variety of scenarios about whether or not to delete a Blogger blog in each of these situations.

Steps to Delete a Blogspot Blog from Blogger

From the Dashboard click on Settings

Scroll down to Manage Settings

Click on the Remove Your Blog link

A pop up window will appear.

Click on the Download blog link to download a copy of your blog in xml format. Note this not a readable copy of your blog.

If you would like a copy of your blog posts as a memento or to turn into a book refer to my Blogger Tutorial on How to Convert Blog Posts in Blogger into a PDF document and Make Your Blogger Blog Posts into a Book.

Once ready to delete select the Delete button in the pop up window to delete your blog. Google reminds you that you have 90 days change of heart period in which you can restore your blog. Thereafter your blog is deleted and gone for good.

For step-by-step instructions on how to restore or recover a deleted blog please go my Blogger tutorial how to restore a deleted Blogger blog.

Today's Blogger tutorial has covered how to delete a blog from Blogger. It has also included instructions on how to back up your blog prior to deletion. Blogger makes it possible to restore a deleted blog within 90 days of deletion just in case.

#deleteblogspotblog #deleteblogspot #deleteblogger

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How to Change the Date of Blog Posts in Blogger

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Fri, 01 Apr 2022 05:10:00 +0000

Blogspot gives content creators on the Blogger platform the option to change the date of any blog post. This means that it is possible to both postdate a blog post to sometime in the future or backdate a Blogger post to a date in the near or distant past. In this Blogger tutorial I show you how to change the date of a blog post in Blogger for both old articles and new posts and discuss reasons why changing dates needs to be done with care.

You will learn about:

Backdating a Blog Post in Blogger
Steps to Backdate an Existing Blog Post in Blogger
Scheduling or Post Dating Blog Posts in Blogger
Steps to Schedule or Post Date Blog Posts in Blogger

Backdate Blog Posts in Blogger

Blogger gives you the option to backdate a blog post to any date as far back as about 1970. Postdating blog posts has to be done with care though and should not be overused. The main reason for this is that SEO can be detrimentally affected as Google's algorithm is weighted to some degree toward fresh content.

However if you need to have your blog posts in chronological order for some reason backdating posts is a great way to achieve this. If you have a bunch of old articles you want to refresh and then publish on a current or recent date Blogger will allow you do this too.

For more information on backdating blog posts in Blogger check out my article How to Backdate Blogger Posts or Publish Articles on a Retrospective Date

Steps to Change the Date of an Existing Blog Post in Blogger

Click on Posts and scroll to find the existing post you want to change the date of

Open the Post by clicking on it. The Blogger Post Editor will open.

On the right-hand side of the Compose Box in the editor you will see a menu - click on Published

Select the Set Date and Time radio button

Use the calendar to set a retropective date

If you need to change the time click on it and select a new time from the drop-down box that opens

Click the orange Update button save the change of date

Click Preview to make sure the date and time are showing correctly

Postdate, Schedule or Future Date Blog Posts in Blogger

If you would like to publish your blog post on a date in the future you can do this by scheduling the blog post date to any date of your choosing. Blogger will publish your blog article on the date and time when it rolls around.

The facility to postdate Blogger posts is useful for those on a busy schedule. Improve your productivity and efficiency by planning ahead of time and publishing posts in advance. This is particularly useful if you are going on vacation and do not want to disrupt your posting schedule.

There are virtually no disadvantages of scheduling posts in advance except perhaps that if you happen to make a mistake on your blog post you may not catch it before it goes live. I suggest you check your article thoroughly before setting it to a future publication date.

For a more in-depth discussion on scheduling blog posts in Blogger please refer to my article on How to Future Date / Schedule Blog Posts to a Specific Date and Time

Steps to Schedule a Future Date for a Blog Post in Blogger

Create a New Post or Open a Draft Post

Select Published from the menu on the right-hand side

Select the Set Date and Time radio button

Use the calendar to set a future date for your blog post

Change the time by clicking on it and selecting the time you would like the post to be published on from the times in the dropdown box

Under Preview click Save and finish making other improvements to your blog post

When ready to publish click on the orange Publish button

From the Dashboard select posts and you will see that your post will be labelled scheduled for the date in the future you selected.

Summary

In this Blogger Tutorial you have learned how to change the date of an existing blog post for a Blogspot blog and how to schedule blog posts to publish on a future date. Also discussed are reasons you might want to change the post date. For SEO reasons backdating posts in Blogger needs to be done with care.

Add a Widget or Gadget Above a Blog Post in Blogger

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Mon, 28 Mar 2022 05:54:00 +0000

If you want to add a gadget or widget to Blogspot that displays above the blog posts then read on as in today's Blogger tutorial I explain how to open up the main posts section of a Blogger blog so that more gadgets can be added. Despite involving a small change to the Blogger theme it is not difficult and will only involve less than 5 minutes to unlock the main section so you can begin adding gadgets and widgets to Blogger in the Main Section.

By default Blogger themes on installation do not have the main section open to allow additional gadgets or widgets like a message or a banner to be added. Older default blogger templates have the main section locked in most cases. Therefore, in order to add gadgets the main section needs to be opened manually by tweaking the template. Whether you have a default Blogger theme or a third-party template unlocking the main section will not affect any other function.

Follow this step-by-step tutorial if you want to start adding gadgets in the Blogger posts area like a banner or a welcome message or some other widget. I suggest you also take a look at my other in-related step-by-step Blogger tutorials that show you how to do the following:

Easy Way to Add Banners to Blogger
How to Add a Welcome Message to Blogger
How to Add a Sticky Welcome Message to Blogger

How to Add a Gadget to the Main Posts Section in Blogger

In order to add a gadget or widget like a banner above blog posts in Blogger so that it displays on the homepage and all other blog pages it must first be possible to add a gadget to the main post area.

Check if the Add a Gadget Option in the Main Blogger Posts Section is Displayed

Check whether the Add a Gadget option is available by:

From the Dashboard select the Layout menu from the left-hand side menu

Scroll down to the Main Section where you will see the Blog Posts gadget in place

Check whether the Add a Gadget option is available in the main section.

If the Add a Gadget option is available you can skip
to Step 12

or

If the Add a Gadget option is not available it needs to be unlocked by following the steps below that will first show you how to open the main section and then add the a gadget for affiliate banners, messages and more.

Steps to Open the Main Posts Section in Blogger to Add Extra Gadgets

From the Dashboard select Theme from the menu on the left-hand side

Click on the down arrow on the orange Customize button

Click Backup to back up your template before proceeding then return to the drop down menu under the customize arrow

Choose Edit HTML from the drop down list of options

Click anywhere in the Blogger template

Enter CTRL + F to bring up the search box

Enter the search term class='main'

You are looking for these lines:

<div id='main-wrapper'>
<b:section class='main' id='main' showaddelement='no'>
Replace the no with yes to show add element and save.

The code should now look like this:
<div id='main-wrapper'>
<b:section class='main' id='main' showaddelement='yes'>
Click Save to save the change to your template.

Navigate back to the Layout menu from the Dashboard

You will now be see the Add a Gadget link in the main blog post section. If for some reason this still isn't showing up then go back to the template and check if there is a maxwidgets attribute in the same line of code. Make sure that the maxwidgets="1" is set a number greater than one eg maxwidgets="2" and then save and go back to Layout again.

Steps to Add a Gadget Above a Blog Post in Blogger

To display your message or banner or other widget click on Add a Gadget above Blog Posts

Choose the HTML/Javascript gadget or you could choose Text Gadget if no code is being added

Paste the code in the content box in the pop up window that appears for the HTML / Javascript gadget.

Click on Save

Arrange your new gadget in the Main Section by dragging and dropping so that it occurs above the blog posts gadget in the Main Section

Click on Preview (eye icon) in the bottom right corner to see your new banner.

Click the Save button to apply your changes to the layout

Depending on the gadget you want to add above the blog posts you may find the following Blogger tutorials helpful:

Easy Way to Add Banners to Blogger
How to Add a Welcome Message to Blogger
How to Add a Sticky Welcome Message to Blogger

Today I have shown you how to open up the main posts area in Blogger to accommodate extra gadgets. You have learned how to add an affiliate marketing banner to your Blogger blog (Blogspot blog) that displays just above the posts on every page.

How to Add a Welcome Message to Blogger
How to Add a Sticky Welcome Message to Blogger
Easy Way to Add Banners to Blogger

How to Backdate a Blogger Post or Publish Article on a Retrospective Date

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Thu, 24 Mar 2022 07:01:00 +0000

In today's Blogger tutorial I show you how to backdate a Blogger post to a date in the past. This handy Blogger feature allows content creators on the Blogger platform to customize blog posts by setting a user defined publication date for a blog post that is retrospective. Backdating a post is possible for any blog post you are about to publish or for an existing post where you want to change the publication date to an earlier date.

If you are looking for a Blogger Tutorial on how to set a future date you could check out my companion article on how to schedule Blogger Posts for a Specific Date in the Future.

Reasons to Backdate a Published Article or a New Post

It is not difficult to change the date of a blog post to a past date but this feature does need to be used with care. There are times when it can be useful to be able to backdate Blogger posts for example to fill a gap or to fit into a particular blog post timeline if your blog is date sensitve. You might change the dates of a blog post if you are intending to publish your blog as a book and want to tidy up the post dates for reasons of continuity.

Change Date of Blog Posts to Past Date if You Need to Reorder the Timeline

Older Posts Can Be Seen as Less Relevant by Search Engines

Do keep in mind that older posts can potentially get penalized by the Google algorithm as they are viewed as less relevant.This is only an issue up to a point though as search engines are still able to recognize the actual date a post was published despite its timestamping. As a rule of thumb it is best not to overdo the backdating of blog articles unless you have a very specifc reason to do so.

Changing the Date of a Blogger Post Has No Affect on the Permalink

Changing the publication date of an blog article does not affect the permalink which is the URL (blog post address) assigned on publishing a blog post. Do not change the permalink without good reason as any backlinks to that article will be lost and search engines like Google will eventually remove the blog post from the search index. A redirect to handle deleted blog posts or changed permalinks can be set up but this is a subject for a more advanced Blogger tutorial that I will be writing about in the future.

Blogger Posts Can Be Backdated to a Date and Time of Your Choice

Steps to Back Date an Existing Blog Post or to Publish an Article on an Earlier Date

(a) Navigate to New Post and Create a Blogger post or
(b) Open a draft post or
(c) Open an already published post

In the Blogger Post editor click on Published which is in the menu on the right-hand side of the compose box

From the two radio buttons: Automatic and Set Time and Date click Set Time and Date and use the calendar that opens to set a date before the current date for your Blogger post

(a) Click on Save and Update for an already published article or
(b) Save from the Preview Drop Down Menu and then Publish to publish a new blog post

Click on Posts to then view your post in a list of articles. It will now be timestamped for the date you selected.

If you now click on the View button (the eye icon) to view the article you will see that the publication date of the blog post has changed to the date you selected. The date in the permalink which appears in the browser search window remains the same.

#blogspottutorial #bloggertutorial #changedate #blogposts

Summary

In this Blogger Tutorial I have shown you how to backdate a Blogger post and discussed reasons why you might choose to set a date for a Blogger post that is retrospective. There are advantages in selecting a user defined date especially if you are needing to reorder the timeline of your blog posts in Blogger for some reason. As a general rule it is best to keep blog articles current otherwise their relevancy in terms of the Google search engine algorithm can be affected.

How to Add a Blog Description to the Blogger Header For a Blogspot Blog

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Tue, 22 Mar 2022 10:48:00 +0000

In this Blogger Tutorial for beginners new to Blogspot blogging I show you how to quickly add a blog description to your Blogger blog. A blog description is the one line tagline that is displayed in the header under the blog name in Blogger. Adding a blog description to Blogger is easy to achieve and will help both search engines and your audience know about your blog topic.

Why is a Good Blog Description Important?

A Blogger blog description needs to clearly and succinctly say what the blog is about. It needs to be well-crafted if you are going to use it as a tagline in your header to hook potential readers to your blog. With just a few well chosen words the role of your blog description is to spark a reader's interest enough to decide to visit your blog.

If you would like to know more about how to write a good blog description for showcasing your Blogspot blog / Blogger blog take a look at my companion article where I discuss tips for writing a well-crafted blog description and the SEO benefits for search engines and visitors. I will also show you some examples of well written blog descriptions to help you write the best blog description for your blog.

Also bear in mind it is possible to hide the blog description if you want to write a longer description for your blog that doesn't display to readers but is visible to search engines. If you are interested in hiding the blog description on your Blogger blog I will be discussing how to do this in an upcoming post.

Steps to Add a Blog Description to Blogger

Step 1
Login to Blogger

Step 2
Go to the Settings Menu on the lefthand side

Step 3
In Basic Settings below Blog Name you will find the space to enter a blog description

Step 4
Click on the word description to bring up the dialog box

Step 5
Enter your chosen description
For example I have used "Tips, Tricks and Strategies to Customize a Blogger Blog"

Step 6
Click Save

Step 7
Click the Preview Button located at the bottom of the Layout Menu on the righthand side

Step 8
View how your description will look on your live blog. Check for any errors.

Step 9
Click the back arrow in your browser to go back to the Settings menu.

Step 10
Go ahead and click the Save button located at the bottom of the Layout Menu on the righthand side to commit your changes. Or if you need to make any further changes click on the Description again and repeat Steps 5 to 9.

#blogspottutorial #bloggertutorial #blogdescription

Summary

In today's Blogger tutorial I have discussed the steps to add a blog description to a Blogger Blog. I also covered the importance of writing a good blog description that is well-crafted and will attract visitors to your blog.

How to Choose a Great Topic for a Blogger Blog in 2020
How to Add a Blog Welcome Message to a Blogger Homepage
How to Change the Color of the Blogger Navbar
How to Change Image Sizes in Blogger Posts
How to Resize Images in Blogger to User Defined Dimensions
How to Schedule Blog Posts in Blogger for a Specific Future Date

How to Change Image Size in Blogger Posts

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Sun, 13 Mar 2022 22:58:00 +0000

In this Blogger Tutorial I show you how to change image size in Blogger posts depending on how you would like the image to look. Resizing images to fit in with the look and feel of your blog will enhance the overall look of your blog and so it is worth changing images to the optimal size. This tutorial is suitable for all Blogspot bloggers wanting to learn more about image size for Blogger posts but is written with beginners in mind.

Level of Difficulty: Easy

Suitable for: Beginners

How to Change Image Size Blogger

Blogger displays uploaded images using 5 different pre-set image sizes:

small - 200 px
medium - 320 px
large - 400 px
extra large - 640 px
original size - actual dimensions of the image (should not be wider than the width of your blog post area)

By default images are uploaded as medium size which means they are displayed at a width of 320px. You can make the image larger or smaller depending on the look of your blog and its theme. To set your own custom dimensions instead check out: How to Set Custom Image Dimensions in Blogger

I suggest that early on you settle on an image size you like and then consistently use the same image size to keep all images a uniform size across your blog posts. Also try to resize your images before you upload them so that you are not using large files that may slow down loading times of your blog. For more information on resizing images check out 8 Tips for Uploading Images to Blogger.

Decide on a default image size for all your post images and use the same size.

Resize large images prior to upload to speed up page loading time

Steps to Resize an Image in a Blogger Post

From the Dashboard select Posts from the left-hand menu to modify an image in an existing post
or
Select the New Post button to create a new post with images.

Check you are in the Compose View (click the down arrow of the first icon of the tools menu.

Find the image you want to resize.

Click on the image once to highlight the picture.

Click on the gear icon (little wheel) that appears in the menu bar below the image

Select the size of the image that best suits the look of your particular blog (Note: do not make your image larger than the width of your posts (an extra large setting displays at 640 width).

Click Preview to check the look of your image as it will appear in your blog post

Make an changes to the image size if necessary by clicking on the gear icon again

If satisfied with the size of the image go ahead and save by either clicking save under Preview if creating a new post or if you are ready for your blog post to go live click Publish

Click on the eye preview icon in the listing of your blog posts to see your image resized in your live blog post.

In this article you have learned how to change image size in Blogger. Image sizes can be changed to any of the default sizes in the Compose View in Blogger: small, medium, large, extra large and original size. It is helpful for the overall look of your blog to ensure that Blogger Post images sizes are the same size across your blog.

If you want to learn how to override the default image settings in Blogger then check out my other post which teaches you how to set your own custom image dimensions.

How to Add a Welcome Message to a Blogger Homepage
How to Change the Color of the Blogger Navbar
How to Choose a Great Topic for a Blogger Blog in 2020
How to Resize Images in Blogger to User Defined Dimensions
How to Schedule Blog Posts for a Specific Future Date in Blogger

How to Schedule Blog Posts in Blogger in 2022 to a Specific Future Date

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Thu, 10 Mar 2022 10:30:00 +0000

When posting on the Blogspot platform it is possible to set a future date for a blog post. In this Blogger tutorial I show you how to schedule your blog post ahead of time so that posts will be published on an advance date and time of your choosing. The Blogger tutorial is targeted at beginners who are maybe new to Blogspot and want to learn how to schedule blog posts the easy way so they can concentrate on creating great blog content.

Benefits of Scheduling Blogger Posts for a Future Date

Scheduling posts for publication ahead of time provides the flexibility for Blogspot bloggers on a busy schedule to create blog posts at a time that suits them. This is a great feature if you want to write a bunch of posts before you go on vacation but without disrupting the consistency of your blog posting. Blogger allows you to schedule posts so that you can stagger their release daily or every couple of days or weekly whatever. The choice is totally up to you.

The facility to schedule blog posts ahead of time to be published on a specific day makes it possible for bloggers in business to coordinate a whole marketing strategy where social media releases coincide with blog post publication. Not only does it afford streamlining of you blogging operation it will save time and reduce stress to keep ahead with your blog posting. It also offers a welcome cushion if some adverse event or unforseen circumstance disrupts your publication schedule.

Steps to Schedule a Blog Post in Advance in Blogger

From the Dashboard navigate to New Post as usual to create a new blog post or select draft post to continue working on an unfinished article.

In the Blogger Post Editor that opens up go ahead and write your blog post as usual. Either Compose View or Edit HTML view is fine.

When ready to publish click on Published on: (formerly Schedule) which is in the menu on the right-hand side of the compose box.

Click Set Time and Date from the choice of two radio buttons: Automatic and Set Time and Date.

Using the calendar click on a date that you want your blog post to appear on.

Now select the time you want to publish by clicking on the date and then selecting a time from the dropdown menu that appears. You could also skip this step if you are happy with the original time set.

Click on Save.

Click on Publish but check first that you have included some appropriate labels and that you have set up a suitable permalink

A confirmation popup window will appear. Check you publication date and time before clicking on Confirm

To find your scheduled blog post click on Posts in the Dashboard and then Published to find and view your schedule post.

Scheduled posts are denoted by the word "Scheduled" which appears in green under the post title. If you change your mind about the date and time to publish simply click on the chevron arrow to revert the article from published back to draft status and then go ahead and make your changes as usual.

In today's Blogger Tutorial you learned about how to schedule blog posts for a specific future date. The main advantages of setting a date in the future is if you want to stagger your posts either because you are going on vacation or you are planning your blog publishing schedule in advance of the creation date. If you enjoyed this post and found it helpful consider following me here on Blogger or on other social media such as Pinterest and Instagram.

#bloggertutorial #blogspottutorial #blogposts #postschedule

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How to Add a Sticky Message Above Blogger Posts
How to Add a Welcome Message to a Blogger Homepage
How to Change the Color of the Blogger Nav Bar
Why Blogger is a Better Blogging Platform than Wordpress
How to Choose a Great Topic for a Blogger Blog in 2020
How to Change the Date of Blog Posts in Blogger
How to Backdate Blog Posts or Publish Article on Retrospective Date

How to Enable or Remove the Blogger Navbar Using 2 Methods

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Wed, 09 Mar 2022 05:18:00 +0000

Want to learn how to get rid of or delete the Blogger Navbar? The Blogger Navbar is the navigation bar menu at the top of a Blogger blog above the header that appears on older Blogger themes. It is easy to get rid of the Blogger Navbar and in today's Blogger Tutorial I am going to show you two different methods to disable, hide or delete it or to reinstate it if that is your goal. You would use the second method only if for some reason you cannot enable the Blogger Navbar by the easy method which is by turning it on and off in the Navbar gadget in Layout Designer. (Updated April 2022)

Advantages vs Disadvantages of the Blogger Navbar

Most people dislike the Blogger Navbar and want to delete it because it looks unprofessional and in the past it encouraged readers to leave a blog by clicking on the Next Blog link. If you are using a custom template the Blogger Navbar is likely to already be hidden but if you are using one of the older default Blogger templates eg Simple, there will be times when you will need to remove it manually to stop it showing up.

Before you get rid of the Blogger Navbar completely though remember that it has some pretty useful features such as:

Follow Me link to encourage your readers to follow you (Blogger has removed this unfortunately)
Share via email, Facebook, Twitter
Blog search
Quick links to Blogger New Post, Design and Blogger Dashboard

I would suggest that if you do decide to hide or delete the Blogger Navbar that you add the custom search box gadget and some social sharing icons to your blog to partially compensate for the features you will be losing.

If you simply want to change the color of the Blogger Navbar please refer to my Blogger tutorial How to Change the Color of the Blogger Navbar.

2 Ways to Disable the Blogger Navbar - Navigation Search Bar

There are two methods to disable the Blogger Navbar: Method 1 involves turning it off in the Navbar Gadget while Method 2 is mostly geared at bloggers who are using an older Blogger theme and need to hide the Navbar by adding HTML code to the template itself.

Method 1: Steps to Remove or Hide the Blogger Navbar

The following method is a step-by-step guide to turn off or disable the Blogger Navbar using the Navbar Gadget.

Sign in to Blogger
From the Blogger Dashboard go to Layout
Find the Navbar Section which should be the first Gadget at the top of your blog in layout
Click the edit link or pencil icon to edit the Navbar Gadget
In the Configure Navbar window that opens up scroll down to the bottom

Click the on radio button to turn the Navbar Gadget off. Green light for off and clear for on. (If you are trying to reinstate the Navbar make sure the radio button on the Navbar Gadget is clear.)
Click Save
Click Preview (eye icon at the bottom right-hand corner) to Preview your blog without the Navbar displaying above the header
Click the Save icon (located next to the Preview icon)

Method 2: Steps to Remove or Hide the Blogger Navbar

This second method of deleting or removing the Blogger Navbar is done through a change to the Blogger template. Essentially it hides the Navbar with code but does not actually delete the code.

Sign in to Blogger and select the blog you wish to change
From the Blogger Dashboard go to Theme
Click the orange down arrow next to the Customize button
Click Backup to back up your blog before proceeding
Once backed up click on Edit HTML from the drop down menu by clicking on the down arrow once again
Click anywhere inside the template and then search the following code using CTRL + F (PC) or CMD + F (Mac) to bring up the search box: ]]></b:skin>
Insert the code below just before the ]]></b:skin> tag

#navbar-iframe {
height: 0px;
visibility: hidden;
display: none;
}

When you are satisfied click on the Save button to save your changes
Click on View Blog to admire your Blogger blog with the Navbar removed

Blogger Tip:
If you decide that you want to reinstate the Blogger Navbar you can do one of two things:

Simply remove the code you inserted:

#navbar-iframe {
height: 0px;
visibility: hidden;
display: none;
}

Or comment out the code like this

/*
#navbar-iframe {
height: 0px;
visibility: hidden;
display: none;
}*/

Summary

Today I have explained how to turn the Blogger Navbar off and on in the Navbar Gadget. I have also shown you an easy trick to remove or alternatively hide the Blogger Navbar using the hardcode method. By adding a short piece of code to your Blogger template the Blogger Navbar can be hidden from view. I have also shown you what to do if you need to reinstate a missing Blogger Navbar.

How to Change the Color of the Blogger Navbar Menu

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Tue, 08 Mar 2022 03:59:00 +0000

This Blogspot tutorial shows you how to change the color of the Blogger Navbar which appears above the header in older Blogger themes when enabled. Changing the color of the Blogger Navbar so that it matches the color scheme of your Blogger blog takes less than a minute and is an easy trick that requires no change to the Blogger code as all changes are done in the Navbar Gadget. Updated April 2022

To go straight to the step-by-step tutorial on how to change the color of the Navbar or read on for details about the Navbar and its purpose.

What is the Blogger Navbar?

The Blogger Navbar is the colored or sometimes transparent search bar menu that appears by default at the top of older Blogger themes above the header. The Navbar provides quick navigation links that make it easy to jump to the Blogger Dashboard, start a new post, access Theme Designer or share a page directly from your live blog.

Blogger Navbar Example

Currently Blogger offers the choice of 6 different Blogger Navbar colors: blue, tan, black, silver, transparent light and transparent dark. Transparent light and transparent dark are the most recent additions. It is uncertain how likely it is that Blogger will continue to offer more color options for the Navbar in the future as Google has announced that it will not be developing the Blogger platform anymore.

The Blogger Navbar Gadget Can be Customized to 6 Different Colors
along with the option to turn it off

Which Blogger Themes Have a Navbar Enabled?

Historically Blogger had the Navbar enabled by default on all blogs however these days the Navbar only displays at the top of a blog on some of the older themes like Simple, Picture Window and Awesome Inc. If you are using a newer theme or have a third party theme it will not show up automatically and would need to be enabled. If you want to know more about how to turn on the Navbar keep reading as this Blogger tutorial covers this too.

If you would like to learn how to remove the Blogger Navbar to stop it showing up I touch on this in this tutorial but for more in-depth coverage of the topic I discuss several methods in my Blogger Tutorial on How to Remove or Disable the Blogger Navbar

How To Change the Color of the Navbar / Search Bar / Menu Bar on Blogger

Below is a step-by-step walkthrough of how to change the color of the menu bar above the header in Blogger.

From the Blogger Dashboard go to Layout Menu

Find the Navbar section in Layout typically found at the top in the Blogger Layout Designer.

Click the Edit link which appears on the right side of the Navbar Gadget.

Click on the Edit Link to Open the Navbar Gadget
in the Layout Page of Blogger

Former Blogger Navbar Layout Circa 2009
Showing Position of the Edit Button

Select the color of your choice by clicking on the radio button on the left side of each color in the pop up Navbar Configuration window that appears.

If you want to turn off the Navbar altogether click on the off radio button found at the bottom of the menu of choices in the Navbar configuration window.

Turn Blogger Navbar Off By Clicking on the Radio Button
at the Bottom of the Navbar Configuration Pop-up Window

Once you have made your selection click on the Save Button to save your changes

Click View Blog to see the effect of changing the color of the Blogger Navbar to more closely match the design and style of your blog.

Or if you have turned the Blogger Navbar off you will see that the Navbar has disappeared from the top of your blog.

Summary

In today's Blogger Tutorial I have discussed what the Blogger Navbar is, its uses and what Blogger themes have it by default. I have shown you how to change the color of the Blogger Navbar on your blog via the Navbar Gadget to one of six custom choices so that it matches the color and design of your blog.

How to Add an Atom Blogger Sitemap to Google Search Console 2022

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Sun, 06 Mar 2022 22:32:00 +0000

In this Blogger tutorial you will learn how to create an atom Blogger sitemap and add it to Google Search Console to improve search engine indexing of your Blogger blog (Blogspot blog). There are different kinds of sitemaps but for today we will be submitting an atom sitemap to Google. This is a quick five minute task which regardless of your technical skills can easily be achieved and will help discovery of your blog posts.

Benefits of Adding a Blogger Sitemap to Google Search Console?

Google Search Console is a free tool from Google formerly known as Google Webmasters that will help you track indexing of your Blogspot blog on the Google Search Engine. The benefits of creating and adding a sitemap of your Blogger blog to the Google Search Console is to aid crawling both of new posts and pages and those your have updated.

The atom sitemap we will be adding today tells Google to index the first 500 posts on your blog as a batch. Once your blog is nearing 500 posts you will need to add another sitemap for 1000 posts to the Google Search Console.

The atom sitemap will help the Google crawler find posts and pages up to 500 in total and encourage it to check back often for changes. The end result is that Google is more likely to discover posts and index these which in turn will mean better SEO and increased traffic to your blog.

Follow the easy steps below to learn how to create a sitemap for your Blogger blog and how to submit a sitemap to the Google Search Console.

How to Create and Add a Sitemap to Google Search Console for a Blogger Blog

Step 1
Login to Blogger

Step 2
Select Settings from the left-hand menu

Step 3
Scroll down about two thirds of the way until you find Search Preferences in the menu that opens up

Step 4
Then click the Google Search Console link to open Google Search Console in a new page.

If for any reason you are unable to bring up the Google Search Console then go to:
https://search.google.com/search-console

Step 5
Once in the dashboard of Google Search Console find your blog by selecting it in the property selector. If you only have one blog then click on your blog's name in the selector window. If you have more than one blog you will need to select it using the down arrow found at the top left-hand corner under the Google Search Console logo.

Click on the domain name of your Blogger blog next to the Blogger icon that appears in the property selector.

If your Blogger blog is not listed in the property selector list then you can add it by clicking on the + add property icon found at the bottom of the dropdown list. You may need to start typing the name of your blog to bring up the + Add Property icon.

Step 6
Having selected your blog from the Property Selector now click on Sitemaps from the left-hand menu

Step 7
In the Sitemaps main page you will see any sitemaps already added.

Under Add a New Sitemap enter the following to add a sitemap of your Blogger blog

https://yourblog.blogspot.com/atom.xml?redirect=false&start-index=1&max-results=500

Note: Change yourblog in blue to the name of your Blogger blog

Step 8
Click Submit

Step 9
You will then get a popup message advising that the submission has been successful. You will see the atom sitemap has been added to the list of sitemaps for your Blogger blog.

Other information that you will be able to see:

type of sitemap
date submitted
date last read
status - this should read success
number of discovered URLs - the number of URLs found automatically by the sitemap

Note: If you have a lot of URLs not found by the sitemap it might be because your Blogger blog is older and Google is not able to easily discover these posts in which case adding an HTML sitemap is a good idea.

Summary

In this Blogger tutorial you have learnt how to create and add an atom Blogger sitemap to Google Search Console to encourage Google to index your posts and pages. The advantage of adding an atom sitemap is help the search engine crawlers discover pages on your Blogger blog and index these. As the number of blog posts increases on your Blog you will need to eventually add another sitemap and this needs to be done prior to the total number of posts exceeding 500.

How to Remove the Date Header From Blogger Posts in Blogspot

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Fri, 25 Feb 2022 22:00:00 +0000

How to remove or delete the date header from Blogger posts in Blogspot is a question that comes up frequently especially for beginner bloggers. If you want to stop the date header from showing then there is a simple tweak in Blogger to hide the date. Read on as I show you how to switch off the date header at the top of posts via the Blog Posts gadget.

Why Remove or Hide the Blogger Post Date Header

When you first create a blog, Blogger displays a date header at the top of Blogger Posts by default. Depending on the settings of your blog and the template you are using, Blogger displays the day, month and year of all your Blogspot blog posts so that your readers can know when the article was posted. In some cases the date header provides useful information but in many cases it can be a deterrent especially if some of your content was published a number of years ago.

Another reason that you may choose to turn off the date header is because you have crafted your posts for longevity and they are what is typically called evergreen. In this case it is immaterial when the post was first published and therefore dating it is unnecessary. Keep in mind though that even if you do turn off the date header your readers will still be able to tell the date a particular post was published by referring to the URL.

Toggling the date header on and off is one of many Blogger settings that can be configured according to a blogger's own preferences. To switch off the date header or turn it back on again is an easy fix that only takes a couple of minutes to perform. Please note that all past and any future blog posts will have the date removed.

Steps to Remove or Hide the Date Header from Blogger Posts

At the dashboard choose Layout from the menu at the left

Find the Blog Posts Widget under the Main Section in the Blog Layout

Click on the Edit link or pencil to bring up the Configure Blog Posts pop up window

Under the option to Show Date Header move the slider to the off position to remove the date header. The switch will turn clear. The toggle switch is blue-green when on and clear when off.

Click on Save to commit your changes. The Save Button is positioned at the bottom right of the pop-up window.

Now click on the View blog link in the side menu and you will see that the date header has been removed from your blog posts.

#bloggertutorials #blogspottutorials #bloggertips

Summary

In this Blogspot tutorial you have learned how to turn off or hide the date header from posts in your Blogger blog by configuring your preferences in the Blog Posts gadget. The Show Date Header option is activated or deactivated by sliding the toggle switch. The main advantages of deleting or removing the date header is for blogs with evergreen content or blogs with older content.

How to Add a Welcome Message to a Blogger Homepage
How to Change the Color of the Blogger Nav Bar
Why Blogger is a Better Blogging Platform than Wordpress
How to Choose a Great Topic for a Blogger Blog Tips
How to Add a Copyright Notice to a Blogger Blog
How to Remove or Turn Off the Labels Counter in a Blogger Blog

How to Add a Copyright Notice to a Blogger Blogspot Blog in 2022

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Tue, 01 Feb 2022 03:00:00 +0000

In this Blogger tutorial you will learn how to add a copyright notice to your Blogspot blog (Blogger blog) to protect your blog content and deter content lifting. With Blogger copyrighting your blog is an easy 2 minute task that requires no change to coding. Follow the simple steps below to have a copyright notice displaying in the footer of your Blogger blog in no time.

The most obvious advantage of putting a copyright notice on Blogger is it will act as a deterrent to would-be blog scrapers. Duplicating content from others blogs is a common practice all over the internet and it is important to safeguard your content and images.

It is worth checking periodically if any of your content has been duplicated elsewhere on the net. If it has been scraped there are some steps you can take to claim the content and I will write about these in another article. One way to check the level of duplication of your content is to take a look at Copyscape a site devoted to identifying duplicate content and plagerism on the web.

Steps to Add a Copyright Notice to a Blogger Blog

Step 1
Login to Blogger

Step 2
From the Blogger dashboard click Layout in the menu on the left-hand side

Step 3
Scroll to the bottom of the Layout Menu

Step 4
Open the Attribution Gadget by clicking on the Pencil Icon.

For Default Blogger Themes
By default Blogger adds an attribution widget to the footer of your blog when you first create it. Whether you choose to fill it in is optional. Occasionally the Attribution Gadget can be appear the sidebar if your blog was created some years ago.

For Third Party Themes
If the Attribution Gadget is not already installed you may need to use Add a Gadget and then select the Attribution Gadget from the menu of gadgets. If you can not add a gadget to the footer at all then you will need to navigate to Theme >> Customize >> Edit HTML. Search using CTRL + F to find the footer widget in your blog and then change from showaddelement='no' to showaddelement='yes'

Step 5
Enter a copyright notice.
eg Copyright © yourblogname.blogspot.com 2022
or Copyright © Your Blog Name yourblogname.blogspot.com 2022

Step 6
Click Save

Step 7
Use the Preview Button on the bottom left to view your copyright notice at the bottom of your blog.

Step 8
Navigate back to the Layout Menu by clicking on the back arrow in your browser.

Step 9
If you are happy with your copyright notice then make sure you click on Save icon in the bottom left to update the Blogger Theme.

Step 10
Remember to periodically update your copyright notice. I suggest you do it every year and that you span the copyright over the years your have been publishing articles.

In this article you have learned how to add a copyright notice to the Blogger footer to deter content lifting. If you found this article helpful please consider following me here or on social media so you can stay up-to-date with any future articles.

How to Add a Welcome Message to a Blogger Homepage
How to Change the Color of the Blogger Nav Bar
Why Blogger is a Better Blogging Platform than Wordpress 2020
How to Choose a Great Topic for a Blogger Blog in 2020

Blogger vs Wordpress - Benefits of Blogging on Blogspot Platform

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Sat, 20 Nov 2021 03:07:00 +0000

This article compares Blogger vs Wordpress. It covers the main features of the Blogspot blogging platform at blogger.com and gives a short summary of the advantages and disadvantages of Blogger over Wordpress as a blogging platform.

Blogger vs Wordpress- Which is the Better Blogging Platform?

Creating your Blogspot blog at Blogger.com is a good choice for beginner bloggers because it is a free blogging platform with an easy interface and good features. More advanced bloggers may find the lack of some advanced features annoying but Blogger is definitely worth considering as a blogging platform to try out blogging at no cost.

At Blogger.com you don't need a custom domain so there is no cost involved in purchasing a domain name if you don't want to. However, should you wish to dispense with the subdomain name Blogger assigns by default, Blogger.com offers the facility to add a custom domain name to your Blogger blog for free.

Blogspot (blogger.com) is a powerful blogging platform
but still suited to beginner bloggers

Main Blogger / Blogspot Features

Blogger is a completely free blogging platform

Blogger is fast to set up. It only takes about 10 minutes to create a blog, configure the settings and add some gadgets.

Regardless of your level of technical expertise Blogger is an easy and intuitive interface to use. Widgets that add functionality to a blog are inserted easily using drag and drop and buttons and links make navigation easy.

Bandwidth is unlimited with Blogger so there are no bandwidth issues with video and pictures

It is easy to integrate Google Adsense ad units into your blog once you meet the criteria for an Adsense account.

Advertising banners and scripts can easily be incorporated into a Blogspot blog.

Google Analytics can be added to track blog performance

It is possible to use your own custom domain rather than the default. For instance yoursite.com instead of yoursite.blogspot.com

Blogger supports blogging from mobile locations

Blogger comes with ready made templates. Default Blogger templates can be tweaked with the addition of HMTL and CSS to achieve a unique look. It is also possible to add a custom template for a more professional look. There are thousands of Blogger templates (both free and paid) to use with different types of blogs depending on purpose eg portfolio, magazine, video etc.

The advantage of uploading a custom premium Blogger theme is that most of the hard work is done for you. You may also consider buying a Blogger theme that offers support for any problems that arise. Most premium Blogger themes are around $20 at websites like Theme Forest.

Benefits of Blogger over Wordpress

Comparison of the Blogger Platform over Wordpress

There are two different versions of the Wordpress blogging platform.

Wordpress.com offers a straight forward no nonsense hosted blogging platform which is a rival to Google's Blogger platform.

Wordpress.org offers a more flexible self-hosted option that requires paid hosting and a custom domain name out of the box.

Interface

The Wordpress.com interface is clunkier than that of Blogger.com. There is a learning curve to using either of these blogging platforms. If you don't want a full blog or the headache consider Tumblr a mini blog or even Twitter a micro blog.

Advertising

Wordpress adds its own advertising to your blog and derives revenue from those ads. Blogger on the other hand puts no advertising on your blog. With Blogger any revenue a blog derives from advertising is entirely the users.

Storage Space

While Blogger.com allows fairly good storage for photos with Picasa, Wordpress.com caps site storage at 3 GBs. Running out of storage space is likely to be a problem with Wordpress.com as your blog grows and needs more and more space.

Cost

Blogger is entirely free as is Wordpress.com. However Wordpress.com only offers limited features. To access a full range of premium features with Wordpress.com there is a cost depending on what level of account you choose.

Bandwidth

Another issue with Wordpress.com is that once your blog grows and the number of visitors increases you may be required to swap over from the free option to a paid option.

Wordpress.com offers both free and paid options

Blogger vs Wordpress.org

Don't confuse Wordpress.com with Wordpress.org which is an entirely different option. The strength of Wordpress.org lies in the flexibility and options for plugins to the basic Wordpress program. In order to access Wordpress.org you will need paid hosting for your blog and a custom domain name.

Learning Curve

With added functionality and features comes a steep learning curve to start blogging with the Wordpress.org blogging platform. If you are not technically minded this can be a headache and detract from the fun of creating a blog.

Functionality

Wordpress.org definitely has the advantage when it comes to features. There are many templates and plugins available and in the process of development. There are some great professional looking Wordpress themes that will really make your blog stand out. If you intend to integrate a shopping cart down the track it will be easier to start with Wordpress which has modules and plugins for ecommerce.

Cost

Wordpress needs to be hosted somewhere like Blue Hosting or Hostgator. To start blogging with Wordpress you will also need a custom domain name available from domain name sites like GoDaddy. As your traffic increases expect to need to upgrade to a more comprehensive hosting plan with greater bandwidth which will increase annual running costs.

One of the advantages of Blogger is that as a Google product it is a very stable blogging platform. In selecting Wordpress your website is subject to the vagaries of the host. Lots of server down time and slow speeds will negatively impact on your blog traffic. As someone who has personally had problems with too much server down time I would recommend that if you go with Wordpress.org you choose your web hosting carefully. The cheaper the hosting the more likely this will be a problem.

Problems

Whatever blogging platform you choose expect to have some technical problems. Wordpress is more bug ridden and problematic than Blogger however this is purely my point of view. Wordpress is a very popular blogging platform with many loyal followers and it rightly deserves its praise having cornered a third of the blogging market.

Wordpress.org is constantly being updated to improve the interface and eliminate security risks and bugs. Blogspot, on the otherhand, is only being updated periodically these days. However, there are lots of third party hacks and scripts for both blogging platforms so it is usually possible to find a work around for most problems.

How to Decide Whether to Blog with Blogger or Wordpress

How to Decide Between Blogger vs Wordpress.org

I am not an advocate of Wordpress.com because of the advertising and the limited features. Deciding between Blogger and Wordpress.org takes more thought however. With both platforms there is the facility to build a viable blog that will attract visitors from around the world.

For the less technically minded Blogger is the better choice as much of the hard work is taken out of the process of adding information and gadgets to a blog. Blogger is entirely free making it a good option to have a bit of a dabble in the blogging arena at no cost.

As a self-hosted option Wordpress.org costs from the outset so it is more of a commitment whereas Blogger is a platform you can grow into. If you want to future proof your blog in case you want to add ecommerce and other advanced features then Wordpress.org wins over Blogger.com.

At the end of the day Blogger is a powerful blogging platform that can be modified to suit individual taste and needs. I prefer it because I find it faster to use than Wordpress and I encounter fewer problems. The lack of SEO is one of Blogger's main drawbacks but with a bit of tweaking this can be overcome too.

If you are starting out as a beginner blogger I recommend that before you lay out your hard earned money you at least have a play with Google Blogger before you even consider Wordpress.org. When Blogger vs Wordpress are compared side-by-side Blogger as a free blogging platform has a lot going for it.

7 Tips for Choosing a Great Blog Topic
How to Set Up a Blogspot Blog on Blogger.com
How to Get a Free Blog at Blogger.com
Why Blogger.com is a Better Blogging Platform than Wordpress for Beginner Bloggers in 2022

How to Choose a Great Blog Topic for a Blogger Blog - 7 Tips for Beginner Bloggers

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Sat, 13 Jun 2020 16:30:00 +0000

Have you chosen a blog topic for your Blogger blog that is right for you? Lots of people start their Blogspot blogs at Blogger.com without giving much thought to their selection of blog topic. Or the angle of the topic they want to explore. If you want your Blogger blog to stand out from the crowd make sure you consider your blog topic carefully.

A good blog topic or niche can make or break a blog. Like some partners some blogs and their owners just don't fit no matter which way you look at it. Make sure before you spend 3 to 6 months of initial slog to develop your blog that you haven't placed your ladder against the wrong wall.

How do I Choose a Good Blog Topic

Tips to Help You Choose a Great Blog Topic

Here are a few tips that will get you thinking about your topic or niche topic for your Blogspot blog at Blogger.com and how important it is to choose the right one for you.

1. Choose a blog topic that you are passionate about
2. Choose a blog topic that interests you not just interests others
3. Choose a blog topic that has potential for readership
4. Know your subject area
5. What's your angle? Identify your angle when choosing a blog topic
6. Choose a blog topic with a medium to long shelf life
7. Clearly define the parameters and scope of your blog topic

1. Choose a blog topic that you are passionate about

You are going to be writing content about this blog topic for 365 days of the year for at least 2-5 years. For that to work successfully you have to have some passion otherwise the tedium will wear you down.

Conversely if you are really passionate about a topic that passion will shine through in your blog and like a big magnet it will attract others.

2. Choose a blog topic that interests you not just interests others

Yes you can make money writing about making money but if you aren't interested in money you have a problem. The topic itself may be viable commercially but readers will soon figure out if you are in it for the money not the fun. Make sure you are genuinely interested in your blog topic and not just choosing it because it seems to be a hot topic. Don't forget readers are going to want new and fresh content and will not stick around if you are not up to providing it.

Who is My Audience and What Interests Them?

3. Choose a blog topic that has potential for readership

If you choose a more unusual blog topic or very narrowly defined niche then you may find you are the only one interested in it. However if you have very little competition you will be able to quickly carve out a niche for your blog.

Research your market. Check out forums. Identify if there actually is a gap waiting to be filled. If there are a lot of others writing about the same topic can the market sustain another blog or will it be a hard slog to get traffic. Know your audience.

Attracting visitors and maintaining readership are important factors in ensuring that your blog will generate a steady income stream. If monetization is important to you check your blog's potential for adding relevant ads and affiliate marketing.

Research Your Topic to Ensure a Readership Base Exists

4. Know your subject area

How well do you know the subject matter of your chosen blog topic? Readers will quickly assess your knowledge of your blog topic and will expect you to deliver the goods.

If you are passionate but not very knowledgeable how will you find the information you need to create new material? Creating content is time consuming and it requires good research skills. Have you got access to the kind of information you are going to need?

As a general rule don't choose a topic you know very little about or you may find yourself floundering once you have exhausted your own ideas.

5. What's your angle? Identify your angle when choosing a blog topic

Knowing your subject is one thing but finding a fresh angle is something else. If you want to create a blog in a subject area that is already heavily populated with other blogs you are likely to be more successful if you can find a good angle that has yet to be exploited. Most information isn't new it is just repackaged. How will you pitch your blog? Check out other blogs and identify what aspects might not be so well covered. Make a list of these and ask yourself if any of these areas has enough scope to sustain a blog by itself.

6. Choose a blog topic with a medium to long shelf life

Your blog topic might be great but will readers be interested in it a year or two down the track? This is particularly true for technology based blogs where products come and go and change happens at a rapid rate. Rethink your idea if your topic may not have long term sustainability. Ask yourself if there is a way to reframe it so that it will be more ongoing rather than of short duration.

7. Clearly define the parameters and scope of your blog topic

Do you know what the parameters of your blog topic are? What you will cover and what you won't? If you don't know what the limits of your blog are others won't know either.

It pays to carefully define the scope of your blog or you run the risk of trying to cover everything and losing your audience because they have no idea what your blog is about. Often the most successful blogs are those that focus on a specialist subject and stick within those guidelines. It is better to be an authority on a narrow topic area than go too wide.

Jot down now what your blog actually covers. Include your material and your audience in this. For instance, is your blog for everyone or is it focused on beginners only like this blog? Deciding this early on will make it easy to pitch your articles in a particular way. If you have no clarity you may find you write good material but it is not pitched to the right audience.

Jot Down Ideas About What Your Blog Covers
to Make Sure You Pitch it the Right Audience

If you have lots of ideas for a blog topic you will need to crystallize these. Jotting down advantages and disadvantages will help you sort the wheat from the chaff. You may find you have several good ideas but select only one of these to concentrate on. Once things are up and running with your first venture you might decide to get cracking on the second idea but prioritize to start with.

Remember that laying the groundwork now will prevent disappointment further down the track. Your idea has a much greater chance of being successful if you spend some time getting clear about what you want from your blog and what you want to achieve. Even if your idea needs a lot of refining the exercise is a great opportunity to put some planning in place and planning your blog as in most things in life is one of the cornerstones of success.

Doing the Groundwork First is Key to a Successful Blog

Summary

This Blogger tutorial has focused on how to choose a great blog topic for a Blogspot blog. I have discussed 7 tips to help beginner bloggers new to the Google Blogger platform and blogging choose a blog topic that will fit with their knowledge base and interests. Finding a good fit with your blog topic is one of the keys to success and worth taking the time to consider carefully. Any thoughts or ideas about this article please share them.

How to Set Up a Blogspot Blog on Blogger.com
How to Get a Free Blog at Blogger.com
Benefits of Blogging with Blogger.com
Why Blogger.com is a Better Blogging Platform than Wordpress in 2020

Why Blogger is a Better Blogging Platform than Wordpress for Beginner Bloggers

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Tue, 02 Jun 2020 14:00:00 +0000

This article covers the main features of Blogger and compares some of the advantages and disadvantages of the Blogger platform versus other blogging platforms such as Wordpress.

Creating your Blogspot blog at Blogger is a good choice for beginner bloggers as it is a free blogging platform with an easy interface and good features. More advanced webmasters may find the lack of some advanced features irritating but Blogger is definitely worth considering as a place to try out blogging at no expense as it is completely free.

Blogger.com offers the ability to add a custom domain name at a cost or to go with the default subdomain name that Blogger provides which is absolutely free. All templates on the Blogger platform itself are free too and this makes it possible to blog with the Blogger platform and not a pay cent for anything.

Blogger is Free and is a Good Choice for the Beginner Blogger

Main Blogger.com (Blogspot) Features

Blogger is a free blogging platform

Blogger is fast and easy to set up. It takes about 10 minutes to create a blog, configure the settings and add some gadgets.

Blogger is easy to use regardless of your level of technical knowledge. The interface is user friendly and intuitive. Tabs and buttons make it easy to navigate.

Bandwidth is unlimited with Blogger so there are no bandwidth issues with video and pictures

As Blogger.com is owned by Google there is a high degree of integration with other services like Google Analytics and generous photo hosting/storage.

It's easy to make money with Google Adsense and other banner advertising scripts which can easily be incorporated into your blog

Easy access to Google's powerful Google Analytics to track blog performance

It is possible to use your own custom domain rather than the default. For instance yoursite.com instead of yoursite.blogspot.com

Blogger supports Mobile blogging access from smartphones

Blogger offers the opportunity to try out blogging to see if it is for you at no cost

There are a huge number of free Blogger templates available

Blogger gives users the option to tweak templates depending on their experience. Some knowledge of HTML, XML and CSS can be useful to fully customize a Blogger template. Alternatively you can upload your own custom template with built in features like advertising space, widgets, dropdown menus and other useful stuff.

There are plenty of free templates for Blogger on the web that can be customized to suit individual requirements. For a small amount of money as low as $10 and far less headache if you are not technically minded. Custom Blogger Themes can be purchased that offer full mobile responsiveness, built-in SEO, are aesthetically pleasing and come with support to add that professional touch to your Blogger blog.

Comparison of the Blogger Platform with Wordpress

Blogger vs Wordpress.com

While other online platforms like Wordpress.com have greater functionality for a blogger and are more highly customizable there is also a much heftier learning curve. The Wordpress interface is clunkier to use than the Blogger one in my opinion.

The entirely free option from Wordpress.com has virtually no built-in tools and is capped at 3GBs of storage space. For greater flexibility you can pay $5 and start adding more personal features or $10 a month for premium benefits with greater storage space. Business options are $34 for advanced premium features or $61 to incorporate ecommerce as well. (Prices as June 2020)

Wordpress.com Pricing Plan as at June 2020

Wordpress.com offers a greater range of flexibility to the blogger compared to Blogger.com depending on your plan of course. A number of customizations such as themes and plug-ins come at a premium and need to be purchased separately.

Also the free version of Wordpress places a small amount of advertising on free version blogs. The main drawback of the online version apart from the ads is the cost of hosting which increases as your blog grows so you may find that storage space runs out quickly necessitating the need to turn the free option into a paid one.

Blogger wins hands down as it offers virtually unlimited storage space. Blogger is also an entirely free platform with no cost to the user. Blogger never puts its own ads on your blog.

Blogger vs Wordpress.org

If you choose a self-hosted option like Wordpress.org then the options to customize are significant with a wide range of plugins and themes to choose from. Along with choice however comes higher maintenance and a steeper learning curve.

I have a self hosted Wordpress site which needs a lot more maintenance than any of the other sites I run on Blogger (Blogspot). Plus it is time consuming to find, download and customize plugins to extend Wordpress functionality for self hosted sites. Then there are the obvious disadvantages of uploads rather than making changes online as you do with Blogger.

My experience with hosting is that there can be a lot of server downtime which can affect your return traffic whereas Blogger in contrast is a very reliable service. Plus hosting costs such as provided by Blue Hosting or Hostgator increase the more traffic a Wordpress.org blog attracts. Expect to pay around $100 minimum for hosting and then an annual domain name fee on top to match the features that come with Blogger for free.

Wordpress has costs like hosting attached

Another disadvantage of Wordpress that the user has to take a more active role in updating and backing up the blog whereas Blogger takes care of the main updates meaning more time is available for creating posts.

While Wordpress.org is constantly being updated to improve the interface and eliminate security risks and bugs, Google is no longer developing Blogger. However Blogger is stable, there are plenty of third-party scripts available and it now has the added benefit of mobile responsiveness.

Verdict Blogger versus Wordpress

Blogger.com

Blogger once had a few really annoying glitches in the interface which have largely been ironed out in recent years making it a breeze to use once you become familiar with the interface. I have found Wordpress.org to be equally, if not more bug ridden, so don't let a few minor interface issues put you off. Nothing is ever perfect right?

One of my main frustrations with Blogger is that it is not particularly search engine friendly. Wordpress.org provides a much greater degree of SEO. To achieve the same with Blogger tweaking is needed to provide search engine optimization. If you use a custom Blogger theme then you will be able to take advantage of the built-in SEO that most modern custom Blogger template themes offer.

Choose a Blogging Platform Based on Your Needs

If you are using the paid version of Wordpress you will have a choice of widgets and plugins. Blogger, in contrast, has some very handy widgets missing from the default configuration. Widgets such as related posts are useful as is a slider to display images or videos. It would be nice to have these features integrated as part of the Blogger.com interface. On the other hand there are a lot of third-party scripts for Blogger that can be inserted into Blogger using a gadget.

To get the most out of Blogger as a blogging platform, you might want to consider installing a custom template for a more professional and unique look. If you use your own domain name many would be hard pressed to know what blogging platform is being used. However, you would need to dispense with the Nav Bar completely otherwise it would be apparent to visitors that your blogging platform is Blogger. An overall investment of around $30 including a custom domain name would set you up blogging with Blogger.com for a year.

To get the same flexibility and results with Wordpress you would need to outlay around $120 annually which will not break the bank if you only have one blog. Add a couple more blogs into the mix though and it is clear that Blogger offers a lot of features for virutally no cost.

The Bottom Line Wordpress vs Blogger

In summing up then Blogger.com is a great choice for a beginner blogger not wanting to outlay any money. Blogger is also a good choice if you want to make a little bit of extra money through Adsense revenue without needing to be technically minded as ads are easy to install on your blog.

Wordpress.com is a reasonable blogging platform if you don't mind paying for hosting of $10 a month or $34 for a business. If you can stand having Wordpress.com ads on your blog and limited features you can get away with a free version but you get a lot more from Blogger for the same thing.

Wordpress.org is a better choice than Blogger if you want to build an extensive business website with a variety of advanced plugins and ultimately to integrate a shopping cart.

This article has covered the main features of a Blogger.com. It has also discussed in detail Blogger in contrast to other blogging platforms: Wordpress.com and Wordpress.org.

7 Tips for Choosing a Great Blog Topic
How to Set Up a Blogspot Blog on Blogger.com
How to Get a Free Blog at Blogger.com
Benefits of Blogging with Blogger.com

How to Add a Sticky Welcome Message Post to Blogger Blog

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Mon, 01 Jun 2020 15:00:00 +0000

How to add a sticky welcome message post to the Blogger homepage is a question that is often asked by beginner bloggers keen to make their blog more welcoming and attractive to visitors. By adding a welcome message above your blog posts readers landing on your blog will immediately be greeted by the welcome message. Adding a sticky welcome message is a simple addition to Blogger and it only takes a few minutes to create a nice friendly welcome message that sends clear welcome wishes to your blog visitors.

In this Blogger tutorial you will learn how to add a sticky welcome message to the main section in Blogger above the blog posts as seen in the image below. We have chosen to put the message above the post area because it is a placement that is very central for your readers to see your greeting when they land on your homepage. If you are interested in other placements like the sidebar or below the header then check out my detailed instructions on the other placement options for welcome messages on your Blogger blog in my companion article how to add a welcome message to a Blogger homepage.

Why Add a Sticky Welcome Message to Blogger

A sticky welcome message placed above your posts on the Blogger homepage will immediately grab your readers attention. You will engage your readers and if it hits the right note can promote trustworthiness in your blog and your content.

Blogger makes it easy to insert a text box above the posts and customize it to the look and color scheme of your blog using the Rich Text Editor. You can even add further advanced styling to your sticky welcome message using HTML code. If you want to add third party scripts or videos just swap the text gadget for a HTML/Javascript gadget.

You can choose to place your welcome message only on the homepage or have your message display on every blog page. I have included instructions on how to show the welcome message on the homepage only.

Craft a Good Sticky Welcome Message Post to a Blogger Blog
to Engage the Visitor

Points to Consider When Adding a Sticky Welcome Message to Blogger

Before you go ahead and create your sticky welcome message think about what you are going to say to attract a readership. What value will your blog provide to a potential follower? Are you informing or entertaining your readership? Remember you are more likely to impress a visitor if they can easily identify how you can help them and what value to their lives your blog is going to provide them with.

It may be tempting to add your welcome message in the header instead of a blog description but I would advise against this. The blog description has an SEO benefit and needs to contain at least one of your keywords. It is far better to create that personal touch by generating your blog's welcome message using a Blogger text gadget and leave the blog description as a tagline that describes the purpose of your blog. For more on how to add a blog description to Blogger and why it is important to do so please visit my companion post.

Steps to Add a Sticky Welcome Message Above the Posts in a Blogger Blog

The following steps will help you put a sticky welcome message above the posts on all pages of your blog. If you only want it to appear on the homepage and not every post page then see below for instructions on how to display the message only on the homepage.

From the Blogger Dashboard click on Layout from the menu on the left-hand side

Click on the Add a Gadget link in the Main Posts section or Post Body section (called different names depending on what theme you are using)

Note if there is no Add a Gadget link in the Main Posts section you may need to open up the section depending on your Blogger theme. I suggest you try adding the gadget to the sidebar first and then dragging it into the Main Posts area afterwards. If this doesn't work then please refer to my detailed step-by-step guide to Adding a Widget or Gadget Above a Blog Post in Blogger in which I show you how to open main section to add more gadgets.

Select the Text gadget from the pop-up menu. You could also choose to use a html/javascript widget instead if you want to add third party scripts to your message.

Use the Text Gadget to Add a Welcome Message Sticky to the Top
of the Main Post Section on the Blogger Homepage

Click on the plus+ icon at the right of the Text gadget to create your sticky welcome message.
Give the gadget a name like welcome message to make it easy to identify later.

Use the Rich Text Editor icons to add some simple styling to your sticky welcome message. Use Edit HTML if you need to add advanced styling. Check out my other posts for more on how to add advanced styling to Blogger.

Use the Text Box Gadget to Craft Your
Sticky Welcome Post Message in Blogger

Click Save to save your welcome message gadget.

Click on Preview icon at the bottom right-hand corner to view your sticky welcome message.

Once you are satisfied with your sticky welcome message drag it above the blog posts if it is not already there. Or if you created it first in the sidebar then drag the gadget over to the main section and position it above the blog posts gadget.

Drag and Drop the Text Widget into the
Main Section Above Blog Posts in Blogger Layout

Click Save Arrangement once you are satisfied with the positioning of your Blogger welcome message by clickingon the save icon in the bottom right-hand corner.

Click View Blog in the Dashboard and admire your new welcome message that is greeting your blog visitors.

How to Display a Welcome Message Only on the Homepage of Blogger

If you like the idea of a welcome message but would prefer to have it show only on the homepage rather than all pages it will require a manual edit of your Blogger template. Follow these steps to set the text gadget to only show up on the main page:

Check the name of the welcome message gadget

Return to the Dashboard and Choose Theme

Click the down arrow denoted by the triangle next to the orange Customize button

Choose Back up your theme to download your template in case

Choose Edit HTML

Click on the Jump to Widget icon in the top left corner of the editor

From the drop down menu of widgets click on the gadget you created for your welcome message eg Text1

The code that you jump to will look similar to this:

<b:section class='main' id='main' name='Main' showaddelement='yes'> <b:widget id='Text1' locked='false' title='' type='Text' version='1'> <b:widget-settings> <b:widget-setting name='content'><![CDATA[<p style="background: #ffffff; border: double;">Welcome! At <span style="font-weight: bold;">Blogspot Blogger Guide</span> we show you the easy way.</p>]]></b:widget-setting> </b:widget-settings> <b:includable id='main'>  <b:if cond='data:title != ""'> <h2 class='title'><data:title/></h2> </b:if> <div class='widget-content'> <data:content/> </div> <b:include name='quickedit'/> </b:if> </b:includable> </b:widget>

Add the following line of code immediately after <b:includable id='main'> which adds an if statement saying homepage only:

<b:if cond='data:blog.url == data:blog.homepageUrl'>

Add the following line of code immediately before </b:includable>
to close the if statement

</b:if>

The following shows the code with the if statement added and is highlighted in blue:
<b:section class='main' id='main' name='Main' showaddelement='yes'> <b:widget id='Text1' locked='false' title='' type='Text' version='1'> <b:widget-settings> <b:widget-setting name='content'><![CDATA[<p style="background: #ffffff; border: double;">Welcome! At <span style="font-weight: bold;">Blogspot Blogger Guide</span> we show you the easy way.</p>]]></b:widget-setting> </b:widget-settings> <b:includable id='main'> <b:if cond='data:blog.url == data:blog.homepageUrl'>  <b:if cond='data:title != ""'> <h2 class='title'><data:title/></h2> </b:if> <div class='widget-content'> <data:content/> </div> <b:include name='quickedit'/> </b:if> </b:includable> </b:widget>

Click the Save icon from the row of buttons in the top right-hand corner

You will be returned to the Dashboard. Click View Blog from the menu and navigate to several post pages to check that your welcome message is now only showing on the homepage rather than every page.

In today's Blogger tutorial I have shown you how to put a welcome message on your Blogger blog that extends welcome wishes to your blog visitors. The welcome message acts in the same way as a sticky note and always appears above your blog posts in the main section of your blog. A welcome message similar to the example can be added with a text gadget and can be customized and styled to suit any Blogger blog.

Basic Blogger Tutorials to Customize a Blogger Blog
Advanced Blogger Tutorials to Customize a Blogger Blog
How to Add a Welcome Message to a Blogger Homepage
How to Change the Color of the Blogger Nav Bar
How to Put a Twitter Follow Icon on Blogger Next to Post Title
How to Add a Blog Description to the Blogger Page Header

How to Add a Blog Welcome Message to a Blogger Homepage

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Sun, 31 May 2020 15:00:00 +0000

A blog welcome message is a great way to greet your visitors when they arrive on your Blogger blog. By adding a blog welcome message you will immediately engage your readers and they will get more information about what your blog is about. In this Blogger tutorial I not only show you how to add a welcome message to the homepage of a Blogger blog, but I also discuss what to say and where to place your welcome message on your blog.

Fortunately adding a blog welcome message to your Blogger homepage is easy to do with the text gadget and you can customize the look of the text, links, video and more.

What to Say in a Blogger Blog Welcome Message

A welcome message that greets visitors as they arrive on your blog can be placed on a Blogger blog with the intention of letting readers know more about your blog than they can glean from looking at your blog title and blog description. A welcome message typically says something about the purpose of your blog, may include something about you, what you do, what makes your content different and most importantly how you can help them solve a problem.

Your blog welcome message is an opportunity to engage your visitors so it is important to think about the flavor of the message you want to convey. For instance do you want to promote friendliness or trustworthiness, or both? Perhaps you want to include a message that promotes you as an authority on a subject so for example you might say I have 10 years industry experience in blogging or something like that to evidence your knowledge of the niche topic of your blog.

Take a look at this example of a simple Blog Welcome Message below that sets the tone for the visitor experience. The object is to encourage repeat visits and to let the visitor know you are there to help:

Welcome! Thanks for stopping by. This blog provides information on blogging and resources to customize your blog. I look forward to helping you create a successful blog. Please consider following me so you don't miss out on any new posts.

If you are interested in learning more about crafting a welcome message for your Blogger blog watch out for my upcoming blog post in which I give more examples of welcome messages and what to say to engage visitors.

Where to Position a Welcome Message on the Blogger Homepage Guide

Before we discuss how to add a blog welcome message it is a good idea to consider placement of your welcome message. There are three primary spots to place a welcome message: just below the header, above the post area or at the top of the sidebar.

Below the Header
A well crafted blog welcome message just below the header can be a good way to draw the eye to the hotspot below the header. If you have a banner or an Adsense unit there already you will need to be sure that the welcome message adds visual appeal and does not conflict with existing Adsense units or banners.

In the Sidebar
At the top of sidebar can also be a great place for your Blogger welcome message. If eye catching, the blog welcome message will grab a reader's attention in that spot. Further a welcome message there is less likely to conflict with other widgets like banners or Adsense units.

Above the Post Area
Another option is to put a blog welcome message often called a sticky message above the posts in the main post section of Blogger. The benefits of this position for a blog welcome message is that it will not detract from any other widgets in place and will always display whenever a visitor lands on your Blogger homepage.

For detailed instructions on how to add a welcome message above blog posts in Blogger check out my companion article: How to Add a Sticky Welcome Message to Blogger

Steps to Add a Welcome Message to the Sidebar of a Blogger Homepage Guide

Follow the steps outlined below to quickly and easily add a welcome message to the sidebar of a Blogspot blog that greets your visitors no matter what page they land on. If you would prefer to place your message above the header or :

Step 1
Login to your Blogger account at Blogger.com

Step 2
From the Blogger Dashboard click on Layout from the menu on the left-hand side

Step 3
Find the Sidebar section. Click on the Add a Gadget link

Step 4
From the pop-up menu scroll down to select the Text gadget. If you want a sophisticated welcome message that includes video and third-party scripts then choose the html/javascript widget instead from the same menu.

Add a Blog Welcome Message to a Blogger Homepage
sing the Text Gadget

Step 5
Click on the plus+ icon at the right of the Text gadget to create your welcome message.

Step 6
Enter a title for your message in the pop up window that appears. Name the gadget something meaningful like welcome message so you will be able to easily identify it later.

Step 7
Add the text of your Blogger welcome message into the text box. See an example of a welcome message in the image below for ideas. Using the Rich Text Editor icons you can add some simple styling by changing the text color, adding blockquotes, bold and italics. For more sophisticated styling click on the Edit HTML button which allows you to add specific HTML style code around your text. If you are not sure how to add HTML styling to your welcome message check out my other post on adding styling to a Blogger welcome message.

Use the Text Box Gadget to Create a Blog Welcome Message in Blogger

Step 8
Click Save to save your welcome message gadget.

Step 9
Click on Preview (bottom right-hand corner eye icon) to view your welcome message.

Step 10
Once you are happy with the message you can move on to repositioning it the sidebar. Use drag and drop to arrange the welcome message alongside other gadgets in the sidebar.

Step 10
Click Save by clicking on the save button bottom right-hand corner once you are satisfied with the positioning of your Blogger welcome message in the sidebar.

In this Blogger tutorial you have learned how to add a blog welcome message to Blogger. Also discussed were examples of what to say in a welcome message and where to place your message for best effect. Please feel free to comment about adding a blog welcome message if you would like to.

Basic Blogger Tutorials to Customize a Blogger Blog for Beginners
Advanced Blogger Tutorials to Customize a Blogger Blog
How to Add a Sticky Message Above Blogger Posts
How to Schedule Blog Posts in Blogger for a Specific Future Date and Time
How to Add a Copyright Notice to a Blogger Blog
How to Delete a Blogger Blog

How to Delete Locked Blogger Widgets and Fix Blogger Widgets Not Showing

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Fri, 29 May 2020 22:12:00 +0000

If you are having difficulty with a locked widget in Blogger or you can't add a gadget in a section of Blogger then read on because I will show you how to open up a section so you can add a Blogger gadget, make the widget editable again or delete the Blogger widget depending on your needs.

Sometimes widgets in Blogger become locked. This means the Blogger widget appears on your live blog but does not show up in the Layout menu and there is no way to edit or delete the widget. Older blogs typically encounter locked widget problems. Also Blogger can lock widgets with a change of template.

Want to Know How to
Remove Locked Widgets in a Blogger Blog

How to Fix a Locked Widget So That it Can Be Edited in the Layout Menu

The following steps will unlock a widget that has become locked in a Blogger blog.

Step 1
Log in to your Blogger blog

Step 2
Click View Blog and locate the general area of the widget you want to change. Is it in the sidebar, footer, the header or just under the header?

Step 3.
Select Layout from the left-hand menu

Step 4.
Look for the widget. All editable widgets are denoted by four dots on the left-hand side. Check it isn't hiding in another area on the layout menu eg in the Cross-Column rather than the Header.

If you find it go ahead and click on edit to make changes as usual.

If you don't find it and you are sure it is not displayed then continue with the following steps to manually unlock the missing Blogger widget.

Step 5.

Click on Theme from the left-hand menu

Click on Backup / Restore (right-hand top corner) and then download to back up your blog

Step 6.
From the Theme main page choose EDIT HTML button found below the view of Live on Blog

Step 7.
In the drop down menu labelled Jump to Widget click on the widget you are looking for.

In this example the missing widget is called Adsense1 and is locked in the Cross Column area of the Blogger Theme (not editable from the Layout menu).

To fix the problem jump to the widget Adsense1. In cases where the exact name of the widget isn't known just jump to the nearest area eg Header1 and scroll downwards to find it.

Use the Jump to Widget to Locate the Locked up Widget
in Blogger Theme Edit HTML

Find the cross column area of the template around line 862 and the following code or very similiar.

How To Unlock Blogger Widget with Blogger Widget Code so that it can be edited in the Layout Menu

Open up the section so more widgets can be added by changing the maxwidgets to 2 and the showaddelement to yes. Go ahead and save the theme. Now navigate back to the Layout menu and you will find that the add gadget button is now available in the Cross Column section of the Blogger template and the locked Adsense widget is now editable.

Cross Column Section in Layout Menu Can Now Add a Gadget

How To Disable / Delete / Remove the Blogger Widget HTML Code Completely

While the name of the widget will vary depending on your situation the code between the widget tags will be similiar. You will note that the ...</b:widget> denotes that the widget is expandable and more code is hidden. In this case the quick pencil and all the color scheme for the Adsense unit is hidden.

If you choose to delete the widget from the template take care to delete only the widget code for the widget. I like to expand the widget by clicking on the dots first before trying to delete it.

Once deleted and the changes to the theme saved go to view blog and you will see that the Blogger widget has been removed from your blog for good.

If you found this article helpful in some way feel free to leave a comment. If you would like to get more tips and tricks to customize Blogger consider following me.

Basic Blogger Tutorials to Customize a Blogger Blog for Beginners
How to Delete a Blogger Blog
How to Change Color of the Navbar or Delete it Altogether
How to Delete or Hide the Date Header in Blog Posts on Blogger
How to Remove or Hide the Labels Counter in Blogger

How to Add a Facebook Share Button to Blogger

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Sun, 09 May 2010 07:34:00 +0000

There is an easy way to add a Facebook Share Button to your Blogger blog (Blogspot blog) and have your readers share your articles on Facebook. Putting a Facebook share button onto a Blogger blog only takes a few minutes and is worth the time investment to improve the exposure of your blog. In this Blogger Tutorial I discuss the 3 different ways to put a Facebook Share button or icons on a Blogger blog from using Blogger built-in Share Buttons feature to hard coding a Facebook share button manually for greater flexibility.

Last Update: Updated 26 February 2022

Why Add a Facebook Share Button to Blogger

Sharing your content on Facebook is an excellent way to attract many more visitors to your Blogger blog. By adding a Facebook Share Button to Blogger you will allow your content to be shared with all the friends of your blog visitor through their Facebook account.

When a visitor to your blog clicks on the Facebook Share Button Facebook collects post details like your blog name, post title and the first few lines of the content including the images and other media.

The Dedicated Facebook Share Buttons described in Method 3 allows a visitor to add a personalized message to a link to a blog post they want to share before sharing on their timeline, in groups, or to their friends via a Facebook Message.

The Dedicated Facebook Share Buttons look and act in a very similar way to the Twitter Retweet buttons by Tweetmeme.

How to Add a Facebook Share Button to Blogger

Method 1 - Add a Facebook Share Button Using Blogger Built-in Share Buttons

The following method will reactivate disabled Blogger share buttons which have Facebook share capabilities. IFor older templates the share buttons are added at the foot of posts. In newer Blogger themes share links are added to posts usually near the top of the page.

Sign in to Blogger
At the Dashboard go to Layout
Find the Main Section sometimes called Post Body Section or something similar
Choose the Blog Posts Gadget
Choose Edit or the pencil icon on the right-hand side of the gadget

In the dialog box that appears scroll down until you see Show Share Buttons
Toggle the switch to the on position. When turned on the switch is green
Click Save

Click on View Blog to see a bank of buttons (typically in older templates Email This, Blog This, Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest has been added to the blog post footer area. Newer Blogger themes like Notable will have a link icon on the homepage at the foot of the post snippet and a link at the foot of the post which when clicked on will reveal links to Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter and Email.

Method 2 - Add a Facebook Share Button on Blogger (Blogspot) Using a HTML gadget

This method involves copying and pasting Facebook Share Button code into an HTML/Javascript gadget. It is possible to add it above and below blog posts but placement is problematic which is why I recommend hard coding into your Blogger template as you can then control the exact placement.

Another option if you don't want to hard code is to go a free social bookmarking service like AddThis or ShareThis and add a bank of social sharing buttons similar to what you see on the left side of this blog post. These services provide a range of placement options and only require a bit of code to be added to Blogger via a widget.

Method 3 - Steps to Put a Facebook Share Button on Blogger (Blogspot) Under the Blog Post Title (Hard-Code Method)

Facebook offers 2 different Facebook Share Button sizes to choose from: a large button and a small button. There are also three different layouts options: Button, Button Count and Box Count.

The following codes will place the Facebook Share Button just under the post title on the post page only. If you wish to have the button appear on the homepage as well you will need to remove the if statement.

<b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == "item"'>
Facebook Share Button Code
</b:if>

It is strongly advised that you back up (Theme >> Customize Down Arrow >> Backup) before changing your Blogger template.

Login to Blogger
At the Dashboard go to Theme and then click on the down arrow on the Customize Tab and select Edit HTML. Make sure you have backed up your template first (by clicking on Back up_ before proceeding
Click in the template code and then CTRL + F on a PC and (CMD + F on a Mac) to bring up the search box on a PC or
Enter this term in the search box and find this code: <data:post.body/>
Click enter in the search box to find the second incidence of this code of the following code block:

<div class='post-header'/>
<div class='post-header-line-1'/>
<data:post.body/>

The code goes immediately below the line:

<div class='post-header-line-1'/>

and before:

<data:post.body/>

Therefore the code goes in between the two lines as demonstrated below. If you find there is other code then make sure the code you paste in goes immediately below this line:

<div class='post-header-line-1'/>

You are wanting to achieve the following code placement:
<div class='post-header'/>
<div class='post-header-line-1'/>
Facebook code goes here
<data:post.body/>

Please Note
The picture of the Facebook Share Buttons in the following examples show the old style buttons but the code will insert new style buttons as pictured above in six different Facebook buttons to add to Blogger.

The following examples show the box count option.
If you want just the Facebook Share Button with no count then change the type to:
from type='box_count' to type='button'

If you want the Facebook Button Count Share Buttons then change the type as follows:
from type='box_count' to type='button_count'

Large Facebook Share Button (right aligned)

 <b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == "item"'> <div style='float:right;padding:4px;'> <div id="fb-root"></div> <script async defer crossorigin="anonymous" src="https://connect.facebook.net/en_GB/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v13.0" nonce="EAQ6pQXK"></script> <div class="fb-share-button" data-href="https://developers.facebook.com/docs/plugins/" data-layout="button_count" data-size="small"><a target="_blank" href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fdevelopers.facebook.com%2Fdocs%2Fplugins%2F&src=sdkpreparse" class="fb-xfbml-parse-ignore">Share</a></div> </div> </b:if> 

Large Facebook Share Button (left aligned)

 <b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == "item"'> <div style='float:left;padding:4px;'> <a expr:share_url='data:post.url' name='fb_share' rel='nofollow' type='box_count'/> <script src='https://static.ak.fbcdn.net/connect.php/js/FB.Share' type='text/javascript'/> </div></b:if> 

Small Facebook Share Button (right aligned)

 <b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == "item"'> <div style='float:right;padding:4px;'> <a expr:share_url='data:post.url' name='fb_share' rel='nofollow' type='button_count'/> <script src='https://static.ak.fbcdn.net/connect.php/js/FB.Share' type='text/javascript'/> </div></b:if> 

Small Facebook Share Button (left aligned)

 <b:if cond='data:blog.pageType == "item"'> <div style='float:left;padding:4px;'> <a expr:share_url='data:post.url' name='fb_share' rel='nofollow' type='button_count'/> <script src='https://static.ak.fbcdn.net/connect.php/js/FB.Share' type='text/javascript'/> </div></b:if>

Click Save
View a blog post to see your new Facebook Share Button in action

Method 4 - How to Put a Facebook Share Button in the Blogger Post Footer (Hard Code Method)

In this method you will learn how to put a Facebook Share Button at the foot of a Blogger Post.

Login to Blogger
From the Dashboard click Theme
Choose Backup to download a copy of your blog template before you make any changes (Strongly Advised)
Choose Edit HTML from the dropdown menu
Click inside the template and then CTRL + F (PC) or CMD + F for (Mac)
Search for the following:

Place the following code immediately above this line

<!-- Facebook Share Button --> 
<a expr:share_url='data:post.url' name='fb_share' rel='nofollow' type='box_count'/>  
<script src='https://static.ak.fbcdn.net/connect.php/js/FB.Share' type='text/javascript'/>

<!-- End Facebook Share Button -->

Click Save
View blog and admire your new Facebook Share Button at the foot of your Blogger posts

Summary

Today you have learned how to add a Facebook Share Button to your Blogger blog using three different ways. The Facebook Share Button will allow your readers to share your content which will attract new visitors to your blog. Adding a Facebook Share Button to your post pages only takes a few minutes.

Add a Print Friendly Button to Blogger to Print Out Blog Posts

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Wed, 05 May 2010 06:52:00 +0000

Attention Blogspot bloggers I have found a really easy way to allow visitors to my Blogger blogs to print out my articles. Today I am going to share with you this very easy trick which is absolutely free. It only takes a few minutes to install a printer friendly button at the foot of your Blogger posts or in the Sidebar and you will be adding a lot of functionality to your blog. (Updated as at 18 February 2022).

Advantages of Adding a Print Friendly Button to Blogger

The Print Friendly button is absolutely free
It creates an attractive print friendly version of your blog article that is print optimized.
There is an option to print in PDF format or save in PDF format
Removes unwanted content such as Google ads
Provides flexibility to remove unwanted text and only print out what is important to the reader
All images can be removed leaving only the text thus saving paper and ink
Minimizes the risk of readers copying and pasting your material because they don't know how to print out

The PrintFriendly button is a very handy gadget. When a visitor clicks on the button it will take them to an article preview screen and offers some printing and sharing options. There is the option to print out the article directly with or without images. Alternatively the article can be downloaded as a PDF file or a link to the article emailed. PrintFriendly even lets you share the article via a Twitter Tweet button.

How To Add a Print Friendly Button to your Blogger blog

There are two ways to add a Print Friendly Button to Blogger.

The first and by far the easiest way is to add a Print Friendly button to the sidebar or below your Blogger posts using an HTML / Javascript widget.
The second is to hard code the Print Friendly button directly into your blog which will give you much greater flexibility in terms of placement.

Method 1 - To Add a Print Friendly Button to Allow Readers to Print Your Blog Posts

Sign in to Blogger and select the blog you want to add the printer friendly button to.
From the Blogger dashboard go to the Layout menu
Decide where you want your gadget. The sidebar is an easy choice. Scroll down until your find the Sidebar section of your template
Click on the Add a Gadget link in the sidebar
Choose the HTML/JavaScript gadget

Open a new window in your browser and navigate to the PrintFriendly website.
Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the Blogger icon
Select the HTML radio button at the top left of the page
Choose a PrintFriendly button by selecting the radio button beside it. Print Friendly offer at least 12 different buttons.
Select the features you want from the Features Menu or go with the default settings displayed. You may decide to turn off email as a way to have more control of how your article is shared on the internet.
Once you are happy with all the features settings copy the code that is displayed below the features.
Now return to the HTML gadget and paste the code into the gadget
Select Save
Scroll to the bottom of the Layout Menu and click on the Preview Button
You will now see your PrintFriendly Button as it will appear on your live blog.
Click the back button of your browser to return to the Layout Menu
If you are satisfied with the location of the button click Save at the bottom right-hand corner. If not you may need to play around with the positioning to get the optimal place in the sidebar.

Method 2 - To Add a Print Friendly Button to Allow Readeers to Print Your Articles

(Note: Before you attempt this make sure you have backed up your Blogger Template)

Log in to Blogger and select the blog you want to add the printer friendly button to.
From the Blogger dashboard click Theme from the side menu
Select EDIT HTML from the drop down menu

Click in the code box and then use CTRL + F to find the following code:
<div class='post-footer'>
Open a new browser window go to the PrintFriendly website
Scroll down the home page until you see the Blogger icon, then click on it.
Make sure the HTML radio button is selected at the top of the Button page
Select the radio button for the PrintFriendly Button that you think will integrate best with your Blogger blog. (There are at least 12 to choose from).

In the Features menu select the features that you want your PrintFriendly button to have or go with the default. I suggest you think about whether you want readers to be able to email your posts.
Copy the code snippet for your chosen button
Then go back to your open Blogger window and find the code you identified in Step 4 of these instructions.
Paste the code directly after the <div class='post-footer'> tag
Save your changes to the Blogger template
From the Dashboard click View Blog to see your PrintFriendly button beneath each post.

Summary

Today I introduced you to the PrintFriendly button - a completely free button that print optimizes your Blogger posts and allows readers to print directly from the post. I discussed some of the main advantages of adding the printer friendly button to Blogger and I provided you with comprehensive instructions to add the button to your Blogger template by either using an HTML/ Javascript gadget or by hard coding it into your Blogger HTML code.

If you found this article helpful please let me know by commenting below. I would be interested in your experience.

Remove Blogger Labels Counter or Turn On Counter in a Blogspot Blog

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 12:10:00 +0000

Until recently the only way to turn off, disable or remove the counter of the labels widget in Blogger was to use a Blogger hack. Luckily Blogger has now added a new feature so that Blogspot bloggers have a choice about whether to show or not show a post count next to the corresponding tag when using the Blogger labels widget. (Updated as at 18 February 2022)

How to Turn Off / Remove / Delete the Blogger Labels Counter?

If you already have a Blogger labels widget installed and you are using an older template then Blogger shows a count of the number of posts with that label or tag next to each label by default. If you want to turn off the label counter you will need to disable it.

Removing the Blogger labels counter is easy and only takes a minute. Switching off the labels counter can be useful sometimes for instance when establishing a new blog where a limited number of posts may deter visitors. Fortunately Blogger has listened to users and now installs a new blog with the Labels Counter turned off.

Conversely you may find that your Blogger label counter has been disabled and you want to reinstate it. In this case you would navigate to Blogger and follow these steps except that you would reverse Step 4.

Log in to Blogger
At the Dashboard go to Layout Menu
In the Blogger sidebar click on the pencil or click the edit link to edit your Labels Gadget
Use the toggle button to switch between on (blue-green) and off positions (white) in the Show Number of Posts Per Label heading.
Click on Save
View your Blogger blog without the number of posts shown next to the labels tag

#bloggertutorials #blogspot #bloggergadgets

Summary
Today you have learned how to turn off the Blogger labels counter so that no count of the number of posts is shown next to the label in a Blogspot blog. Disabling this feature only takes a minute and can be a useful feature for new blogs with few posts. If you are new to Blogger and blogging you can learn more useful tricks and tips for customizing your blog at Blogspot Blogger Guide. Watch out for more Blogger tutorials in this series of Blogspot Tutorials for Beginners.

Related Links
How to Put a Copyright Notice on a Blogger Blog
How to Add a Print Friendly Button to Blogger
How to Change the Date of Blog Posts in Blogger
Add a Follow Me Twitter Icon Button to Blogger
Easy Ways to Put Banners on Blogger
How to Add a Welcome Message to Blogger Homepage
How to Unlock or Delete Locked Widgets in Blogger
Making Money From Affiliate Banners and Links with Blogger
How to Get More Adsense Clicks with Blogger
Easy Ways to Put Affiliate Ad Banners on Blogger

How to Put a Twitter Follow Me Button Icon on a Blogger Blog

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 21:08:00 +0000

Would you like your Blogger blog visitors to be able to follow you on Twitter? Or perhaps just provide the option to Tweet something about a post you have written. It's easy when you put a dedicated Twitter follow button on your Blogger blog (Blogspot blog). Let me show you how.

Latest Update: Updated on 26 February 2022

Just follow the instructions below to add a Twitter follow me button to Blogger to encourage your readers to follow your Twitter tweets. This is an easy way to attract new traffic to your blog and it only takes a few minutes.

This Blogger tutorial is easy and doesn't involve changing your Blogger template.

How to Put a Twitter Icon on Blogger (Blogspot)

There are lots of Twitter icons to choose from. Below are several to get you started. Remember you can change this Twitter icon or button for another if you find a better one simply by changing the URL address of the image.

Log in to Blogger
At the Dashboard go to Layout
Click Add a Gadget in the sidebar or where ever you want to place your Twitter icon
Choose the HTML/Javascript gadget
Copy and paste the following HTML code for the icon into the content box

<a href="https://twitter.com/Your-Twitter-Username"><img width="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKc2rGote0bsR7VtHMulwHQpU8j_uN7DAPLAd14imYUigB7liNS71vKsbIzcaHPPs4cZkcyclOAkvZ39_456ZdNW0gE9BRm3DspfzCrrrSb7YZPN0bexZcpSG1Xi-JTWHuNuu-85Dc_l1T/s320/twitter-34c.png" height="124" title="Follow Me on Twitter"/></a><br/>

<a href="https://twitter.com/Your-Twitter-Username"><img width="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJJp9fr_mYowcPC2G4bqOscUVrK4RP1vZFZjNJbSoH1wSh6cBhp1uQZ9o5DqHmGLgK1rHqDEyMSNYJtGs8-senOFPp34DDavnpl3ujD6s-IT6CJQDOM941DjIbThyphenhyphenKoTd2zOd0sg3VoLeW/s320/twitter8gif.gif" height="81" title="Follow Me on Twitter"/></a><br/>

<a href="https://twitter.com/Your-Twitter-Username"><img width="152" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisZPXqyqkhq8XmTBBhfrBULTJxvvsLWCOue17LfvcrTlM14XY1gxDOK8-sF_E-ZgL9vcxw65BIONtfVNH7qjs95iXIlgpFVGQRQSSn1rppZaKhSwmU9HpORs4ZPF53kUIwHdAsc9_rOjnF/s320/nt11.png" height="68" title="Follow Me on Twitter"/></a><br/>
Change Your-Twitter-Username for your own Twitter username
Click Save
View your blog to see the Twitter icon in your Blogger sidebar

Twitter Follow Me Buttons

There are heaps of free Twitter Follow Me buttons to download from the internet. My advice is if you find an icon or button you like be sure to check the licensing arrangements before using it on your Blogger blog. Many icons are only free for personal use rather than commercial use and therefore not suitable if your intention is to monetize your blog. In your search look for the phrases like public domain, no attribution required and Creative Commons (CC0) to ensure you have permission to use the icon or button commerically.

You may be tempted to just download a button in a search of Google images but be aware that you will need a PNG file with a transparent background for your button not just a jpeg or jpg. Also your button will need to be hosted somewhere. You can upload it to Blogger or Google Drive for instance and then just use the same code above in your Blogger gadget and simply change the URL of the image.

If you are not looking for anything too fancy you could just use the buttons provided by Twitter. You can get the code from Twitter for a simple follow button with the option to display a count of your Twitter followers.

Twitter Share Buttons

Another option if you want sharing buttons rather than follow buttons beyond what Twitter offers is to use free services like AddThis and ShareThis. These sites provide code that you can quickly add to Blogger to create a bank of buttons including Twitter similar to what you see on this site.

For sharing content and embedding tweets you can also go to Twitter to put the button displayed here on your post somewhere so readers can go directly to Twitter and immediately tweet something about your post if they are signed in.

Summary

Today you have learned how to add a dedicated Twitter follow button to your Blogger blog. If you follow the instructions above you will have your Twitter button or badge up and running in no time. You also learned how to add a tweet button from Twitter. If you want other button designs for the follow button you can still use the method above but you will need to have the image hosted on the internet somewhere or else upload it to Blogger yourself and then just change the url of the image.

How to Position Adsense Units on Blogger to Earn Extra Money

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Thu, 07 May 2009 01:42:00 +0000

Want to know more about how to make money with Google Adsense and your Blogger blog (Blogspot blog)? A lot of bloggers make money blogging solely from Google Adsense clicks. Placement of your Adsense ad units on your blog is critical if you are to earn money. In this article I will give you some tips about some of the basics of placing Google Adsense ad units on Blogger from my own experience so that you will earn extra money from your Adsense banners.

Tips for Adding Google Adsense to a Blogspot Blogger Blog

Use the Google Adsense Heat Map Placement Guide
First take a look at the Google Adsense Heat Map that shows you the hot and cold positions of Google Adsense ad placement. Notice that a lot of the primary positions where you would put Google Adsense are around the main content. If you use this Google Adsense Heat Map as a guide to your Adsense placement you will start to earn extra money from your ad units.

Decide on How Many Adsense Ads?
Just because Google Adsense rules allow more than three ad units per page doesn't necessarily mean it is a good idea to put more than three on a page. If your blog is fairly new and your traffic low at this stage more than two maybe overkill.

One strategy is to position your ad units by placing one above the first post or around the title and another at the foot of the post. This placement strategy has worked successfully for me in the past.

(Update 2020: Google Adsense now allow a lot more ad units since I wrote this. If you don't want to think too much about ad placement consider using Google Adsense Auto Ads. If you are intent on customizing your Google Adsense ads the Google Adsense heatmap still pretty much applies as a guide to ad placement.)

Best and Worst Performing Google Adsense Ad Units
- I have found that my best performing Google Adsense ad units is 336x280. This sized unit has been very successful in the position above the post and under the post title. Both of these areas are Adsense hotspots as depicted in orange. If this size is not an option you could try a 728x90 leaderboard which is a high performance unit too.
- I don't particularly like a 468x60 Adsense ad unit in the header. I haven't found this a particularly high performing unit either. Instead I now reserve this slot for my favorite affiliate banner rather than an Adsense ad unit
- All my Adsense vertical skyscraper ad units such as 160x600 in the sidebar of my blogs have been a waste of time and I have now gotten rid of them. Notice how this is borne out by the white low performing area of the Blogger sidebar
- I have had mixed success with the linked units such as 728x15 in the Blogger header. They do work on some blogs where there is no navigation menu so I have decided to keep them on in the meantime.

Summary

In this post I have given you the benefit of my experience with respect to strategically placing Google Adsense ad units on a Blogger blog to earn extra money. I strongly suggest following the Google Adsense Heat Map which is an authoritative guide to ad unit placement. If you want to earn extra money try out a 336x280 unit and dispense with any sidebar skyscrapers and 468x60 header banners unless you are sure they are actually good earners. Any questions or if you would like to let me know how you get on please don't hesitate to comment.

Easy Way to Put Banner Ads on a Blogger Blog

noreply@blogger.com (The Whizz) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 21:49:00 +0000

Beginner bloggers who want to make money from their blog often ask me how to put affiliate banners on a Blogger blog (Blogspot blog). In this Blogspot tutorial I outline the steps to help you put banners on Blogger the easy way in three different positions: the sidebar, the footer and above blog posts. Follow these instructions and you will have your affiliate banners up and running in no time and start earning money from your blog.

Sign Up for Some Affiliate Marketing Programs

In order to make money online and place affiliate banners on Blogger you first need to sign up as an affiliate with at least one referral program. What affiliate market program you choose will be dictated by your blog topic and your niche within the topic.

If the world of affiliate marketing is all completely new to you I suggest you start with becoming an affiliate to services you might already belong to like Amazon and Ebay.

Another good place to dip your toe in the water of affiliate marketing is Clickbank which boasts a huge range of advertisers. If you make a search you are bound to find a product on there that would integrate well into your blog.

Steps to Put Affiliate Banners on Blogger the Easy Way

Once you have signed up with an affiliate program which fits with your blog topic and niche and will pay you referral fees you can start earning money by placing an affiliate banner on your Blogger blog.

Placment of an Affiliate Banner

Before you start the process of putting a banner on Blogger you will need to decide where you want to place your banner on your blog for best effect.

Here are 3 very easy options:

1. Place Banner in Blogger Sidebar

Adding an affiliate banner to the Blogger sidebar is an easy placement option and likely to afford the best benefit. Follow these steps to put a banner in the side bar on your Blogspot blog:

From the Dashboard choose Layout from the left-side menu

In Layout scroll until you find the sidebar

Click on Add a Gadget in the Blogger sidebar

Choose the HTML/Javascript gadget from the list

Choose a name for your banner if you wish and type it into the title box (optional)

Paste the affiliate banner code provided by the affiliate service into the content box of the pop up window

Click on the Save button

Move your banner around in sidebar using drag and drop until it is positioned where you want it

Check that your banner is displaying and in the correct position by clicking on the Preview (eye icon) in the lower right corner

Click the Save icon (next to the eye lower right corner) to confirm the new layout of the sidebar.

If you want to center the banner enclose it in a center HTML tag like this:
<center>YOUR AFFILIATE CODE</center>

2. Place Banner in Blogger Footer

Adding an affiliate banner to the Blogger footer can be effective especially if you have other gadgets like random posts and recent posts there. For third-party and some default Blogger themes there may be three columns in the footer so you will need to check the bottom of your template and decide in which column to put your banner.

Follow these steps for easy placement of a banner in the footer of your blog:

From the Dashboard choose Layout from the left-side menu

Click on Add a Gadget in the column of a footer where you want to put your banner if your Blogger theme has more than one footer

Choose the HTML/Javascript gadget from the drop down list of options

When the pop up window appears paste the affiliate banner code as supplied by the affiliate marketing service into the content box

Choose a name to give your banner a title. A title is optional

Click on the Save button

Place the banner in the optimal position in the footer by using Blogger's drag and drop feature

When satisfied check that your banner is displaying correctly by clicking on the Preview (eye icon) in the lower right corner

Click the Save icon (next to the eye lower right corner) to confirm the changes to the Blogger footer.

If you want to center the banner enclose it in a center HTML tag like this:
<center>YOUR AFFILIATE CODE</center>

3. Place an Affiliate Banner Above the Blogger Posts

Another excellent place for a banner is to position it so that it appears in the very central position above the blog posts. To add a banner to the main section or page body area of Blogger involves putting the code in an HTML/Javascript gadget and placing it above the blog posts gadget.

Follow these steps to add your banner code above the posts on the home page and every other post page:

From the menu on the left-hand side of the Dashboard select Layout

Scroll down until you find the Section labelled either Main Section or Page Body Section. Look for the blog Posts gadget to confirm you are in the right section

Click on Add a Gadget (if you find there is no Add a Gadget link you will need to open up the section. Take a look at my step-by-step post about how to add a gadget above blog posts including detailed instructions about how to unlock the Main Section / Page Body Section of Blogger to add more widgets.

Assuming you can the Add a Gadget link in the main blog post section / page body section click on it.

Choose the HTML/Javascript gadget from the menu of gadgets that appears

A pop up window will open. Paste your banner code into the content box and add a title if you wish (optional)

Select Save to save the changes

Make sure the new gadget is the first widget in the section and is above blog posts. If not use the drag and drop feature to position the gadget in first position.

Click on the Preview button (eye icon) found in the bottom right corner. Check that the banner is displaying how you would like it displayed.

Click the Save button to apply your changes

If you want to center the banner enclose it in a center HTML tag like this:
<center>YOUR AFFILIATE CODE</center>

Today I have shown you the easy way to add affiliate marketing banners to your Blogger blog (Blogspot blog) in three different positions: in the sidebar, in the footer and above the blog posts. Affiliate marketing banners can generate extra money but do need to be placed strategically. Remember affiliate programs are free to join so it costs you nothing to experiment with positioning your banner to find the best spot.

Related Articles
Make Money from Affiliate Program Banners and Links with Blogger
How to Add a Gadget or Widget to Blogger Above Blog Posts

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