Blog Housekeeping Tips

You may have noticed that I recently made some small changes to this here blog. I've centered the navigation bar and changed some of the labels, cleaned up my sidebar, redesigned my 'about me' snippet on the right, and added new social media buttons. Since I am not tech savvy this took much longer than it needed to, but luckily the semester has not picked up too much yet (I spent the entire day in the library reading cases for my Constitutional Law class and blogging i.e. perfection!).

I've done a ton of reading about what makes blogs good and the rules you should follow. That, on top of reading so many blogs, has given me a pretty accurate idea of what elements every blog needs. Even small changes, like I mentioned above, can make a big difference. Here are some ideas of easy blog housekeeping that will make your place on the internet better.

• Get rid of something. Anything. You definitely have more than you need in some part of your blog! I got rid of the labels widget on the sidebar and the home button on the navigation bar. Both of the functions that these elements serve can already be done without them. Less is more.
• Make it uniform. That goes for fonts, colors, and overall style. A cohesive look is much more pleasing and professional. I had different social media buttons and the font and color on my 'about me' snippet did not go with my design. Fix that now! It may take some extra work but it is worth it.
• Pick two fonts and two colors. Or three fonts and three colors if you're really bold. The idea once again is that keeping it simple is key. 
• Figure out how to do something you've always wanted to do. I've wanted to have a rounded image for my 'about me' and I finally learned how to do it! Take some time and get to researching and trying it out.

What do you do to update your blog? Will you try any of my housekeeping ideas?

-AJF