How To – Add to a Blog Post

Obviously, this is where it is easiest for me as I’m already established and have readers etc so I decided to do a series of “how to” posts and put a request out via Facebook and Twitter for any suggestions on what other bloggers would love to read and learn at the same time.

 The posts may not always be blogging related and any suggestions will always be welcomed either in the comments or through Twitter.

The title of a post is really important as you want it to be something that comes up when someone enters search terms on Google (SEO) and that your readers can find the post easily. It’s also important for the Permalink (URL) of your post and how that is created which I will go into more detail of below. I chose the title for this blog post, firstly, by using the “How To” which will be used on all posts of this type so that readers know what to expect, followed by what they will learn from reading the post. In this case, how to write a post.

To add an image to your post, click on the photograph icon in the toolbar above. In that menu, there will be several options (upload, from this blog, from Picasa web albums, from your phone, from your webcam and from a URL). I upload my images as even if I’ve taken them with my phone, they are then saved to a cloud and I am able to access them from my laptop and also make any edits (there will be a separate post on this).

Have your cursor in the place you would like to add the image, click on Choose Files and then locate the file that you would like to upload to your blog. Once the picture is uploaded, there will then be a small menu available to you when you click on the image (circled in the image below).

Source: www.bloggermaza.com

Sizing – The first options are for sizing your image and in this case, bigger is better. X-Large will look best on your page unless you have a template where original size would look best. If you’re unsure as to how it will look you can check this as many times as you like by clicking the preview button on the right-hand side.

Alignment – Next, there is the alignment of the picture on the page. I stick to centre as this works for me but feel free to experiment and find what works for you.

Captions – not all images need them. If the picture is yours and you’re explaining it in the text or it’s a self-explanatory image then you don’t need one. However, if the picture isn’t yours and you found it via google images for example, then you should add a caption showing the source of the image.

Properties – For SEO (search engine optimisation) purposes you should name the original image something which can be found via an internet search and not the default name which is assigned to it by your phone or camera. You can then add a title to the picture (this won’t show on the blog post but will help to make sure it can be found with an internet search too). You can also add Alt Text to the picture which is basically an alternate title for the picture and again aids with SEO.

Remove – You’ve had a bad day and managed to upload the wrong image or you’ve added it in the wrong place.

Insert a video into your post

Adding a video to a post is very similar to adding an image to your post. Start by clicking the film icon on the toolbar (on the right-hand side of the image icon) and it will open up a menu which has four options, except I stick to just two as these are where I am most likely going to be adding videos from.

Upload – Again, like adding an image to a blog post, you can do this straight from the computer you are using and wherever the video is saved. The video will then show in the blog post and can be played from there.

From Youtube – You can use the search box to find the youtube video you are looking for and then add it to your blog post. It will be automatically centred and again the video can be viewed directly in the post. (For an example of this click here)

Source: www.howdescribe.com

Text to Display – This is the text that will be seen in the blog post. If I’m linking another blogger, I prefer it to show the blog title rather than the full URL of the blog which I think can look a bit messy. For example, Dorkface is the name of Jemma’s blog and the link you need to click on (as well as the text displayed) but the web address is http://www.dorkface.co.uk/

Web Address – This is the URL that you will be taken to when you click the link and as shown above is anything starting www. or http://

Email Address – Instead of a web address you can change it so that you have one lot of text displayed e.g. Fiona but when you click on the link it opens your email and means you can type and send me an email without having to copy and paste my email address.

Open in a New Window – This gives the option for the link your reader will be clicking on to open in a new window, which is great for reducing bounce rate as you’re reader will still be on your site but have also opened a link to another blogger, a product site or whatever you have chosen to link to.

Add NoFollow Attribute – No Follow attribute is very important when considering SEO and while I’m not entirely sure what it means, I always pop a tick in the box anyway and that way all bases are covered.

What is a read more link (otherwise known as a jump break)?

Well, in my case, I use them so that the main screen of my blog isn’t too cluttered and when scrolling through the page a reader can make a decision about which post to read rather than essentially reading each post as they scroll through the front page of the blog. In this post, I inserted the read more link after a picture. I pop a small paragraph at the top of the post to give an indication of what the post is about, insert an image for the post as above and then click the image of a piece of paper cut through the middle and this will add the read more to your post.

Continue your typing right underneath the link, so that when it’s open as a full post there isn’t a huge gap between what would be above and below the break.